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The Association of State Green PartiesMedia Advisory:
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Contacts: Campus Greens to Play a Major Role at the National Green Meeting in Santa Barbara.Santa Barbara, California, July 27-29: State delegates in the Association of State Green Parties will vote to file FEC papers, establishing the Green Party of the United States. WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Campus Greens, the organization for college and university students, faculty, and staff interested in Green activism and politics, will play a prominent role at the national meeting of the Association of State Green Parties (ASGP) in Santa Barbara from July 27 through 29, 2001. During the meeting, which will be hosted by the Green Party of California, state delegates will vote on filing for National Committee Status with the Federal Election Commission, establishing the Greens as a national party: the Green Party of the United States. Shortly after the Santa Barbara meeting, Campus Greens will hold its founding national convention, at the University of Illinois in Chicago from August 9 to 12, 2001. "Not only is the Green Party poised to become a truly national, unified party, but we now have an independent entity dedicated to organizing our spiritual and demographic base -- students and young people," said Tom Adkins, Organizing Director for Campus Greens. "There has never been a better time to be Green!" At least one workshop on Green campus organizing is planned for the Santa Barbara meeting. Interest in the Greens parallels the increasing activism of students in causes from support for college and university employees' unions to challenging sweatshops to the protests against anti-democratic international free trade pacts and lending institutions (WTO, FTAA, World Bank, IMF). Campus Greens is currently planning national campaigns, to begin next fall, for affordable housing and against campus-driven gentrification, and for university divestment from Exxon Mobil. The Green Party and Campus Greens representatives will also be making plans to coordinate activities such as field organizing and outreach to youth. "The Nader campaign knew that students are the future of politics in this country and the Green Party is following up by working closely with Campus Greens," said ASGP National Organizer Dean Myerson. One of the candidates for three co-chair positions in ASGP is Ben Manski of the Wisconsin Greens and former national organizer for Campus Greens. The other candidates are Tom Sevigny (incumbent, from Connecticut), Anita Rios (Ohio) and Jo Chamberlain (California). "We've emerged as the U.S.'s third party in the 2000 election, but we expect, over the next few years, to establish the Greens as the second party -- if not the first party! -- among college students and other people under 25," added Mr. Adkins. MORE INFORMATION Campus Greens http://www.campusgreenparties.org/ Search: prty |