Friday, February 29, 2008

Meeting

Members of the Green Party will be speaking Friday night, February 29th, at the Vote the Power launch party. Vote the Power is a local voting rights group which calls itself a "campaign for the voters." We will be attending this event instead of our usual first-of-the-month meeting.

Come on out to see the Green Party, hand out some literature, and enjoy some food and drink. The event will be held at 6:30 pm at the Aberdeen Fire Hall, 21 North Rogers Street, Aberdeen, Maryland 21001.

Thursday, February 28, 2008

Testify

This afternoon a Harford County Green delivered the following testimony to the Maryland House Judiciary Committee in support of HB 351, the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act. The act would specify that any two people, regardless of gender, who were otherwise eligible to be married would be allowed to do so.

The bill needs to be given a favorable recommendation by the Judiciary Committee to go forward for a vote by the House. Please call the members of the House Judiciary Committee, particularly Susan McComas of Bel Air (410-836-9449 or 410-841-3289) and ask them to recommend HB 351.

Testimony and Statement for the Record
In support of the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act (HB 351)
Submitted by Shanna Borell on behalf of the Maryland Green Party
Before the House Judiciary Committee
February 28, 2008

My name is Shanna Borell. I am the Harford County delegate to the Maryland Green Party’s Coordinating Council. I am a graduate student at the University of Maryland, School of Social Work. And I am the daughter of a lesbian.

I support this bill because I support families. Discriminating against certain families because the parents of that family happen to be the same sex is unfair and unjust. All families deserve the same legal protections regardless of the sex of the parents.

We provide the benefits of marriage because we recognize how these benefits strengthen couples and families. If we are serious about protecting families in this state, we need to take seriously the danger and insecurity to which we expose children when we deny them the rights provided by a civil marriage. Some of these rights include child custody rights, hospital visitation rights, and the right to be legally recognized as a family or couple.

Moreover, allowing same-sex couples to marry in no way affects heterosexual couples. This bill serves to make marriage more inclusive so that devoted, loving couples can secure the same rights as heterosexual couples. It also helps all parents provide a safer, more stable environment for their children.

I am lucky because I never had to experience any number of things children might have to go through on account of their parents not being legally married. I was never threatened to be taken away from my family because it was not recognized as a legal entity, but some children do.
And I have had to watch my mother go without health insurance because she could not get insurance through her long-time partner. I have had to watch her worry that she might not be able to visit her partner in the hospital or be allowed to help make medical decisions if she gets very sick. And why? Because some people may not like her choice in partner? Doesn’t my family deserve the same respect and dignity as other families?

The issue of protecting families is paramount. It is essential that Maryland help promote strong families regardless of the sex of the parents by making marriage an option to same-sex couples. Even as a social work student just starting out in this field, I know how important these rights and benefits are to families. Everyday I see how vulnerable children and couples can be when denied these rights.

In accordance with its key values of respects for diversity and social justice, the Maryland Green Party strongly supports the rights of gays and lesbians in its party platform. The Maryland Green Party views the right to marry as a civil rights issue and believes that denying same-sex couples that right goes against the American principles of equality and justice.

How can Maryland justify the creation of a second-class citizenry on the basis of sexual orientation? It is time that Maryland takes a stand on this important issue and ends marriage discrimination.

Support the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act (HB 351) to protect and strengthen Maryland’s couples and families, providing more stable futures for our children.

Letter

Printed in The Aegis, February 20, 2008

Dear Editors,

Now that the primary election is over I can stop complaining about not being allowed to vote for non-partisan offices and focus on the general election. In November I will be "wasting" my vote on a non-Republicrat, but at least all voters -independents and third-party members included - will now be allowed to do what The Aegis described as our duty as citizens, and we could have up to four parties to choose a President from in November.

I would like to ask the members of the Harford County delegation to the General Assembly to work on a way for registered independents and minor party members to be able to vote for judges, whose offices are supposedly "non-partisan". These elections could easily be held during the general election, when everyone is allowed to vote. Surely our new-fangled electronic voting machines can allow someone like me to vote only for non-partisan positions. We have the technology - we can make our democracy better, stronger, and faster.

Many people came out to vote last week because they sensed an opportunity for change, or to vote for a type of candidate they've never been able to cast a vote for before. I'd like to ask voters to think about what change really means, and tothink about voting for one of the third-party options you will see on November's ballots.

The Republican Party of Abraham Lincoln - the one that ended slavery - was a third party that stood in opposition to two dominant parties that either supported or merely did nothing to stop slavery. Third parties play the same role today by standing in opposition to the wars, poverty, and corporate control that other parties either promote or merely accept.

Brian Bittner
Coordinator, Harford County Green Party

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Assemble

The Maryland Green Party Annual Assembly will be held on Saturday, May 3rd at Towson University. We will elect our 2008-2009 officers, announce the results of our Congressional primary elections, and nominate a Presidential candidate. For more information and to register on-line, check out www.mdgreens.org/assembly.

Monday, February 11, 2008

Run

The Maryland Green Party plans to run candidates for House of Representatives in all eight of Maryland's district this year. We are looking for candidates in all of Harford County's Congressional Districts. If you would like to run for Congress as a Green in 2008 and want more information, e-mail coordinator@harfordcountygreenparty.com.

Donate

Please consider helping out the Harford County Green Party with a small donation. We are planning to host a table at this year's Farm Fair, which costs over $300, and support our Congressional and Presidential candidates by buying signs, flyers, stickers, and whatever else we can distribute before the general election. Please send a check to Harford County Green Party, P.O. Box 1721, Bel Air, MD 21014. Please make checks out to "Maryland Green Party" and note "Harford County" on the memo line. Thank you!

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Returns

UPDATE: Here are the DC Green Party primary returns from February 12, 2008.

Cynthia McKinney 202 votes 44%
write-ins 131 votes 27%
Howie Hawkins 32 votes 7%
no candidate 54 votes 11%
Kat Swift 20 votes 4%
Jared Ball 19 votes 4%
Kent Mesplay 15 votes 3%
Jesse Johnson 14 votes 3%

On Super Tuesday, 4 states held Green Party primaries. Voters were able to go to the polls and vote for Greens just like Democrats and Republicans in Arkansas, California, Illinois, and Massachusetts. Here are the results that are available on-line:

Illinois (97% of precincts reporting)

Cynthia McKinney 1,446 votes 57%
Howie Hawkins 438 votes 17%
Kent Mesplay 369 votes 14%
Jared Ball 302 votes 12%

California (96% of precincts reporting)

Ralph Nader 16,835 votes 61.1%
Cynthia McKinney 7,124 votes 26%
Elaine Brown 1,259 votes 4.5%
Kat Swift 843 votes 3.0%
Kent Mesplay 564 votes 2%
Jesse Johnson 506 votes 1.8%
Jared Ball 444 votes 1.6%

Arkansas (95% of precincts reporting)

Uncommitted 404 votes 55%
Cynthia McKinney 149 votes 22%
Jared Ball 74 votes 10%
Kent Mesplay 59 votes 8%
Kat Swift 43 votes 6%

Notes: After the ballots were produced, Elaine Brown and Jared Ball withdrew from the race. Howie Hawkins is running as a place-holder for Ralph Nader. Ralph Nader is currently exploring a run but has not announced himself as a candidate yet.