[Gpca-votes] Response to "Party Growth" question

[Jeff Lebow]

Thanks for your reply. Yes, an improved website would help and transparency is needed. The focus on organization related to elections is a given for our party. That said I am concerned that these actions alone will be insufficient to attract the mass of people that do not already agree with us. Somehow we must reach outside of our comfort zone to grow and electoral politics won’t get us there. 

Sent from my iPhone

> On Oct 8, 2017, at 11:55 PM, Dee See <artaed at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Hi Jeff, 
> 
> I apologize for not getting back to you sooner. I'm not an SGA delegate so was not able to see your question.
> 
> I would like to serve on the Coordinating Committee because I believe that the Green Party of California should be the viable force for good in California it is meant to be. While the GPCA can and must grow, we Greens, in order to allow for maximum growth, have to create an organization that is not only open and welcoming, but transparent and democratic as well. All Greens, but especially new members, deserve a party that gives them opportunities to organize, communicate, collaborate, and contribute to a thriving movement during this crucial moment in our history.
> 
> To make certain all new Greens are able to find a home and a voice in our party, a number of things need to be done.  
> 
> Currently, the Green Party of California website does not provide adequate information or contacts for anyone seeking more information on how to become active as a Green in the state of California. Having worked for a number of public municipalities, I know first hand that the website is the first line of communication for any organization. It is of the utmost importance to make certain that anyone who searches for an organization must be able to find _essential_ information — who, where, how — as quickly and easily as possible.
> 
> Another area of concern for me is ensuring that all rural California counties become active so that Greens in California’s heartlands (where threats to our environment, such as resource extraction, exploitation, pollution, etc., and threats to our communities, such ICE raids, extreme poverty, institutional racism, access to affordable healthcare and housing, etc., are severe) have a voice — and a vote — in GPCA affairs.  The current protocol for activating new county organizations, and by extension, new Greens, is an extremely complicated and discouraging process, one which, if simplified, would create a much more welcoming atmosphere for those who seek to be active within the existing state structure. 
> 
> I currently serve as communications officer for the Yolo County Council, and am fully committed to ensuring that basic avenues of communication between our council, Yolo Greens, and the broader community are as streamlined as possible — in particular, I strive to make sure that each and every person seeking information on how to get active in our local Green movement will get an immediate, useful, and appropriate response.  In addition, I work alongside other Greens (in Yolo and surrounding counties) to forge and strengthen alliances with other progressive causes.
> 
> Since I submitted my application to the SGA to serve on the Coordinating Committee, I helped organize last month’s Central Regional Gathering, which brought together nearly fifty Greens from all over Northern California to strategize growing the party in the Central Valley and rural California.  Thanks to this Gathering, we are in the process of organizing counties in rural Northern California that have never been active, and are building an infrastructure to support Greens running for local, state, and federal legislative office in the Central Valley and further north.
> 
> I hope this answers your question, Jeff, and please feel free to contact me if I can be of further assistance.
> 
> Deatra Cohen
> Yolo County Council
> Davis, CA
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