[grc] FW: NEWS RELEASE: KKFI, Kansas City In Violation of By-Laws

Sat Dec 15 10:24:16 PST 2018

I apologize for my extreme cynicism as displayed in that late-night post.
I am glad that some folks are hanging in there to continue to fight the
good fight to keep Pacifica together and defend the reforms of democratic
community participation that some of us gave many years and heartache for.
The endless byzantine tactics of some so-called 'progressives' and the
current apparent turncoat betrayals of some friends and comrades I worked
along side for so long took it's toll on me. I had to remove myself from
the struggle for my own emotional health. Thank you for continuing to
defend the reforms I and others gave so much to create. All the best, Curt
Gray

https://sites.google.com/site/therealsavekpfa/home

> There are still a few of us within Pacifica attempting to pull head out of
> sand and facilitate the still growing 250 stations infrastructure to slow
> down fast approaching full fascism.  https://rescuepacifica.net/
>
> Also way to much top down control at KKFI for a community radio station.
>
> Tom.
>
>> From: taproot at lmi.net
>>
>> From whatever I have observed at Pacifica the procedure seems to be:
>>
>> 1) find sandbox.
>>
>> 2) stick your head deep enough into the sand until you can't hear or see
>> whatever problems made you want to stick your head there in the first
>> place.
>>
>> 3) get comfortable in that position. don't even try to imagine an
>> alternative. Don't worry, everyone knows that if you ignore anything
>> long
>> enough it eventually just goes away.
>>
>>> Does NFCB have any procedures for conflict resolution at member
>> stations?
>>>
>>> Frieda Werden, Series Producer
>>> WINGS: Women's International News Gathering Service www.wings.org
>>>
>>>
>>> On Tue, Dec 11, 2018 at 11:36 AM Sharon Lockhart via grc <
>>> grc at maillist.peak.org> wrote:
>>>
>>>> ---------- Forwarded message ---------
>>>> From: KKFIFour <kkfifour at gmail.com <mailto:kkfifour at gmail.com> >
>>>> Date: Thu, Nov 22, 2018 at 8:07 PM
>>>> Subject: NEWS RELEASE: KKFI Refuses to Follow By Laws
>>>> To: <jbhargava at shawneedispatch.com
>>>> <mailto:jbhargava at shawneedispatch.com>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
>>>>
>>>> Kansas City, MO
>>>>
>>>> November 20, 2018
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> CONTACT:
>>>> Amy Bell
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> PHONE: 913 908 7914
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> EMAIL:
>>>> <mailto:KKFIFour at gmail.com>
>>>> KKFIFour at gmail.com
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> KKFI Refuses To Follow By-Laws
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Since January 23, 2018, Sharon Lockhart and three others have been
>>>> trying
>>>> to get KKFI to follow its due process rules. Rather than follow its
>> own
>>>> rules, KKFI (Mid-Coast Radio Project, Inc.) has resorted to
>> allegations
>>>> that Sharon Lockhart and the others were Ã¢discriminating against
>> white
>>>> men,Ã¢ a call seemingly borrowed from the alt right. KKFI then
>>>> scrambled to
>>>> revise its By-laws and again failed to follow proper procedure in that
>>>> endeavor.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> The KKFI grievance committee refused to hear the grievance of the
>> group
>>>> of
>>>> four people regarding station process and policy. As an alternative,
>>>> Ms.
>>>> Lockhart and the three other volunteer members offered to submit to an
>>>> objective process with an outside mediator. Instead of agreeing to a
>>>> reasonable process or engaging in civil discourse, KKFI accused Ms.
>>>> Lockhart and the other three of Ã¢discriminating against white men.Ã¢
>>>> This
>>>> tactic, which also included a campaign of personal destruction against
>>>> Ms.
>>>> Lockhart, is a strong-arm course of conduct that should not be
>> tolerated
>>>> in
>>>> a so- called community radio station.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Ms. Lockhart is a producer and host of the Every Woman show. She has a
>>>> KKFI volunteer track record of 23 years. With no violation of any
>>>> standard or rule, she was suspended from her show and all volunteer
>>>> committee work. Ms. Lockhart is no ordinary volunteer, she has single
>>>> handedly saved KKFI thousands of dollars over the years while serving
>> on
>>>> the board and various committees.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Ms. LockhartÃ¢s ouster occurred without any due process and with no
>> one
>>>> hearing her side of a disagreement that occurred or the course of
>>>> events.
>>>> KKFI will not provide due process or even acknowledge that the other
>> two
>>>> women that worked on the show also have a grievance because of certain
