The Green Party simply doesn’t get enough credit.
That’s the view of party co-founder and perennial Green Party candidate Howie Hawkins of Syracuse.
“If you had asked me fifteen years ago if I thought the president would soon be talking about a new ‘green economy,’ alternative fuel sources, massive healthcare reform and the need to use diplomacy rather than force in international affairs — well, I’d say we’ve done a nice job,” said Hawkins.
All of those issues have seeped into the public discourse through the Green Party, say Hawkins, other Green Party members and experts on politics.
Syracuse University political science professor Kristi Andersen agreed that the Green Party, like other third parties, have helped shape American politics. “Though they do not get usually get the credit, third-parties often are able to affect and influence the strategies and policies of Democrats and Republicans,” said Andersen. “What ideas seem to ‘originate’ with the major parties often began in third-parties some time well before. The mantra of the Green Party is a prime example.”
The Green Party began in the 1980s as a coalition of environmentally-minded citizens. Since then, it’s grown to field consumer activist Ralph Nader as a presidential candidate twice and to put up candidates for local and state offices.
Nationally, it’s elected 226 candidates to local, state and federal offices in 28 states. In Syracuse, Hawkins has been nominated by the Greens to run for city council, mayor, county executive, state comptroller, and the U.S. House of Representatives. But he has not won any of his campaigns for office.
Still, say Green Party members, it struggles with third parties’ usual problems: Not much credit for accomplishments. Too little attention for its views and proposals. And never enough money to spread its messages as far as those of the well-heeled Democratic and Republican parties.
For example, Green Party-member Margaret Holmes, of Marcellus, N.Y., recalls when the Green Party was ridiculed for its “unrealistic” positions on healthcare, alternative energy and grassroots participation. “The Green Party was talking about real healthcare reform and alternative energy long before it was ‘popular’ in Washington,” said Holmes. “The Democrats and Republicans talk about it now as if they just thought of it. That ‘great idea’ of yours has been our platform for more than a decade.”
Indeed, the Green Party has supported universal healthcare for all U.S. citizens and legal residents since the late 1990s. Among its other philosophies and policy goals:
- Grassroots organizing for what its members call a “return to true democracy.”
Like the Tea Party movement on the right, the Greens on the left call for more political decisions made in local communities instead of at the state or federal level. “Who would understand the intricacies and needs of a community better than community members?” said Hawkins, the Syracuse Green Party activist. “There should not be any kind of barrier between the people and their public policy.”
- A restructuring of the American tax structure to lighten the burden on middle- and low-income families.
The Green Party proposes to raise taxes on the rich. “If everyone paid their fair share of taxes, this would be a completely different country,” said Hawkins.
- A new “living wage” law
Instead of the $7.25 New York state minimum wage, the Greens propose a $10 minimum wage. If the employer included health insurance, the Greens say they would compromise with $8.00 an hour.
Party-member Christian Ericson, of Skaneateles, N.Y., advocates for the higher wage after trying to live on minimum wage.“It’s almost impossible for any single person these days, let alone someone with a family, to live on minimum wage without health benefits,” said Ericson.
One of the greatest obstacles for the Green Party is in reaching the American electorate. It raises little political money and spends fractions of what the Democrats and Republicans spend on political campaigns.
That makes it difficult to have an effect, said Hawkins of the Syracuse Green Party. “In our current political system, if you don’t have hundreds of millions locked up in a political war chest, you probably won’t be elected,” said Hawkins. “Because we don’t have the colossal funds as the two major parties, we have to work that much harder to reach the electorate.”
The money gap is often vivid. For example, when Hawkins ran against Republican incumbent Jim Walsh in 2008 for the 25th Congressional district, Hawkins raised $250 from individual contributors—compared to Walsh’s $1.7 million, according to Federal Election Commission reports.
Despite its challenges, Hawkins expressed enduring optimism about the Green Party’s future. “We’ve certainly come a long way in a short amount of time. Our ideas and proposals, though not usually attributed to us, are making considerable progress,” said Hawkins. “However, there’s still a lot of work to be done.”
(Joe Frandino is a senior with dual majors in newspaper journalism and political science.)
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