Fwd: Former LPNH Vice Chair to LNC re: Action in LPNH Case
John Phillips
From: Avens O'Brien <apples...@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Jun 16, 2021, 8:12 AM
Subject: Former LPNH Vice Chair to LNC re: Action in LPNH Case
To: <john.p...@lp.org>
Hi John,
I would be grateful if you could forward this letter to the LNC list on my behalf. Thank you for what you do, I know this has been a trying and stressful several days. -Avens
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Open letter to the LNC, and my fellow Libertarians,
I’ve been part of the Libertarian Party my entire life. Many of you know my story, and how my parents met doing LP activism in the early 1970s. I’ve worked local, state and presidential campaigns since 2004, collected signatures and petitions, knocked on doors, fundraised, donated when financially able, and have had the honor of speaking at and photographing many state and national conventions and fundraisers for the party, as well as the larger liberty movement. I finally became a Lifetime Member in 2020, and am also a Lifetime Member of the state of California, where I currently reside. I share this for those members or outside observers who may not know why I’m so attached to this party, and why I’ve decided to email the LNC today.
I write to you about (what else?) the situation regarding the LPNH, and the LNC’s response.
My interest in the matter is somewhat personal: I am a former Vice Chair of the LPNH (2006-2008), was a keynote speaker and photographer at their 2019 convention, and count many of their members (in several caucuses) among my friends. If you haven’t gathered from above: I consider the Libertarian Party and its members to be a kind of family to me.
This situation makes my head and heart ache. I can only hope you feel the same.
There’s been a lot of noise about this matter, and its ratio to signal is troubling. There have been unverified claims, accusations, speculations and a lot of conflating multiple issues together in a way that creates clear divides along faction lines, with individuals holding positions I doubt they’d hold if the characters were reversed in the situation.
I call for a formal investigation of this matter, concerning what happened in NH, what caused it, what can be done about it, and also what needs to be learned from it. I feel that the precedents set by both the initial action and the LNC’s response are something to be considered carefully, and the LNC’s conclusions will have lasting consequences for our party. I request that every member of the LNC contemplate the lasting impact of their own messages, their decisions, and their behavior.
If I took a photo of you at a convention in 2020 or 2021, you may have received my business card. On it is my name, my contact information and a tagline: Making Liberty Look Good.
This is part of my philosophy within the movement. I want to make liberty look good. I want our positions to be principled AND appealing (because they are, when expressed well), I want our members to be themselves, and yet the best versions of themselves, and I try to bring that out in the photos I take of them. I ask the LNC to remember to be their best selves in these trying times. We’re all watching.
I want our party to grow, and for us to be bold, strong, and united in our fight for liberty in everyone’s lifetimes. This isn’t just about limited government - this is about unlimited individuals.
Yet my 33 years growing up in this party have taught me plenty about the internal conflicts we experience. While we fight the oppression of the state, we often fight each other too. It’s exhausting, and can be demoralizing, and yes, it’s sometimes necessary, but often not.
There are many factions within this party - caucuses or not, we all have differences in opinion within the details and specifics of our ideology, our methods, our messaging, and how to accomplish what I hope we all seek: a world set free in our lifetimes.
These years have also taught me, despite these warring factions, that Libertarians can be profoundly compassionate. It’s inherent within our philosophy - we fight for the rights of every individual to determine the path and practice of their own lives, without force or fraud from others. I truly believe this is the most compassionate political ideology in the world, and I seek to reflect that in my advocacy and actions in support of this party and movement.
So I think it’s a good time to remind all of us, including the dear, hardworking individuals on the LNC, to extend that compassion to each other as we face this distressing and complicated matter. There are a lot of heightened emotions and knee jerk reactions, and I want to see us come out of this with not just a procedurally right conclusion but a fair and just outcome for those involved and those concerned about the broader issues. I want us as a party to emerge striving to be our best selves.
I give this context to address what I see as two SEPARATE issues facing the LNC at the moment.
The status of the LPNH affiliate and an alternative LPNH, and the process and procedures that went into the situation that we are faced with, and what the LNC can do about it (“issue 1”).
