Two time Congressional candidate of the Georgia Green Party announces the launch of a new Coalition of Independent Progressives. In this video he lays out a strategy for building a slate of candidates to flip the federal and state governments across the nation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rM3LawK4AA
For Immediate Release
July 1st, 2021
For further information, Contact:
Ann Menasche <aemenasche@georgiagreenparty.org>
counsel assisting in defense of Georgia Green Party
Hugh Esco email 912-571-1833 (cell, sms)
Secretary, Georgia Green Party
High Profile Party Leaders Resign from Green Party
Cite: “mob of dogmatic, self-righteous authoritarians” within ranks
Paula Bradshaw and Rich Whitney, active in building the Shawnee Green Party in Carbondale Illinois since at least 1996, have released their letter of resignation from the national, state and local Green Parties. They tendered their resignation through official party channels in mid-June, 2021. In their letter of resignation, released this week, they wrote.
” . . . recent actions and statements of the GPUS Accreditation Committee, Steering Committee, National Committee Forum Managers, National Committee and the Lavender Caucus — all taken in support of the Lavender Caucus’s proposal to suspend the affiliation of the Georgia Green Party – betray the democratic principles and precepts upon which the party was founded and evince a clear intention by the party majority to suppress dissent, elevate policy positions to the status of inviolable “principles,” and rule by decree rather than by democratic process. It has become increasingly apparent that the GPUS is determined to become a rigid dogmatic sect rather than a political party in which policy questions and interpretations of the Ten Key Values can be freely discussed and debated, and in which minority viewpoints are tolerated.”
Paula Bradshaw is a podcast producer and three time candidate for the U.S. Congress, running with the nomination of the Illinois Green Party. At the time of her resignation, she served as a Delegate to the Green National Committee for the Illinois Green Party. Rich Whitney is an attorney who ran for Governor of Illinois taking 10% of the state-wide vote and leaving the Illinois Green Party with a state-wide ballot line. Rich Whitney served until this resignation as the co-chair of the Illinois Green Party.
Their resignation is likely the highest profile public fallout to date within the U.S. Green Party resulting from the tactics of what their letter characterizes as “a mob of dogmatic, self-righteous authoritarians” within its ranks.
In their heavily footnoted 13 page letter, the Central Illinois grandparents who have devoted 25 years to building the Green party while raising their family, cite a broad range of offenses by various members of party leadership which they assert violate the founding values of the party, including:
* suppression of Paula’s speech on the National Committee
* suppression of speech by others on the National Committee and elsewhere
* an unprecedented attack by the Steering Committee on a caucus of party activists
* the suppression of real policy discussion on issues raised by gender ideology
* a betrayal of core Green Party values, including: Grassroots Democracy, Feminism and Non-Violence
* dogmatism and sectarianism within the party
Their letter concludes:
“For the above reasons, we have come to the conclusion that the Green Party of the United States can no longer serve as a vehicle for social progress. There are still some good people in the ILGP and GPUS, but the national organization has been captured by a mob of dogmatic, self-righteous authoritarians and we can no longer support it. Therefore . . . , we resign from the Illinois Green Party.” (emphasis added)
At the heart of the conflict which led to this resignation has been the demands by the party’s Lavender Caucus that the Georgia Green Party be ejected from the national confederation. These demands were in reaction to platform amendments adopted at its 2021 Bonaire Convention amending the Platform of the Georgia Green Party to endorse the Declaration on Women’s Sex-based Rights. This Declaration has so far been signed by 18,616 signers from 137 countries and 347 organizations. The Declaration reaffirms women and girls’ existing sex based rights under international law. It challenges the discrimination women face as a result of changes in law and policy, replacing sex with gender identity as a protected class. Critics claim that ‘gender identity’ is built on circular definitions and sexist stereotypes. The Declaration and the Georgia party platform amendments challenge the medical “transitioning” of minor children, incapable of informed consent, known to result in sterility and other severe medical issues, ‘turning healthy bodies into life-long medical patients’ according to Georgia party officers.
At its meeting this past Sunday evening, the Steering Committee of the Green Party of the United States scheduled two weeks of debate starting on July 5th and a one week vote concluding at midnight July 25th, on GNC #1062. The proposal is the result of a complaint by the Lavender Caucus, referred by the national party’s Accreditation Committee to the party’s National Committee. Its adoption would revoke the accreditation of the Georgia Green Party as a member of the national party.
Dissenting voices on the proposal and the differences over policy which motivated it have been suppressed over the past year as documented in the Whitney-Bradshaw letter of resignation and elsewhere.
A report of a minority of the Accreditation Committee has been filed, but its publication is still pending. That report takes issue with both the process and the findings of that committee’s majority.
