Time for Greens to Lead and Act by Blair Bobier
I know that many Greens have put a lot of time and effort into various actions to stop the bombing of Afghanistan and to restore our civil liberties in the wake of September 11 and our government's reaction to those attacks.
It seems to me that, as a national, grassroots, political organization, we are in a unique position to act in a coordinated, unified and strategic way to promote peace, justice and due process. How do we do that? Press releases and statements will get us only so far. We have the capability and--as far as I can see from the silence that abounds as our government kills kids in Aghanistan--the responsiblity to step forward and fill the vacuum.
I am perplexed and disappointed that not all Greens are unified in opposition to the immoral, wanton and anti-Constitutional activities of the government. (Though I don't want to sidetrack what I am to propose, I do believe that support for the bombing of Afghanistan is inconsistent with being Green. If you wish to debate this with me, please respond off-list). Nonetheless, Greens should be united in seeking the truth about this "war" and in ending it as soon as possible.
The government has learned well the lesson of the Vietnam War (known as the American War in Vietnam): don't show the public the war--the destroyed villages, the dead and dying, the children in ragged hospitals--and they won't oppose it. The government won't let journalists cover the war; what images and words we do get are sanitized and usually reported second-hand. The media has access to footage and photographs from foreign correspondents but won't use it.
I don't believe that there is 90% support for this "war," but whatever support there is would drop sharply if people saw the reality of it.
Tell the Truth.
That's what I think Greens should seek; the Truth. Americans like Truth, and Justice. Americans don't like Censorship and Big Brother. I think that by seeking the Truth we could end up stopping the bombing and the erosion of our civil liberties more effectively than taking on those actions directly.
Here's what I propose: Green locals and state parties from Maine to Hawai'i should stage coordinated actions. For example, we could coordinate protests at newspapers and radio and TV stations. "Greens Demand the Truth" and "Stop Censorship" could be our rallying cries.
We could also stage "die-ins" where we re-create the scenes they won't let us see. Coordinating smaller actions can be much more effective and easier than huge marches or rallies. It only takes a handful of people and a good press contact in each location to make the action successful. And the combined effect, say, of 100 actions coast to coast would be very powerful And, we'd be *doing* something--as Greens, together, showing the way.
Whatever we do, I think we need to be creative and strategic. Our statements can get ignored by the press; it's harder for them to ignore us when we go to their front door. Whether we focus on censorship, civil liberties or civilian casualities (or all of them), it is important for us to act. Perhaps we could stir other sleeping giants to action as well.
We can also coordinate our activities so that we work on a variety of fronts to create a widespread image (and hopefully reality) of opposition. The Right is very good at this; for example Lani Guiner went from being an expert on proportional representation to being the "Quota Queen." When we do something, we should combine a coordinated message with our actions--from op-ed pieces, to letters to the editor, to call-in radio shows to Tell the Truth protests and Die-ins. Keep a simple, clear message and get it out into as many mediums as possible.
I hope this provokes thought, (a minimum of) discussion and a whole lotta action....
For Peace and Greener Future,
Blair Bobier
Green Party of Oregon
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