November 2014 General Meeting Minutes

Culver City Democratic Club – 62 Years

General Membership Meeting – Veterans Auditorium Rotunda

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

1. Call to Order at 7:07 p.m. by Sylvia Moore, acting President.

2. Pledge of Allegiance – led by Isabell Cherness.

3. Approval of October 8, 2014 Minutes. Moved to approve by Disa Lindgren, seconded by Margaret Lindgren. Approved.

4. Officer Reports

1. Treasurer’s Report (Eric Fine) Total funds as of October 31, 2014 were: $2 700.68.
2. Membership (Diane Rosenberg) – 170 members paid for 2014. 34 paid for 2015. Anita Parnell is a new member. www.CulverCityDemocraticClub.com/RENEW.
3. Fundraising (Amy Cherness) – Raffle items were described. Fundraising theatre party at the Kentwood Playhouse, “Into the Woods.” Tickets are $30. Sunday, December 14 at 2:00 p.m.
4. Outreach (Sylvia Moore) – Sylvia has a list of all the registered Democrats in CC and the Club may have a “postcard party” to invite new members.
5. Correspondence & Legislation: (Stephen Murray) – No report.

5. Announcement of CCDC Executive Board Nominating Committee

1. Sylvia is nominating Darryl Cherness and Bill Wynn
2. 3 members “from the floor” are: Karlo Silbiger, Margaret Lindgren and Khin Khin Gyi.

6. Scott Houston, winner of the West Basin Water Board, spoke a few words including his thanks for

7. Gurneet Pannu of Common Cause to present Government By the People Act

8. Program: 2014 Midterm Election Review and Panel Discussion

8. Announcements

1. Executive Board Meeting will be held on Saturday, November 22, 2014 at the Jayne/Camarella home at 9:30 a.m.
2. CCDC December Holiday featuring Special Guest, former CCDC President Judge Harold Cherness (ret.) – Wednesday, December 10, 2014 in the Vet’s Rotunda Room.
3. Sydney circulated her petition to get her as a candidate on Seat 3 for the Community College District.

Culver City Democratic Club – 62 Years

General Membership Meeting – Veterans Auditorium Rotunda

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

1. Call to Order at 7:07 p.m. by Sylvia Moore, acting President.

2. Pledge of Allegiance – led by Isabell Cherness.

3. Approval of October 8, 2014 Minutes. Moved to approve by Disa Lindgren, seconded by Margaret Lindgren. Approved.

4. Officer Reports

1. Treasurer’s Report (Eric Fine) Total funds as of October 31, 2014 were: $2 700.68.
2. Membership (Diane Rosenberg) – 170 members paid for 2014. 34 paid for 2015. Anita Parnell is a new member. www.CulverCityDemocraticClub.com/RENEW.
3. Fundraising (Amy Cherness) – Raffle items were described. Fundraising theatre party at the Kentwood Playhouse, “Into the Woods.” Tickets are $30. Sunday, December 14 at 2:00 p.m.
4. Outreach (Sylvia Moore) – Sylvia has a list of all the registered Democrats in CC and the Club may have a “postcard party” to invite new members.
5. Correspondence & Legislation: (Stephen Murray) – No report.

5. Announcement of CCDC Executive Board Nominating Committee

1. Sylvia is nominating Darryl Cherness and Bill Wynn
2. 3 members “from the floor” are: Karlo Silbiger, Margaret Lindgren and Khin Khin Gyi.

6. Scott Houston, winner of the West Basin Water Board, spoke a few words including his thanks for

7. Gurneet Pannu of Common Cause to present Government By the People Act

8. Program: 2014 Midterm Election Review and Panel Discussion

8. Announcements

1. Executive Board Meeting will be held on Saturday, November 22, 2014 at the Jayne/Camarella home at 9:30 a.m.
2. CCDC December Holiday featuring Special Guest, former CCDC President Judge Harold Cherness (ret.) – Wednesday, December 10, 2014 in the Vet’s Rotunda Room.
3. Sydney circulated her petition to get her as a candidate on Seat 3 for the Community College District.

December 2014 General Meeting Minutes

Culver City Democratic Club – 62 Years

General Membership Meeting – Veterans Auditorium Rotunda

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

1. Call to Order at 7: 27 p.m. by Sylvia Moore, acting President.
2. Pledge of Allegiance – led by Isabell Cherness.
3. Approval of November 12, 2014 Minutes. Moved to approve by Margaret Lindgren, seconded by Neil Rubenstein. Approved.

4. Officer Reports

1. Treasurer’s Report (Eric Fine) Total funds as of November 12, 2014 were: $2,945.72. Projected Budget for 2015 is $18,375.47.
2. Membership (Diane Rosenberg) (absent) No report. www.CulverCityDemocraticClub.com/RENEW.
3. Fundraising (Amy Cherness) – Amy described the raffle items. Fundraising theatre party at the Kentwood Playhouse, “Into the Woods.” Tickets are $30. Sunday, December 14 at 2:00 p.m. 16 tickets have been sold.
4. Outreach (Sylvia Moore) – Sylvia has a list of all the registered Democrats in CC from the MOE (Mobilize, Organize, Elect) document we received from LACDP HQ.
5. Correspondence & Legislation: (Stephen Murray) – No report. Delegates for 54^th AD closes tomorrow, 12-11-14. Delegates are required to attend two conventions and more. Tom Camarella was putting together a slate to run: Jackie Hawthorne, Debbie Weinrauch, Suzanne DeBenedittis, Claudia Vizcarra, Jefferia Grayson, Michelle Weiner, Sydney Kamlager, Jim Clarke, David Mielke, Max Kanin, Nyabingi Kuti, Stephen Murray and Tom Camarella.

