Michael Flynn’s induction into the Rhode Island Hall of Fame leads to dismissal
At least five board members overseeing the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame have resigned from the organization after Michael T. Flynn, the former national security adviser under Donald J. Trump, was chosen for induction in 2024.
In resignation letters seen by The New York Times and in interviews, the board members said that Mr. Flynn, who has embraced conspiracy theories and is a prominent election denier, should not be recognized by the organization.
Established in 1965, the Hall of Fame recognizes Rhode Islanders “who have made significant contributions” or who have risen to prominence because of the work they did while living in the state. The 2023 inductees included Judge O. Rogeriee Thompsonthe first black person and second woman confirmed to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and JL “Lynn” Singletonthe president and CEO of the Providence Performing Arts Center.
Mr. Flynn, a native of Rhode Island, was among those chosen for induction into the Hall of Fame class of 2024 in a Dec. 13 vote by 19 board members. A cascade of board resignations followed, The Providence Journal And The Boston Globe first reported this.
John Tarantino, a lawyer, and Bea Lanzi, a former senator, resigned in a letter to Lawrence Reid, the chairman of the Hall of Fame’s board, and other board members. A copy of their joint letter, dated December 14 and provided to The Times on Friday, said the voting results were “both disappointing and astonishing to us”.
“There is a general right and wrong in the universe, and what has happened here compels us, in our opinion and according to our moral compass and conscience, to resign,” the letter said.
Ms. Lanzi did not respond to messages and Mr. Tarantino declined to comment.
“When we learned last month that Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn had been nominated, you and the Board of Directors were briefed specifically and in detail as to why we believe he is not worthy of induction and why his induction would likely cause real and dramatic harm to the organization,” their letter said.
They also said that their donations to the organization may only be used for charitable purposes and not “to cover any legal fees, crisis management, public relations impacts or other negative reactions the organization may face due to the appointment of Lt. Gen. Flynn to catch. induction.”
Mr Reid declined to comment. Mr. Flynn did not respond to a request for comment.
The board has not publicly confirmed the total number of layoffs.
Patrick T. Conley, an attorney for the Hall of Fame board and its former president, told the story NBC10a local news station, that six board members had resigned and that Mr. Flynn had accepted the appointment.
Mr. Conley defended Mr. Flynn by noting that he had received a presidential pardon after twice pleading guilty to lying to the FBI. to respond to that,” the news channel said.
Mr. Flynn is a prominent denier of the 2020 presidential election results presented in December 2020 that Mr Trump could deploy the military to repeat the presidential race in battleground states.
Mr. Trump appointed Mr. Flynn after the general embraced questionable positions, falsely claiming that Sharia, or Islamic law, was spreading in the United States and saying the United States should work with all willing allies, including President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, in a “world war” with Islamic militants.
Mr. Flynn has also embraced QAnon theories and advanced other fringe ideas. In a January 2022 interview with right-wing conspiracy website Infowars, Flynn accused George Soros, Bill Gates and others of creating the coronavirus so they could “steal an election” and “rule the world.”
Ann Marie Marzilli Maguire, the board’s treasurer and former paralegal, said she resigned after the vote.
“This is wrong,” she said in an interview on Tuesday. “This is not what the organization stands for.”
Steve Aveson, who served on the board for 19 years, also resigned after the vote. Mr. Aveson, a former news anchor and television correspondent, said in a text message that he was “heartbroken about what this has done” to the Hall of Fame.
One of the resignation letters from Denise Aiken, a former state representative, stated: “I feel that I cannot be associated with any organization that would choose honoring a criminal who failed to keep this oath to the Constitution of the United States.
“I just couldn’t see putting that particular nominee on the same footing as so many wonderful people who have been honored in that way over the many years the organization has existed,” Ms. Aiken told The Providence Journal.
Ms. Aiken, when reached by phone Friday, declined to comment or provide a copy of the letter cited by The Journal. But she said the newspaper report had “everything you need to see.”