WTF is going on with the OTW elections?

[norwich36]

I admit I don't pay a tremendous amount of attention to the OTW, other than to donate annually (mainly to support A03, though I also support the legal work they do for fandom), and I honestly was planning to do what I normally do and research the candidates closer to the actual election this year, since it's actually contested. I've been saving some links on the candidates and I did look at a few gossipy threads on ffa about the election and specifically the dismissal of Nikisha Sanders as treasurer, but otherwise not really paying attention.

But the fact that the board, in the middle of the election process, has to decided to unilaterally dismiss Nikisha Sanders as an eligible candidate, and at least from some reports against the protests of the election board , seems pretty shady to me. A number of the candidates who are running have spoken up in protest about this, which is good, but honestly, at the moment I feel like this whole election process has been rendered extremely shady, especially since one of the members of the Board who (presumably?) was part of this process is also running for re-election.

I wasn't actually planning on voting for Sanders, based on some of the links I listed above, but I do agree with some questions raised in this recent thread on ffa and Sanders' own recent discussion of her interactions with the board: if the board can unilaterally remove anyone without any public accountability, what's the point of having elections at all?

In the past when I read about the internal problems of the OTW, I mostly assumed that like every volunteer organization it had its problems, but overall it was doing good things for fandom. I voted and contributed money annually and took all the criticisms with a grain of salt. This particular incident seems to me to be demonstrating that the critics are right. Anyone with more knowledge than me about the internal workings of the OTW board want to weigh in on this? I have to say that at the moment I can't see continuing to contribute money to an organization that is this dysfunctional. I am really saddened by this.

Comments

[rivkat]

Aaaagh! This is my deepest fear: that people will give up on the organization because the Board has serious and visible problems. Many (I think most) committees and projects are running well--Journal is producing on schedule and expanding, AO3 continues to grow, Legal is doing important work on fair use, Volunteers has done a huge amount of work in making things consistent, etc. I think the Board is in panic mode for a variety of reasons. I think sanders was treated badly, but I would actually have supported her dismissal for cause at basically any other time. I also think that many of the candidates are people who've done good, hard work in the organization and could help improve matters a lot.

[norwich36]

I am extremely appreciative of the work that Legal, especially, has been accomplishing, and also A03 of course. I don't want to stop supporting that! If the problem is really the current makeup of the board, and the new candidates can fix the problem that would be great. But the current board really seems to be poisoning the well of the OTW's public support, and I'm not even sure if they're aware of that.

[morgandawn]

I think we need to continue to be engaged and vote in candidates who will focus on improving transparncy?. I did not support sanders then or now because she ran on a platform of divisiveness. I would support any of the 4 candidates currently running who signed a statement condemning the board's actions.

[norwich36]

I am definitely planning to vote (I've already donated several times this year, so I am eligible). And I didn't support Sanders' candidacy--I'm not even sure I object to her removal as Treasurer; that may or may not have been an appropriate measure, I don't know enough of the true story (as opposed to rumors) to really judge. What I really object to is the way the Board decided to declare all her committee work ex officio and make her ineligible to run after the candidates had already been announced. That just smacks of the Board trying to manipulate the election, and based on the things I've been seeing in locked posts and anonymemes, I am far from the only person who thinks that.

[morgandawn]

yep, I am following the comments and the people speaking out against what just happened. so you are definitely not alone.

[cathexys]

Everything RivkaT said. The thing is, the numbers are working for us. The three members from this board who'll stay on just came in last year, so a lot of the bigger issues (like dissolving finance) cannot be laid at their feet, and we all hope that at least some of them will be open to work with the two new ones. And by next fall there are two more positions.

And many of the projects are doing great, we just hired a coder, and it looks like the newly appointed treasurer is actually drafting a budget, so...

I definitely haven't given up hope!!!

[norwich36]

I didn't see your post until I had already posted this, and I did see a number of the commenters there talking about the committees that are functioning. That's really good to know, actually, and might be something that needs to be more widely publicized. I realize ffa is probably not representative of fandom as a whole (given its history of criticism of various aspects of OTW/A03 through the years), but the impression I'm getting over there is that this particular event has solidified a lot of people's opinions against the OTW--even those who were former supporters.

I really hope you are right about the election being able to effect real change, because I do actually support the goals of the OTW, and most of the people I know who have volunteered are people I respect. :-)