Dear New England Leather Alliance Associates and Community Members,

We, the NELA Board of Directors, are writing to share news that the organization officially ceased operations December 31, 2021.  The decision was not an easy one to reach nor was it made lightly.  

New England Leather Alliance has served BDSM, kink, leather, and curious adults since 1993, offering events and classes, advocating for, and defending those in need, and supporting community organizations all in the hopes and need for creating a safer space for such a diverse population.

For nearly 25 years, NELA’s Fetish Fair Fleamarket® built up to become the largest and most comprehensive kink-based conference in New England through the expertise of hundreds of presenters and the resources of thousands of volunteers.

When we paused the Flea in March 2020, we hoped it would be temporary. However,  Board Members’ terms came to their end with unanswered calls for new, qualified leadership, combined with the ongoing global pandemic causing substantial disruptions that we have struggled to overcome.

A final accounting will be forthcoming once the accountant and CPA file the FY2021 tax report with the IRS in 2022. All remaining physical assets and any remaining funds after outstanding obligations are met will be donated to organizations within our community so they may continue their good works that we support so very much.  Once complete, a summary of the distribution of assets will be made public on our website.

In the coming weeks, we will update nelaonline.org website to reflect our change in status and set it up as more of a resource site with links to other organizations within the community.

There are not sufficient words to express our deepest gratitude and appreciation to all our volunteers, presenters, vendors, former Board Members, Associates, and supporters who contributed to our achievements.  We could never have come this far without all of you.

Sincerely,

New England Leather Alliance Board of Directors

We’re happy to share with you news that the United States Internal Revenue Service reinstated the 501(c)(3) status of New England Leather Alliance.

We continue to work with our CPA to resolve any outstanding tax returns and already received IRS approval for a 2020 tax return extension request.

Further updates will be published as available and any questions may be sent to chair@nelaonline.org

Join by computer: https://uberconference.com/room/nelaonline
Join by phone: 857-226-4343
No in-person meetings through 12/31/2020

7:00-7:05PM – Welcome and Introductions

7:05-7:10PM – Approval of August Meeting Minutes

7:10-7:35PM – Department Report Reviews and Updates

• Secretary
• Associates
• Treasurer
• Programming
• Chair
  • Information Technology

7:35-8:05PM – Fetish Fair Fleamarket Business

• FFF55
  • Review
• FFF56 Status

8:05-8:15PM – Current/Ongoing Business

• Open Positions
  • Board/Leadership/Other Positions
  • Director of Communication
    • Social Media Coordinator
  • Director of Information Technology
  • Accessibility Coordinator
  • Ombudsperson(s)
  • Statement

8:15-8:30PM- New Business

8:30-8:35PM – Break

8:35-9:00PM – Executive Session

Happy Pride!

Hello Friends!!

Pride Month is upon us and will look very different this year.  Many Pride events have been postponed or cancelled for 2020 due to COVID-19. While this is a sad, but understandable, circumstance, it means we must be loud and proud in new ways.

We would like to shine the spotlight on and raise up the voices of individuals and organizations who march or exhibit at Pride events by sharing share their story: what Pride means to them, how they serve the community, and what challenges or triumphs they embrace.

We hope to highlight a new person or group every few days.  If this is something you would be interested in, willing to do, and feel comfortable doing – or have suggestions of folks or groups/organizations that might be – please send their info to chair@nelaonline.org.

Stay safe, be well – and as always – keep calm and kink on!

CONFERENCE CALL ONLY – No on-site meeting this month due to COVID-19

Join by phone: 857-226-4343 (No PIN)
Join by computer: https://uberconference.com/room/nelaonline

 

7:00-7:05PM – Welcome and Introductions

7:05-7:10PM – Approval of March and April Minutes

7:10-7:45PM – Department Report Reviews and Updates

• Secretary
• Associates
• Treasurer
• Programming
• Chair
  • Information Technology

7:45-8:15PM – Fetish Fair Fleamarket Business

• FFF55
  • Virtual Format Discussion
    • Programming
    • Vending
    • ConChair(s)
• FFF56 Status
  • Venue Status

8:15-8:30PM – Pride 2020

• Review Status of Events
  • Boston Pride Donation
• NELA Spotlight on Pride

8:30-8:45PM – Current Business

• Board/Leadership/Other Positions
  • Director of Communication
    • Social Media Coordinator
  • Director of Information Technology
  • Accessibility Coordinator
  • Ombudsperon(s)

