Green values are Okie values 
A report and commentary on the 2005 GP-US Annual National Meeting in Tulsa
By Rachel Jackson
Green Party of Oklahoma

Two Greens (former GP-US Secretary Greg Gerritt at right) discuss the Ten Key Values at the Country Greens Social. Photo: Deanna Taylor / Green Party of Utah

For the first time ever, U.S. Greens held their national meeting in the state of Oklahoma, with some 150 delegates and others on the campus of the University of Tulsa, July 21-24. In the process, attendees learned that challenges facing Greens in Oklahoma are both similar to and unique from those facing Greens elsewhere in the U.S.

Oklahoma Greens struggle against the typical conservative stereotype of liberals as amoral, undignified and disrespectful bums who want the government to bankroll their self-indulgent lifestyles. We Greens are just as likely to be referred to as the Grass Party as the Green Party.

This prejudice against progressive thinkers is not unique to Oklahoma. But in Oklahoma, Greens also struggle against some of the most draconian ballot access laws in the nation, that almost completely restrict third parties from realizing their proper place in a democratic society. 

Ironically, these restrictive laws were set into place in the early 1970s by well-meaning liberals intending to keep George Wallace off the presidential ballot; now they serve to keep well-meaning liberals off the ballot. 

For a Green to get on the statewide ballot, for example, one must either collect 80,000-100,000 petition signatures within one year, lobby the legislature to change the law or take it to court. All of these have been tried-some repeatedly. 

As a result, Oklahoma Greens face a catch-22 in organizing: folks don't want to join a party they can't find on the ballot, and we can't get on the ballot until more folks join in the effort to get us there. That's why hosting the 2005 Annual National Meeting (ANM) of the Green Party was so critical for Oklahoma Greens.

The Oklahoma Greens held a "Country Greens Social" at a park in Tulsa on Friday evening for fun and to raise money. Members of the Green Country (OK) Greens helped decorate for the catered buffet dinner and held a raffle afterward. Photo: Deanna Taylor / Green Party of Utah

When local Green Joni LeViness first submitted the application to host the 2005 ANM, many of us were torn between eagerness and skepticism. We wanted to contribute to the Green Party in an authentic way, but we wanted to spare our home from negative criticism and the judgmental suggestions of outsiders.

Hosting the ANM turned out to be the shot in the arm we needed. We gained a fully participatory voice in the Green Party of the United States (GP-US) as an affiliated state party, after nine years of organizing. In the process, we defined ourselves and shared our home and values with Greens from around the country and were heard, respected and appreciated. On Saturday evening we hosted a fundraiser dinner in the park, barn-raisin' style, entirely from Oklahoma products, and made over $1,000 in the process. 
As the press turned its attention to us, we seized the opportunity to disprove stereotypes other Oklahomans have of Greens. Both the daily papers in Tulsa (front page) and Oklahoma City (editorial page) covered the meeting, along with the Oklahoma City alternative weekly, the Oklahoma Gazette, two NPR affiliates and the statewide PBS news circuit. 

David Cobb speaks during the morning session. Photo: Deanna Taylor / Green Party of Utah

As a result, we articulated the connection Okies should feel with Green values-that Green values are Okie values, and "good ol' boy" values aren't. We also got to explain our ballot battle and why, as a result, folks in Oklahoma might not have heard of us before.

Ultimately, the ANM gave us the context within which to claim our territory, both within the GP-US and within Oklahoma politics. Greens in Oklahoma walk taller these days because of the energy and support Greens from across the U.S. brought to our state. The next time we lobby a state legislator or member of our communities, we won't be bashful about claiming the Green Party as our own. 

And as meeting coordinator, I thank you all, especially the members of the ANM Committee and the GP-US Steering Committee, for dispelling some fears and stereotypes I've been carrying around far too long myself. May we all be the better and the wiser for having come together.

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