Working toward a future where people and planet are valued, and our government represents all of us.
October 2022
I Am A Green Because Of My Child
By Beth Scroggin (Chester), Co-chair, Green Party of PA
Hello, and happy October, members and friends of the Green Party of Pennsylvania! Since I last wrote a lead story for the Green Star, I’ve twice had the pleasure of meeting with Pennsylvania Greens in person. Such a privilege will never again be taken for granted after the pandemic has left us all feeling disconnected from one another. Meeting with my fellow Greens always serves as an inspiration to me, and our meeting on September 10 was no exception. We met on a breezy, late summer day at an outdoor picnic pavilion in beautiful Centre County, surrounded by mountains. Former Green Party presidential candidate Howie Hawkins joined us to share inspiring words of wisdom from his many years of experience. As I listened to Howie speak and took in the surrounding scenery, I got in touch with my reasoning for becoming a Green in the first place.
“Many of you are former Democrats, and at some point, you became frustrated enough to walk away,” Howie said. This statement is certainly true of me. In 2016, I worked on the Bernie Sanders campaign and became frustrated when the Democratic Party sabotaged his (and my!) efforts, but that alone is not the root of my involvement with the Greens. Nor is my Green membership rooted solely in my fond memories of Ralph Nader’s presidential candidacy in 2000, when I was still too young to vote. Back then, I felt that the Green Party was the only party that truly spoke to the issues my generation was facing. A significant source of my frustration with the United States' political system and my desire to support Green candidates and their ideals is the difficulty I’ve faced raising a child in today’s world. As the saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child, but our village is owned by corporations.
In 2009, when I found out I was expecting my daughter and set about researching all that she would need, I discovered that the majority of baby bottles on the market contained bisphenol-A (BPA), a known hormone disruptor that leaches out of plastic and into foods and beverages contained within. If I wanted to avoid feeding my baby tainted milk, I would need to pay extra for BPA-free or glass bottles. Of course, avoiding potentially toxic baby bottles was only the beginning. Many toys contained phthalates or lead; certain formulas and baby foods contained high-fructose corn syrup; crib mattresses emitted toxic fumes; onesies were made from cotton that had been sprayed with an unfathomable amount of pesticides. Although all of these dangers had been indicated in multiple studies, corporations kept selling products made from dangerous materials, and the government kept allowing it to happen.
When I thought about where I would send my daughter to school, I couldn’t help but think of how much public education had changed since I was a student. George W. Bush enacted No Child Left Behind in 2001, which mandated that, somehow, 100 percent of students would be deemed “proficient” in reading, writing, and mathematics by 2011 according to arbitrary standards. Schools who failed to reach the required benchmarks each year would lose funding. In their struggle to meet these standards, public schools began pushing reading, writing, and algebra skills at younger and younger ages, when children are simply not developmentally capable of mastering these skills. Activities, the arts, and even recess were pushed aside to make more room for these academic subjects. In high schools, vocational classes were curtailed so that students who would typically attend them would have more time for remedial algebra. Schools prioritized helping the least academically inclined meet the minimum standards, no longer giving the same attention to helping all students discover their talents and passion. Although Barack Obama enacted different legislation regarding education, his “Race to the Top” was not much different in spirit or in practice than No Child Left Behind. Regardless of which of the duopoly controls the branches of government at any given time, it is clear that ensuring a proper public education for children is no politician’s priority. In fact, forcing schools to focus on arbitrary standards, defunding the ones that fail to meet them, and the existence of school vouchers all highly suggest that the goal of both major parties is to dismantle public education.
At every turn of my parenting journey thus far, I have been appalled by how rampant consumerism permeates every aspect of childhood. Licensed characters and corporate logos adorn everything for children of all ages, from toys, to clothing, to junk food, and even diapers. Many apps for young children spy on them, market to them, and push in-app purchases. Corporations fund school initiatives in efforts to build brand loyalty early (such as the school libraries overtly provided by Target ). Corporations even provide curriculum materials designed to minimize the problems they cause (such as the oil industry proclaiming their necessity via children’s books ). Now that my aforementioned 2009 baby is about to become a teenager, I am discovering all the horrors of how corporations use social media to control teens’ attention so that they can market to them nonstop. Each year, social media companies discover new ways to become more addictive, to gain more information about their users, and squeeze every available penny from them. Politicians from both major parties have made no effort what-so-ever to rein in how corporations market to children.