8:45-9:00PM- New Business

• PO Box Renewal
• National Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF) Renewal
• Organizer’s Roundtable
• Open

9:00-9:05PM – Break

9:05-9:45PM – Executive Session

CONFERENCE CALL ONLY – No on-site meeting this month due to COVID-19

Join by phone: 857-226-4343 (No PIN)
Join by computer: https://uberconference.com/room/nelaonline

7:00-7:05PM – Welcome and Introductions

7:05-7:10PM – Status of Meeting Minutes

7:10-7:45PM – Department Report Reviews and Updates

• Secretary
• Associates
• Treasurer
• Programming
• Chair

7:45-8:15PM – Fetish Fair Fleamarket Business

• COVID-19 Impact on Upcoming FFFs
• FFF55 Status
  • Tentatively Confirmed Date: July 25, 2020 (due to COVID-19)
  • ConChair
• FFF56 Status

8:15-8:45PM – Current/Open/Ongoing Business

• Pride 2020 Update
  • COVID-19 Impact on Events
• Board/Leadership/Other Positions
  • Director of Communication
  • Social Media Coordinator
  • Information Technology Director
  • Accessibility Coordinator
  • Ombudsperon(s)

8:45-9:00PM- New Business

• Organizer’s Roundtable
• Network La Red: Paint the Town Red
• Connecticut Leather
• CPA
  • Donations Pending FFF54 Data
    • Thundermist
    • National Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF)
• Open

This month’s Board meeting has been moved to Wednesday, April 22, 2020 at 7:00PM.

Due to the current COVID-19 situation there will be no physical meeting.

Agenda and call-in information will be posted 48 hours prior to the meeting.

We hope that everyone is staying safe during these challenging times.

Sincerely,
Sleepy and the NELA Board

7:00-7:05PM – Welcome and Introductions

7:05-7:10PM – Status of Meeting Minutes

7:10-7:45PM – Department Report Reviews and Updates

• Secretary
• Associates
• Treasurer
• Programming
• IT
• Chair

7:45-8:30PM – Fetish Fair Fleamarket Business

• FFF54 Recap
  • Crowne Contract
    • Holiday Inn Express
    • Food & Beverage Minimum
    • Nights Minimum Definition
    • Concessions Status
    • Post Con Meeting Schedule
    • Suite Damages
  • Hilton Garden Inn Contract Status
  • Volunteer Appreciation Party Status
• FFF55 Status
  • Date Confirmed: July 25 ,2020
  • ConChair
• FFF56 Status

8:30-8:45PM – Current/Open Business

• Pride 2020 Update
• BARCC Walk for Change
• Board/Leadership/Other Positions
  • Director of Communication
  • Social Media Coordinator
  • Information Technology Director
  • Accessibility Coordinator
  • Ombudsperon(s)

8:45-9:00PM- New Business

• PO Box Renewal
• Donations
  • Thundermist
  • National Coalition for Sexual Freedom (NCSF)
• Organizer’s Roundtable
• Network La Red: Paint the Town Red
• Connecticut Leather
• CPA
• Open

9:00-9:05PM – Break

9:05-9:45PM – Executive Session

Location: Conference Center at Waltham Woods, 860 Winter St, Waltham, MA 02451

Join Remotely via conference call (857) 226-4343 or computer https://www.uberconference.com/room/nelaonline

All participants should be prepared to introduce themselves with the following:

1. Preferred name
2. Personal pronouns
3. (Optional) Your role or interest in NELA

Agenda

7:00-7:05PM – Welcome and Introductions

7:05-7:10PM – Approval of December Meeting Minutes

7:10-7:45PM – Department Report Reviews and Updates

• Secretary
• Associates
• Treasurer
• Programming
• IT
• Chair

7:45-8:30PM – Fetish Fair Fleamarket Update

• MECS Training
• Flea Rules
• Bathroom Signage
• KINK Friday Night Event Proposal
• Pleasure Pie Sponsorship/Ad
• Radio/Digital Ad Campaign
• Social Media
• Pens for Swag Bags

8:30-8:45PM – Current/Open Business

• Pride 2020 Update
  • BARCC Walk for Change
• Board/Leadership/Other Positions
  • Director of Communication
    • Social Media Coordinator
  • Accessibility Coordinator
  • Ombudsperon(s)

8:45-9:00PM- New Business

• Open

9:00-9:05PM – Break

9:05-9:45PM – Executive Session

Location: Conference Center at Waltham Woods, 860 Winter St, Waltham, MA 02451

Join Remotely via conference call (857) 226-4343 or computer https://www.uberconference.com/room/nelaonline

