burlington greens by-laws

8/12/2019 Burlington Greens by-Laws

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BY-LAWS OF THE BURLINGTON GREENS

I • P u r p o s e

The Burlington Greens are an educational and politicalgroup whose goals are designed to develop a clearunderstanding of ecological, economic, peace-oriented, ands oc ia l p rob lems i n t he B u r l i ng ton a rea . T he B u r l i ng ton

Greens a re commi t ted to o rgan iza t iona l and po l i t i ca lsolut ions to these problems on a munic ipal and regionalleve l . The i r spec ific v iews a re a r t i cu la ted in iQward A NewPsiiticsi B Green Statement of Princieies, published by theVermont Greens, and, more generally, in the documents adoptedby the Vermont Greens and the Green Committees ofCorrespondence. Accord ing ly , the Bur l ing ton Greens are ano f fi c i a l a f fi l i a t e o f t h e V e r m o n t G r e e n s a n d t h e G r e e nCommittees of Correspondence and are pledged to abide by thed e c i s i o n s o f t h e s e c o n f e d e r a t i o n s i n s o f a r a s t h e y c o n s t i t u t ea p r e c o n d i t i o n f o r a f fi l i a t i o n w i t h t h e s e b o d i e s .

I I . M e m b e r s h i p

A . D e fi n i t i o n

1. ' a) Membership in the Bur l ington Greens is definedas the possess ion o f vo t ing r igh ts in the dec is ion-mak ingp r o c e s s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .

b ) F o r t h e p u r p o s e s o f t h e s e B y — L a w s , t h e p h r a s e the Bur l ing to n Green s re fer s to memb ers o f the Bur l ing to nG r e e n s .

2 . M e m b e r s h i p i s g r a n t e d t o i n d i v i d u a l s b y a m a j o r i t yv o t e o f a r e g u l a r m e e t i n g o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .

3 . T h e s t a t u s o f m e m b e r s h i p i n t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s i s

dis t in gu i shed f ro m the s ta tus o f can d ida te fo r mem ber sh i p inthe Bur l in g ton Greens . The categor ies o f member sh ip andc a n d i d a t e f o r m e m b e r s h i p a r e d e s c r i b e d b e l o w .

i - AEEl i£a t i .on and Qr i .en ta t i .on

M e m b e r s h i p i n t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s r e q u i r e s c e r t a i nf o r m s o f d e m o n s t r a t e d c o m m i t m e n t t o G r e e n p o l i t i c s o n t h e

p a r t s o f i n d i v i d u a l s s e e k i n g s u c h m e m b e r s h i p , a n a g r e e m e n t t oa b i d e b y t h e m e m b e r s h i p s t a n d a r d s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s ,a n d a r e c o g n i t i o n o f t h e p r a c t i c a l r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s e x p e c t e do f b o t h m e m b e r s a n d c a n d i d a t e s f o r m e m b e r s h i p i n t h e

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Burlington Greens. These requirements are enumerated below;

1 . To become a member o f t he Bu r l i ng ton Greens , a

^ candidate for membership must read, understand and be in/ fundamental agreement with the basic philosophical tenets of

social ecology and social ecofeminism, the general principlesa r t i c u l a t e d i n fi M s t i E S I I I I S S ' p o l i t i c a l g o a l s o fthe Burlington Greens, the structural and organizational form

t of the Burlington Greens as described in these By-Laws, andbe a permanent resident of the greater Burlington area. Thelatter requirement may be waived in specific instances by ad e c i s i o n o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .

