What is going on at PUEBLO?

There was an internal dispute at PUEBLO. Executive Director Dawn Phillips was placed on unpaid administrative leave and locked out of the office. Police were also reportedly called into the dispute.

Dawn Phillips and/or persons representing her then posted news releases on the Indymedia website and called on us of the progressive community to come to her aid. Among other things, we have been asked to circulate and sign a petition in support of Ms. Phillips.

By doing so, Dawn Phillips and her supporters have made their internal dispute a matter of community concern. And since they expect to receive our support, they need to tell us exactly what is going on. It’s only fair that we should know at least as much as the police were told.

I don’t have inside information, but as an Indymedia reader I find this whole situation puzzling. So far we’ve only heard from the Phillips faction. One of its news releases says the dispute arose “from a divergence in vision,” and names two members of PUEBLO who are supposedly “creating all of this havoc.” There’s also a mention of an “8 person dictatorship.”

The “divergence in vision” is explained in extremely vague terms. Some commenters have suggested that it has little to do with vision and everything to do with the handling of funds. If so, then it’s fair to ask how PUEBLO gets its funds, and how those funds are spent. Who decides?

The two alleged creators of “all this havoc” are respected persons in this community. Shouldn’t we at least give them the benefit of the doubt until we hear what they have to say? “Innocent until proven guilty” is among the most fundamental of our American legal principles. We progressives firmly and constantly insist that our Constitutional rights be respected by the powers that be—that’s one of the main things we’re fighting for. We also need to practice such principles among ourselves.

As for the alleged “8 person dictatorship,” that’s an innuendo which needs to be explained. What sort of governing body does PUEBLO have? How are its members chosen? This needs to be clarified to those of us who haven’t worked directly with PUEBLO.

These are things that need to be explained and presented to us in a straightforward way. As it is, without giving us much more than a bunch of innuendos and screams for help, the Phillips faction has presented us with a petition and has collected over 360 signatures which are posted on the PUEBLO website for all to see.

Actually, there is some question about the validity of those signatures. One person was quite astonished to find that her name was on it. Could it be someone else with the same name? Or if not, then, how many of the people on that petition actually signed it? Persons who read this might pause to take a look at the list. It’s at:
http://www.petitiononline.com/mod_perl/signed.cgi?PUEBLO4U&1

Meanwhile, according to a Phillips news release, there was to be a meeting on Wednesday, March 3rd where things were to be decided. Now it’s a matter of courtesy, decency and democracy to let people know what the ongoing situation is—after inviting them in to participate.

The point is that if we ever hope to move this society in a democratic direction, we are going have to operate in a democratic way ourselves.