All participants should be prepared to introduce themselves with the following:

1. Preferred name
2. Personal pronouns
3. (Optional) Your role or interest in NELA

Agenda

7:00-7:05PM – Welcome and Introductions

7:05-7:10PM – Approval of November Meeting Minutes

7:10-7:45PM – Department Report Reviews and Updates

• Secretary
• Associates
• Treasurer
• Programming
• IT
• Chair

7:45-8:00PM – Fetish Fair Fleamarket Update

8:00-8:15PM – Current/Open Business

• Pride 2020
• Board/Leadership/Other Positions
  • Director of Communication
    • Social Media Coordinator
  • Accessibility Coordinator
  • Director of Outreach
  • Ombudsperon(s)

8:15-8:30PM- New Business

• Open

8:35-8:40PM – Break

8:40-9:30PM – Executive Session

Location: Conference Center at Waltham Woods, 860 Winter St, Waltham, MA 02451

Join Remotely via conference call (857) 226-4343 or computer https://www.uberconference.com/room/nelaonline

All participants should be prepared to introduce themselves with the following:

1. Preferred name
2. Personal pronouns
3. (Optional) Your role or interest in NELA

Agenda

7:00 – 7:05 PM – Welcome and Introductions

7:05 – 7:10 PM – Approval of October Meeting Minutes

7:10 – 7:45 PM – Department Report Reviews and Updates

• Secretary
• Associates
• Treasurer
• Programming
• IT
• Chair

7:45 – 8:00 PM – Fetish Fair Fleamarket Update

• FFF54
  • Slutcracker Ad
  • COIL Contract(s)

8:00 – 8:15 PM – Current/Open Business

• Board/Leadership/Other Positions
  • Director of Communication
    • Social Media Coordinator
  • Accessibility Coordinator
  • Director of Outreach
  • Ombudsperon(s)

8:15 – 8:30 PM- New Business

• Pride 2020
  • Northampton Pride
• Open

8:35 – 8:40PM – Break

8:40 – 9:30 PM – Executive Session

New England Leather Alliance (NELA) is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to making a safer world for BDSM practitioners through advocacy, education, and charitable giving.

NELA organizes and hosts New England’s largest kink event: the Fetish Fair Fleamarket which brings in 3,000 attendees, 75 presenters, and 85 vendors under one roof for 48-hours of classes, shopping, and entertainment. Throughout the year NELA also puts on a smaller Fetish Fair Fleamarket, participates in numerous PRIDE events, and hosts classes and seminars throughout the region.  NELA further supports the community by sponsoring sister organizations and events such as Mr. Connecticut Leather, The Network La Red, Boston Area Rape Crisis Center, Bay State Marauders, Mr. New England Leather, Rhode Island Drag Kings, AIDS Care Ocean State and the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom.

NELA is a completely volunteer-based organization. All donations and income earned from events go directly to supporting NELA’s mission.

Whether you’re interested in organizational leadership, IT, accounting, education, community relations, event planning, communication, social media, photography, and/or artistic creations there can be a place for you in NELA. Giving your time and energy to an organization such as NELA that supports the kink community is fulfilling on many levels.

Effort, time, skills, patience, professionalism, dedication, and perseverance are needed to be a part of NELA to help better serve the community, build better events, and achieve its mission.

Please consider applying for one or more of the open Board of Director or Coordinator positions.

Applications will be accepted through March 31, 2019.

Apply Now

Three reasons why NELA says “Yes!” to protecting transgender rights:

1. If discrimination and pain comes to one community, it hurts every community. People who are transgender are also your friends, family, and neighbors. We must stand together to protect each other.
2. The transgender community is incredibly vulnerable. They are nine times more likely to attempt suicide in their lifetime, eight times more likely to have experienced severe psychological distress in the last year, twice as likely to be living in poverty, and five times more likely to be living with HIV than the general US population. It is essential to work together to protect the rights of the transgender community.
3. It is crucial to protect the transgender community in New England because it affects transgender people everywhere. States with similar laws will see them challenged, and will hesitate to introduce new protections. If we cannot keep transgender people safe, their community will be threatened everywhere else.

Get a Great RACK w/Thista Minai & Dr. Graham

When: Saturday, September 22, 2018 12:00pm AND 2:00pm
Where: Arts at the Armory, 192 Highland Avenue #1C, Somerville, MA 02143
Purchase Tickets: NELA Tickets

In this two-part intensive, national presenter Thista Minai and infectious disease specialist, Dr. Camilla Graham, team up to help you stay risk aware in your consensual kink. They’ll give you the latest medical information to keep yourself and your partners protected with your delightful perversions.

