MOOREHEAD-LA RIVA 2000
Socialist candidates on Florida ballot
By Linda Breed
West Palm Beach,
Fla.
In Florida, where Gov. Jeb Bush is cutting affirmative
action and racing to match his brother George W.'s execution
rate, Workers World Party boldly seized a place on this
year's presidential ballot. Recent changes in election laws
here made it possible for WWP to get on the Florida ballot
for the first time this year.
Southern Florida activist groups along with support from
the African American community helped get WWP candidates
Monica Moorehead and Gloria La Riva on the ballot. Moorehead,
an African American woman, is the party's presidential
candidate; La Riva, who is Chicana, is the vice-presidential
candidate.
The groundwork for the campaign was laid during the
organizing for the historic Jan. 29 demonstration against the
right-wing kidnapping of Cuban child Elián Gonzalez.
It took the courage and the leadership of Workers World
Party, along with IFCO/Pastors for Peace, the International
Action Center and other groups, to make that demonstration a
reality in the face of Miami's violent right-wing Cuban exile
groups.
When the two socialist candidates visited the area in
August, a meeting for them was hosted by African American
activists in Miami who promote affirmative action for
minority contractors.
The WWP candidates also met key death-penalty
abolitionists from Citizens United for Alternatives to the
Death Penalty, progressive Cuban community members, anti-war
activists and opponents of the International Monetary Fund
and World Bank.
Achieving ballot status in Florida is important because
the state is one of the biggest and fastest-growing. Florida
has many diverse communities--Black, Latino, lesbian, gay, bi
and trans--and many, many immigrants who arrive daily from
all over the Caribbean and South America.
Moorehead stated, "Gloria and I are so excited about
getting on the ballot in the fourth most populous state in
the country. There has been an intensification of racist
repression in this state, especially with the attacks on
affirmative action by Gov. Bush's administration.
"The fact that over 50,000 people, primarily young African
Americans, marched against these attacks indicates that the
most oppressed are organizing to fight for their basic
democratic right to have a decent education and a job,"
Moorehead explained.
"Gloria and I look forward to bringing a message of
anti-racist class solidarity along with a pro-socialist
perspective to this state."
WWP has launched a struggle-oriented campaign that will
continue past the November elections. Friends and supporters
are proud to have the party on the ballot and in the struggle
here. Let's build a Workers World!
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
Workers World, 55 W. 17 St., NY, NY 10011
Email: ww@workers.org
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