2. a) Accordingly, apart f rom out-of-town visitors whoare known to be Greens or involved in Green-relatedactivit ies, no one should be invited to attend regularmeetings of the Burlington Greens without the previousagreement of the membership as a whole.

b ) A t t h e d i s c r e t i o n o f t h e g e n e r a l m e m b e r s h i p ,

every fourth regular meeting may be convened as a strictlye d u c a t i o n a l m e e t i n g f o r t h e p u b l i c — p a r t i c u l a r l y , t ointroduce new people to Green ideas and issues. Suchmeetings may be held as public forums in public meetingp l a c e s .

c ) T o o t h e r w i s e f a c i l i t a t e g e n e r a l o u t r e a c h

activities, the growth of Green ideas in the Burlington area,a n d t h e e d u c a t i o n a l d e v e l o p m e n t o f b o t h t h e g e n e r a l p u b l i c

and potential candidates for membership in the BurlingtonGreens, the Bur l ing ton Greens wi l l a lso f rom t ime to t imesponsor public forums for the discussion of issues related toGreen pol i t ics, informal study groups for prospect ivecand idates for membersh ip , and o ther pub l ic , educat iona l andp o l i t i c a l a c t i v i t i e s .

3 . A c a n d i d a t e f o r m e m b e r s h i p i s o b l i g e d t o u n d e r g o a

probationary period of six months which entails activepart ic ipat ion in the act iv i t ies of the Bur l ington Greens,regular attendance of the weekly meetings of the BurlingtonGreens, and generally accepted standards of commitment after

application for membership is made. After six months, thec and ida te w i l l be ac c ep tab le , g i v en re l i ab le and res pons ib l edischarge of his or her activit ies during the probationaryperiod, by a majority vote of the membership and will thenacqu i re vo t ing r igh ts in the dec is ion -mak ing p rocess o f theB u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .

4 . C a n d i d a t e s a n d m e m b e r s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s w i l lbe expected to attend the group's weekly meetings andu n d e r t a k e p r a c t i c a l r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s f o r e n g a g i n g i nB u r l i n g t o n G r e e n a c t i v i t i e s .

5 . A c a n d i d a t e o r m e m b e r w h o f a i l s t o a t t e n d t h r e e

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c o n s e c u t i v e r e g u l a r m e e t i n g s w i t h o u t n o t i f y i n g t h e B u r l i n g t o n

/ Greens o-F the need for absence or consistently fails top a r t i c i p a t e i n t h e a c t i v i t i e s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s w i l l

^ be dropped from candidacy or membership by the vote' o f a r e g u l a r m e e t i n g .

6 . C a n d i d a t e s a n d m e m b e r s m a y r e q u e s t a l e a v e o f

a b s e n c e a t a r e g u l a r m e e t i n g o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s - S u c ha r e q u e s t m u s t b e v e r y s p e c i fi c , c l e a r l y i n d i c a t i n g d a t e s a n dr e a s o n s f o r t h e r e q u e s t -

7 - a ) A c a n d i d a t e o r m e m b e r o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s

m a y b e e x p e l l e d f r o m t h e g r o u p i f h e o r s h e f a i l s t od i s c h a r g e t h e m e m b e r s h i p r e q u i r e m e n t s e n u m e r a t e d i n t h e s e b yl a w s a n d / o r b e h a v e s i n a m a n n e r i n c o n s i s t e n t w i t h t h e

s t a n d a r d s f o r m e m b e r s h i p b y a t w o - t h i r d s v o t e o f t h e

B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a t a r e g u l a r m e e t i n g -

b ) S u c h a d e c i s i o n c a n o c c u r o n l y a f t e r t h e

c a n d i d a t e o r m e m b e r h a s b e e n d u l y n o t i fi e d b y m a i l t h a t h e o r

s h e i s f a c e d w i t h e x p u l s i o n a t l e a s t t w o w e e k s i n a d v a n c e o ft h e m e e t i n g .

c ) A t s u c h a m e e t i n g f o l l o w i n g n o t i fi c a t i o n b y

m a i l J a c a n d i d a t e o r m e m b e r f a c e d w i t h e x p u l s i o n w i l l b e

g i v e n e v e r y o p p o r t u n i t y b y t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s t o p r e s e n th i s o r h e r c a s e o r d e f e n s e t o t h e a s s e m b l e d m e m b e r s h i p p r i o rt o a v o t e o n e x p u l s i o n .

d ) I f a c a n d i d a t e o r m e m b e r f a i l s t o a p p e a r a f t e rb e i n g d u l y n o t i fi e d o f h i s o r h e r p o t e n t i a l e x p u l s i o n f r o mt h e g r o u p , a v o t e t o e x p e l m a y s t i l l b e t a k e n b y t h e

