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Dec 29, 2:47 PM EST SCLC official: Group unfairly removed 2 leaders By DIONNE WALKER Associated Press Writer ATLANTA (AP) -- Members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference are asking an Atlanta court to determine whether officials who sanctioned the recent removal of two group leaders violated the civil rights group's constitution. In a petition for injunction filed Monday in Fulton County Superior Court, a group led by the Rev. Curtis Harris - chair of the SCLC finance committee - accuses SCLC officials of violating the group's constitution by attempting to make decisions without calling a meeting of the full SCLC board. It asks the court to nullify actions taken by members of the "illegally constituted Board" - identified as interim president Byron C. Clay; the Rev. Sylvia Tucker, acting board chairwoman; acting treasurer Randall Gaines; SCLC general counsel Dexter Wimbish; and executive director Ron Woods. The filing follows a Dec. 21 announcement of the removal of the SCLC's chairman, the Rev. Raleigh Trammell, and its treasurer, the Rev. Spiver Gordon, pending an internal investigation into alleged financial mismanagement. Trammell is from Dayton, Ohio. "Officially there has been no investigation," Harris told The Associated Press on Tuesday, though he could not clarify whether that meant Trammell and Gordon had not, in fact, been removed. SCLC leaders were out of the office for winter vacation and could not be reached by phone Tuesday. A spokeswoman did not immediately respond to an e-mail request for comment. Harris called the defendants' actions "a kind of coup" to trump official leadership. The injunction said their efforts have caused "irreparable harm, division, wasted efforts and mistrust in the SCLC organization, all contrary to the memory and legacy of the first Chair of the SCLC, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr." The filing is just the latest in a chain of legal and personal wrangling that have cast a pall over an organization boasting as many as 100,000 members during King's day. In June, a former SCLC board member asked for a federal investigation into the alleged disappearance of more than $1.4 million in SCLC funds. And last year, the group clashed with the president of its Los Angeles chapter over his support for gay marriage in California. The October election of King's daughter, the Rev. Bernice King, as eighth president of the SCLC has promised to restore the group to some of its glory. King has pledged to be a bridge between the civil rights and hip-hop generations. Harris said he was hopeful the group could reach a quiet resolution. "The organization has had some difficulties," he said. "However, we try to resolve our difficulties among the family." © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy <http://apdigitalnews.com/privacy.html>. [Get Copyright Permissions]Click here for copyright permissions! <http://license.icopyright.net/3.5721?icx_id=D9CT5PI01> Copyright 2008 Associated Press -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more.
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