5. Special Report about the City Council Agenda Item from Michelle Woolner and Carlene Brown regarding rental housing shortage and rental rates. Council voted in favor of affordable housing only.

5. Program: The Honorable Judge Harold Cherness (ret.) will present the History of the Culver City Democratic Club. He began with a brief bio of his life up to the beginning of the Democratic Club, becoming the 3^rd President of the CCDC. Issues of the day included street lighting, sewers and paying for fire and police persons. There were about 250 dues paying members in the early years. He spoke of the formation of the CDC in 1952 and how CCDC joined immediately. 1954 was the first convention of the CDC. He spoke how conservative Culver City was and how returning WWII vets made a difference in the attitudes and population. Jerry Brown appointed Judge Cherness to the bench in 1977. He retired from the bench in 2012. He felt that the Club Newsletter was a valuable tool. He invited other past presidents who were present to say a few words: Jerry Sallus, Howard Welinsky, Lee Welinsky, Bill Wynn, and Darryl Cherness. He received a standing applause from the members.

5. Announcements

1. Executive Board Meeting will be held on Sunday, December 21, 2014 at Pat Levinson’s home at 9:30 a.m.
2. Bill moved to honor Ahmad Luqman, who passed away last week. He was a civil rights supporter, by adjourning in his honor.

First Vice President’s Message by Sylvia Moore, December 2014

The holiday season is always celebrated as a time to reflect on what we are thankful for, spend quality time with our families, and eat copious amounts of food. The holidays are also when many volunteer their time and/or money to help the less fortunate. However, the poor seem to get the most attention during the holidays, but indifference (or hostility) the rest of the year.

One reason for this disconnect is that most Americans consider themselves middle class, whether they’re too rich or poor to technically be in the category. In America, to be middle class is really a state of mind. We have an image of ourselves as a nation of strivers, constantly aspiring to financial success - the American Dream. According to academics, many Americans believe that poor people are in that situation because of bad choices, or that they simply didn’t work hard enough. However, outside of America, most believe that people become poor from back luck or outside forces. This cultural difference partly explains why poverty is stigmatized in the United States and why the social safety net in the is so paltry compared with other western industrialized countries. Poverty is seen as an individual - not a societal - failure. The poor are marginalized and invisible. The downwardly mobile - the long- term unemployed - suffer in silence and shame, but still cling to the “middle class” identity. Even our Democratic Party puts poverty issues in the background in favor of focusing on the struggles of the middle class.

Many of our Democratic leaders speak a lot about the plight of middle class families, who have been squeezed from 40 years of failed “trickle-down” economics and the Great Recession. Democrats like to talk about strengthening the middle class. We support unions and raising the minimum wage. We defend the Affordable Care Act. We want to help homeowners who are struggling with underwater mortgages. We want to make college more affordable. We support strengthening Social Security and other programs to help retirees. And we support clean energy to combat global warming. These are all worthy goals. But what about the concerns of people who can’t even get to the middle class? Rarely do our political leaders mention the poor, or talk about issues that directly affect them, other than the minimum wage and Medicaid. That should change. We need to focus on and organize around the following issues as well:

• End mass incarceration and the Drug War
• End the privatized prison industry
• End the school-to-prison pipeline
• Abolish laws that criminalize poverty
• Expand affordable housing and end homelessness
• Endorse free or low-cost higher education (instead of propping up the student loan industry)
• Endorse free or low-cost, publicly provided childcare
• Prioritize the improvement and expansion of public transit
• Endorse equal access to quality healthcare (recommit to expanding Medicare to all)
• End hunger and malnutrition through efforts such as eliminating “food deserts”
• Fight for environmental justice by stopping pollution in poor communities

Unfortunately, many poor people don’t vote, and are too busy trying to survive than engage in civic culture. Therefore, their concerns are given less importance. So we must support efforts to politically empower the poor. That would be a great holiday gift.

CCDC “Into the Woods” Theater Fundraiser, Sunday, Dec. 14

The Culver City Democratic Club will be holding a theater party at the Westchester Playhouse to see “Into the Woods” on Sunday, December 14th at 2:00pm. The theatre is located at 8301 Hindry Ave in Westchester. Tickets are $30.00 per person. All members are encouraged to attend this fun filled event that has received rave reviews. In addition, please invite family members, friends, and neighbors as well. It is essential that this be a successful fundraiser in order to enable the Club to raise funds for our monthly newsletter and for the monthly rental of our meeting room. As space is limited, please contact Sylvia at President@CulverCityDemocraticClub.com for details on getting tickets.