B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s -

e ) A m o r e d e t a i l e d d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e s t a n d a r d s f o r

m e m b e r s h i p i s e n u m e r a t e d b e l o w i n t h e s e c t i o n e n t i t l e d M e m b e r s h i p R e v i e w -

8 - a ) M e m b e r s h i p i n a n y p o l i t i c a l p a r t y o r

/ organization (unless specifically excepted) other than theB u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s i s i n c o n s i s t e n t w i t h m e m b e r s h i p i n t h e

/ Bur l ington Greens and is grounds for exclus ion f rom bothc a n d i d a c y a n d m e m b e r s h i p -

b ) N o e x c e p t i o n s w i l l b e g r a n t e d u n d e r a n y

c i r c u m s t a n c e s f o r m e m b e r s h i p i n p o l i t i c a l p a r t i e s o r

o r g a n i z a t i o n s t h a t a d v o c a t e o r a r e c o m m i t t e d t o d e m o c r a t i cc e n t r a l i s m - T h e s a m e a p p l i e s f o r m e m b e r s h i p i n f r o n t g r o u p s

t h a t a r e k n o w n t o b e u n d e r t h e c o n t r o l o f d e m o c r a t i c -

c e n t r a l i s t p o l i t i c a l p a r t i e s o r o r g a n i z a t i o n s .

C - R e s E o n s i . b i l . i . t i e s

A m e m b e r i n g o o d s t a n d i n g s h a l l m e e t t h e f o l l o w i n g

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m e m b e r s h i p c o n d i t i o n s :

1 - A m e m b e r s h a l l r e a d , u n d e r s t a n d , a n d b e i n

f undam en t a l ag reem en t w i t h t he pu rpos es and v a lues o f t he

B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s t h a t a r e e x p r e s s e d i n T o w a r d A N e w

P o l i t i c s , t h e g e n e r a l l i t e r a t u r e o f s o c i a l e c o l o g y a n d s o c i a le c o f e m i n i s m , t h e B y - L a w s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s , a n d t h ec o r r e s p o n d i n g p o l i t i c a l a n d o r g a n i z a t i o n a l d o c u m e n t s a d o p t e db y a n y o t h e r G r e e n c o n f e d e r a t i o n w i t h w h i c h t h e B u r l i n g t o nG r e e n s b e c o m e a f fi l i a t e d i n s o f a r a s t h e s e d o c u m e n t s

c o n s t i t u t e a p r e c o n d i t i o n f o r a f fi l i a t i o n w i t h t h e s e b o d i e s .

2 . A m e m b e r s h a l l p a r t i c i p a t e c o n s i s t e n t l y i n t h ea c t i v i t i e s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a n d d i s c h a r g e h i s o r h e r

s p e c i fi c t a s k s a n d r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s t o t h e b e s t o f h i s o r h e ra b i 1 i t y .

3 . A m e m b e r s h a l l h a v e d u e s p a i d u p t o d a t e , b a r r i n gfi n a n c i a l d i f fi c u l t i e s o r w a i v e r s .

D . R i a t l t s

1 . A m e m b e r i n g o o d s t a n d i n g s h a l l b e e n t i t l e d t o

p a r t i c i p a t e i n a l l m e e t i n g s a n d d i s c u s s i o n s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o nG r e e n s a n d s h a l l p o s s e s s v o t i n g r i g h t s i n t h e d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g

p r o c e s s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .

2 - A m e m b e r i n g o o d s t a n d i n g s h a l l b e e n t i t l e d t o

r e c e i v e a l l m e m b e r s h i p p u b l i c a t i o n s a n d n o t i fi c a t i o n s f r o ma l l G r e e n c o n f e d e r a t i o n s w i t h w h i c h t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a r e

a f fi l i a t e d a n d s h a l l h a v e t h e r i g h t t o s e e a l l m i n u t e s ,fi n a n c i a l r e c o r d s , m a i l i n g l i s t s , c o r r e s p o n d e n c e , a n d o t h e ri n t e r n a l d o c u m e n t s c o n c e r n i n g t h e w o r k o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n

G r e e n s a s a w h o l e o r t h e w o r k o f a n y c a u c u s , c o m m i t t e e o r

s u b c o m m i t t e e o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s u p o n r e q u e s t .