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State Party Chairman and
Three-time Congressional Candidate
Both Resign from Green Party
https://www.dialoguenotexpulsion.org/internal-democracy-threatened/women-silenced/Bradshaw-Whitney-Resignations
Women Silenced,
Internal Democracy Suppressed
in Self-Professed Feminist Political Party
https://www.dialoguenotexpulsion.org/internal-democracy-threatened/women-silenced
Pleadings Offered in Defense of Georgia Green Party
https://www.dialoguenotexpulsion.org/nlc-vs-ggp/pleadings
Video Depositions of
Expert Witnesses Called in Defense of Georgia Party
https://www.dialoguenotexpulsion.org/nlc-vs-ggp/testimony
GNC #1062: Disaccreditation of the Georgia Green Party
https://secure.gpus.org/cgi-bin/vote/propdetail?pid=1062
Declaration on Women’s Sex-Based Rights
https://www.womensdeclaration.com/en/
Notice is given of the intention of the Georgia Green Party to convene as its Annual Convention on Saturday, July 24th, from 10am until 4pm, for the purposes of conducting elections for internal party offices, considering a proposed amendment to the bylaws of the Georgia party and to consider the report of the state party’s Committee on the Green Party Platform; particularly with respect to the adoption or rejection of the fourteen proposed revisions timely file for consideration in the party’s 2021 platform revision cycle.
You may register now as an observer or participant of the Convention, at this link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZUqdO-hpz4vE9ZDDFGTmUReHFfZOCGRCXHV
To obtain credentials to participate as a voting delegate, please seek election from your county affiliate or caucus. Those party members prepared now to convene county caucuses to name delegates to this convention are urged to write the credentials committee named by the convention convenors and the state party officers to schedule an opportunity to do so on the party’s conference call hosting platform and to access other technical support for their efforts. You may do so by addressing your email to:
ac2021-county-caucus-scheduling@georgiagreenparty.org
Set the day aside, and plan please to join us on Saturday, July 24th.
If you are not yet a member of the party, please go to our website now and become a member by signing up as a sustaining member at $10 a month or more.
We look forward to seeing you next month!
— Hugh Esco, Secretary
Georgia Green Party
For Immediate Release
June 13th, 2021
For further information, Contact:
Ann Menasche <aemenasche@georgiagreenparty.org>
counsel assisting in defense of Georgia Green Party
Hugh Esco email
Secretary, Georgia Green Party
Expert Witnesses Testify to Defend Georgia Green Party
State Party faces Expulsion from National Party
over Support for Rights of Women, Safeguarding of Children
Georgia Party Defense Witnesses Denied Hearing
Last week, the Georgia Green Party released videotaped testimony of six expert witnesses who were denied a hearing before the Accreditations Committee, as a part of their defense in proceedings seeking to revoke the accreditation of the Georgia party as a member of the Green Party of the United States.
On December 23, 2020, the National Lavender Caucus (LC) filed a complaint against Georgia seeking the revocation of its accreditation as a member of the national Green Party. Since then, the Georgia Party has been forced to battle spurious charges of transphobia while being denied a fair opportunity to defend itself. The Accreditations Committee is expected to soon refer the Complaint against Georgia to the Green National Committee.
At the heart of the LC’s Complaint is an amendment to the Georgia party’s platform endorsing the Declaration on Women’s Sex-based Rights. This Declaration has so far been signed by 18,189 signers from 137 countries and 344 organizations. The Declaration reaffirms women and girls’ existing sex based rights under international law. It challenges the discrimination women face as a result of changes in law and policy, replacing sex with gender identity as a protected class. Critics claim that ‘gender identity’ is built on circular definitions and sexist stereotypes. The Declaration and the Georgia party platform amendments challenge the medical “transitioning” of minor children, incapable of informed consent, known to result in sterility and other severe medical issues, ‘turning healthy bodies into life-long medical patients’ according to Georgia party officers.
Hugh Esco, Secretary of the Georgia Party, described the proceedings before the Accreditations Committee as “a star chamber-like kangaroo court” marred by numerous procedural irregularities, and “a public embarrassment for a Party which is supposed to value grassroots democracy.” Those irregularities are expected to be catalogued in a forthcoming report, but include a refusal to allow Georgia to have its own witnesses heard by the Committee.
On May 11th of this year, the Georgia Green Party submitted a brief in its defense, along with a witness list and a request for a hearing at which it might offer its witnesses. The Committee in a May 16th response from CoChair Andy Ellis wrote that they “have decided to reject the request.”
The Georgia party conducted video depositions on May 22nd and 23rd, inviting the Complainants to send counsel to cross-examine its Defense witnesses.
The witnesses, denied a hearing before the Accreditation Committee, and featured in the depositions released last week include:
Kimberly, who identifies as transgender, formerly coordinated transgender health services for young people at a multi-disciplinary clinic in British Columbia. Kimberly testified to making the choice as an adult to transition due largely to the homophobia encountered as a lesbian and expressed concerns about the ‘ideological capture’ of the ‘systems of care’ which currently shapes gender medicine, testifying that “80% of the improvement in my mental health has been the rejection of queer theory and gender ideology as a part of my identity and a part of understanding what gender dysphoria is”.
Kimberly is one of six experts who have provided taped testimony so far in the Georgia Green Party’s defense, responding to the charges leveled against them. Additional video depositions are planned to cover the balance of the Defense witness list.
