Do League of American Bicyclists instructors have a role in advocacy?

Slate had an article on Friday highlighting the differences between facilities advocates and vehicular cyclists. They have diametrically opposed views regarding some bicycling laws and practices, and of course this spills over into public policy where large amounts of taxpayer money are concerned.

Indeed, the League of American Bicyclists, cyclist's main lobbying group in Washington, is not immune from the controversy.

On October first, the Tulsa World ran a cycling safety piece. As part of that story, Gary Parker, a life-long bicycling advocate, provided the following:

Cycle of doubt
Can Tulsa be safer for bike riders?

Tulsa cycling instructor Gary Parker, of the League of American Bicyclists, thinks bike lanes are a waste of taxpayer money that don't improve safety.

"The costs associated with even a few miles of bike lanes could provide bicycling education classes to every interested person in Tulsa County," he said.

Bike lanes are problematic because they confound the rules of the road, Parker said. Motorists don't know how to interact with bicyclists in bike lanes at intersections, and intersections are where the majority of motorist-cyclist collisions occur.

"Bicyclists fare best when they act like and are treated like drivers of vehicles, which is what they are," Parker said

In an email response to the Tulsa World, Andy Clarke, president of the League of American Bicyclists, wrote that Mr. Parker does not work for nor represent the League. Furthermore, his statements regarding bike lanes were not supported by any evidence. He went on to say that the League has asked LCIs to refrain from comments similar to Parker's. Clarke later confirmed he'd written this email and graciously elaborated upon it.

Parker, a retired teacher, worked for many years promoting bicycling in Tulsa. He has accomplished much, though he's a modest man who doesn't look to take credit for those accomplishments. He's the very grass-roots activist that the League needs.  The people who volunteer for these thankless tasks are the foundation of any advocacy organization. Quite literally, they are the League.

These are the six E's of bicycling advocacy according to LAB:

Equality – Legal: traffic law and legislation, including movements, access, equipment, uniformity
Engineering – Transportation: road and bicycle facilities development, design, and construction, and mobility and funding sources
Enforcement – Police and Courts: Equitable treatment of cyclists through citations and trials
Education – Schools and Smart Cycling™: Traffic skills education for the public, engineers, enforcers, and legislators
Encouragement – Public and private agencies: advertising campaigns, promotions, etc.
Evaluation – Public agencies: Measurement

Local LCIs are the spearhead in maintaining cyclist's rights. LAB does not have the resources to step in when there's a local tragedy or if ill-conceived plans are forced upon area cyclists. LCIs are the committed local advocates who must act on their own behalf. They are expected to speak out in the face of hate talk directed against cyclists. They have a duty to educate the public, elected officials, law enforcement, and others through local broadcast and print media. They have an obligation to oppose superstition and fear with reason and facts. In short, they must ask inconvenient questions and pursue the best practices available.

Andy Clarke disagrees that League cycling instructors are the spearhead in advocacy. Clarke stated that bicycling education may or may not be part of a broader advocacy effort, and that LCI's who do not conform to LAB's agenda are severely undermining those efforts. Yet the League's webpage describing LCI candidates says this:

How do I know if I’m qualified to become an LCI?
If you are an experienced and knowledgeable cyclist with a desire to make cycling safe and accessible for others, you are on the right track. The League seeks to certify those of its members (yes, membership in the League is required) who are self-starters, passionate about cycling and are recognized within their communities as riders with experience and know how.

LAB looks for people who are 'passionate self-starters, people recognized within their community for their experience and know-how.' Advocacy and bicycling education complement each other, so advocacy is a natural outgrowth of education.

Advocates cannot make public policy. At best, they try to influence its direction, and in doing so they bring to bear the education and experience of a lifetime. To use an analogy, they've arrived at the conference table with a box of tools, some of them dull and rusty, others shiny from frequent use. LCI credentials are the best in the box.

Clarke wrote:
"Recent discussions on the LCI list serve made it perfectly clear that it is not appropriate for LCIs to say that “bike lanes are bad” when representing themselves as LCIs and spokespeople for the League. Gary and other LCIs may hold whatever views they like about bike lanes or any other roadway facility – but when they are representing the League in the classroom or in the media or on a local committee, they should respect the positions and policies of the League....But as soon as he represents, or represents himself as representing, the League he should have the courtesy and respect for the League to follow the positions, policies, and programs of the organization that gives him a credential."

...Few things give me greater heartache than seeing misplaced dogma limit our possibilities and get in the way of progress. With all the possibilities and incredible reasons for getting people back on their bikes in communities just like Tulsa, it is distressing to see the bicycling community fighting among itself because of the obsession a few people have with one particular facility type they have decided without good reason to oppose. We have bigger challenges and greater opportunities on which to spend our precious time and energy."

Missing the irony, his message ends with "...help us promote and protect the rights of cyclists!" Misplaced dogma, indeed.