3 . O u t s i d e o f t h e p o l i t i c a l a g r e e m e n t s e x p r e s s e d i n

l ow a rd A N ew Po l i t i c s and t hes e By -Law s , a l l m em bers i n goods t a n d i n g o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s s h a l l b e f r e e t o p u b l i c l yd i s s e n t f r o m m a j o r i t y d e c i s i o n s a n d p o l i c i e s o f t h e

B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a n d t o o r g a n i s e c a u c u s e s t o p r o m o t e t h e i rd i s s e n t i n g v i e w s w i t h i n t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s - H o w e v e r ,

m i s r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e m a j o r i t y d e c i s i o n s a n d p o l i c i e s o f t h eB u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s , i n c l u d i n g f a i l u r e t o d i s t i n g u i s h o n e ' s o w nv i e w s f r o m t h e d e c i s i o n s a n d ' p o l i c i e s a d o p t e d b y a m a j o r i t yv o t e o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s , s h a l l b e g r o u n d s f o r

s a n c t i o n s , i n c l u d i n g e x p u l s i o n , a s p r o v i d e d f o r b e l o w .

I I I . D u e s

1 . E v e r y m e m b e r a n d c a n d i d a t e f o r m e m b e r s h i p i n t h e

B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s w i l l b e e x p e c t e d t o p l e d g e d u e s o f a t l e a s t$ 1 ( o n e d o l l a r ) p e r w e e k , p a y a b l e u p t o d a t e a t e v e r y r e g u l a r

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meet ing ; , un less economic c i rcumstances* render such duesd i f fi c u l t o r c o n s t i t u t e a p e r s o n a l fi n a n c i a l h a r d s h i p -

2 . O u t o f t h e t o t a l d u e s c o l l e c t e d f r o m m e m b e r s a n d

c a n d i d a t e s f o r m e m b e r s h i p i n t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s ^ ^ 1 0 ( t e ndollars) per member and candidate per year shall be forwardedt o t h e V e r m o n t G r e e n s , a n d a n o t h e r $ 1 0 ( t e n d o l l a r s ) p e rmember and cand ida te per year sha l l be fo rwarded to the GreenC o m m i t t e e s o f C o r r e s p o n d e n c e . A d d i t i o n a l l y , c e r t a i n a m o u n t so f dues per member and cand ida te sha l l be fo rwarded to anyo t h e r G r e e n o r g a n i z a t i o n w i t h w h i c h t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s m a yb e c o m e a f fi l i a t e d i n s o f a r a s s u c h d u e s c o n s t i t u t e a

p r e c o n d i t i o n f o r a f fi l i a t i o n w i t h t h e s e b o d i e s . A l l d u e sc o l l e c t e d i n e x c e s s o f t h e s e c o n f e d e r a l o b l i g a t i o n s w i l l b e

r e t a i n e d b y t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a n d d i s p e r s e d a t t h e i rd i s c r e t i o h .

3 . F r o m t i m e t o t i m e , s p e c i a l d u e s p a y m e n t s m a y b ev o t ed by t he m em bers h ip o f t he Bu r l i ng t on Greens t o f und

s p e c i fi c a c t i v i t i e s , s u c h a s t h e p u b l i c a t i o n o f l i t e r a t u r ea n d p o l i t i c a l a c t i v i t i e s . S u c h s p e c i a l d u e s p a y m e n t s w i l l b e

r e q u i r e d o n l y o f m e m b e r s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s , b u tc a n d i d a t e s f o r m e m b e r s h i p m a y v o l u n t a r i l y p a y t h e s e s p e c i a ld u e s . S p e c i a l d u e s p a y m e n t s w i l l n o t b e r e q u i r e d o fi n d i v i d u a l s n o t a c c o r d e d v o t i n g r i g h t s i n t h e B u r l i n g t o nG r e e n s .