As a parent, I have so often felt that I’m fighting losing battles against the society in which we live. Ideally, politicians should serve people and work to create better living for everyone. They should seek to ensure that all children have access to healthy food, safe and adequate clothing and bedding, education that meets each of their individual needs, and space for their minds to develop unabated by corporate influence. However, none of that will happen when politicians’ campaigns receive unlimited funding from major corporations. The Green Party is the only party which refuses corporate funding on principle. Green candidates are real people not from the billionaire class, who understand what it means to just want to raise happy and healthy children. I became a Green, first and foremost, because I feel that I owe it to my child to try to create the best world possible for her, and I believe that the four pillars of the Green Party (ecological wisdom, grassroots democracy, social justice, and nonviolence) are the best way to achieve that.
PA Green News
By Chris Robinson
On Labor Day 2022, Green Party candidates for PA Governor and Lt. Governor recognized the importance of organized labor in moving forward our Commonwealth. Green Party candidate for PA Governor, Christina "PK" DiGiulio (Chester County) said, “I am inspired to see a new generation of workers forming labor unions to elevate and protect their workforce” . . . .
“That’s what inspired me about the history of our labor movement,” continued Bagdes-Canning. “Workers organizing in unions changed the face of the workplace and beyond. Those workers organized across the differences that divided them and brought workers together to fight for radical change.”
The Green Party Platform says, “The Green Party supports the irreducible right of working people, without hindrance, to form a union and to bargain collectively with their employer. This right was guaranteed under the National Labor Relations Act of 1935. We support the right of workers, without penalty, to inform other workers on the premises of a union being formed. This includes advertising and recruiting.” Read more here...
“Prepare for the Surge,” Hawkins Tells PSA Greens
The Green Party of Pennsylvania (GPPA, www.gpofpa.org) held its state-wide delegates meeting on September 10 in Belefonte, PA. There were 25 delegates and visitors participating live and almost as many via Zoom. The Keynote Address was given by Howie Hawkins, the Green Party candidate for President of the U.S. (2020) and candidate for Governor of New York (2022, 2018, 2014 and 2010).
By Howie Hawkins, GPPA Keynote Speaker on September 10.
GPPA Co-Chair Jay Walker asked me to come here and to talk about whatever I think will rally the Green Party of PA. So, I will give you some suggestions for party organizing and then about policy.
My Main Point: Don’t be Discouraged.
The Green Party has always had internal fights and periods of low membership. For instance in the 1990s we had the GPUSA split with the ASGP. Then in the 2000s, we had the split between the Cobb and Nader factions.
When Ralph Nader ran for President as the Green Party candidate in 2000, we got 2,900,000 votes. Four years later, our candidate David Cobb got 120,000 votes. Gradually, this was rebuilt until our candidate Jill Stein received 1,500,000 votes in 2016. In 2020, I was your candidate, but I could not get on the ballot in 21 states – including Pennsylvania. I received 405,000 votes.
Still, it is our job to rebuild the Green Party membership and to build the vote for our candidates.
Labor Day 2022, Green Party candidates for PA Governor and Lt. Governor recognized the importance of organized labor in moving forward our Commonwealth. Green Party candidate for PA Governor, Christina "PK" DiGiulio (Chester County) said, “I am inspired to see a new generation of workers forming labor unions to elevate and protect their workforce” . . . .
“That’s what inspired me about the history of our labor movement,” continued Bagdes-Canning. “Workers organizing in unions changed the face of the workplace and beyond. Those workers organized across the differences that divided them and brought workers together to fight for radical change.”
The Green Party Platform says, “The Green Party supports the irreducible right of working people, without hindrance, to form a union and to bargain collectively with their employer. This right was guaranteed under the National Labor Relations Act of 1935. We support the right of workers, without penalty, to inform other workers on the premises of a union being formed. This includes advertising and recruiting.” Read more here...
Campaign Updates
Edited by Chris Robinson
GENERAL ELECTION, November 8
The following Green Party candidates have been endorsed by the Green Party of Pennsylvania.
Christina “PK” DiGiulio (Chester County) for Governor of Pennsylvania
And
Michael Bagdes-Canning (Butler County) for Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania
Richard L. Weiss, Esq. (Allegheny County) for U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania
U.S. Senate from PA, Vote Green Party – Not the Same Old Story
By Richard L. Weiss, Green Party Candidate for U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania
In the November General Election, you will see my name listed as the Green Party Candidate for U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania. This is why you should vote for me.
