Monkeyfist.com

5th National Independent Politics Summit

by Kendall CLARK

Tuesday, 16 May 2000

.....

I got an email today about IPPN's National Summit, scheduled for June 1-4 at University of Wisconsin, Madison. The Independent Progressive Politics Network is a national alliance of progressive organizations working on a range social justice issues, doing grassroots organizing for a successful progressive third-party movement. If my travel budget through 2007 weren't already busted, I'd be attending the IPPN Summit, which has an impressive slate of keynote speakers, second only to the Green Party National Convention (at which I'll be a Texas delegate):

• Winona LaDuke, Native American activist and Ralph Nader's Green Party running mate
• Njoki Njehu, Director of 50 Years Is Enough!
• Molly McGrath, United Students Against Sweatshops
• Daniel Osuna, La Raza Unida
• Dennis Brutus, South African poet and political prisoner

There's also an interesting array of workshops planned:

• Independent Electoral Campaigning [one I should attend if the Dallas Greens are going to run candidates next year!]
• Environment/Genetically Modified Foods
• Using the Internet in Organizing [given by Rich Cowan of Organize Now!]
• Police Violence & Civilian Review Boards
• Race/Gender/Sexuality Politics
• Media Relations & Communications Skills
• Proportional Representation
• Farm issues
• Voting Rights Struggle in the South
• Coalition-Building
• Corporatization of the Schools [one of my Ur-issues]
• Fundraising
• National People's Pledge Campaign
• "The Positive Revolution"
• Living Wage Campaigns [Dallas is very close to winning this, and we Greens have been an important part of the coalition, alongside local community and labor activists and ACORN
• The Return of Star Wars

---

This is 5th National Independent Politics Summit <http://monkeyfist.com/articles/519>