It is time for radical change in Oregon. Our current leadership has ensured a standard of living for Oregonians that is good, but it isn’t enough.

Oregonians are seeing the game being played. The two corporate-controlled parties have divided the state in half, with a strong libertarian and conservative Republican base in the East and a socially progressive Democratic monopoly through the Willamette Valley and I-5 corridor. Greens seek common ground as a starting point to broker peace and unity to protect our ecosystems.

We need better oversight for environmental protection. Salem is experiencing a water contamination crisis. Portland has seen controversy related to hazardous spills, air quality in North Portland, and commercial release of toxic gas. Our state has a broken education system (48th in the nation for graduation rates), a housing crisis, an inhumane prison-industrial complex, “access” to unaffordable health care, a rise in political violence including hate crimes, and the possible construction of a natural gas pipeline on the horizon.

The Trump agenda has led to ICE harassment of immigrant communities, and I fully support the #OccupyICEPDX direct action taking place in my community. It is time to resist. I call on Governor Brown to withdraw the units of the Oregon National Guard currently deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border, a move currently backed by 9 bipartisan governors. (We can call my support of this a tripartisan effort. Let’s get used to hearing that word.)

I’m running for Governor because I love Oregon and want to help it flourish. I am also running because I am committed to serving the Pacific Green Party. I have been a registered Green since 2012, and I value the Four Pillars of the Green Party: grassroots democracy, nonviolence, ecological wisdom, and social justice. This campaign is an opportunity to expand the Pacific Green’s base to encompass a truly statewide platform, while also revolutionizing how Greens engage in the political process through decentralization. In every town where we can rally at least five people to register as Pacific Greens, we can give them the tools to start their own local Party chapter. This process will grow the Party into a structure that will remain in place after this campaign.

A question we should be asking ourselves every day is, “What can I do to make the world a Greener place?” One solution we need is a ban on single-use plastics: tableware, straws, to-go containers, etc. Plastic is a petroleum product, there are biodegradable and renewable solutions, and we can engineer them here in Oregon. Caring for the environment shouldn’t be a divisive issue of left versus right. I believe in building community based on the principles of mutual aid, respect, and solidarity. If elected, I will bring to Salem the Green Party’s commitment to grassroots democracy (campaign finance reform, direct action, citizen assemblies, ranked-choice and other alternative voting measures), nonviolence (protecting our immigrant communities through stronger Sanctuary legislation, anti-racist community watch, negotiating for peace first in all dealings), ecological wisdom (fighting the LNG pipeline, introducing Green New Deal legislation), and social justice (ending the school-to-prison pipeline, ensuring quality universal education from Pre-K through college, criminal justice reform, and making Oregon the first state to institute single-payer healthcare for all).

KEY ISSUES

Education reform: Universal Pre-K, free college, better Arts and STEM programming

Supporting efforts of mutual aid, solidarity, and direct action in communities facing oppression

Ecological stewardship: water protection, honor sacred land, no pipelines, honor Native tribes

Criminal Justice reform: Restorative Justice in our schools, prisons, and courtrooms

Green New Deal: jobs for the environment, infrastructure, transportation, energy

Supporting small businesses in the cannabis industry

Raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour

Strengthen our Sanctuary legislation, resisting ICE

Refusing to normalize the neofascism of the Trump Agenda

Campaign finance reform: publicly financed elections, donor limits, end lobbying

Mass transit across the state that is eco-friendly, connect Eastern Oregon to West

Incentivize green energy transitions for businesses and homeowners

Sustainable agriculture: pesticide restrictions, protect pollinators, animal rights

Alex DiBlasi

June 20, 2018