Volunteer denies sending message, suggests CouTOURe Club account could have been hacked
Wayne Washington | Palm Beach PostA member of a volunteer club that assists with one of Palm Beach County's most celebrated events, the Honda Classic golf tournament, says she quit after the club failed to disassociate itself from a member who sent a racist message in a group chat.
The message, a screen shot of which was obtained by The Palm Beach Post, told group members that, in the aftermath of George Floyd's killing in Minneapolis, white people were "targets" and should "stay safe and stay vigilant."
Cortney Berry, who had been a member of the CouTOURe volunteer club for four years, says she and more than 100 other people received the message from Michael Rutledge, a Jupiter Island real estate agent.
"I was horrified when I read it," Berry said, adding that she quit when Rutledge, a friend of the Honda Classic's executive director, was not barred from continued affiliation with CouTOURe.
A screen shot of the message, sent under the name Michael Rutledge, reads: "Ladies! Please be aware and alert of the terrible things that are going on regarding the Riots and Turmoil with the death of the gentleman in Minneapolis ... we have all been warned as white persons that we are targets ... this is Not a Racist Alert!! This is FACT ... I live on Jupiter Island they are raising our bridges ... stay safe and stay vigilant ... God Help Us All."
Emails from the former executive director of the club and screen shots of group chats indicate that the club took the message down.
A screen shot of what appears to be a message from then-Executive Director Deborah Jaffe to club members states that the group chat "should be used for HC or CC business only. No one should be posting anything political or social on any sites related to CouTOURe and the Honda Classic."
In an email to The Post, Jaffe said: "When the post was brought to my attention on June 13th, I immediately instructed our internal Crew administrator to remove the post. Furthermore, I emailed all the members of the CouTOURe Club and reminded them that CREW was not to be used for personal messages. Lastly, when I was made aware of the post, one of our Board members also contacted Mr. Rutledge and told him that CREW was not a place to post personal messages and/or political points of view."
Could have been hacked?
When he was reached by The Post, Rutledge initially asked how the newspaper obtained a message he described as part of a private conversation among friends. He then said he does not know anything about the message and added that the chat group could have been hacked.
"I'm not familiar with the message," Rutledge said. "I don't have any recollection of that. It could have been something that was hacked."
On its Facebook page, the CouTOURe Club describes itself as a "volunteer organization of women dedicated to increasing awareness of the Honda Classic and its mission to raise money for Children's Charities."
Berry said the group was set up to "to volunteer at the tournament, to oversee raising money for The Honda Classic Cares charity, distributing that money to the children's charities across Palm Beach County, and then throughout the year we volunteer our time to support the organizations that are the recipients of these grants."
Two people familiar with the club said it has a lone Black female member.
CouTOURe Club was co-founded by Kelly Kennerly, who is married to the Honda Classic's executive director, Ken Kennerly.
According to a description of Rutledge on his real estate page, he met the Kennerlys through Ann Vandersteel, a Donald Trump supporter considered by many to be a conspiracy theorist who recently had her YouTube channel suspended for violating YouTube's community guidelines barring targeted harassment and egregious insults.
"His long friendship with Ann Vandersteel enabled Michael to first get involved with the Junior League of the Palm Beaches," the description says. "Through Ann, Michael met Ken and Kelly Kennerly at the Honda Classic, a PGA Tour event where he became the 'Welcome Host' at CouTOURe Club venue."
It is not clear what Rutledge's duties were as a "welcome host."
A person who requested anonymity because of continued involvement with the club said Rutledge sent the message but was not told to have nothing more to do with the club.
The person said that, for many years now, Rutledge has operated a private, exclusive booth during the Honda Classic, where people can get out of the sun and enjoy refreshments.
No official role with Honda Classic
Ken Kennerly, responding to questions from The Post, said he was unaware of the chat group message until a reporter told him about it. He distanced the Honda Classic, perhaps the best known sporting event in Palm Beach County, from Rutledge.
"Mr. Rutledge has no official (or even unofficial) role with the Honda Classic," Kennerly wrote in an email to The Post. "The CouTOURe Club is an independent group made up of annual members who volunteer for CouTOURe Club activities."
Ken Kennerly added that, "In no way do I condone what you allege Mr. Rutledge communicated."
Floyd's killing by police in Minneapolis, captured with cellphone footage, sparked protests and calls for social justice across the country. Some of the protests included instances of arson, looting and violence. People of various races were injured or had their businesses damaged.
Still, the protests became yet another cultural and political flashpoint, with some embracing the call for social justice and police reform and others viewing the protests as anarchy generated by violent Black Americans.
Many big businesses, either because they embraced the call for social justice or because they feared an economic backlash or both, issued statements of support. And, in a few instances, businesses pulled back from individual or corporate actions deemed as racist.
The Honda Classic has a large and growing profile. Its sponsors have included Honda, Tire Kingdom, United Technologies, Jupiter Medical Center and the PGA National Resort and Spa. It is supported and promoted by both the Palm Beach County Sports Commission and Discover the Palm Beaches, which promotes tourism to the county.
Ken Kennerly said that, "while we do not control how any of the CC members or our other 1,600 plus volunteers communicate outside of the Honda Classic, this situation is worthy of additional attention."
He added: "We cannot have any of our volunteers’ actions negatively impact the tournament. I will address this with the Board of Directors of the CouTOURe Club directly and suggest that they develop a more definitive set of guidelines on their members’ use of social media platforms. Furthermore, it will be up to the Board of Directors of the CouTOURe Club to determine whether Mr. Rutledge continues to be a member of the organization in the future."
wwashington@pbpost.com
The Link LonkNovember 18, 2020 at 02:53AM
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Honda charity club member quits after member posts racist comment - Palm Beach Post
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