public e-mail list, I hope you can help maintain it as
another information source in our community.
In an article ( http://www.currentnewspaper.com/FMIA.html ) in
the neighborhood newspaper, there was some discussion of
the Marigny's e-mail lists and web sites. Much of the confusion
and acrimony over these issues seems to stem from the fact that
the FMIA does not like for there to be an outside information
source about the community that they do not control. Recently,
they have insisted on having control of the domain name
faubourgmarigny.org, even though they had acknowledged
over a year ago that they actually had no control over it. You
can see the minutes from the July 8, 2002 meeting here:
http://www.marigny.org/FMIA/fmiaboard070802.html
Recently, I resisted the hand off of faubourgmarigny.org to the board
because I felt it would be confusing for most people because that
address was familiar as a publicly available resource as opposed to
the members-only FMIA's exclusive use. So, I offered another domain
name, marigny.org and the necessary resources for hosting it, for one
year. You can see a copy of my memo to my fellow board members
here:
http://industrialespresso.zipa.com/FMIA/FMIA_PROPOSAL.htm
However, I grew tired of the increasingly shrill and mean spirited
nature of what was being said about me personally, and finally
relented, giving the FMIA the domain they wanted. I moved the
publicly available e-mail list and web site to www.marigny.org.
The FMIA's website is at www.faubourgmarigny.org.
But now, I understand through second hand information (no one
on the FMIA board will actually contact me directly), that this is
not enough. For some reason, the FMIA feels that they should
have something more and they have moved to engage legal
counsel. What do they want? The web site? The e-mail list?
I am not certain, but it looks like what they want is to restrict
the flow of information in this community so that it is completely
under their control.
I don't think that information should only flow through the FMIA,
for a few reasons:
1) Some in the FMIA feel that discussions of crime in the
community hurt property values and create a negative impression
of the Marigny. I feel that we are safer the more that we know.
2) I don't believe the FMIA is the only representative of the Faubourg
Marigny. The FMIA has approximately 300 members, including free
memberships for government officials. According to the 2000 US
Census, there are 3,145 people living in the Marigny, and it is well
known that many business owners have complained about
obstructionism by the FMIA. I believe the e-mail list should be
another voice in community, adding to the discussion, not taking
over for the FMIA.
3) Finally, this is a free speech issue. Trying to stop the use of
the e-mail list is like trying to stop a newspaper from being published
just because you don't like its stories. I believe that many of us live,
work and play in the Marigny because we perceive it to be an
open-minded and inclusive community, and our local media should
reflect that spirit as well.
Please contact me should you have any questions. You
can reply to this e-mail or call me at 949-2826. Thank
you for your help.
I hope you can help maintain the e-mail list as another information source in our community. If you agree that the FMIA should continue its own e-mail efforts and let others co-exist, please contact them directly. If you could "cc" me on yur e-mail, I would appreciate it as well.
Lisa Suarez, FMIA President
gio@neworleans.com
FMIA Website Committee Members:
Chris Costello
href="mailto:billanddeanreynolds@earthlink.net?subject=Request for
Information About Marigny.org">Dean Reynolds
href="mailto:rp.fmia@cox.net?subject=Request for Information on
Marigny.org">Ron Petty
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