McKinney and Nader speak at National Green Meeting

Ralph Nader, Green Party presidential candidate in 1996 and 2000 addressed members of the Green Party in attendance at the lively Ballot Access Super Rally on Saturday night. Nader has not committed to run again but has not ruled it our either. See his speech at http://www.gp.org/meeting2007/.

On Sunday afternoon, Cynthia McKinney spoke to members of the Green Party at a screening of the film "American Blackout" and hinted at a possible run for president on the Green Party ticket in 2008. She has not committed to run but has not ruled it out either. See the video at http://www.gp.org/meeting2007/.

Both speakers view the Green Party as playing an important role in the 2008 presidential election and both recognize the need for the Green Party to get at least 5% of the vote and would view that as a victory for the Green Party. The 5% would make the Green Party eligible for federal funds for the 2012 election cycle and would also make the Green Party Candidates eligible to be in the debates.

Dismantling Racism Workshop Held by Green Party at National Meeting

Extracted from a report by Isabelle Buonocore who attended the workshop.
For the full report, email: isabellebuonocore@hotmail.com

The Green Party of the United States offered a Dismantling Racism Workshop, July 11-13, 2007 , at its annual national meeting in Reading , Pennsylvania . It was an intensive 18-hour workshop, held over 3 consecutive days, with attendees working together and having meals together. There were 29 participants, 45 percent of whom were people of color, and 39 percent were non-Green Party members who came from places in Pennsylvania as close as Reading and as far as Harrisburg .

Rita Harris, a woman of color from Tennessee , and Bill Price, a white man from West Virginia , facilitated the workshop. They took turns providing information and facilitating group sharing and discussion. In one of the workshop sessions, Rita and Bill facilitated separate color and white
caucuses giving people a chance to "work" within their own identity group. Rita and Bill are professionals who work for the Environmental Justice Program of the Sierra Club.

The workshop began on a Wednesday with a private dinner buffet in the same room that cloistered the participants for all their workshop sessions till noon on Friday.

The workshop dealt with individuals' experience, lack of experience, consciousness, and denial of racism. It examined racism in assumptions, communication, and practices from the personal to the cultural and institutional. The cycle of oppression and "white privilege" were concepts that we explored. We also discussed the meaning of "white allies" and what white people and people of color might do on a personal and organizational level to confront racism. The grinding effect of racism on the lives of people of color, the lack of awareness of white privilege by whites, and the impact of both was discussed.

One of the Dismantling Racism Workshop sessions addressed the subject of "white allies" for people of color (white persons who do not remain silent but confront racism). We shared our experience of how people of color and white people are treated when they bring up the need to address racism in predominantly white organizations. When a person of color brings up racism it is seen by whites as self-serving. To be a white ally for people of color is to risk having other white people not like you.

The last workshop session was about actions Greens could take toward dismantling racism, and how we could work to transform our organizations to be fully inclusive. The list of some of what we could do is long, but here are a few things. Become better educated about people of color. Read publications by people of color - outside the white canon of writers. Listen to what people of color have to say. Interrupt "jokes" about people of color and ethnic groups. At all future Green Party Annual National Meetings, have racism on the agenda either as a workshop or a panel presentation. Have strategic meetings with Greens who think "we don't have a problem." Don't stifle anger, it represents something that needs to be heard; determine what that is. Primarily we must keep in mind that we cannot expect change if we keep doing things the same way.

The Green Party Black Caucus gets new acting Co-Chairs

Martina Robinson, a disability rights activist, freelance writer, integrated dance instructor, and choreographer from Belchertown, MA has been named as Acting Co-Chair of the Green Party Black Caucus. Serving with her as Acting Co-Chair is Alfred Molison a National Delegate and 2007 Green Party City Council Candidate from Houston, Texas and current co-chair of the Harris County Green Party and is the outgoing co-chair of the Green Party of Texas. Alfred is pushing for healthy jobs, healthy lives, and healthy futures!