I V . A c t i v i t i e s

1 . T h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a r e e x p e c t e d t o e n g a g e i n

e d u c a t i o n a l , p u b l i s h i n g , p o l i t i c a l , a n d p u b l i c a c t i v i t i e s i nt h e g r e a t e r B u r l i n g t o n a r e a .

2 . T h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s w i l l r i g o r o u s l y a d h e r e t ot h e n e e d f o r t h e e d u c a t i o n o f t h e i r m e m b e r s h i p i n s t u d y

g r o u p s , e d u c a t i o n a l s , a n d p u b l i c m e e t i n g s - U n l e s s o t h e r w i s ed e c i d e d , e v e r y r e g u l a r m e e t i n g w i l l b e p a r t l y d e v o t e d t o a ne d u c a t i o n a l .

3 . T h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a r e fl a t l y o p p o s e d t o

v i o l e n t p o l i t i c a l a c t i v i t i e s a n d d o n o t r e q u i r e t h a t t h e i r

m e m b e r s b e o b l i g e d t o e n g a g e i n c i v i l d i s o b e d i e n c e . T o e n g a g ei n n o n v i o l e n t c i v i l d i s o b e d i e n c e i s a m a t t e r o f i n d i v i d u a l

c h o i c e a n d i m p l i e s a s e n s e o f r e s p o n s i b i l i t y , c o u r t e s y t o w a r d

p o l i c e o f fi c i a l s , a n d t h e a b s e n c e o f a b u s i v e o r p r o v o c a t i v el a n g j - i a g e a n d b e h a v i o r . B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a r e e x p e c t e d n o t t od i s r u p t t h e m e e t i n g s a n d s p e a k e r s o f o t h e r g r o u p s .

4 . E v e r y r e a s o n a b l e a t t e m p t w i l l b e m a d e b y t h e

B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s t o a r r i v e a t d e c i s i o n s b y c o n s e n s u s - I fc o n s e n s u s i s n o t a c h i e v a b l e , g i v e n a g e n e r a l s e n s e o f t h e

m e e t i n g , d e c i s i o n s w i l l b e m a d e b y a s i m p l e m a j o r i t y v o t e ,u n l e s s o t h e r w i s e p r o v i d e d f o r i n t h e s e B y - L a w s .

- D



5 . N o p e r s o n , p o l i t i c a l b o d y o r G r e e n c o n f e d e r a t i o ns h a l l h a v e t h e p o w e r t o o v e r r u l e o r r e s c i n d a n i n t e r n a ld e c i s i o n t a k e n b y t h e m e m b e r s h i p o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .

6 m C e r t a i n r e g u l a r m e e t i n g s o r p o r t i o n s o f r e g u l a r

m e e t i n g s m a y b e c l o s e d t o a l l b u t v o t i n g m e m b e r s o f t h e

B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a t t h e d i s c r e t i o n o f t h e m e m b e r s h i p .

V . S t r u c t u r e

1 . T h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s w i l l f u n c t i o n w i t h a m i n i m u m

d e g r e e o f s t r u c t u r e , a l t h o u g h t h e y c l e a r l y r e c o g n i z e t h a t t h el a c k o f f o r m a l s t r u c t u r e c a n y i e l d a t y r a n n y o f i t s o w n k i n d

b a s e d o n i n f o r m a l e l i t e s , s t r o n g p e r s o n a l i t i e s , a n d l a c k o f

a c c o u n t a b i l i t y . I t w i l l b e t h e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y o f t h e

m e m b e r s h i p t o g u a r d a g a i n s t s u c h d e v e l o p m e n t s b y e n g a g i n g i no p e n a n d h o n e s t d e b a t e , c h a l l e n g e , d i s c u s s i o n , a n d , w h e r en e c e s s a r y , c o n f r o n t a t i o n -