“No one joins the Green party to hate. We reject the narrative that standing for the rights of women and girls constitutes bigotry against trans-identified people”, said David Josue, cochair of the Georgia party. “The Accreditations Committee has denied us a fair opportunity to mount a defense before their Committee. Nonetheless, we fully intend to take our case directly to the Green National Committee and to the world at large”.
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For background please see:
Testimony of Aaron Kimberly — Gender Dysphoria Alliance Canada
https://www.dialoguenotexpulsion.org/nlc-vs-ggp/testimony/Aaron_Kimberly–Gender_Dysphoria_Alliance_Canada
Defense Pleadings in the matter of the National Lavender Caucus vs the Georgia Green Party
https://www.dialoguenotexpulsion.org/nlc-vs-ggp/pleadings
Video Depositions in the matter of the
National Lavender Caucus vs the Georgia Green Party
https://www.dialoguenotexpulsion.org/nlc-vs-ggp/testimony
For background on the assault on democracy under way
within the Green Party of the United States
explore the links available under the
Internal Democracy option in the menu at:
https://www.dialoguenotexpulsion.org/
Declaration on Women’s Sex-Based Rights
https://www.womensdeclaration.com/en
An authoritarian coup is afoot within the National Committee to purge the party of independent and critical thinking. Among other evidence of this is the complaint of the National Lavender Caucus filed with the Accreditation Committee seeking the revocation of this state party’s accreditation as a member of the national party. The Georgia Green Party has filed its response. Included in those pleadings was a witness list and a request that the committee schedule a hearing to take the testimony of our expert witnesses. The Accreditation Committee has failed to respond to our request for a hearing, and our allies on that committee have indicated that they are unlikely to do so. This weekend the party’s defense team is hosting depositions to take the testimony of its witnesses. And observers are welcome to join the call to observe the testimony live. Seats are limited and you can register here.
The officers having conferred, the quick decision council is agreed to the following resolution.
Whereas, within hours of taking the oath of office, President Biden signed Executive Order #13988, ostensibly for the purpose of “Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation”; and
Whereas, as anticipated by recent amendments to the state party platform, irresponsible policy makers failed “to find nuanced approaches which will protect (trans-identified individuals) without gutting from (existing law) the gains that women have made for the protection of the sex-based rights of women under the law”; and
Whereas, on Thursday, February 25th, Democrats in the the U.S. House of Representatives passed on a 224-206 vote, without any hearings, markup or the consideration of any amendments, the so-called Equality Act, which similarly discarded caution, nuance and the multiple concerns being raised by women for the protection of the sex-based rights won by a century and a half of women’s organizing; and
Whereas, multiple women’s organizations have endorsed a series of events organized as “Women Picket DC”, and are asking supporters to join them in Washington D.C. for International Women’s Day, March 8th and events across the weekend, and have published a call for participation and endorsements at: https://womenpicketdc.org/.
Resolved, that the Quick Decision Council on behalf of the Georgia Green Party, here endorses the Women Picket DC action and encourages Greens in Georgia and elsewhere to participate in these events.
Dialoguing with Nasir
Kweku Lumumba Talks Green Party & How It’s Beneficial For Blacks
Kweku Lumumba, cochair of the Georgia Green Party this past month was interviewed on the podcast, Dialoguing with Nasir.
Beginning Sunday, February 28th, Kweku Lumumba, cochair of the Georgia Green Party will host a monthly virtual meeting to serve as an orientation for Georgia Greens with an interest in learning about the process of forming an affiliate of the Georgia Green Party in their county, or perhaps serving as a local contact for the party, if they are not ready to organize or host local meetings.
Please forgive our clunky process. We are asking that you first register with our conference hosting platform to get an email sent to you with the connection credentials for the call.
And then also next share with the party your contact information, letting us know of you interest in this conversation, so we can communicate with you going forward.
[download id=”1687″]
Madame and Mister Co-Chairs,
members of the Accreditation Committee:
This letter is written in response to a complaint1 filed with the Accreditation Committee on the eve of Christmas, just past, by the National Lavender Caucus (NLC).
In their complaint (referred to in this document as the NLC complaint or the complaint), the complainant seeks action by the Accreditation Committee with the intended result of ‘suspending’ the Georgia Green Party, placing our state party on ‘inactive status’; or alternately to take action to ‘disaccredit’ our state party, by asking the Green National Committee to sever its relationship with the Georgia party.
The Georgia Green Party has been and remains a member in good standing with the Green Party of the United States since 1999. The Georgia party organized in 1995, filing its governing documents with the Georgia Secretary of State in 1996. The Atlanta Greens, founded in 1989 had served as the base of our state party. It had been an active member of this national party’s predecessor organization, the Greens / Green Party (usa) since 1991.
The NLC complaint fails to state an actionable claim that either proposed outcome is justified. We urge that this committee (1) reject this complaint, (2) exercise patience that the party’s process for the democratic revision to its platform will function to resolve disputes among accredited members over platform language and (3) allow our state and national parties to return to the important work of building capacity for the election cycle which began as the polls closed November 3rd, 2020.
To read the entire response, please see the download link above.