Social Media Postings Lead To Commissioner Asking Planning Commission Member To Resign

Social media posts by a Bucks County Planning Commission member and Upper Bucks County school board member have caused a stir.

Planning Commission member Joan Cullen, a volunteer for the appointed position, has been called on to resign by Bucks County Commissioners Chairperson Diane Ellis-Marseglia and a growing number of locals after controversial comments Cullen placed online have gained attention.

Cullen, a Republican, drew fire from a tweet where she appeared to deny there is systematic sexism and homophobia while sharing a post by a user stating there was no systemic racism in America. She previously has posted statements that have drawn fire in the Pennridge School District for their nature.

A Change.org petition with more than 2,000 signatures for her to resign states Cullen has denied facts and questions “how can she be trusted to guide the education of students?”

In the Pennridge community, Cullen has drawn fire from Democratic groups for her comments and stances, but attention became more widespread in recent weeks.

“The County of Bucks strives to represent all of its residents equally, with respect and fairness. Comments made by Bucks County Planning Commission member Joan Cullen are hateful, ignorant, and unacceptable. They do not reflect the values of Bucks County. Ms. Cullen was not appointed by this current administration, and we do not have the authority to remove her from her appointed position. As Chair, however, I call on her to resign this position immediately. Should she choose to ignore this request and finish out her term, which ends in January 2021, I assure the public she will not be reappointed to any position by this Board of Commissioners,” Ellis-Marseglia said in a statement issued last Friday evening.

The county said in a statement that Cullen was appointed by the past majority of the Bucks County Commissioners and her term ends in January 2021. The Bucks County Commissioners have no authority to remove her from the position.

The statement when posted on the county Facebook page drew more than 950 comments of varying viewpoints.

Former Commissioner Charley Martin, a Republican, commented that Cullen, who was recently elected to be a delegate to the Republican convention, shouldn’t resign. He added: “we still have freedom of speech!!”

“Yes, everyone IS entitled to an opinion but Cullen’s opinion disqualifies her from upholding the mission of the very agency she is supposed to be representing,” one person commented.

Several comments pointed to the Planning Commissions mission statement that reads members should promote practices and policies “without prejudice.”

Following Ellis-Marseglia’s statement being posted on the county website, attorney Dean Malik, a former Republican congressional candidate and conservative radio show host, issued a letter to the commissioners that was titled “Defamatory Attack Against Planning Board Volunteer Member, Joan Cullen.”

Malik called the press release asking for Cullen’s resignation from the Planning Commission a “highly inflammatory, vicious and personal attack was posted to the website as a press release targeting Bucks County resident, Joan Cullen.”

The letter further stated Cullen is a volunteer and chided the commissioners for using taxpayer resources to create and publish the statement.

“We demand that you immediately retract the false claims against Ms. Cullen, and that you issue a contextually honest correction, and apologize for the distress and other harms caused,” the letter stated.

Cullen’s attorney said they “reserve the right to pursue any and all avenues of recourse” and claimed the press release was “abuse against citizens.”

“Serving on the Planning Commission means accepting the responsibility to build a better future for everyone. Ms. Cullen’s comments are a throwback to the past. Beyond that, my statement speaks for itself,” Ellis-Marseglia told LevittownNow.com in a response following Malik’s letter.

The Bucks County Republican Committee Chairperson Pat Poprik issued a statement condemning the Ellis-Marseglia for using her office to “attempt to censor and shame individuals for having an opinion that differs from their own.” She further stated that it was “disappointing” to see Cullen’s remarks from 2019 be used to “attack her.”

Bucks County Democratic Committee Chairperson John Cordiso weighed in on the issue and the county GOP chair’s statement.

“Bucks County GOP Chairwoman is defending Joan Cullen’s right to free speech. And we agree, she has the right to hold antiquated, unfortunate opinions and to believe we live in a fantasy world where systemic racism, homophobia, and sexism do not exist. But that does not mean she can serve on a public board without scrutiny in 2020,” he said.

Cordisco additionally stated: “Ms. Cullen should take the temperature of what’s going on in the world right now: we’re in the middle of the Black Lives Matter movement, Pride Month, and live in a country where women still earn 82 cents to the dollar that men make (even less for women of color). The movements at the forefront in this country are setting the standard and that standard is basic human decency. I find it extremely troubling for any of our leaders to fly directly in the face of this baseline from which all progress is built.”

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