2 . A c c o r d i n g l y , p e r m a n e n t a n d / o r f u n c t i o n a lc o m m i t t e e s w i l l b e e s t a b l i s h e d a s n e e d a r i s e s , e . g . , a

p u b l i c a t i o n s c o m m i t t e e , p r o j e c t c o m m i t t e e s , l i a i s o nc o m m i t t e e s , a n d a c o o r d i n a t i n g c o m m i t t e e . T h e d e c i s i o n s o fs u c h c o m m i t t e e s w i l l b e s u b j e c t t o t h e a p p r o v a l a n d c h a l l e n g e

o f t h e g e n e r a l m e m b e r s h i p , a n d s u c h c o m m i t t e e s w i l l n o t b e

g r a n t e d h i e r a r c h i c a l p o w e r s w i t h i n t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .S u c h c o m m i t t e e s w i l l d i s b a n d w h e n e v e r t h e i r s p e c i fi c p u r p o s e sa n d f u n c t i o n s a r e n o l o n g e r r e q u i r e d o r d e s i r e d b y t h e g r o u p .

7 3 . A t r e a s u r e r a n d a / r ^ c o r d i n q s e c r e t a r ^ w i 1 1 b ee l e c t e d , s u b j e c t t o r e c a l l b y t h e m e m b e r s h i p , e v e r y y e a r .

^ These posit ions wil l be strict ly functional and will not beg r a n t e d d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g p o w e r s w i t h i n t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .

4 . F o r m u l a t i n g a n a g e n d a w i l l b e t h e fi r s t b u s i n e s si t e m o f a m e e t i n g o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s a n d a m o d e r a t o rw i l l b e c h o s e n e i t h e r a s a v o l u n t e e r o r b y e l e c t i o n .

V I . B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n C a n d i d a t e s f o r P u b l i c O f fi c e

1 . O n l y m e m b e r s i n g o o d s t a n d i n g o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n

G r e e n s s h a l l b e e l i g i b l e t o s t a n d f o r a p u b l i c e l e c t e d o f fi c eo n t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s ' b a l l o t l i n e - A l l B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n

c a n d i d a t e s f o r p u b l i c o f fi c e m u s t a g r e e t o c a m p a i g n i n

s u p p o r t o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s ' p l a t f o r m a n d p r o g r a m a n dw i l l b e e x p e c t e d a t a l l t i m e s t o r i g o r o u s l y a d h e r e t o t h e

m e m b e r s h i p s t a n d a r d s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .

2 . O n l y m e m b e r s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s s h a l l s e l e c t

B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n c a n d i d a t e s f o r p u b l i c o f fi c e . W r i t t e nn o t i c e o f a t l e a s t o n e w e e k s h a l l b e g i v e n t o m e m b e r s o f

- 6 -



I

m e e t i n g s t o s e l e c t c a n d i d a t e s .

3 . B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n c a n d i d a t e s f o r p u b l i c o f fi c e a r es u b j e c t t o t h e s a m e i m p e r a t i v e m a n d a t e s a n d i m m e d i a t e r e c a l lf r om t he m em bers h ip as a re any o t he r Bu r l i ng t on Green

r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s o r s p o k e s p e o p l e . I f e l e c t e d , i t h e B u r l i n g t o nG r e e n p u b l i c o f fi c e h o l d e r s h a l l a c t i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h

i m p e r a t i v e m a n d a t e s f r o m t h e m e m b e r s h i p o f t h e B u r l i n g t o nG r e e n s , u n t i l s u c h t i m e a s s o c i a l a d m i n i s t r a t i o n h a s b e e nr e s t r u c t u r e d a s a g r a s s r o o t s d e m o c r a c y t o m a k e a l l o f fi c eh o l d e r s d i r e c t l y a c c o u n t a b l e t o t h e p e o p l e t h r o u g h s u c hi n s t i t u t i o n s a s . t o w n m e e t i n g s a n d n e i g h b o r h o o d a s s e m b l i e st h a t c a n i m p e r a t i v e l y m a n d a t e a n d i m m e d i a t e l y r e c a l l t h e i r

r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s a t a n y t i m e . B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n c a n d i d a t e s f o rp u b l i c o f fi c e a n d p u b l i c o f fi c e h o l d e r s w h o a c t c o n t r a r y t om a n d a t e s f r o m t h e m e m b e r s h i p , i n c l u d i n g r e c a l l , w i l l b ec o n s i d e r e d i n v i o l a t i o n o f m e m b e r s h i p s t a n d a r d s a n d s u b j e c t

t o s a n c t i o n s , u p t o a n d i n c l u d i n g e x p u l s i o n .

4 . I n t h e c a s e o f s a l a r i e d p u b l i c o f fi c e , w h e t h e re l e c t e d o r a p p o i n t e d , a n y i n c o m e a b o v e t h e e s t a b l i s h e d m e d i a ni n c om e o f t he S t a t e o f Ve rm on t rec e i v ed by Bu r l i ng t on Greeno f fi c e h o l d e r s a s a r e s u l t o f t h e i r o f fi c e s h a l l b e t u r n e do v e r t o t h e t r e a s u r y o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s , t o b e

d i s p e r s e d a t t h e i r d i s c r e t i o n .

V I I . M e m b e r s h i p R e v i e w

A . M e m b e r s h i . B S t a n d a r d s

I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e m e m b e r s h i p s t a n d a r d s a n d

r e q u i r e m e n t s p r e v i o u s l y e n u m e r a t e d i n t h e s e B y - L a w s , a l lm em bers and c and ida t es f o r m em bers h ip i n t he Bu r l i ng t onGreens must meet the membership s tandards enumerated below.

Any member or candidate for membership may be reprimanded,p u t o n p r o b a t i o n , s u s p e n d e d f o r a s p e c i fi e d p e r i o d , o re x p e l l e d f o r a n y o f t h e f o l l o w i n g v i o l a t i o n s o f m e m b e r s h i ps t a n d a r d s :

1 ) c o m m i t t i n g t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s t o a c t i o n s ,

e n d o r s e m e n t s , a n d o t h e r p o l i c y p o s i t i o n s o u t s i d e t h e

d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g p r o c e s s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s ;

2 ) d e l i b e r a t e l y m i s r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e d e c i s i o n s a n dp o l i c i e s o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s ;

3 ) m a k i n g f a l s e s t a t e m e n t s i n a n a p p l i c a t i o n f o rm e m b e r s h i p ;

4 ) c o n c e a l i n g m e m b e r s h i p i n a n y p o l i t i c a l p a r t y o ro r g a n i s a t i o n a p a r t f r o m t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s ;

5 ) fi n a n c i a l i r r e g u l a r i t i e s w i t h B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n

^ 7 -



- f u n d s ;

6) advocacy or practice of racial, cultural, sexual,n a t i o n a l , o r r e l i g i o u s d i s c r i m i n a t i o n ;

7) advocacy or practice of violent polit ical action byt h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s ;

l i n e ;

8) acting as a strikebreakei^or crossing a picket

9) acting as an agent provocateur or government orc o r p o r a t e i n f o r m e r ;

10) deriving income from criminal activity, exceptingt h e r e c e i p t o f w a r - t a x r e s i s t a n c e f u n d s o r u n t a x e d i n c o m ee a r n e d t h r o u g h h o n e s t l a b o r ;

11) acting to disrupt and prevent the rights of anyindividual or group to free speech, press, or assembly tod i s c u s s o r a d v o c a t e i d e a s ;

12 ) c o l l abo ra t i ng w i t h o r pa r t i c i pa t i ng i n t hea c t i v i t i e s o f a n y g r o u p o r m o v e m e n t t h a t s e e k s t o r e s t r i c t o rabol ish the natural r ight of al l women to freely choose andr e c e i v e a b o r t i o n s o n d e m a n d a n d t o o t h e r w i s e c o n t r o lt h e i r o w n b o d i e s a s t h e y s e e fi t ;

