[nfb-talk] ACB members in NFB

[Mike Freeman]

Dear Samira:

Technically, it is against NFB policy for members to simultaneously be
members of ACB and NFB although at the national level, this is not spelled
out in so many words. It is implied by the NFB Pledge and the NFB
Constitution which both say that members should actively support the
policies and programs of the Federation (policies and programs which ACB
almost invariably opposes). Thirty years or so ago, I remember some local
chapters with explicit prohibition of dual membership but haven't seen this
sort of thing in chapter or affiliate constitutions of late.

Having said this, though, our affiliate has tolerated a few members who
joined both ACB an NFB and were "trying them out" as it were. We gave such
members something like six months to make up their minds as to which
organization they wished to join permanently. After that six-month grace
period, we asked them to leave our organization if they did not wish to
resign from ACB.

Of course, this pragmatic policy did not apply if the dual members held
office in the ACB local chapter or state affiliate or were otherwise
politically important within either NFB or ACB. WE required them to choose
which organization they wished to remain part of forthwith.

Bottom line: if your dual member isn't politically prominent, I wouldn't
sweat it; give him/her a few months to make up his/her mind. But if he/she
is an ACB chapter or affiliate officer, I'd ask him/her to choose which
organization he/she wishes to remain with immediately. And of course if
he/she participates in ACB activities which oppose NFB activities, he/she
should immediately be given the choice of ceasing such activities or leaving
NFB.

HTH!

Mike Freman, President
NFB of Washington

  ----- Original Message -----
  From: S Farwaneh
  To: nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
  Sent: Sunday, August 06, 2006 6:51 PM
  Subject: [nfb-talk] ACB members in NFB


  Hello Everyone,

  I have a question about how to best accommodate active ACB members who try
  to join the NFB. My understanding is that NFB policies prohibit ACB/NFB
  dual membership. We have an ACB member in our midst who was informed about
  the policy, whereupon she denied her affiliation with ACB. We have
  philosophical differences concerning this issue: Some members believe that
  we should take her word for it and allow her to participate fully in NFB
  activities in the hopes that she will ultimately become a functional
  member; others request that her terminated affiliation with ACB be
verified
  to  ensure that our chapters are not infiltrated by ACB members who
believe
  that their mission is to 'reform' the NFB.

  I wonder if you have a similar experience to report, and what the best
  strategy is to expand our membership without jeopardizing our philosophy
  and policies.

  Thanks,
  Samira Farwaneh
  Tucson Chapter, NFBA


  Samira Farwaneh
  Assistant Professor, Arabic Language and Linguistics
  Department of Near Eastern Studies
  Department of Linguistics
  Second Language Acquisition and Teaching Program
  Louise Foucar Marshall Building
  845 N Park Avenue, Room 440
  PO BOX 210158B
  University of Arizona
  Tucson, Arizona  85721-0158B
  Phone: (520) 621-8629 Or 621-8012
  Fax: (520) 621-2333
  _______________________________________________
  nfb-talk mailing list
  nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
  http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk
-------------- next part --------------
Dear Samira:
 
Technically, it is against NFB policy for members to simultaneously be members of ACB and NFB although at the national level, this is not spelled out in so many words. It is implied by the NFB Pledge and the NFB Constitution which both say that members should actively support the policies and programs of the Federation (policies and programs which ACB almost invariably opposes). Thirty years or so ago, I remember some local chapters with explicit prohibition of dual membership but haven't seen this sort of thing in chapter or affiliate constitutions of late.
 
Having said this, though, our affiliate has tolerated a few members who joined both ACB an NFB and were "trying them out" as it were. We gave such members something like six months to make up their minds as to which organization they wished to join permanently. After that six-month grace period, we asked them to leave our organization if they did not wish to resign from ACB.
 
Of course, this pragmatic policy did not apply if the dual members held office in the ACB local chapter or state affiliate or were otherwise politically important within either NFB or ACB. WE required them to choose which organization they wished to remain part of forthwith.
 
Bottom line: if your dual member isn't politically prominent, I wouldn't sweat it; give him/her a few months to make up his/her mind. But if he/she is an ACB chapter or affiliate officer, I'd ask him/her to choose which organization he/she wishes to remain with immediately. And of course if he/she participates in ACB activities which oppose NFB activities, he/she should immediately be given the choice of ceasing such activities or leaving NFB.
 
HTH!
 
Mike Freman, President
NFB of Washington
 
----- Original Message -----
From:
mailto:farwaneh at email.arizona.edu S Farwaneh
To:
mailto:nfb-talk at nfbnet.org nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
Sent:
Sunday, August 06, 2006 6:51 PM
Subject:
[nfb-talk] ACB members in NFB
Hello Everyone,
I have a question about how to best accommodate active ACB members who try
to join the NFB. My understanding is that NFB policies prohibit ACB/NFB
dual membership. We have an ACB member in our midst who was informed about
the policy, whereupon she denied her affiliation with ACB. We have
philosophical differences concerning this issue: Some members believe that
we should take her word for it and allow her to participate fully in NFB
activities in the hopes that she will ultimately become a functional
member; others request that her terminated affiliation with ACB be verified
to  ensure that our chapters are not infiltrated by ACB members who believe
that their mission is to 'reform' the NFB.
I wonder if you have a similar experience to report, and what the best
strategy is to expand our membership without jeopardizing our philosophy
and policies.
Thanks,
Samira Farwaneh
Tucson Chapter, NFBA
Samira Farwaneh
Assistant Professor, Arabic Language and Linguistics
Department of Near Eastern Studies
Department of Linguistics
Second Language Acquisition and Teaching Program
Louise Foucar Marshall Building
845 N Park Avenue, Room 440
PO BOX 210158B
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona  85721-0158B
Phone: (520) 621-8629 Or 621-8012
Fax: (520) 621-2333
_______________________________________________
nfb-talk mailing list
mailto:nfb-talk at nfbnet.org nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk