Independence Party, Fulani go at it

Newsday.com/February 8, 2006
By Bryan Virasami

The chairman of the state's Independence Party Tuesday dismissed the latest controversial allegation by longtime party activist Lenora Fulani -- that blacks and other minorities will be sidelined by his recent action to wipe out her influence over three of the party's borough organizations.

Reacting to party leaders' vote over the weekend to disband the party's Queens, Brooklyn and Bronx organizations, Fulani vowed to challenge the move in state court and seek Justice Department help.

She said that the state party's chairman, Frank MacKay, and other committee members were bent on making the the party "all-white."

"Frank MacKay and the state leadership of the Independence Party have now shown their true colors," Fulani said in a statement. "They're intent upon turning the Independence Party into an all-white party where blacks and other minorities are not just unwelcome, they are maligned and abused."

MacKay said Tuesday that the party moved to disband the three organizations because they were run like a "cult under the control of Fulani and party activist Fred Newman. Fulani remains a key force in the Manhattan organization.

"It doesn't have any basis," MacKay said about Fulani's claim that minorities are being pushed out. "It's like me saying they're Martians; it's silly."

Fulani and several others were booted from the executive committee of the party last year. Fulani, who has been accused of making anti-Semitic statements, will be further sidelined under the new action.

MacKay said the party's action was aimed at removing Fulani and Newman from controlling members in the three counties. The members of the Queens, Brooklyn and Bronx organizations can re-group under new leadership.

"This is all about the Independence Party deciding for itself to make a statement that Lenora Fulani has no power in this organization," MacKay said. "She is absolutely powerless in this organization. Fred Newman is not a spokesperson for African-American people, he's a cult leader who preaches anti-Semitism."

Fulani's tenure as a leader in the party has been slowly eroding since she has refused to withdraw or explain statements tied to her. She's alleged to have said that Jews "function as mass murders of people of color" and "had to sell their souls" to attain Israel.

The party's move to distance itself from Fulani may help political candidates feel more comfortable accepting its support, including those seeking to run for governor or attorney general, some observers have said.

"Clearly, Fulani has been an albatross around the neck of that party in terms of its legitimacy and they're doing everything to purge that problem," said Prof. Doug Muzzio of Baruch College, a longtime City Hall observer.