RNA vs. RNA - An Open Invitation

Marlene Janson of the RIVER Neighborhood Association prefers to expend a lot of time, money, and energy flyering the neighborhood (and signing it anonymously as “RNA”) rather than sitting down to have a simple face-to-face meeting with members of the RIVERWEST Neighborhood Association, a direct, effective, and free method (no attorney’s fee involved; no court costs; no damages); this is the method most often preferred by neighbors when a problem or misunderstanding has arisen.

For many years, Marlene Janson has refused to talk to or collaborate with people outside of her group. People have often wondered about this - why won’t she talk to the rest of us? Many folks NOT in her group thought her group was called “River Neighbors.” But no wonder the confusion, since most people here do not know how often, when, or where her group meets, or even how many members there are.

By contrast, the RIVERWEST Neighborhood Association - holds its meetings every second Tuesday of the month, and all residents are invited. The agenda is set via input from many residents (not just one person). The agenda is posted on RNAmail (the Riverwest E-mail Network) and is snail-mailed to those without e-mail. Minutes are published monthly in this newspaper.

The RIVERWEST neighborhood association was rather surprised when it received a letter out of the blue one day (rather than a phone call or a request for a meeting), demanding that it change its name because it could confuse people.

The group never had any intention of copying Janson’s group. The confusion may stem from general ignorance about who and what River Neighbors is. They use several different names for themselves on their flyers, including their email address: riverneighbors@yahoo.com. To my knowledge, at no time previous to her threats did she or her group use the acronym “RNA” in print. To my knowledge, the Riverwest Neighborhood Association has never been invited to any of her group’s meetings.

Ald. Marlene Johnson-Odom, whom Janson says supports her group, will no longer represent most of Riverwest as of April 2004. Ald. Mike D’Amato reports that in his nearly eight years in office, Marlene Janson has never called his office about anything.

Marlene Janson lived in Riverwest for many years and still owns rental property here. However, since she has been living in New Berlin for the last few years, many of us question the notion that she has a right to speak for those of us who continue to live here, own property, operate businesses, raise families, and regularly talk to each other - as neighbors often do. We are still here EVERY DAY, responding to the problems while celebrating the best that Riverwest has to offer.

AN OPEN INVITATION TO MARLENE JANSON: A little communication could help clear this up in short order. I would like to sign my name, but your threatened lawsuit is rather daunting. So instead, as a resident of this neighborhood, I invite you to personally attend a meeting of the Riverwest Neighborhood Association on Tuesday, November 11, 7:00 PM, at YMCA CDC, 604 E. Center St.

If you are able to attend, send an e-mail to RNAmail@yahoo.com, the clearinghouse e-mail for upcoming agenda items.

Surely our collective time and energy would be put to better use in service to the neighborhood rather than in spatting over a name. We’d love to sit down and have a chat in good faith, as neighbors often do. Hope to hear from you soon.

A Riverwest Neighbor

Riverwest Currents - Volume 2 - Issue 10 - October 2003