The Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts (MMFA) likely violated the Alabama Open Meetings Act (OMA) when it barred an 1819 News reporter from attending a non-advertised board meeting on Wednesday.
The MMFA board met in a specially called meeting Wednesday morning in response to 1819 News' reporting the previous day on several billboards in the Montgomery area that drew criticism from inside and outside the state.
The billboards feature a massive "Make America Great Again" over a famous picture of Alabama state troopers confronting the late civil rights leaders John Lewis and Hosea Williams during the March 7, 1965, Selma to Montgomery march. The march came weeks after a voting rights protest where a young black man was beaten to death by police. Over 600 people set off from Brown Chapel AME Church, eventually finding a wall of state troopers and sheriff's deputies.
1819 News learned of the specially called meeting on Wednesday morning. When an 1819 News reporter attempted to attend the meeting at the museum, a museum staffer said the media weren't allowed in because it was about "personnel matters."
A later statement from MMFA responding to the controversy implied the meeting was called to appoint an interim director.
The meeting was also not advertised on the MMFA website or social media pages.
If the MMFA is classified as a "governmental body" under Alabama law, the barring of a member of the public, combined with the lack of advertisement for the meeting, would violate OMA.
According to OMA, a governmental body is defined as the following:
"All boards, bodies, and commissions of the executive and legislative departments of the state or its political subdivisions or municipalities which expend or appropriate public funds; all multimember governing bodies of departments, agencies, institutions, and instrumentalities of the executive and legislative departments of the state or its political subdivisions or municipalities, including, without limitation, all corporations and other instrumentalities whose governing boards are comprised of a majority of members who are appointed or elected by the state or its political subdivisions, counties, or municipalities; and all quasi-judicial bodies of the executive and legislative departments of the state and all standing, special, or advisory committees or subcommittees of, or appointed by, the body."
The MMFA is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit. However, its most recent annual report claims to be a "department of the City of Montgomery." It also receives the lion's share of its funding – roughly 69% – from state and county dollars. According to the Alabama state checkbook, the state also gave MMFA over $112,000 in the 2024 fiscal year.
Additionally, of the MMFA board's 14 appointed members, nine are appointed by the City of Montgomery. Notably, Jennifer Dobbs with the City of Montgomery's Cultural Affairs Department sent out the statement from MMFA addressing the billboard issue.
Likewise, Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed said he “requested that the image be removed from all billboards without delay,” after learning of the images. His statement also said, “We will review this process to ensure that such missteps are not repeated in the future."
The MMFA's status with the city and use of public funds likely place it under OMA requirements. Laura Clark, the president of the Alabama Center for Law and Liberty (ACLL) and lawyer for the Prattville-Autauga Public Library, also beholden to OMA, agreed with this conclusion.
OMA requires that the public be allowed to attend all meetings of so-called governmental bodies, except in cases of executive session. It also requires bodies to give at least seven days' notice of all meetings. Municipal bodies are required to place notices "on a bulletin board at a place convenient to the public in the city hall."
In the case of an emergency meeting, Alabama code reads:
"[Notice] shall be posted as soon as practicable after the meeting is called and in no event less than 24 hours before the meeting is scheduled to begin, unless such notice (i) is prevented by emergency circumstances requiring immediate action to avoid physical injury to persons or damage to property; or (ii) relates to a meeting to be held solely to accept the resignation of a public official or employee. In such situations, notice shall be given as soon as practical, but in no case less than one hour before the meeting is to begin."
Thus far, 1819 News has not found evidence that the Wednesday morning MMFA meeting was advertised to the public, much less in the time frame required by state law.
When an employee is terminated, the body will do so in an executive session. However, a quorum must first be established in a regular meeting before a motion can be made to put the body in executive session. In that case, the above requirements for community notification still apply.
The MMFA public relations and media spokesperson did not respond to attempts by 1819 News to contact them over the controversy.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email craig.monger@1819news.com.
Don't miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.