13 ) c o l l abo ra t i ng w i t h o r pa r t i c i pa t i ng i n t he

c i t i e s o f a n y g r o u p o r m o v e m e n t t h a t s e e k s t o r e s t r i c t o ra b o l i s h t h e n a t u r a l r i g h t o f a l l c i t i z e n s t o b e a r a r m s i ns e l f - d e f e n s e o f t h e i r p e r s o n o r p o l i t i c a l l i b e r t y ;

c o n t i n u a l l y f a i l i n g , a f t e r r e c e i v i n g w r i t t e nno t i c e , t o pa r t i c i pa te c ons i s t en t l y i n B u r l i ng ton Greensmeetings and act iv i t ies or to pay dues pledged or apply for aw a i v e r o f d u e s o w i n g t o e x t e n u a t i n g c i r c u m s t a n c e s .

B . M e m b e r s h i , Q t R e W e w P r o c e d u r e s

1 - C h a r g e s o f v i o l a t i o n s o f m e m b e r s h i p s t a n d a r d s

aga ins t m em bers o r c and ida t es f o r m em bers h ip i n t he

Burlington Greens may be brought by any Burlington Greensm e m b e r .

2. A l l such charges sha l l be hand led exped i t ious ly by9. on.s-t ime, ad-hoc Membership Review Commit tee composed ofthree persons selected by lot from the membership of theBur l ington Greens. This commit tee shal l hear charges, makerecommendat ions to the assembled membersh ip , and thend i s b a n d .

3. A l l persons charged wi th v io la t ions o f membersh ipstandards shal l have the r ight to appear, to br ing wi tnesses,

- 8 -



a n d t o t e s t i f y t o b o t h t h e a d - h o c c o m m i t t e e a n d t h e a s s e m b l e d

m e m b e r s h i p o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s . T h e b u r d e n o f p r o o fs h a l l b e o n t h e m e m b e r o r m e m b e r s b r i n g i n g t h e c h a r g e s -

4 . A f t e r h e a r i n g t h e r e p o r t o f t h e a d - h o c c o m m i t t e e

a n d a r e s p o n d i n g s t a t e m e n t b y t h e p a r t y c h a r g e d w i t hv i o l a t i n g m e m b e r s h i p s t a n d a r d s , t h e a s s e m b l e d m e m b e r s h i ps h a l l h a v e t h e r i g h t t o d e c i d e o n a n y s a n c t i o n , i n c l u d i n g

e x p u l s i o n . W h i l e s a n c t i o n s m a y b e a p p e a l e d t o o t h e r l e v e l so f G r e e n c o n f e d e r a t i o n , u p t o a n d i n c l u d i n g t h e I n t e r r e g i o n a l

C o m m i t t e e o f t h e G r e e n C o m m i t t e e s o f C o r r e s p o n d e n c e , n o

p e r s o n , p o l i t i c a l b o d y o r G r e e n c o n f e d e r a t i o n w i l l b e g r a n t e dt h e r i g h t t o o v e r r u l e o r r e s c i n d a d e c i s i o n b y t h e B u r l i n g t o nG r e e n s t o e x p e l a m e m b e r o r c a n d i d a t e f o r m e m b e r s h i p f r o m t h e

B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s . T h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s w i l l t a k e t h er e c o m m e n d a t i o n s o f a n y r e c o g n i z e d a p p e a l s c o m m i t t e e u n d e ra d v i s e m e n t a n d c a r e f u l l y w e i g h i t s c o n c l u s i o n s a g a i n s t t h o s e

o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s , b u t t h e d e c i s i o n t o e x p e l a m e m b e ro r c a n d i d a t e f o r m e m b e r s h i p i n t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s c a n o n l yb e o v e r r u l e d o r r e s c i n d e d b y a s u b s e q u e n t t w o - t h i r d s v o t e o f

t h e a s s e m b l e d m e m b e r s h i p o f t h e B u r l i n g t o n G r e e n s .

V Z I I . A m e n d m e n t s

T h e s e b y - l a w s c a n b e m o d i fi e d , a d d e d t o , o r e l i m i n a t e d

b y a t w o - t h i r d s v o t e o f t h e m e m b e r s h i p a t a r e g u l a r m e e t i n g .

burlington greens by-laws

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