Dark Mondays Supporters
From the Green Party of California:
GREEN PARTY OF CALIFORNIA NEWS ADVISORY
For immediate release: Thursday, Dec. 14, 2004
Contacts:
Cres Vellucci, State Press Office, 916-996-1970, civillib@cwnet.com
Beth Moore Haines, GPCA Spokesperson, 530-277-0610, beth@greens.org
Kevin McKeown, GPCA Spokesperson, 310-393-3639, kevin@mckeown.net
SACRAMENTO (Dec. 14, 2004) – The Green Party of California today officially endorsed a boycott of gasoline purchases on Mondays to protest the denial of driver's licenses to millions of immigrants in the state, and urged the more than 160,000 registered Green voters and all Californians to honor the boycott immediately.
At dramatic news conferences held in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Sacramento Monday, the Mexican American Political Association and a coalition of other Latino groups announced the boycott that they have dubbed "Dark Mondays."
MAPA is calling on the public to not purchase gasoline one day a week, on Monday, to demonstrate support to immigrants and the right to obtain a driver's license in California without regard to immigration status.
"Dark Mondays will continue for the remainder of this year and continue throughout 2005 until California becomes a hospitable state to immigrants and grants them the right to obtain a driver's license, as was the case prior to 1994," said Nativo V. Lopez, MAPA President, the oldest Latino political organization in the state.
Lopez re-registered Green from Democrat a few months ago, and has urged that Green and MAPA members merge throughout the state and form a stronger alliance for justice.
"We Greens are excited to endorse, support and promote, this boycott," said Hugo Vera, a spokesperson for the Green Party and MAPA in Sacramento. "All Californians must send a message to the Governor, and the Legislature, that we cannot continue to insult our Latino brothers and sisters who work by our side daily and contribute so much to this state."
Other organizations participating in the MAPA coalition include the California Coalition for Immigrant's Rights and Against Raids, Centro Azteca de Informacion, the Council of Mexican Federations, Hermandad Mexicana Latinoamericana, Centro CSO and MAPA Youth Leadership.
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The Green Party of California
http://www.cagreens.org
P.O. Box 2828, Sacramento, CA 95812
Phone: (916) 448-3437
gpca@greens.org
No press release at mapa.org. As previously mentioned, no press release at hermanadadmexicana.com.
Regarding Nativo Lopez's membership in the Green Party:
THE GREEN PARTY OF CALIFORNIA
www.cagreens.org
September 8, 2004
Contact: Beth Moore Haines, spokesperson 530.277.0610 beth@ncws.com
Sara Amir, spokesperson 310.270.7106 saraamir@earthlink.net
Cres Vellucci, State Press Office, 916.996.9170 cres@greens.org
Nativo Lopez, MAPA, 323.269-1575 or (cell) 714.423-4800
Major Mexican-American political leader Nativo Lopez re-registers, urges statewide Latino support for Green Party candidates in Fall elections.
SACRAMENTO - The influential president of the Mexican American Political Association (MAPA) - one of the oldest, and largest political organizations of its kind in the state and U.S. - said Wednesday he has lost patience with the Democratic Party and is throwing his support to the Green Party.
That decision could result in tens of thousands of Latino voters switching to the Green Party, according to the Green Party of California.
Nativo Lopez - who made the dramatic disclosure and formally re-registered Green at the Secretary of State's office Wednesday - said he traveling throughout the state urging MAPA members and Latinos statewide to also re-register Green and to form MAPA/Green organizations.
The announcement is a coup for the Green Party. For years, Greens have been urging under-represented voter groups to abandon the Democratic Party, which has done little for those groups, and in fact, taken their votes for granted.
"We are no better off than a generation ago. The Democrats have not helped us. This needs to change," said Lopez, who added he is planning joint voter registration efforts with the Green Party, and expects MAPA to endorse Green candidates.
"The two major parties say they believe in capitalism, but they do not want competition in politics. The big corporate dollars have helped the parties to lock up the districts...they do not want to wake the Latino voter up because they are afraid we will change the system," said Lopez.
"We are excited about the opportunity to work closely with Nativo and MAPA to promote issues and legislationto benefit the Latino community and all Californians," said Peggy Lewis, a Green Party state and national steering committee member.
MAPA is a multi-partisan advocacy group, formed in 1960, with chapters throughout the state and U.S. representing the Mexican, Mexican-American and Latino communities.
For more information, see www.MAPA.org.
Dr. Victor Rodriguez explains:
The first step toward disengaging Latinos from the Democratic embrace was taken by one of California’s best known Latino community activists: Nativo Lopez. Recently, Lopez, National Director of Hermandad Mexicana Latino Americana and President of the Mexican American Political Association re-registered as a member of the California Green Party.
California’s alternative and left wing political organizations, like the California Green Party, are not known for their ethnic diversity, in general, progressive and environmental issues have historically been the province of white middle and upper middle class constituencies. However, ironically, ethnic groups like African American and Latinos are usually the ones who suffer the brunt of most of the environmental and economic problems arising out of decisions made by non-Latinos in the centers of power who see these communities as disposable and powerless.
Traditionally, white constituencies have been the ones visibly behind environmental issues. But most of the time it is ethnic neighborhoods who suffer since many are built over abandoned toxic dumps or are chosen for the building of prisons, or trash incinerators which cause a host of respiratory diseases.
Some years ago a group of Latina women formed the now well known community organization, the “Mothers of East L.A.” as a local response to some of these issues. But despite the national prominence of Peter Camejo, the 2000 Latino vice presidential candidate for the national greens, Latinos and progressive and environmental issues were not associated in the public mind. Nativo Lopez is working to change that perception; the Democratic Party is making it easier for him to achieve that.
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