Freedom Means Choice
Contributed by Robert J.Shields
You are hereby invited to watch the live Open POTUS forums on March 20th and April 3rd on the YouTube Channel, hosted by the Green Party of Alaska. You can watch the first round from March 6th where Greens, Independents, Republicans, and unaffiliated candidates made their case to be our next commander and chief. By the time this goes to press, polls will be closed but over 60 candidates were invited, 10 committed, and next Wednesday at 4pm 5 will return by popular demand. The current frontrunner is Jasmine Sherman and many like what this big, bold, beautiful black non-binary person has to say about how we make things better when we lift each other up.
Some may wonder why Greens would give space to Republicans, but the reason is simple- we love democracy. For democracy to work, consent must be freely given rather than compelled. Unfortunately, “compelled” is exactly how most people feel about the apparently inevitable general election for President of the United States. The mainstream narrative (since January) has been that this is going to be a rematch between Trump and Biden and if you pick anything else your crazy, stupid, or evil. These threats to our life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness grow stronger every day and we the people, feel powerless to do a dam thing about it.
Enter the Green Party of Alaska, and our radical idea that people, not the parties, the corporations, or any shadow agencies should choose who leads them and how. In 2016, the fear of Trump being elected drove many people to abandon the party and join the Democrats in their pseudo-cold war against the Republicans. In 2020, the state party was unaffiliated from the national federation, along with a handful of other states, because we refused to decide for the people and in Alaska, the people chose Jesse Ventura and Cynthia McKinney. In 2024 the Green Party of the United States, violated their own values of grassroots democracy, created the Aurora Party, and railroaded Cornell West onto the ballot. Dr. West has since declined their nomination and is now running as an independent.
The GPAK is financially supported by a business consultant in Fairbanks, a UPS driver in Kotzebue, and a disabled hemp advocate in Anchorage. We are not full-time politicians but even we can see that the planet and her people deserve better. What we are, is committed to serve in the best capacity we can. And in the Alaskan tradition of “go big” we have resurfaced with a priorities list, an action plan, and the determination to make the best of what comes next by doing our part to ensure people have choices. A beyond politics zoom-based podcast called Green 4 Life, a series of march forward Open POTUS forums, a summer of momentum, and a call to action for ALL political parties to organize their own version of a constitutional convention (in an effort to recycle themselves into parties people actually want to join in civic union) are some of the efforts we are taking on as good stewards of the planet and to her people.
We are grateful to the folks at Free and Equal who are using ranked choice voting software to poll the breadth of candidates and, on a ramen noodle budget themselves, organize in person debates all across the country. Without them, most folks wouldn’t have any clue there are other people running and buy into the narrative you have two choices-which is not a choice at all. As its also part of the democratic process to protect the rights of others to choose, we are making the investments to hold the space for these conversations in hope others will be inspired and stand with those 70% of the population that say “no means no” to a rematch of the silverbacks.
The federal legalization of cannabis and the subsequent mainstream adoption of hemp as a US textile is our number one economic priority. The acknowledgement of the American Holocaust is our top platform issue. Mainstreaming the regenerative (resource-based) economy by 2030 is our plan to see Alaska leap forward to bridge the gap between the environment and economy. Hydrogen can end wars; holistic health care ends the poisoning of our food, water, and air; local living economies eliminate waste and produce practical sovereignty; and acknowledging the positive social and technological impacts Star Trek has had, brings a vision of hope for a better future.
Learn more at Alaska-greens.org.