First session (12:00pm): Discuss a variety of toys from sexy to sadistic, examine what precautions we might consider when using them, and learn how best to care for them between scenes.

Second session (2:00pm): Dive deep into medical play, exploring safety protocols and aftercare procedures for needle play, sounding, micro-branding, and more. Come learn which common kink practices help mitigate risk, which ones don’t, what might actually make things worse, and what you can do to keep your risk profile exactly where you want it.

Knowledge is sexy so let’s get busy!

Hello All,

Would you like to get into the Summer Flea for free?!?! Or get free NELA swag? Or a NELA Associate’s card? Or all of that?!?! Well, then we have a great opportunity for you!

We are moving our wares and goodies – including everyone’s favorite: gridwall 😉 – this Friday, July 27th, 2018 and we need your help!

We start at the Somerville storage unit around noon on Friday where we’ll load up the rental truck, drive to our new storage unit in Hudson, MA (~33 miles) then unload the truck into the new unit. How long will it take? That all depends on how many people volunteer!

Due to the physical nature of the move, the storage unit move will work similarly to Load-In/Load-Out at the Fleas where time volunteered counts as double-time (i.e., 2 hours worked = 4 hours volunteer credit).

On Saturday, July 28th, we will inventory all NELA swag from ~Noon-4:00pm. This portion of the volunteer opportunity will count as standard volunteer hours.

Here is the breakdown of benefits:

• 2 hours: Free entry to the Summer Flea
• 4 hours: Half off entry to the Winter Flea
• 6 hours: Plus a one year Associateship to NELA
• 8 hours: Plus a NELA T-shirt

If you are interested in this opportunity, please email volunteers@nelaonline.org no later than 7:00am on Friday, July 27th with the following:

1. Preferred name (legal name not required)
2. Cell phone number
3. Day/times available

You will receive an email and/or text confirmation by 8:00am on Friday. Coverage for these two opportunities will be limited so grab ‘em while they’re available!

Lastly, we realize that it’s short notice for many people, and for that we apologize, but we’re hoping that there is a handful of people out there who are interested and whose schedule will allow them to help us.

Thank you very much!

…because we aren’t psychic!

Where: Non-Profit Center | 89 South Street, Boston, MA 02111
When: Noon-2pm, Monday, June 18, 2018
Cost: FREE

Would you like to help NELA help others? As any kinky player knows, proper vetting keeps us safe. NELA would like to have a list of kink-friendly resources for those in-need of help that falls outside of the scope that we can provide.

We compiled a list of resources from counselors to hotlines from all corners of New England and now we need many people to call them and conduct a short survey to determine whether that resource is friendly towards kinky people or might want training.

Can’t make it to this event but still want to help? Contact: outreach@nelaonline.org for more info.

Body Impact: the Basic, the Complex, & the Cheats w/Sara Scalper

NELA’s first class since the NELA Reboot will be held in MANCHESTER, NH with Sara Scalper!

Date/Time: June 30, 2018 7:00pm – 8:30pm (arrive no earlier than 6:30pm)
Location: Best Western Plus Executive Court Inn & Conference Center – Roosevelt Room | 13500 S Willow St, Manchester, NH 03103
Purchase Tickets: NELA Tickets

See the Programming page for more details!

Brought to you by the NELA transition team and the members of the transparency and accountability working group

Last year, some serious incidents happened. When those incidents and issues around them were brought before the board, the board responded poorly. Due to the specific handling  of a few critical issues, several NELA board members resigned immediately thereafter. Accounts of what happened and the board’s reaction, exploded on Fetlife and many concerned community members realized they needed to get involved and take a stand.

The volunteers currently working are not elected, are not board members, and therefore do not speak for NELA officially. Nonetheless, the members of the Transparency and Accountability Working Group wanted to update the community with the progress that has been made. If you would like to participate, please do! We encourage you to show up to the meetings (the next Reboot meeting will be on Tuesday, March 27th at the Non-Profit Center in Boston) and add your voice.

Who is currently running NELA, and why?

In order to preserve NELA’s status as a 501(c)3 corporation, there must be a board of directors, consisting of at least three persons (a president, secretary, and treasurer). To see NELA through Fetish Fair Fleamarket #50 and to transition the corporation to a new board of directors, three retired board members (Cecilia Tan, Scott Erickson, and Vivienne Kramer) volunteered to help, and were elected to the board of directors as one of the last acts of the 2017 NELA board.  The interim board stepped up with the intention of getting the organization through FFF50 and to find motivated community members to be the new board. No one from the 2017 NELA board of directors is working for the organization in any decision-making capacity.