The events that caused the actions of Jilletta Jarvis, and what may need to be addressed or dealt with specifically regarding that case (“issue 2”).
These two separate issues may affect each other - as investigation into #2 could provide justification for actions in #1, however I think it important that they are acknowledged and treated separately, and that they not be conflated.
Regarding the status of the LPNH affiliate (“issue #1”), there are important questions to be asking:
Does the LNC have a responsibility or role, per the bylaws, regarding the dispute between these two organizations, or its recognition of one over the other, and the enforcement of ownership of assets of either?
Is the LNC capable of taking action?
What actions is the LNC capable of taking?
If it is able, what is the appropriate process for action? (Such as an investigation)
Is this a matter for the Judicial Committee to handle?
Can the Judicial Committee or another committee play some sort of role in the resolution of the LPNH situation directly, such as investigating, mediating between the two groups or assessing the various accusations made by Ms. Jarvis?
If it is procedurally appropriate, I call on the LNC to form an investigative committee or activate the Judicial Committee for this purpose, and to determine the status of the LPNH affiliate after said investigation.
The situation in NH did not arise out of thin air. Many of us observed the tensions from the outside, and Ms. Jarvis and other members of the party have made allegations against the rest of the LPNH board that was elected in March, along with accusations towards members and volunteers.
I believe these accusations also warrant a separate investigation, and that the bylaws and procedural questions expressed in issue #1 should not be conflated as a conclusion or judgement in the matter of issue #2.
It is possible that if true, the allegations in issue #2 could potentially be used to justify actions in issue #1.
It may be that issue #2 must be investigated first, before reaching a conclusion about #1.
Regarding the events that caused the actions of Jilletta Jarvis (“issue #2”) there are more questions to be answered:
What are the complete allegations made by Ms. Jarvis (or her possible allies in this effort), regarding the actions of the rest of the March-elected LPNH board?
Social media concerns
This does not just refer to the alleged offensiveness of the messaging choices by the LPNH social media team, but also allegations of unilateral and potentially bullying actions by members of that team to delete alternative messages by other members.
Alleged member purges
Alleged support of Republican candidates
Alleged paperwork/legality concerns
Allegations regarding an influx of new membership and a coordinated “takeover” to remove avenues of recourse while allegedly being in conflict with the goals or ideals of the party.
There may be additional allegations I’m not aware of.
What, if anything, would have been the appropriate actions for Ms. Jarvis to take to deal with these allegations, and how could the LNC have responded?
Is there an ability to investigate these specific concerns and allegations on a state or national level?
Would the veracity of these allegations change the actions or responsibility of the LNC to its affiliate and members?
Do these allegations justify action per bylaws/procedures, and what actions?
What should a state Chair do if faced with a situation like this, and what should the LNC do in response?
Can any of these actions be applied retroactively to attempt to repair alleged damages?
Ultimately, I think there is a lot that is unknown here, and it leads to even more questions for the stability of our state affiliates.
- What are the lines that need to be crossed for the LNC to take action on allegedly “rogue” state affiliates?
- What recourse is there for members or leaders faced with concerning activities of their state committees, or allegedly bullying behaviors that make productive collaboration between factions impossible?
- What are the long term consequences for affiliates everywhere if the LNC does or doesn’t take action?
All of these questions AND their answers are not to be conflated with basic differences between the messaging, methodology or sub-ideologies of different factions.
I request that the LNC take a step back, appoint a neutral third party (or invoke the Judicial Committee or create another committee) to investigate and consider both issue #1 and issue #2 separately.
Finally, and recognizing that we all have different opinions about this, I request that everyone who has gotten involved in this ask themselves if their actions and words are contributing to the betterment of our party, to making liberty look good, and to a world set free in our lifetimes.
For any direct inquiries or responses, my email address is avens....@gmail.com, which may be shared publicly. If I can be of assistance in any way, please do not hesitate to reach out.
Thank you for your time, I know you've already spent a lot of it on this.
Avens O’Brien
Lifetime Member CA
Lifetime Member, National LP
Vice Chair, LPNH 2006-2008
A copy of this letter will likely be published to my personal blog and my social media accounts for commentary.