Opinion
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ACORN denies name change but former board members remain convinced of re-branding
By: Kevin Mooney
Commentary Staff Writer
06/24/09 5:00 PM EDT
Former national board members with the National Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now (ACORN) remain convinced the current leadership is working to reconfigure and rebrand itself despite an official denial.
Wade Rathke, who founded the organization, announced on his blog that ACORN International, one of many affiliate organizations, had officially changed its name to “Community Organizations International.” This move should be viewed a prelude to a larger reorganization effort designed to deflect attention away from on-going investigations, according to whistleblowers who have formed their own organization called ACORN 8.
Scott Levenson, a spokesman for organization’s national leadership, has issued statement claiming that the name has not been dropped and that Rathke is no longer connected with ACORN. It is as follows:
“ACORN is not changing its name. ACORN International, is a five-year old organization from which ACORN withdrew a year ago as part of an overall restructuring process and requested that they stop using the ACORN name, which they have now done. Wade Rathke was fired as Chief Organizer of ACORN in June 2008.”
But ACORN 8 activists who have raised questions about the organization’s internal finances believe Rathke still exerts control and that a name change is in the works.
“The idea is to carry on in the same way without changing anything about their finances or their overall practices and just do this under a different name,” said Karen Inman, a former board member from Minnesota who co-founded ACORN 8. “I don’t believe for a minute that Rathke has been removed from the organization in any practical sense.”
Inman joined with Marcel Reid, another former board member based in Washington D.C., to form ACORN 8 in the wake of embezzlement scandal involving Dale Rathke, the brother Wade Rathke. Dale Rathke embezzled almost $1 million from ACORN in 1999 and 2000, while he was employed as the organization’s chief financial officer with the Citizens Consulting Inc. (CCI) affiliate, according to the criminal complaint ACORN 8 members filed against the organization.
Ron Sykes, the treasurer of the Washington D.C. ACORN branch, has raised questions about the CCI affiliate, which he says is the main financial artery of the organization. He also expects the name to be changed at some point, since the ACORN label has become a distraction.
“They want to change the ACORN name and they will say and do anything,” Sykes said. “They will shuffle people around but it will still be the same ACORN, even if it’s called something else. They are looking for a way to reintroduce themselves.”
Reid, who now chairs ACORN 8, still believes in reforming the organization from within but insists that the current national leadership must be terminated and removed.
“Unfortunately, Wade Rathke continues to wield influence and has already begun the process of re-marketing and re-branding ACORN in an effort to deflect further scrutiny,” she said.
However, Reid did clarify a few comments from a previous interview. Although ACORN International has already completed its name change over to Community Organizations International, she does not possess any personal knowledge about the re-branding of the national organization and its many components.
“I don't have any firm information about the name change for ACORN,” Reid said. “Wade Rathke has already sent the signal by changing the name of ACORN International, he's still calling the shots and still leading the way. The top executives know the brand name is damaged. But I just want to clarify, this is just something we have heard the staff has talked about, since they understand the organization can't continue in its current form. They are still called the Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now but you just never know with this group and they will deny anything they have been called out for. But I just want to be clear that the name hasn't been entirely dropped yet. I suspect the process has started.”
But, Reid added, that she is not aware of any firm timetable for a potential name change.
Separately, Reid also commented on a "cease and desist" letter ACORN 8 received from an attorney representing the national organization's current leadership threatening legal action. Unless the whistleblowers "cease and desist" in their use of the ACORN name, and provide written assurances to this effect by June 30, they could be held liable for monetary damages and injunctive relief, Arthur Schwartz, the attorney wrote.
“ACORN is presently engaged in a campaign to silence whistleblowers and reformers through intimidation and legal action,” Reid said. “We are in the process of seeking legal counsel regarding this and other legal issues related to ACORN. But we have no intention of changing our name unless required to by a court of law. First of all “ACORN” is an acronym; it is not their name, which is the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now. We are an independent organization and separate legal entity named the ACORN 8. “Consequently, we believe that the “cease and desist” letter is a frivolous attempt to silence ACORN whistleblowers and reformers,” Reid said.
Going forward, ACORN 8 will continue to push hard for financial transparency and for reforms that empower rank and file members who are devoted to their communities, Reid added.
Meanwhile, Gwendolyn Cogshell, another former board member in Missouri active with ACORN 8, is holding a press conference Thursday morning focusing attention on the ACORN Housing affiliate in St. Louis. Although it continues to attract political and financial support, Cogshell said the local program is now defunct and there is no way to track grant money that has already been dispersed. While she remains a believer in ACORN’s original mission, Cogshell is concerned about the group’s management.
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