Anti alcohol activist outs council hopeful

This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press November 5, 2000

By BOB WILSON
Valley Press Staff Writer

PALMDALE - Palmdale City Council candidate Richard Loa is outraged about a political hit ad in which local anti-alcohol activist Ray Chavira "outs" Loa as someone who organized Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

Loa asserts that Chavira - who openly acknowledged his own AA participation - violated the group's code of anonymity by publicizing Loa as a participant.

Chavira, a member of the Los Angeles County Commission on Alcohol, agreed that he erred in naming Alcoholics Anonymous.

"I should have used the term 'self-help group' or '12-step program,' " Chavira said. "I shouldn't have used the term Alcoholics Anonymous" when referring to Loa.

For members of AA, it is a tenet of virtually sacred honor that the privacy of group members is honored by others. This enables people to pursue recovery without fear of being stigmatized.

"Anonymity is essential for the continued functioning of that group," said Loa, who confirmed his participation in AA since 1987.

"I'm choosing to break my anonymity, but no one should do that for me," Loa said Saturday. "I really don't think that has any place in a political campaign."

The attack ad is being broadcast in the heat of a campaign in which opponents of council candidate John Mayfield persistently have aired information about a 5year-old misdemeanor DUI conviction.

In a bizarre confluence with the national campaign, the charges and countercharges about the role of alcohol in candidates' lives occurred as Republican presidential nominee George W. Bush accounted for a 24-year-old DUI conviction and fine.

For Loa and Mayfield, a heated campaign for City Council aired matters most would prefer to remain private. But that has not been respected from any quarter of the ultimately mud-slinging campaign.

Many people struggle daily to keep their lives in order despite their addiction to alcohol, Loa observed. A reasonable expectation of anonymity from other group members allows them to attend meetings where they find support for continued sobriety.

The ad "was a reckless act by Palmdale on the Move," Loa said, referring to the election committee that sponsored the radio spot. That committee was working to support the candidacy of Mayfield, and former councilman Jim Root, who opposes Loa for the one-year seat.

"It's just wrong. It's worse than a low blow," Loa said. "I don't want to make the AA movement part of this election."

Making AA the point is exactly what Loa is doing in an attempt to take the focus away from the unfair attacks led by Loa's running mate for City Council, Rick Norris, Chavira said.

Chavira said his participation in the radio spot was in response to attacks on council candidate Mayfield, who has been painted as a criminal by Norris for his 1995 misdemeanor conviction.

Chavira said his ad focused on Norris' past opposition to stricter alcohol ordinances in Lancaster and Palmdale, pointing out that the ad states: "While Norris accuses Mayfield, his running mate Loa was the organizer of an Alcoholics Anonymous group at the county courthouse that I also attended."

"I regret having chosen the wrong terminology," Chavira said. "In my zeal to speak out about this hypocrisy, I kept the word 'alcohol' in there."

He did not, however, apologize for violating the confidentiality of a fellow in recovery.

Although identifying other AA members is against one of the primary tenets of the group, "I broke no law, and I am not a member (of AA) at the present time," Chavira said.

"If Richard (Loa) is hurt, I will apologize to him," Chavira said.