Mardi Gras AGM postposed

Mardi Gras AGM postposed

New Mardi Gras’ AGM was postposed on Saturday due to a lack of numbers.

The meeting has been rescheduled for this Wednesday at the New Mardi Gras offices, 297 Trafalgar St, Petersham, at 6pm.

The poor turn out comes after the organisation only attracted five niminations for its eight board positions.

Current chair David Imrie and former co-chair Steph Sands, along with William Law, Kirk Muddle and Gregory Small, will be automatically elected to the organisation’s governing board at the AGM. New Mardi Gras will look to appoint interested parties to the vacant positions after the AGM.

Outgoing board members include former chair Marcus Bourget, Des Tupua, James Wright, Regina Wootton and Michael Douglas.

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4 responses to “Mardi Gras AGM postposed”

  1. Gay politics is just as bad, if not worse than mainstream politics. “Lack of Numbers?” Are you at all surprised!

  2. Mardi Gras AGM’s only attract big numbers when there’s also a big – and controversial – issue and/or controversial vote on the agenda.

    When there isn’t a big problem – and NMG has just reported nearly half a million in profit – Mardi Gras often scratches for an AGM quorum. Overwhelmingly, people aren’t all that interested in just turning up to vote to receive the financial report, etc – at NMG or ny community-based organisation AGM. It’s kind of boring unless you’re really into that sort of thing. Especially at 11.00am on a Saturday morning :)

    The fact that they couldn’t attract enough candidates for the Board might be related to the fact that masochism is a niche market. Most people have better things to do than endure 12 months of abuse and excoriation for:

    being too corporate;
    being too community;
    being too amateurish and unprofessional;
    hiring washed up headline acts;
    hiring outrageously expensive overseas acts
    not hiring outrageously expensive overseas act;
    spending too much;
    spending too little;
    spending;
    ripping off the community;
    not listening to the community;
    being too predictable and old hat;
    dishonouring our history by not sticking to the way it used to be;
    not being consultative (often meaning, “my bizarrely impractical idea didn’t get up for some utterly unacceptable reason.”)
    being too consultative (often meaning, “how did that bizarrely impractical idea get up?”)

    Then there’s:

    DJ selection wars (“all of my friends are staying away because there’s no post-house electro bathtub dub in the Hordern and we’re all going to “Succubus” on Sunday instead”);
    suicidal ideation among thwarted retro lovers;
    the boringly political parade,
    the trizzy and tacky parade,
    getting back to our roots;
    getting a root (aka, why isn’t there a guy’s space at Mardi Gras?)

    As the man said, “NMG is looking to appoint interested parties to the vacant positions after the AGM.” Don’t all rush him at once.

    BTW, congrats to Marcus Bourget for a truly heroic and outstanding effort over the last few years. I hope the therapy is going well ;-)

  3. So not only did NMG fail to attract enough board member nominations, but it also failed to attract any real interest in its AGM from the expanded membership it has been crowing about.
    Hmmmm …. does anyone else smell a rat? Are people only joining for the minimal discount on party tickets, and no real interest in playing a bigger role in the organisation itself?

    Shame on the community and shame on Mardi Gras for pursuing corporate greed and an uncensored membership base.

    Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned from this? Though those who should learn it are sadly not standing again this year…..

  4. Could it just be that nobody is interested anymore?
    Or perhaps it is more a case of people not wanting to get involved in the dirty world of gay politics?
    Whatever the case, it seems New Mardi Gras is fast falling into a black hole after the high of the 30th anniversary.
    Perhaps the organisation needs to reconsider some of its past decisions and get back to being a community organisation that reflects and the supports the community and other community organisations.