Detroit Greens a local of the Green Party of Michigan

March Against Monsanto planned for May 25 in cities throughout the world

Info on the Detroit March at: https://www.facebook.com/events/365006296937350

WASHINGTON, DC -- Green Party leaders said today that biotech giant Monsanto and other powerful biotech companies and agribusinesses are wreaking havoc with the environment, exploiting farmers, and endangering the health of plants, animals, and humans throughout the world.

"Monsanto has gained enormous political power in the U.S., with its tentacles wrapped around Congress and the Obama Administration," said Nancy Allen, former co-chair of the Green Party of the United States and Maine Green Independent Party, and organic small farmer for 40 years. "The reckless introduction of GMOs [genetically modified organisms] into agriculture is turning small farmers into serfs under Monsanto's control, damaging biodiversity, and yielding crops that pose health risks to consumers, as well as livestock and plant populations."

Greens said that the biotech industry has grown into a monopolistic cartel, with Monsanto and two other corporations controlling more than half of the world's commercial seed market (http://www.motherearthnews.com/homesteading-and-livestock/seed-diversity...).

WASHINGTON, DC -- Green Party leaders today called on President Obama and Congress to cancel proposed military aid to Syrian rebels and press Israel to cease its attacks on Syria immediately, or risk an escalated conflict in the Middle East.

Greens urged the Obama Administration to pursue diplomacy and promote a political settlement instead of a deepening and bloody civil and proxy war.

On May 5, Leah Bolger, Secretary of Defense, and David Swanson, Secretary of Peace, of the Foreign Affairs Branch of the Green Shadow Cabinet published a statement opposing U.S. involvement in Syria and a condemnation of Israel's air strikes ("Stay out of Syria," http://greenshadowcabinet.us/statements/bolger-swanson-stay-out-syria).

Greens noted that the claims about President Assad's government using sarin gas against Syrian rebels are still unverified and inconclusive; allegations have surfaced that some of the rebels may have used the banned chemical.

San Francisco -- Green Party members, already outraged by the continuing prosecution of whistle-blower PFC Bradley Manning, are joining a growing chorus of individuals and organizations supporting Manning as a Grand Marshal for San Francisco Pride 2013. The Parade takes place on Sunday, June 30, 2013.

In what has become a growing controversy, Manning was reportedly already named Grand Marshal. San Francisco Pride Board President Lisa Williams quickly moved to deny this in a statement in which she cited unproven allegations that Manning's participation in exposing war crimes, corporate malfeasance, and other outrages justified the Obama Administration's charges against him. The statement and reaction sent shock waves across the LGBTIQ community. Furthermore, as columnist Glenn Greenwald, who is gay, has noted, the SF Pride Board has accepted sponsorship from corporations like Bank of America and Wells Fargo whose criminally reckless actions triggered the 2008 economic crisis and cost millions of Americans their homes, jobs, and savings. (http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/apr/27/bradley-manning-sf-g...).

full issue at http://www.detroitgreens.org/files/GPMI_May_2013.pdf

Green Shadow Cabinet Begins Operations This Week
Green Shadow Cabinet: http://www.greenshadowcabinet.us

Dr. Jill Stein and Cheri Honkala, the 2012 Green Party presidential and vice-presidential nominees, marked the beginning of Earth Week by announcing a new Green Shadow Cabinet that will serve as an independent voice in U.S. politics, putting the needs of people and protection of the planet ahead of profits for big corporations. The Cabinet will operate in the tradition of shadow cabinets in other countries, such as the United Kingdom and France, responding to actions of the government in office, and demonstrating that another government is possible.

Saturday - April 13 - 6:30 pm - 9:30 pm
International Institute
111 E. Kirby (corner of Kirby and John R)
Detroit

The current political situation demands the end of “politics as usual.” All over the world, all over the country, and all over Michigan, people are rejecting the bankers’ demands for austerity.

WASHINGTON, DC-- The Green Party of the United States has sent the U.S. State Department a strongly worded objection to TransCanada's proposed Keystone XL pipeline.

The letter, appended below, cites environmental concerns as well as the conflict of interest that compromises the draft environmental impact statement on which the Obama Administration may base its decision on the pipeline.

The statement, prepared by fossil fuel consultant Environmental Resources Management, was paid for by TransCanada, a probable violation of legal and ethical standards.

The letter to the State Department, which mentions a July 2011 ExxonMobil pipeline rupture that dumped 63,000 gallons of Canadian crude oil into the Yellowstone River in Montana, was sent just as news was breaking on Friday's ExxonMobil spill in Mayflower, Arkansas, after a pipeline carrying Canadian crude oil ruptured (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57577164/homes-evacuated-after-exxon...).

Citizen Activist Joins Race to Fill Flint Area Vacancy, Offers Principled Alternative to Political Musical Chairs

The Green Party of Michigan (GPMI) has nominated Bobby Jones
to be the Green candidate on the ballot for the May 7 special
election for 27th District State Senator.

The vacancy in the Flint area seat arose after incumbent John
Gleason was elected Genesee County Clerk and Register of Deeds
last November.

Jones has long been an active member of Flint Area Greens, and
was a strong supporter of last year's special-election campaign
by fellow Green Cary Justice in the 51st State House District.

WASHINGTON, DC -- Green Party leaders today called for a liveable wage for working Americans, in contrast to President Obama's proposal in his 2013 State of the Union address for a $9 minimum wage to be enacted by 2015.

"Instead of a minimum wage, working people need a wage they can live on. Anyone who works 40 hours a week should be able to afford a home, provide for others, and save money for the future. People who work hard deserve to enjoy economic security and prosperity," said Mark Dunlea, a member of the Green Party of New York Executive Committee and long-time director of a statewide anti-hunger organization in New York.

"The $9 minimum wage is an inadequate improvement, not enough to lift many people who work hard at full-time and multiple jobs out of poverty and debt. Two generations ago, wage-earners could provide for a family of four on the minimum wage. Today, it's difficult to provide for one person on the minimum wage, even on President Obama's $9 minimum, which falls far short of the 1968 federal minimum of $10.50, adjusted for inflation. While worker productivity has increased, wages keep sinking," said Mr. Dunlea.

The Green Party's national platform endorses the liveable wage and the guaranteed basic income:

LeAlan Jones for U.S. House in Chicago, IL

Perry Redd for At-Large Council Member in Washington, DC

Green candidate database and campaign information: http://www.gp.org/elections.shtml

WASHINGTON, DC -- Several Green Party candidates are drawing attention for their campaigns in local elections that will take place in April 2013. The candidates are profiled below.