The Green Party’s national convention was this past weekend and my absolute favorite candidate in the country this year – the election is November 2011 – gave an inspiring speech there, introduced by David Cobb. The quote in the title is from that speech, as are those below. The full video is posted below, as well.
“We will together send a message across this country that it was the Green Party that stopped foreclosures in America!”
“This coming year we have over a million families who are going to lose their homes. We have an opportunity in Philadelphia, a historical place, to make history. We have an opportunity to grow the Green Party like never before, to speak to those million people who are going to lose their homes, and to say, by voting for Cheri Honkala, on the Green Party ticket, foreclosures stop. They stop NOW!”
“Many years ago as I sat in an abandoned property that I had to take over with my little boy at the time, because the shelters were full in Minneapolis–and so I decided that I would go and take over an abandoned house in order to keep me and my son from freezing to death…because I decided that it wasn’t up for negotiations whether me and my son were going to freeze to death. Well it’s not up for negotiations for any of the men, women, and children who are going to have their homes stole[n] from them this next coming year. The foreclosure crisis, this next year, with a million people going to lose their homes, is a preventable Katrina – it’s up to us to stop it, and stop it now. Help me in my election, spread the word, vote for Cheri Honkala on the Green Party ticket, and let’s take back America!”
THIS is the economic populism – the genuine populism, not the faux corporate stuff so common these days – we’ve been waiting for. It’s the real deal, it’s real independent politics, and I am so genuinely proud to be working on this campaign. I hope those of you reading will join me.
Cheri Honkala at the 2011 NY Green Fest from Jason Bosch on Vimeo.