Annual General Meeting

The date and time for the Annual General Meeting of Tango Vita was announced last night. It will be held on March 31st from 2-5pm at Henderson Hall in Oak Bay. If you feel strongly that there needs to be reconciliation and a change for the better, please come out and vote. Like a wise voice said last night "in 50 years, we won't be dancing together." There are leads in our dance community that we miss. There are friendships that have been fractured. When members of our community cry because all they want is to dance, that is NOT a good thing. If we leave it too late, we won't be able to repair it. So, let's repair this split. Let's agree that dancing at the cafe will continue and is good for our tango community. Let's agree that Martin Batchelor Gallery is also good for our community. Let's agree that diversity is a good thing. Most of all, let's stop this petty bickering and act like grown ups and dance together.

Irony

For any Tango Vita members, please read your latest newsletter carefully. Well worded, but too bad they don't see the irony when they say they refuse to support a business, but continue to allow both Rene and Lilliana to teach (both board members by the way). They refuse to support Cafe Casablanca, refuse to support Brent and Hedy, and refuse to support David and Diane. It is on the other hand perfectly acceptable to allow others to run a business under the umbrella of Tango Vita. Tango by the Sea would not have been held on a conflicting night if certain members were teaching that night.

Another point that must be made regards the Tango Vita web site. Teachers are supposed to have access to the web site. Last year, all the passwords were revoked. This includes the password for those in Port Townsend (who have nothing to do with the politics dividing our small community). James and Terri were given a new password when they complained. No one else was. This indicates that although Tango Vita claims to support its members, in reality it only supports a select group of members.

From an outsiders perspective (mine) it always came across as a vindictive move. I had no loyalty to Tango Vita at the start, only to tango itself, and to a group of friends, many of whom were also members of Tango Vita. As I refuse to choose that side, I am noticing that those "friends" will no longer dance with me or speak to me. As a result, I have finally become a member of Tango Vita. The question is, do you want "members that strongly support the existence of our Argentine Tango Association as it is now", or do you want to grow as an association, as friends and as a community?