ACORN's Maryland Chapter Shuttered

Group is undone in national scandal sparked by videos showing illegal activity

From today’s Baltimore Sun:

A former leader of Maryland’s ACORN chapter said Monday the group will no longer operate in the state, doomed by an embarrassing national scandal six months ago from which the organization never recovered.

An undated sign hangs on the entrance to the ACORN offices at 16 W. 25th St. A former Maryland ACORN official said the office ceased operations late last year. You may recognize this stoop from this golden oldie.

Sonja Merchant-Jones, former co-chairwoman of the state chapter of ACORN and a board member since 1999, said there are no plans in Maryland to rebrand under a different name, a move undertaken Monday by several ACORN affiliates across the country.

Maryland ACORN ceased operations late last year, Merchant-Jones said, and all the offices in the state have closed. The group has not held a board meeting in Maryland since November, she added.

The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now came under scrutiny in September, when videos recorded in Baltimore showed workers counseling two conservative activists pretending to be a pimp and prostitute. Two staff members of the Baltimore office were fired because of the video, which was broadcast on major networks throughout the country and showed the employees giving tax-evading tips to the man and a scantily dressed female partner.

The incident effectively shut down local and state offices, Merchant-Jones said, and the branches were forced to cease operations after dues-paying members fled.

Congress reacted to the video by stripping ACORN’s federal funding. Last week a federal judge upheld a ruling that a law blacklisting ACORN and groups allied with it was unconstitutional, but observers doubt ACORN will recoup any money.

Read the full article here.