>>>> actors at KKFI.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Also joined in the grievance is a black man who was suspended because
>>>> KKFI
>>>> management allegedly found him Ã¢scary and dangerous.Ã¢ Indeed, KKFI
>>>> management threatened to call police if the man of color entered the
>>>> station again and he has been expelled from the station completely.
>>>> His
>>>> expulsion, without due process, was based upon an overheard
>>>> conversation.
>>>> Not one ounce of investigation has been put into the expulsion and the
>>>> two
>>>> parties to the conversation have been in each other company many times
>>>> since the racist overreaction of KKFI.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> In the past, it has been a usual practice for the Grievance Committee,
>>>> the
>>>> KKFI Board, and management to refuse to hear grievances filed by
>>>> members.
>>>> This is apparently the first time they have been challenged. Most
>>>> members
>>>> recognize the cost of standing up and speaking out is to lose their
>> spot
>>>> on
>>>> the air. In this way many past board and committee members have had to
>>>> keep their heads down to keep their show. The four grievants are now
>>>> paying the price and the community should rally behind them to prevent
>>>> this
>>>> injustice.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> KKFI decided that rather than follow the process outlined in its
>>>> By-laws,
>>>> it first stonewalled for weeks. Then it denied the grievance outright,
>>>> and
>>>> then determined that it got to pick and choose what grievance it would
>>>> hear
>>>> rather than the one that was put forward. A campaign of personal
>>>> attacks
>>>> were also lodged against Ms. Lockhart. She has been insulted publicly
>>>> in a
>>>> number of different ways that are commonly used to keep older women in
>>>> their place, including, being called Ã¢abusiveÃ¢ and Ã¢vile.Ã¢ KKFI
>>>> made
>>>> spurious allegations that Ms. Lockhart wanted to Ã¢take the station
>>>> downÃ¢
>>>> and that she was a Ã¢bully.Ã¢
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> After an appeal to the board, KKFI has given Ms. Lockhart an ultimatum
>>>> that it will only hear her grievance but not the grievance of the
>> other
>>>> three people in the group as a whole grievance. KKFI has no reasoning
>>>> for
>>>> separating the group and failing to provide due process to the other
>>>> three
>>>> individuals. It has said that it will allow the other three to
>>>> participate as Ã¢witnessesÃ¢ but they can only address the committee
>>>> for 5
>>>> minutes and cannot be in the room for the whole presentation.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Prior to this latest twist, KKFI had agreed to go to an outside
>>>> mediation
>>>> but backed out of that promise because KKFI would not agree to the
>>>> outside
>>>> mediators the Grievants proposed (including two white men and a white
>>>> woman). KKFI insisted on a single mediator it proposed. However, he
>>>> lacked
>>>> corporate experience and KKFI would not propose another mediator. KKFI
>>>> then made horrible allegation that the grievants were Ã¢discriminating
>>>> against white menÃ¢ because it rejected the proposed mediator. The
>>>> GrievantsÃ¢ lawyer demanded a retraction of such a statement and,
>>>> recognizing that it had crossed a line, KKFI withdrew the statement.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> KKFI claims to be a community radio station dedicated to giving a
>>>> platform
>>>> to diverse voices across the Kansas City area. It appears that this
>>>> does
>>>> not include the voices and opinions of strong women and black men.
>>>> KKFI
>>>> pretends that it operates fairly but apparently not when it is intent
>>>> upon
>>>> ridding itself of those who ask questions, and those who insist on
>> fair
>>>> play, ethical actions, and accountability. The public and other
>> members
>>>> should expect more of a publicly funded and donor supported non-profit
>>>> radio station and tax- free institution.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> To request that KKFI hear the Grievance of the KKFI Four, as written,
>>>> in
>>>> a fair, transparent, and open setting, Call KKFI at 816 931-3122.
>>>> Non-Profits owe accountability to public donors.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ###
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> If you would like more information about this topic, please call Amy
>>>> Bell
>>>> 913 908 7914
>>>>
>>>> or Email: KKFIFour at gmail.com <mailto:KKFIFour at gmail.com> .
>>>>
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>>>>
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>>
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