Respect for the office of Mayor is eternal; respect for the individual holding such office must be earned on a daily basis.  Here’s the scoop on a possible upcoming story about me:

“Another View” – Anna Duleep 4/21/10

It has come to my attention that Mayor Moccia’s feelings may have been hurt by my most recent letter to the editor. (The Hour, April 5, 2010) This is my best guess based on comments from third parties. As Mayor Moccia has chosen not to take advantage of opportunities to air his concerns directly to my face, I could be mistaken. Although I find it a bit silly to sign this as a private citizen when everybody knows I represent Norwalk on several boards and am a declared candidate for the Connecticut House of Representatives, I want to be clear that I am writing this from the heart as a private citizen and constituent of Mayor Moccia’s. I have not shared this letter with any representatives of the South Western Regional Planning Agency; nor have I discussed this letter with any members of my campaign staff.

Although my preferred style is to discuss this in person and out of the public eye, I will attempt to honor Mayor Moccia’s chosen method of communication by writing this letter to the editor. The last time Mayor Moccia had a negative reaction to a letter I wrote, he asked the Deputy Secretary of State to reprimand me in writing, allowed word to get back to me over the course of a three-week period that he was upset with me, and ultimately chose to have a heated argument with me in front of fellow Common Council members and several journalists. Apparently Mayor Moccia has not learned from that experience that such tactics are an ineffective way to resolve his issues with me. I find whispers behind my back to be reminiscent of middle school. I made the transition quite some time ago from middle school student to middle school teacher. Perhaps I was mistaken in my assumption that a seasoned politician twice my age would have made that same leap.

It is my understanding that Mayor Moccia requested that the Executive Director and Board Chairman of SWRPA write a letter retracting statements I made in my previous letter to the editor. To date, they have elected not to do so. I believe it is a policy to avoid choosing sides in interpersonal conflicts involving elected and appointed officials of member municipalities. Further, it is my understanding that Mayor Moccia is the only person who has requested that the SWRPA Board discuss whether or not my letter constitutes a violation of the ethical guidelines that apply to all our members.

Nothing in my previous letter is factually inaccurate. I felt it would be disingenuous to write such a letter without acknowledging that I am a candidate for public office as well as a new member of the Executive Committee of the SWRPA Board of Directors. It was a judgment call made solely by me. If my fellow board members ever tell me they feel my actions were contradictory to the ethical guidelines we follow, I will be happy to discuss the matter with them and adjust my future actions accordingly.

Mayor Moccia is the one who appointed me to the SWRPA Board of Directors in November 2007, immediately following my unsuccessful experience as a Democratic candidate for the Common Council. I believe it is within his purview to decide whether or not to somehow rescind this appointment. Another factor for his consideration will be my performance as a board member. Immediately following the last election, I decided to devote more attention to family health issues I had not been able to adequately address during my campaign.

Although my reasons for missing more than one meeting of the full SWRPA Board are personal, I recognize that my attendance record is public information and absolutely fair game in my current campaign. All I ask is that any person who chooses to question my performance by posting online comments under any name other than his or her legal, real-life name please include an explicit statement that he or she is not a member of the SWRPA Board. A reader unacquainted with other members of the board could reasonably infer from comments posted by “anonymous” or “Duleep, not” that the comments were from an insider. I would hate to have such negative comments reflect poorly on a group of people who have earned my utmost respect, admiration, and friendship over the past two years. Although I am happy to discuss my record with constituents, please be advised that my priority is to answer questions raised by people who are willing to sign their own names to their comments.

It is my preference to continue to serve as a member of the SWRPA Board of Directors. I feel there is much work ahead as my co-chair and I transition the former Housing Committee to the newly named “Economic Development Committee” and prepare to hand over the reins to two new co-chairs later this year. If Mayor Moccia chooses to remove me from the position to which he appointed me, all I ask is that he consider replacing me with another young, female, minority Democrat. I am the only Norwalk representative who fits such demographic criteria and feel the entire board benefits from a diversity of backgrounds, experiences, and opinions. If Mayor Moccia chooses that course of action, I will make the best of the situation. I will continue to advocate for issues such as regional cooperation and take advantage of the additional free time to devote to my campaign for state representative. I will simply add the word “former” to my campaign literature.

Although I am a bit surprised that a current mayor who is not even my political opponent would avoid addressing his concerns directly with me, I suppose it is his response to my blunt personality. Anybody who knows my mother, a/k/a the President of Friends of Ryan Park, will recognize this as an inherited trait. It is an aspect of my personality that has remained unchanged despite my decision to become a politician. I believe some members of Mayor Moccia’s party, notably former Presidential candidate John McCain, would appreciate my “straight talk.” I have earned a reputation as a public servant who speaks her mind regardless of whether her comments offend the sensitive natures of other politicians or even higher-ranking members of her own party.

I cannot imagine behaving any other way, particularly in the aftermath of my dog’s murder (a painful tragedy that was addressed on the front page of The Hour two years ago). Having my beloved lapdog take two bullets for me was a sobering experience and a major impetus for reassessing my priorities. Although Scrappy’s murderer has thus far evaded criminal charges, I now carry with me at all times a court order barring a certain individual from my home. The outpouring of support from people all over Norwalk influenced my decision to rededicate myself to public service. I feel uncomfortable writing about such a personal, painful episode in my life. Nevertheless, writing about the impact of Scrappy’s murder is the most efficient way of explaining why the consideration of whether or not my actions will hurt the feelings of a fellow politician is not even near the top of my list of priorities.

In the course of my career as a teacher, I have had to have difficult conversations with urban teenagers, suburban soccer moms, and clients of my small business, Duleep Educational Coaching. Speaking bluntly may not make me popular at times, but ignoring areas needing improvement would be a disservice to my students. Similarly, although it is too bad my statements have negatively affected Mayor Moccia, and this letter is my best attempt to compromise our contrasting managerial styles, I am unwilling to censor myself because a fellow politician has proven more sensitive than I initially thought.