I was a member of the Union League for 20 years. After the Ron DeSantis fiasco, I quit.

Almost 20 years ago, I joined the Union League of Philadelphia because its core ethos — “love of country leads” — deeply resonated with me. Its history further drew me in, including its original founding to support President Abraham Lincoln and his efforts to keep the United States together. I was attracted by the league’s support of Octavius Catto’s efforts to establish an African American corps of soldiers to fight in the Civil War, and the efforts of Frederick Douglass, one of the most brilliant and articulate leaders of the abolitionist movement in the United States.

But after almost two decades of membership, during which I enjoyed the fellowship of other members and the great facilities that the league has to offer, I am resigning.

I did not come to this conclusion and action lightly.

My decision stems directly from the decision by the leadership of the Union League to award our highest honor — the Gold Medal — to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. This is fundamentally at odds with the reasons I joined the Union League and the league’s own stated ethos.

The foundation of the league and the Civil War was all about what kind of country America should be. The Union League’s membership consists of more than 4,000 distinguished leaders who represent a wide range of political, ethnic, and religious diversity. What holds this group together is not politics, but our firm belief in the ethos of the Union League. Its original members joined a social club founded to support the unity of the United States during one of the darkest and most defining moments in its history, when negative forces were trying to divide the country based, in part, on race, enslavement of fellow Americans, and other considerations.

» READ MORE: ‘You don’t want this smoke’: Philly NAACP protests Union League honor for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis

The “country” that is referred to in our motto is the United States of America, as reflected in our club’s name, the Union League. Those united states are a multicultural, multiethnic, multireligious, diverse country reflecting a broad range of ideologies and sexual orientations, and it is love for that country that leads us as members of the league.

DeSantis is the very antithesis of this inclusive America. He has stated that an AP high school course on African American history “lacks educational value” and sought to use his power as governor to ban this course within his state. He has attacked the First Amendment by limiting what teachers within his state can say and teach about sexual orientation and gender identity. Perhaps most concerning, here in Pennsylvania, he supported Doug Mastriano for governor, a man who advocated for armed insurrection against the United States and was physically present at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. This was an act of disloyalty to the federal government, the Constitution, and the peaceful transfer of power to the duly elected president and commander in chief of the United States armed forces.

“DeSantis is the very antithesis of this inclusive America.”

Gov. DeSantis has taken actions that are directly contrary to what the Union League claims it stands for.

I support the proposition that each of us, as Americans, have and should exercise our fundamental rights to express our political interests, or none at all. To this end, it is perfectly right, healthy, and proper for members of the league to support a political party or candidate and rent the facilities of the league to host their interests. What is not acceptable is for a group of members to use the highest award of the league to exercise their political interests, and impose it on all 4,000-plus league members, without our consent. If some league members want to honor Gov. DeSantis, they can do so in their personal capacity and not drag all members of the league into their own political perspective.

As is, the award to Gov. DeSantis, on behalf of the entire Union League, creates the false impression that the decision had the support of all members. This is not the case.

I have been part of the internal group of Concerned Members of the Union League who engaged in extensive dialogue with the league’s leadership over both the decision to honor DeSantis and the opaque and undemocratic process by which that decision was made. I commend and respect this diverse group of league members, who truly love the league and are deeply committed to keeping our core, founding principles and ethos.

However, I have reached the clear conclusion that I cannot remain part of a club whose leadership is comfortable with granting its most prestigious award to someone who undermines what the club claims to represent.

» READ MORE: The Union League should not honor Ron DeSantis

We all make moral decisions every day. We cannot say we stand for “love of country” and the Constitution, then support a person who opposes those core values and actively campaigns for and supports individuals involved in armed insurrection against the same United States. That is hypocrisy, and unacceptable to me.

It would be a personal moral conflict for me to remain in, and financially support, an institution whose leadership is comfortable supporting someone whose views directly defy my own.

I would urge each member of the league to reflect on whether the same is true for them.

Osagie O. Imasogie is the chairman of Quoin Capital. He is a cofounder and senior managing partner at PIPV Capital, and he was the founding vice president of GlaxoSmithKline Ventures.