by Sarah L. Evans

published in the Legislative Gazette

May 10, 2010

Green Party activist Howie Hawkins declared he will be running for governor during a visit to Albany last week. Hawkins so far is the only contender for the Green Party's nomination. On May 15, during the party's statewide convention, an official announcement of the party's ticket will be unveiled.


According to Peter LaVenia, co-chair of the Green Party of New York State, it's likely that Hawkins will win the nomination. If Hawkins is able to garner 50,000 votes during the gubernatorial vote, the party will be able to have an official ballot line, which is a goal of the campaign. 


Hawkins' campaign slogan, "Tax Wall Street, Not Main Street," echoes the sentiments of the party, which shuns corporate funding and aims for a more grassroots support base. 


"We see the basic issue in this campaign as whether our state government is going to be for the people or continue to serve the super rich and the giant corporations and whether it is going to represent main street and Martin Luther King Boulevard or continue to represent Wall Street," said Hawkins. "And we are running because we are on the side of the people."


His platform includes a more progressive tax system, proportional representation, ending the war on drugs, single-payer health care, the establishment of a state bank, and the push for cleaner energy.


A progressive income tax system, he said, would hopefully relieve the burden of more regressive sales and property taxes. 


"At the least [the elite] should pay a little bit more in taxes so kids don't have to go without education, old people don't have to go without care, and people that need jobs don't go unemployed," said Hawkins.


He also is hoping to create a public jobs program so "people can go to the employment office not the unemployment office." He said that businesses are often opposed to this because it raises wage rates, but countered that there wouldn't be any more welfare or unemployment compensation necessary.


Hawkins is advocating for the establishment of a state bank that would deposit money and lend it to its own customers rather than redirecting it to a larger bank.


A single-payer health care system "where everybody is entitled to full top of the line coverage," according to Hawkins, would lessen the dependence on private insurance companies and relieve county budgets from Medicaid costs.


Hawkins is hoping to raise at least $100,000 for his campaign, a small amount compared to the campaign funds of his potential opponents, who he claims aren't very different from one another due to their dependence on Wall Street. The contributions come from individual donors, according to Eric Jones, co-chair of the Green Party of New York State, which he points out puts the party at a disadvantage, but makes a statement about the party's platform and ideology.


"It makes a distinction between us and other parties," said Jones. "We're not in the pockets of Wall Street America."


LaVenia said the system is stacked against independents and third parties, which is why Hawkins has advocated for proportional representation, a system that selects seats based upon the amount of votes a party receives.


"Corporations have two parties and then they come out of here and they fight like cats and dogs and then they get back to their backrooms and it's basically the same basic policies," he noted, claiming that in social issues, the differences are more apparent, but overemphasized, and often progressives and independents get taken advantage of when a leader flip flops on the issues.


Hawkins has run for election 17 times over the past 17 years for offices such as state Comptroller twice, U.S. senator, Congress, and for the mayor of Syracuse.


"He's persistent," said LaVenia. "He's not running to make a career." He added that Hawkins understands the larger issues and runs to raise awareness of them.


Hawkins is hoping to strengthen the economy by moving toward renewable energy, such as using biofuels, wind and solar initiatives, and greener jobs, pointing to the reliance on oil that resulted in "maybe the biggest environmental catastrophe since Chernobyl, if not worse," referring to the recent oil spill in the Gulf Coast. 


Efforts to contain the leak have failed, and currently oil has made its way to the coast. Hawkins believes that not only will the Gulf of Mexico be at risk, but also the Atlantic Ocean.


On another environmental issue, Hawkins is for the banning of hydrofracking in drilling for natural gas in the state's Southern Tier, which he believes can possibly infiltrate water supplies. 


Hawkins works for UPS in Syracuse as a member of the Teamsters Local 317. 


He is also a board member for Southside Community Coalition, where he is currently working to create a food cooperative in inner city neighborhoods without grocery stores.


"I think certainly Howie has the vision. He certainly has the knowledge and the talented leadership to make a great difference doing this particular campaign, and it's going to be exciting to have someone that I can actually vote for," said Alice Green, a former Green Party candidate for lieutenant governor and an Albany civil rights advocate.


"We can change the whole dynamic by having a strong Green showing in this election, and we won't really be satisfied unless we win the office, but it may be beyond our reach. We'll just have to see but you know, as I've said, the more votes we get, and the more people we organize in the movement, we'll be in a better position in future elections," Hawkins said.