GreenLine — May Day Weekend Edition
We hope you had a Happy May Day and took a moment commemorate the international struggle for workers' rights, equity and justice. This year, we greeted May Day at a critical juncture in that struggle.
This COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the brutal disregard our economic and political systems have for workers' well-being. Frontline workers are told to go without proper safety equipment, others have been forced out of work entirely and left to fend for themselves, giant corporations have been gifted enormous transfers of wealth and now our communities are bracing for brutal cutbacks to public goods and services at the moment we need them most.
COVID-19 presents only a fraction of what's to come as the climate emergency escalates. Our hyper-capitalist plutocracy, led by the two parties of War and Wall Street, has flunked this test. Miserably.
To defend ourselves against "Shock Doctrine"-style exploitation of this immediate crisis and to win the Eco-Socialist Green New Deal necessary for averting the crises ahead, we must join together now in strategic, networked collective action to shut this system down. We are fighting for our lives.
It is not yet safe for physical gatherings but there is still much that a People's Strike can accomplish to support the demands of frontline workers and prepare our communities for the time when we all can — and must — assemble in the streets, city halls and state legislature buildings as necessary to demand a People's Bailout and immediate implementation of a Green New Deal.
—Michael O'Neil, GreenLine Editor and Green Party Communications Manager
Virtual Presidential Convention Planning Underway Due to COVID-19 Pandemic
Green Party US is grateful to the Detroit Green Party and Wayne State University for initially agreeing to host this year's Annual National Meeting and Presidential Nominating Convention. They have been gracious partners as this national public health crisis we find ourselves in unfolded. We look forward to convening in Detroit in a future year but concern for the health and safety of our members and the general public have forced us to pivot to a virtual convention format for 2020.
We are hard at work developing a convention format and tool suite to hold an accessible, democratic and inspiring event to launch the Green Party's general election campaign.
This will take substantial resources and so we still request delegates and those who otherwise would have attended in Detroit to contribute a registration fee as usual.
If you already paid for housing and meals and are seeking a reimbursement please email [email protected].
Please look out for updates from Green Party US and your state Green Party as the virtual convention format takes shape.
Illinois Greens Score Major Ballot Access Victory in Lawsuit!
On April 2nd, the Illinois Green Party joined with the Libertarian Party of Illinois and two independent candidates seeking ballot access in a lawsuit filed against Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois State Board of Elections. The lawsuit sought emergency injunctive relief from the petitioning requirement during the 2020 election cycle.
Thanks to great legal work by attorneys Oliver Hall of the Center for Competitive Democracy and Ohio attorney Mark Brown (with an assist by Scott Summers), we not only persuaded the court, but even the defendants, that the petitioning requirements were unconstitutional under the current conditions. After some negotiating, the parties came to an agreement that was entered into this preliminary injunction order, accompanying an opinion and order by Judge Rebecca R. Pallmeyer, explaining the legal basis for the injunction.
#GreenEnter2020 Has Begun
Thousands upon thousands of people are exploring the Green Party as a possible home following Bernie Sanders suspending his campaign for president.
The timing was a bit of a surprise, but we're happy to report an explosion of new signups and volunteers in our grassroots party "Of, By and For the People." We're moving quickly to connect these new allies into the fight for Grassroots Democracy, Social Justice, Ecological Wisdom and Non-violence.
Keep Up To Date With The Green Party Presidential Primary Candidates
Visit gp.org/2020 today
How Was Your 4/20? If You Didn't Sign And Share Our Petition To Legalize Marijuana Because You Were, Uh, Busy, You Still Can!
The Green Party has long been in favor of legalizing marijuana. The End the War on Drugs section of our platform includes:
- End the "war on drugs." Redirect funds presently budgeted for the "war on drugs" toward expanded research, education, counseling and treatment.
- Legalize possession, sale, and cultivation of cannabis/marijuana.
- Strike from the record prior felony convictions for marijuana possession, sale, or cultivation.
CONTINUE READING AND SIGN THE PETITION...
Green Party of Connecticut joins Secretary of State Merrill’s call for an executive order on voting, the elections, and the covid-19 pandemic
HARTFORD, CT – The Green Party of Connecticut has long been an advocate for more democratic and more representative balloting laws in Connecticut, as we are an advocate for the broadest possible enfranchising of Connecticut residents. Even though we are a recognized minor party in Connecticut, our candidates must often overcome large obstacles in the form of onerous petitioning requirements just to be on the ballot.
We therefore wholeheartedly support Secretary of State Merrill’s March 28 proposal that Governor Lamont issue an Executive Order on voting and elections and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Green Party of Florida statement on fighting the COVID-19 crisis and beyond
Robin Harris, Co-Chair, Green Party of Florida, states:
"The COVID-19 Pandemic has revealed the ineptness of Amerikkka and the weakness of the duopoly. Moreover, it has shown this nation's deficient concern for its Black and Brown communities. However, this inevitable plummeting event also presents the Green Party with an opportunity to present a National Black Agenda, with policies of self-determination and liberation. This crisis can in fact lead us to a powerful political beginning."
North Carolina Green Party to Sanders supporters: help us build political power independent of the capitalist parties
PITTSBORO, NC – With the news that Bernie Sanders suspended his campaign for the Democratic Party nomination for president, our hearts go out to our friends and the millions of Bernie supporters who invested so much of their time, passion, and funds over the last several years to fight for economic and social equity and justice, Medicare for All, and a Green New Deal.
Please keep your fire burning and break from the corporate two-party system that continues to fail us over and over again! No more lesser of two evils. We, the North Carolina Green Party, invite you to stand with us and demand an actual democracy that represents all of us. Now more than ever, we’re reaching out to all of you to help us build a better world.
We believe that this current COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected every one of us, clearly reveals how poorly suited capitalism is in responding to crises.
Protect transgender prisoners
The Latinx Caucus of the Green Party calls for investigations into the treatment of transgender prisoners being held in ICE detention and in US jails and prisons, and for the humane treatment of all ICE detainees.
As the world suffers through this COVID-19 global pandemic that has already cost the lives of tens of thousands of victims, and is on course to claim countless more, we must cling ever tighter to our humanity. In the midst of this crisis we must continue to call out abuse on every level and demand protection and dignity for all. It is with this in mind that we speak out now to stand in solidarity with all immigrants who are asking nothing more than to live their lives in peace and security, and in particular transgender immigrants who often face another level of persecution.
Green Party: Economic Stimulus Must Help Average Americans While Solving Climate Change
The Green Party of the United States said that the economic stimulus package being voted upon by Congress does not do enough to help Americans, and also fails to help the country respond to the accelerating climate crisis. In countries like China and Italy with the worst outcomes, as in large cities in the US and worldwide, air pollution from burning fossil fuels was a factor of increased mortality from COVID-19. A healthy planet prevents future pandemics due to destruction of ecosystems and protects lives as well as world economies from man-made crises.
The latest proposed stimulus bill offered by the Senate, which has been scheduled for a House vote on Thursday morning, neglects funding for state and city governments facing massive revenue shortfalls that will lead to deeper cuts in schools and other public services. The legislation will provide $321 billion for small businesses, $75 billion for hospitals, and $25 billion for coronavirus testing but no new oversight for bailout money, no relief for renters and no funding for food assistance.
Green Party of the United States
http://www.gp.org
@GreenPartyUS
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