Who’s involved with the NELA reboot effort?

A group of about 30 volunteers is working online and attending meetings.  Currently, there are seven working groups (WG) where the volunteers discuss changes and plans for the organization. The goal for these groups is to become committees reporting to the new board members. Board members will be chosen based on the Transition Team’s approval, which includes an application, interview process, and working in concert with the appropriate WG members’ input.  Once applicants are approved, the interim board will appoint the replacements. The following is a list of our current working groups:

• Consent Violation Policies
• Outreach & Diversity
• Pride Committee
• Prospective Board Members
• Programming
• Survivor Support and Advocacy
• Transparency and Accountability

The new board member applicants understand that they will need to be accessible to our community as leaders of NELA and to help foster trust in our beloved NELA community. If you would like to have a say in the new board, now is the time! We know how hard it is to find important information, and are working to rebuild our website and our backend systems. This is a dynamic and complex situation, and those working groups and committees may change over time. They are looking at many different ways to keep associates informed about the changes occurring with NELA, and to put more checks and balances in place. While nothing is concrete yet, we really want to hear from YOU, our associates, friends, and extended family!

What is being done regarding these recent incidents?

Reports of consent violations were received and we realized other reported incidents were ignored for years, while still others were mis-handled. Neither is acceptable and changes will be made to help prepare the organization for future reports.

Many problems are systemic within NELA and we are addressing that by discussing changes to NELA’s bylaws, enforcing term limits, and creating working committees to name a few of the important changes being made. NELA has a dedicated “associate relations” board role but this board spot has been unfilled since 2014, since no-one has applied, except for the 88-day tenure of one Member-at-Large in 2017.

These proposals will be presented to the new board for approval before they can be implemented. We understand that immediate changes are preferable to many; but that is not within the current scope of our power. The working group members are engaged in active debate about the best way to implement meaningful change. We acknowledge that similar discussions are being held in kink communities throughout the country. Our hope is to have these changes ready to go once the new board is in place. Our goal is to have a new board by April. In the meantime we are doing our best to be forces for positive growth and change within NELA.

We are aware that there have been reports of consent violations given to individual board members that were not shared with the rest of the board. For some reports, there are no official written records! This is completely unacceptable.
We are working on a proposal that any reports of consent violations brought to the attention of the board _must be addressed_.  Reports should never be ignored and the survivor should always be acknowledged, supported, and heard.

Consent Violations

The incidents that led to the board dissolution were not handled satisfactorily. Those of us working on the transition share in in the sorrow, frustration, and anger at how previous board members mishandled these disclosures. We are not okay with what happened and are working to change the culture and communication within NELA. This is a complicated process and we are in no desire to rush it, but please know that we are aware of the mistakes that happened, and it will be one of the first things that is addressed once we have a new board.

None of us are okay with adults, especially former NELA leadership,  grooming minors who trusted them. We find it unacceptable that board members knew about it and did nothing to address it.  Inaction was not an acceptable response and we apologize for action not being taken. We will express that through our actions, not just words.

Those of us in the Transparency & Accountability Working Group promise that we will do everything we can to ensure that inaction over reported issues such as these does not happen again. We are proposing checks and balances regarding reports of consent violations or abuse to NELA in order improve how we respond as an organization.  The onus is on NELA to act based on a reported incident, not the person who has reported it to NELA.

Some volunteers have training from Boston Area Rape Crisis Center so that future incidents are handled in a more timely, compassionate, supportive, and ethical manner. NELA should be a leader in this area and that is what we are striving to do moving forward.

I’m still skeptical….

That’s an understandable response. Transparency and accountability have been woefully inadequate. The trust that was put into NELA was broken repeatedly, and we are working to rebuild that trust through our ongoing actions. We get not everyone will agree with our choices and that we must be willing to respond to constructive criticism properly.  Part of how we can help improve NELA is by hearing from many different perspectives. We appreciate folks holding us accountable for following NELA’s mission statement of, “NELA is an organization dedicated to making a safer place in the world for all leather/fetish/sm people through education, advocacy, and charitable giving.” If you want to join us in working to reshape NELA we have many different ways you can choose to do that from volunteering to being on the board. If you wish not to or want to hold off on that we understand. Thank you for taking the time to read our statement.