For more information on the Green Party Black Caucus go here: http://gpblackcaucus.blogspot.com

Co-Chairs elected at National Meeting

Steve Kramer, Rebecca Rotzler and Katey Culver did not run for re-election and the following new Steering Committee members were elected as Co-Chairs: Phil Huckelberry (IL), Jason Nabewaniec (NY) and Kisten Olson(MN). Budd Dickinson (CA) ran for re-election and won. The Secretary seat was up for election and Holly Hart (IA) was re-elected for a second term.

Thanks and commemorative plaques were presented to Steve Kramer, Rebecca Rotzler and Katey Culver for service to the Party.

Green Party National Committee to decide location of 2008 Convention

We provide the following 4 options with links to each to help you in this important decision making process. Please click on the links to get the full information on each option.

The Green Party of Alameda County has two different sites for you to consider. 1)The Marriott/Oakland Convention Center, located in downtown Oakland. Available Dates for the Convention July 1-7, 2008 or July 8-14, 2008. (The following convention dates are also available, except that the meeting space for Wednesdays is currently being held, pending a decision by another group: *June 3-9, 2008 or *July 15-21, 2008; 2)The Berkeley Community Theater, located in downtown Berkeley. Available Dates for the Convention - June 24-30, 2008, July 1-7, 2008 or July 15-21, 2008. In addition, the following dates for the convention are currently being held for decisions by other groups - June 10-16, 2008, June 17-23, 2008 or July 8-14, 2008. Both of these sites are located within two blocks of the BART rail line, with easy access to the Oakland and San Francisco airports. Berkeley/Oakland: http://rachel.cagreens.org/oakland/html/2008_convention.html

The Detroit Greens and the Green Party of Michigan submit this proposal to host the GPUS 2008 Annual National Meeting and Nominating Convention in Detroit. The host committee is currently looking at 2 union facilities with some availability during June & July of 2008. Each facility has hosted conventions of the size of our Nominating Convention. One is located downtown on the riverfront. The other is located between the airport and downtown in the adjacent city of Dearborn, home of the largest Arab American community outside the Middle East. Detroit/Dearborn: http://www.detroitgreens.org/anm08/

Minneapolis now has space reserved for two weekends: July 9/10-14 and July 23/24-28, 2008 We have these on hold until Sept. 1st: 1)A Ballroom in the Convention Center for Friday and Saturday. Hotel rooms and all other convention functions will occur at The Millennium Hotel (rates below). Another block of rooms (100) at the nearby Ramada Inn. 50 singles and 50 doubles at $99 is on hold until Sept. 1st. See further below for other accommodation options; 2)The Millennium is the closest hotel to the convention center, just 125 steps away. The hotel features 322 comfortably equipped guestrooms inclusive of ten suites. We also provide an indoor pool, sauna and workout suite with state of the art exercise equipment. Parking is available in our ramp adjacent to the hotel and Thrifty Car Rental is onsite for easy convenience. Minneapolis: http://www.gpus2008.mngreens.org/

Chicago offers a wide range of venue options, and it was difficult to narrow the options down to just one. Because there is such a range of possibilities , we are offering one option that comprises two of the city's highest-profile, elegant venues, and one option that would provide for a more functional, budget-conscious convention. 1)Blackstone Hotel/Chicago Theatre; If high-profile guest speakers, media coverage and an unmistakable presence in downtown Chicago is what the Green Party wants from its 2008 convention, there is no better venue combination than the restored Blackstone Hotel and the historic Chicago Theatre. Dates available: June 12-15, July 3-6, July 10-13, July 17-20 or August 7-10. 2)Hilton Chicago; The Hilton Chicago offers massive, yet elegant, meeting spaces and reasonably priced hotel rooms. Available July 31-Aug.3. 3)Hyatt Regency; Located at McCormick Place, the city's world-class convention center, the Hyatt offers everything you'd expect from a modern convention facility, including ample space to totally accommodating to our needs and ample, affordable hotel rooms. Available July 10-13 or July 17-20. Chicago: http://www.greenconvention2008.com

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