September 2019

Working toward a future where people and planet are valued, and our government represents all of us.

Labor Day Thoughts: Greens Envision Something Different
  by GPPA Co-chair Alan Smith

Do you make $15 an hour? Or are you selling an hours worth or your labor and life's existence for just $15? How something is framed or conceived makes a big difference. As an educator, much of my work is helping people re-frame how we talk and understand things. Back on May 1st we celebrated International Workers Day or May Day. Labor Day was created to divert attention away from international solidarity among laborers. It was as an attempt to diffuse and pacify American laborers and to encourage them to conceive of the United States as a place that appreciates and values workers. Nothing could be further from the truth. The United States was founded on the exploitation of labor. From the genocide of the indigenous, to the enslavement of Africans and the abusive practices endured by immigrants, the blood, sweat, tears of the poor and marginalized and exploited have given rise to this country. Today Labor Day has been further re-framed and re-conceptualized so that it is considered a day to celebrate the end of summer and sales.

Do we recognize the construction workers names on the buildings they build? Are the highways they construct named after them? How about the labor a parent does? A stay at home parent if their role was monetized should be compensated over $100,000 annually. Yet this labor not only goes uncompensated but unrecognized. Unemployment figures are at record lows, but this means nothing if people have to work multiple jobs to survive. Like many I work multiple jobs for which I am compensated poorly. Shackled by debt, I live paycheck to paycheck. This is no accident. The system we live under was designed and framed to keep us from bringing about a more equitable world. American workers produce $70 an hour worth of value, yet the famous Fight for $15 movement would have almost 80% of that value NOT go to the worker. Why isn't there a Fight for $55 movement? Better yet, why must we sell an hours worth of our life at all to an exploitative and abusive system just to survive? We must re-frame and re-conceptualize things. Greens argue that we can live in a fairer and more just world. Whether it's wiping out student debt, making healthcare and housing universal, or fighting for living wages, Greens refuse to accept and normalize the injustice of our current system. Greens envision something different, a way of living that doesn't monetize our existence. Such a way of living would be in harmony with nature.

Two sayings sum it all up:

" If you think the environment is more important than the economy, try holding your breath while you count your money."

"When the last tree is cut, the last fish is caught and the last river is polluted, when to breathe the air is sickening you will realize, too late, that wealth is not in bank accounts and that you can't eat money."

GPPA News Highlights   

  edited by Chris Robinson 

GPPA Fall Meeting

The Green Party of Pennsylvania Fall Meeting for delegates and supporters will be held on Saturday, September 14th from noon to 4:00 p.m. in Bellefonte, PA, followed by social activities in the evening. All interested members of the public may attend to learn more about the Green Party of Pennsylvania. Only delegates elected by county Green Parties may vote. (show all)

Three PA Greens on the General Election Ballot

Nomination papers for three Green Party of Pennsylvania candidates have been filed. None of those candidates were challenged, and they will be listed on the ballot for the General Election, November 5. The three candidates are Nicholas Prete, running for Methacton School Board in Montgomery County; Riley Mahon, running for Upper Saint Clair School Board in Allegheny County; and Charles Michael (Mike) Farley, running for Latimore Township Supervisor in Adams County. (show all)

GPPA Responds to August Mass Shootings

GPPA reaffirms its core principles of peace and social justice in condemning the horrific mass shootings and the ideology that produced them. Seeing people and planet as things to be conquered lies at the root of violence. The Green Party promotes non-violent methods to oppose practices and policies with which we disagree, and will guide our actions toward lasting personal, community and global peace. The machine that is producing this destruction will be stopped when we refuse to be cogs in it. As Bayard Rustin said, "we must tuck our bodies in places so wheels don't turn." We must make this existing paradigm obsolete. (show all)

Allegheny Greens Demonstrate Against Beaver County Cracker Plant, 8/13

Greens joined the protest against the petrochemical industry and the Shell "cracker plant" plastics factory in particular this past Tuesday during President Trump's visit. We call on local and state elected officials to take action to defend our right to clean air and pure water under Article 1 Section 27 of the PA Constitution. Instead of #fracking and fossil fuels, we need a #GreenNewDeal! (show all)

