The Blackout of Race & Gender
October 28, 2008 in Editorials, Presidential Campaign, Social & Economic Justice
In an article at OpEdNews, Amee Chew makes a compelling case for the Cynthia McKinney / Rosa Clemente vote:
The Green Party Presidential ticket of Cynthia McKinney and Rosa Clemente brings something special and unprecedented to U.S. politics. Not only are they the first all women-of-color ticket for President and Vice President. These women take racial justice seriously, and have made strides to put gender at the center of a progressive agenda. For these two, it’s more than skin deep.
They’re the Presidential ticket that talks about amnesty for undocumented workers, that opposes guest worker programs as riddled with abuses, because they believe a just immigration reform means addressing the trade and economic policies fueling poverty and migration. They’re the ticket that demands reparations in the form of federal investment in low-income families and communities of color, to end racial disparities in health, housing, education, and incarceration. They call for the right of return for Katrina survivors; an end to prisons for profit, to the War on Drugs. And they speak of reproductive justice – not just the right to abortion, but actual healthcare access; of freedom from coerced or uninformed medication and sterilization.
Very well said, and the article continues to emphasize the “movement building” aspect to the Power to the People campaign and the Green Party.
Unfortunately, she also brings up the dreaded “safe states strategy” that tormented the Green Party for years, but I’ll pretend that those 6 sentences were interjected to appeal to Obama supporters driven by fear.
The rest of the article itemizes the blackout of the McKinney / Clemente message by not only the main stream media but by the traditional “progressive” organizations such as NOW, AntiWar.com, and Comedy Central’s Indecision2008 (although I wouldn’t consider that “progressive” per se…)
The article is worth a read.
David Gaines said on October 28, 2008
<>
When is the Green Party going to get on the ball and correct these various media outlets that keep promoting this? There have been TWO PREVIOUS presidential tickets with a black woman at the top & a Latina as her running mate, both by the Workers World Party (Monica Moorehead and Gloria LaRiva), in 1996 & 2000.
Mike Gillis said on October 28, 2008
Moorehead/LaRiva in 1996 was the second all-women of color ticket.
The first was Fulani/Munoz in 1988 – which was on far more ballots than any of the third parties this year.
This has been pointed out more than once by Richard Winger.
So the McKinney campaign needs to stop saying this. It’s just not factually correct.
David Gaines said on October 29, 2008
Good call on Fulani/Muñoz, I had forgotten about them……they weren’t just on “far more ballots,” they were on the ballot in all 50 states and D.C. that year.
Amee Chew said on October 30, 2008
thank you for pointing this out.
In 1988, Lenora Fulani made it on all 50 states (running with a number of different VP candidates depending on the state, it seems?). When she ran with Maria Muñoz in 1992, they got onto the ballots of over 40 states.
I have made a correction in the article.