First, End Cancer Causing Fracking
I believe that fracking is ruining the water and health of Pennsylvania. The latest UN report on climate change predicts heat waves, drought, famine and rising sea levels which the UN Secretary General says “puts us firmly on track towards an unlivable world” and which underscores the need to immediately make all efforts to stop emissions of greenhouse gasses. This can be accomplished through a "just transition" to renewable energy that provides jobs, and does not cause cancer like fracking and burning fossil fuels. Read more here...
Jay Ting Walker (Allegheny County) for PA House District 23
Zarah Livingston (Allegheny County) for PA House District 32
Candidate to Meet Voters in House District #32
By Zarah Livingston, Green Party Candidate for PA House District #32
Hello. My name is Zarah Livingston, and I am campaigning to be the PA Representative for District 32. I plan to meet the voters while knocking on doors in Oakmont, Penn Hills, Plum and Verona, and I am sure that we will build a close relationship. I hope to be a Green Party representative who actually feels close to the community. Then, I will be able to formally address the ongoing gun violence with practical programs for youth and their parents. I plan to make it easier for my constituents to access public information, for example campaign records, public funds information, etc. Read more here...
National Green News
Edited by Noah Alter
Big Oil Admits "Gaslighting" People While Planet Burns
...internal documents from Shell, ExxonMobil, Chevron, and BP have come to light providing yet more proof that even their tepid, public commitments to addressing the climate crisis are a pack of lies. These documents, revealed through congressional hearings, admit to "gaslighting" the public, expose their scrambling to disavow commitments to international climate goals, and their utter contempt for climate organizers. They expose the fantasy of dirty energy companies providing real solutions to the climate crisis, through the marketplace, when fundamental market forces drive them to extract every last dollar from every last bit of oil and gas in their holdings.
And yet elected officials keep going back to the market, and the corporate behemoths who dominate the market, for climate action. They ignore real solutions like a Just Transition to 100% clean, renewable, public power through an Eco-Socialist Green New Deal, because our elected officials are just as addicted to Wall Street donations to their campaigns as our society is addicted to oil. Read more here...
Global Green News
Edited by Hal Brown
Tunisia Ministry of Environment Bans Manufacture of Plastic Bags
During a meeting held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Environment by Minister Chikhaoui, the participants, including representatives of the Trade Union Chamber of the plastics industry of UTICA, agreed to continue coordination concerning the guidelines adopted at the international level and aimed at developing an international document that will end plastic pollution by 2024. Read more here...
U.K. Green Party Warns, Prime Minister’s Plans Foster Climate Destroying Industry
Adrian Ramsay, Green co-leader, severely criticized the Prime Minister’s plan in a new request for renewable energies:
“The plan to grant 100 new licenses to oil and gas companies to expand their climate destroying industry and continue raking in eye-watering dirty profits is inexplicable while we still hold the COP Presidency and when we know that renewables are far cheaper.” Read more here...
Australian Green Party Fighting For Refugee Rights
“We categorize one another on the basis of what we can materially offer the economic system. There is a significant issue in evaluating and looking at refugees this way. A refugee is defined as an individual who is forced to flee their country due to political violence, fear of personal safety, disturbed public order, and needs international protection. Asking for asylum and becoming a refugee should not be conditional, whether they are entering a new country as an economic asset or not.” Read more here...
Green Concerns May Determine Energy Development In New Brunswick
With no short-term option for supplying LNG directly to Europe, the greener hydrogen option looks like the best way forward for NB. German environmentalists are pressuring Scholz’s government coalition, which includes the Green Party, to reject any Canadian energy that emits carbon dioxide. Therefore, with an eye to the German market, the Belledune Port Authority has proposed a facility that will use renewable electricity to create hydrogen through electrolysis of water, which leaves only oxygen as a by-product. This “green” hydrogen is being touted as a long-term solution to replace fossil fuels. It produces no emissions when created by renewable energy sources and can be converted into ammonia, which is dense and can be shipped long distances. Read more here...
GPPA Meeting Dates for 2022
All State Web Conferences will be 12:00 noon to 4pm.
Sunday November 13 via Zoom.
Green Party of Pennsylvania Communications Team and Media Commitee
Editors: Noah Alter, Hal Brown, Chris Robinson
Contributors: Michael Badges-Canning, Christina "PK" DiGuilio, Howie Hawkins, Zara Livingston, Chris Robinson, Beth Scroggin, and Richard L. Weiss
Layout: Hal Brown, Sherri Miller, and David Ochmanowicz Jr.
Graphic Arts: Kevin Richardson
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The GREEN STAR is an official publication of the Green Party of Pennsylvania Communications Team * 2022.
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