Stepping Out of Line -- Dropping A Banner At FERC By Michael Bagdes-Canning

I participated in “an action aimed at turning the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) into the Federal Renewable Energy Commission (FREC). FERC is beyond reform and must be replaced with a government agency capable of meeting the challenge of climate disruption head on. Very early on the morning of April 18, a small band of well-trained activists set out to send a strong message to the FERC Commissioners -- The time for continued reliance on fossil fuels is running out and, if the human race is to survive, we must turn our attention to developing alternatives. FERC must be phased out and FREC must be birthed.” (show all)

100 Kutztown U. students turned away from the Polls during 2018 General Election

Julia Zion, Green Party member and judge of elections for the Maxatawny Township 3rd Precinct, said that she was forced to bar 40 to 50 students from the polls. The precinct covers the majority of students who live on campus. [Other students reported being barred from voting at other precincts near campus.] “We had a lot of people coming up to us telling us they were registered, but they weren't in the poll books,” Zion said. The students who were turned away all said they had signed up to vote on campus. Zion said the students claimed people with clipboards asked them if they were registered, and when they said they weren't, the people had them fill out voter registration forms. Several of the students said the people with clipboards were rather pushy, Zion said. (show all)

Campaign Updates   

  edited by Chris Robinson  

Mike Farley for Supervisor
Latimore Township, Adams County
Mike tells GREEN STAR that he can now be found on Facebook. For more information visit facebook.com/CharlesMichaelFarleyForLatimoreTwpSuper

Riley Mahon for School Board
Upper St. Clair Township, Allegheny County
Riley tells GREEN STAR that he is working on a basic campaign website and reaching out to local Greens for volunteers and donations.

Olivia Faison for City Council
Philadelphia
Olivia tells GREEN STAR that her campaign was unable to harvest enough signatures to get her name on the ballot. Olivia invites you to join her in a write-in campaign. Her campaign will accept your donation via her website, olivia4philly.org

Nicholas Prete for School Board
Methacton School District, Eagleville, Montgomery County
Nick tells GREEN STAR that you can find him on Facebook. For more information visit  facebook.com/nickformethacton

Team Updates   

Finance Team by Tim Runkle

Putting Greens in touch with Greens has been a focus for Finance as we improve our phone banking capabilities this summer. Using the collective calling app, CallHub, our phone bankers have made hundreds of person-to-person connections across the state. Working ahead of county and state meetings to boost attendance and promote GPPA memberships, volunteers dial numbers for registered Green Party voters. The many conversations with our volunteers have awakened our base! If a grassroots experience excites you, please sign up to help HERE.

Communications Team by Shane Rielly and Chris Robinson

Have you noticed how the GREEN STAR Events Calendar has grown. The calendar in last January’s GREEN STAR listed nine events (five Green and four Movement). By contrast, the calendar in our August GREEN STAR listed 19 events (six Green and 13 local movement events). Yes, we would like to see more Green Party events around the state. Please contact us if you would like some ideas for your county. If you wish to join our team, please volunteer HERE.

GREEN PARTY OF PENNSYLVANIA SHIRTS

• Union/USA made
• Come in sizes from small to double extra large.
• A $20 donation when picked up at Green Party of Pennsylvania State meetings or participating events.
• A $27 donation and we will mail the shirt to you.

GreenWave Team by Jenny Isaacs

The Green Wave Team met by phone twice in August to discuss and plan for the 2020 electoral cycle. Attendance was low, with an average of 4.5 participants on each call, representing Adams, Bucks, Philadelphia and Montgomery counties. To effectively coordinate state legislature races and petitioning for our all-important statewide candidates and the GPUS presidential candidate in 2020, we are in need of regular and committed representation from Allegheny, Lackawanna, and Erie counties or the surrounding regions. These are counties with active locals who will play a significant role in recruiting & communicating with local candidates, collecting petition signatures and achieving ballot access. We also welcome Greens who do not have an organized county local to get involved on the state level now to lay the groundwork for a successful year! #TimeToRun2020

Green Wave calls are held on the 2nd & 4th Wednesday of each month at 8 pm; email [email protected] to join our mailing list or sign up HERE.

National Green News   

  edited by Dave Ochmanowicz

 12 PA Greens Attend the Green Party US Annual National Meeting

A big THANK YOU goes out to all who donated to our Annual National Meeting (ANM) fundraiser. Pennsylvania was able to send 12 Greens to Salem for the ANM, including PA Green representatives of the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign. The PA Green delegation learned from workshops and speakers, participated in discussions and strategizing, and provided support for positions and candidates. We were a force to be reckoned with!

To see photos from the ANM, click HERE.

