[GSA Council] To fellow council members, sincerely

[Federico Bettini]

Dear GSA Council and GSA Executives,

I write to you following incidents during the GSA Council meeting of Sunday September 22 2019. It is with regret that I look back at my choice of words and tone of voice during our discussion (about “Petition 01” signed by GSA members and received by Council on Friday September 20 2019).

For my actions before leaving the room on Sunday, I apologize sincerely. I did not intend to disappoint fellow directors, instead I was in extreme shock due to the unfolding events during the meeting. I cannot express my apologies enough.

I ought to take this as an opportunity to also explain my surprise, as well as my eventual departure from the meeting. It will be helpful to clarify my position to you. Kindly take this in consideration: The GSA Council is empowered by the GSA General Assembly. The GSA GA is a forum for members to raise issues and vote on GSA matters. So, the GSA Council has power because GSA members can contribute to general assemblies and also sign petitions to include discussions on bylaw amendments at general assemblies — it is not in Council’s power to block a petition signed by members; “validating a petition” (as in GSA Bylaws, Article XXI item 1.1.3) means verifying that the ID numbers match with names provided. Council cannot approve or disapprove based on a discussion of the substance of the petition. That would violate democracy. For this I broke quorum; Council ought not vote on whether or not a petition will be respected; members had signed for a matter to be taken up by a General Assembly of the GSA.

As an accredited organization, the GSA cannot afford to ignore petitions signed by members.

Yours Truly,

Federico Bettini
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