Maine PPEHRC at a crossroads--Can we re-activate despite money being misappropriated?

[Larry Dansinger]

                  March 23, 2012

 

To all supporters of Economic Justice/Economic Human Rights in Maine:

 

The Maine Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Coalition (Maine PPEHRC) is facing a serious crossroads. Despite the fact that it has tremendous potential to end poverty in Maine, it is barely active and struggling. This is due in part to misappropriated funds and also because it needs people to take a more active role again in the organization. 

 

Maine PPEHRC was formed after several talks in Maine in 2009 by Cheri Honkala, a spokesperson for the national Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign.

 

Since forming, Maine PPEHRC has sent several members to national conferences in Kentucky and Detroit (the US Social Forum), established a Maine Bill of Economic Human Rights, and held a convention in October, 2010, where that Bill of Rights was passed and sent to other groups and legislators.

 

However, since the beginning of 2011, there has been little activity in advocating for economic human rights, even though the governor and legislature have been cutting budgets of state agencies that should be providing those rights and attacking people simply for being low income.

 

Maine PPEHRC should be fighting back, but it hasn’t been. From past donations, Maine PPEHRC should have an estimated $4,000-4,500 in an account, which could be used to mobilize people to respond to this crisis and keep the organization active. But, two members of Maine PPEHRC, Jan LightfootLane and Marlene LightfootLane, misappropriated that money for personal use. The account was emptied out.

 

Marlene LightfootLane was the Maine PPEHRC treasurer; both she and Jan have been very active in struggles for the rights and dignity of poor people over the years. Because of their many years of activism on this issue, they were trusted to maintain the account accurately, without adequate oversight. Unfortunately, they have betrayed poor people and everything the two of them have stood for in the past and used the remainder of Maine PPEHRC's money for their own personal expenses.

 

Jan and Marlene signed a written agreement to pay back $1,400 of that money. The total amount that they misused was not clear when that agreement was signed, because they had destroyed financial statements. Since that time, I have gotten a complete set of statements for that credit union account and estimate that the amount taken was actually $4,000-4,500. While the agreement they both signed said they would pay back $100 per month, Maine PPEHRC has only received two checks of $100 since October, 2011.

 

If you have want more information, you can contact me at (207) 525-7776 or ro...@psouth.net. If you want to reach Jan or Marlene to get their view, call (207) 453-2353 or endpov...@yahoo.com.

 

Maine PPEHRC may be able to re-energize itself by meeting again (I’m willing to help arrange a meeting) and by sending people to the One Class-One Cause march on June 30^th in Washington, DC. More information about that march will be sent in another email, but there are now no funds to help people from Maine get to Washington for this march.

Despite the financial problems, I hope people who have supported economic human rights as a principle and organizing strategy will want to keep the group going. Contact me if you are and I’ll connect you with others with a similar interest.

If you have questions about meeting again or the loss or money, you can contact me.

Larry Dansinger

(207) 525-7776 or ro...@psouth.net