Here is a list of press conferences held at the Green Party 2019 Annual National Meeting in Salem, MA:  ANM Press Conferences, along with the plenary address by Ajamu Baraka, director of Black Alliance for Peace and 2016 GPUS vice-presidential nominee.

New York Black Community Leader / City Council Candidate brutalized and falsely arrested for recording brutality by the NYPD

BROOKLYN, NY – Community Leader, City Council Candidate and Leader of the Brooklyn Sector of Copwatch Patrol Unit, Anthony Beckford, was brutalized, falsely arrested and had his constitutional rights violated by the NYPD on Friday, August 10, 2019 during a Rally in Times Square commemorating the 5th year anniversary of the murder of Mike Brown by police. Beckford was trying to record an incident of brutality by the NYPD against a protestor, when he became a victim of severe brutality himself by the NYPD and was falsely arrested and charged. (show all)

Green Party brings discussion of Green New Deal to Springfield, MO, 8/10

In Missouri's halls of power, the Green New Deal is often used as a punching bag. When the state's dominant political party came together for its annual convention this year, Republicans like U.S. Rep. Ann Wagner blasted Democrats' wide-ranging plan to tackle climate change as a waste of money. Republicans who dominate Jefferson City agreed, writing resolutions urging the rest of Missouri's representatives to oppose the idea. But on Saturday night in the Library Center's auditorium, it was a very different story. (show all)

Black VegFest is back!

Black VegFest, founded and organized by Green Party of Brooklyn member Omowale Adewale, returns for another [early August] weekend of vendors of vegan fare, as well as community organizing, entertainment, and more. According to the Black VegFest press page, "The reliance on animals and corporations that push them as commodities has truly hurt our health, savings and our spirituality. The reliance on animals has given us heart disease, debt and moved us further away from building community." (show all)

Elections Watchdog Seth Woolley Will Run for Portland City Council

Portland, OR – Elections watchdog and Pacific Green Party activist Seth Woolley will run for Portland City Council in 2020. Over the past several years, Woolley, 38, who works as a software engineer for Uber, has watch-dogged Portland's elections and filed election-laws complaints with city and state agencies, while pushing for better government. This is reflected in his platform of progressive election reform, government accountability and environmental protection. (show all)

Global Green News   

  edited by Gayle Morrow

Browsing the international Green news can be very uplifting. Greens are fighting for a brighter future throughout the world and have had many successes around the globe.

China Refused Entry to German Green Party Member 

China has refused entry to a German Green Party member due to her outspokenness on the human rights of China’s Muslim Uighur minority. Margarete Bause of the Bundestag Committee on Digitization had plans to travel with the committee to Shanghai and Beijing later this month to visit startups and learn about AI. Read more HERE.    Read an update HERE

Canada’s Green Party Having Success

Canada’s Green Party is having success in fundraising, proposing a plan to shift fossil fuel jobs to clean energy, advocating for affordable cell phone and Internet prices, and promising to advocate for 20,000 more licensed childcare openings in Manitoba, where the party is “poised to make history.”

Australian Greens Deal with Sexual Harassment

Green’s are not immune to sexual harassment allegations. Former Australian Green MP, Jeremy Buckingham’s political career was ended and the victim of his harassment received an apology from the party for the anxiety the difficult complaint process caused her. (show all)

GREENS BEING GREEN

Greens are very active in New Zealand over mining, and voting rights for the Māori; and Germany proposing to cut air travel by providing more trains, and supporting a tax hike on meat.

GPPA Coming Events   

  edited by Chris Robinson

Green Party events are in GREEN. Other Movement events are in RED.

September 3, 6:00 pm
Green Party of Allegheny County General Assembly
Panera Bread, 3401 Boulevard of the Allies, Pittsburgh, PA
More information from alleghenygreens.org

September 5, 7:00pm
We the People vs. Corporate Rule
The Historic Pump House, 880 E. Waterfront Drive, Munhall, PA
facebook.com/events/310416809642217/
More information from [email protected]

September 6, 11:30am
Stop Banking the Bomb Picket
PNC Tower, 300 5th Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
facebook.com/events/1389950021143528/
More information from [email protected]

September 6, 11:30am
“I’m Gonna Sit at the Welcome Table”
Philadelphia Green Party’s Andyblue Antipin has an album release party.
Phila. Folksong Society, 6156 Ridge Avenue, Roxborough, Philadelphia.
More information from [email protected]

September 6, September 13, September 20, September 27 at 11:30 am-12:30 pm
Climate Crisis Awareness Rally
Lincoln Square in Gettysburg (York Street crossing)
Every Friday in solidarity with Greta Thunburg's worldwide climate awareness movement.
facebook.com/events/2206600726129147/

September 9, 7:00 pm
Green Party of Chester County Virtual Meeting
Interested parties should contact [email protected] for more information.

