Green Party Watch

From the Illinois Green Party:

GREENS TO HOLD EQUAL MARRIAGE FORUM, BLAST DEMOCRATS FOR “SCAMMING” GAY COMMUNITY

The Green Party blasted Democrats in the state legislature for deliberately stalling three gay rights bills in the recent legislative session that ended earlier this week.

“The Democratic Party has been a big disappointment on gay rights,” said Steve Alesch, candidate for Congress in 2008. “Democrats control the White House, the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House. Democrats have held the Illinois governor’s office and have controlled both chambers of the state legislature since 2003. Yet, still no civil unions, no equal marriage. Nothing but stalling, year after year after year.”

In the Illinois General Assembly, House Bill 2234 (civil unions), and House Bill 178 (equal marriage), stalled in the House rules committee, a tactic Democratic leaders often use to stifle unwanted legislation.
read more »

The Green Party has issued a press release calling the selection of Rick Warren to deliver the inaugural prayer, noting his influential anti-gay rights positions. The Greens also call for the U.S. to sign the United Nation’s statement endorsing universal decriminalization of homosexuality.

WASHINGTON, DC — Green Party activists challenged gay voters and advocates of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender rights to protest President-elect Barack Obama’s invitation to Pastor Rick Warren to deliver the inaugural invocation.

“Unless we make our anger known now, Mr. Obama will continue to betray gay people,” said Starlene Rankin, co-chair of the party’s Lavender Green Caucus (http://www.lavendergreens.us). “Barack Obama’s claim to be a ‘fierce advocate for equality’ is not credible when he chooses a pastor notorious for his ill-informed and slanderous opinions about homosexuality and vigorous support for Proposition 8.”

“The invitation signals that Mr. Obama may repeat the Clinton approach to gay rights. President Clinton, taking gay votes for granted, signed the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act into law and authorized the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ military policy. We’ve had generations of gay rights advocates and other progressives insisting that we need to elect Democrats, then we’ll push them towards pro-gay agenda. Instead, gay people have remained second-class citizens in the Democratic Party and told to hush up when they’re politically inconvenient. For those tired of bipartisan retreats from promises of human rights and justice, the Green Party remains the party of real change in America,” added Ms. Rankin.
read more »