September 9, 7:00 pm
Lackawanna County Green Party Meeting
2043 North Maine Avenue, Scranton, PA.
More information from
[email protected]

September 13, 9:00 am
Clean Energy for a Healthy Planet Symposium
Hosted by Physicians for Social Responsibility at the Friends Center, 1501 Cherry Street, Philadelphia, PA.
psrphila.org/single-post/2019/08/06/Join-Us-Clean-Energy-for-a-Healthy-Planet-Symposium

September 14, noon
GPPA Fall Meeting
Open to the public. Saint John’s Lutheran Church, 216 McAllister Street, Bellefonte, PA.
EXTRA INFO ROW
gpofpa.org/2019_09_meeting

September 15, 4:00 pm
Green Party of Erie County Virtual Meeting
Please contact [email protected] for more information.

September 16, 7:00 pm
Green Party of Montgomery County Meeting
501 South Easton Road, Wyncote, PA
For more information, [email protected]

September 20 to 23
People’s Mobilization to Stop the War Machine
Gather on north side of Philadelphia City Hall, Broad Street and Kennedy Boulevard, Philadelphia, PAQ
facebook.com/events/1150481728470115/

September 21, 10:00 am
The People for Puerto Rico Parade
Gather on north side of Philadelphia City Hall, Broad Street and Kennedy Boulevard, Philadelphia, PAQ
facebook.com/events/1150481728470115/

September 21, noon
West Chester Day of Peace
Sponsored by Chester County Peace Movement at the Courthouse, High Street, West Chester, PA.
http://ccpeace.com/index.php/2019/07/28/international-day-of-peace-2/

September 26
Green Party of Philadelphia (GPOP) Membership Meeting
Shissler Recreation Center, 1800 Blair Street, Fishtown, Philadelphia, PA.
More information from [email protected]

September 27, 3:30 pm
A Wake for Our Future
Hosted by Sunrise Movement Lancaster and endorsed by the Green Party of Lancaster.
Binns Park, 120 North Queen Street, Lancaster, PA.
facebook.com/events/403910673593351/

September 28, 11:00 am
March to End Rape Culture
Gather at Paine Plaza, 1401 Kennedy Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA.
facebook.com/events/649802285540247/

September 28, noon
Close the Drone War Command Center
Hosted by Brandywine Peace Community with Bucks County Green Party, Montgomery County Green Party, and Green Party of Philadelphia, [email protected]<
Air Guard Station, Easton Road (#611) at County Line Road, Horsham, PA.
brandywinepeace.com/events/

September 29, 10:00 am
Lackawanna County Green Party Cleanup
More information from [email protected]

September 30, 7:00 pm
Bucks County Green Party Meeting
Eastern Dragon, 238 South West End Blvd, Quakertown PA
[email protected]

GPPA Meeting Dates for 2019:

• Fall Meeting (TBD): Saturday, September 14th  
• November Virtual Meeting: Sunday, November 17th, 12pm-4pm
• January 2020 Virtual Meeting/Web Conference: Date to be determined.
• March 2020 Delegate Convention (including a Presidential Forum or Debate): Date and location to be determined.

Web Conferences are online - RSVP to get connection information.  The locations for in-person conferences are to be determined.  In-person conferences can be hosted by counties, county groups or regions. These events are fundraisers.  When hosted locally, the host group receives back half of the revenue after expenses.  To apply for hosting, submit your info to our Application for Local Hosting of GPPA State Meetings or GPPA-Sponsored Events.  We strive for geographic diversity in reviewing applications, however, all submissions are considered.

Green Party of Pennsylvania Communications Team & Media Committee 

Issue Credits:

EDITORS: Chris Robinson, David Ochmanowicz Jr, and Gayle Morrow.   
CONTRIBUTORS: Alan Smith, Timothy Runkle, & Jenny Isaacs
LAYOUT: Sheri Miller 
GRAPHIC ARTS: Kevin Richardson 

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The Green Star is an official publication of the Green Party of Pennsylvania Communications Team * 2019