Bylaws of the Green Party of Seattle

– Revised March 22, 2017

ARTICLE I. NAME

1. Name

The name of this political party shall be the Green Party of Seattle.

ARTICLE II. PURPOSE AND VALUES

2.1. Purpose Statement

The purpose of this political party shall be to work toward a Green society through participating in the political process. Our vision is represented by the Ten Key Values of the Green Party: ∙ Grassroots Democracy∙ Social Justice and Equal Opportunity∙ Ecological Wisdom∙ NonViolence∙ Decentralization∙ Community Based Economics∙ Feminism and Gender Equity∙ Respect for Diversity∙ Personal and Global Responsibility∙ Future Focus and Sustainability

2.2. Methods

The Green Party of Seattle may use any and all methods of nonviolent social change: direct action, community organizing and education, personal empowerment, issue campaigns, ballot initiatives, and/or electoral campaigns; and their related strategies and tactics.

ARTICLE III. MEMBERSHIP

3.1. Application for Membership

Membership in the Green Party of Seattle is open to any person, regardless of age, race, color, national origin, spiritual belief, gender, sexual orientation, economic status, or physical challenge who pays annual dues or does work in lieu of payment. A membership applicant shall sign an application form which shall state that the applicant is in general agreement with the Ten Key Values and the Bylaws of the Green Party of Seattle. Steps will be taken to protect the applicant’s anonymity upon request as noted on the application form.

3.2. Beginning of Membership

Membership shall begin three weeks after a prospective member’s application form is received by the Membership Coordinator. Powers of membership shall be granted to new members following this three week period.

3.3. Powers and Duties of Members

Members may vote on issues and serve on the Coordinating Council and committees.

3.4. Good Standing

Membership in the Green Party of Seattle is based on mutual respect. Members participate in good faith in discussion and decision making and resolve conflicts peaceably. Members shall refrain from abusive and disruptive behavior. Members who fulfill these responsibilities shall be in good standing with the Green Party of Seattle. Any member who fails to fulfill these responsibilities may be subject to suspension or removal. (See Section 4.13.)

ARTICLE IV. STRUCTURE

4.1. The General Membership Meeting

The General Membership Meeting shall be open to all members of the Green Party of Seattle.

4 2. Sessions of the General Membership Meeting

General Membership Meetings shall be held at least six times a year. Preliminary notice and agendas of General Membership Meetings shall be made available to those in the GPoS database at least one week in advance. The final text of proposed bylaw amendments (see 6.2.) and notice of GPoS Coordinating Committee elections including candidate profiles shall be sent to the Secretary three weeks before a General Membership Meeting and available to those in the GPoS database at least two weeks in advance.

4.3. General Powers of the Membership

The General Membership is the ultimate decision making authority in the Green Party of Seattle. Only the General Membership can reverse or modify a previous decision made by the General Membership. The decisions of the Coordinating Council must be consistent with all decisions made by the General Membership. The General Membership may elect or recall any members of the Coordinating Council, revoke the charter of committees and working groups, amend the Bylaws as necessary, adopt a Party Platform, select Green Party candidates for public office, and endorse ballot measures and preferred candidates. The General Membership may also choose for the Green Party of Seattle to affiliate with, or to withdraw affiliation from, a larger geographical body of Greens such as the Green Party of Washington. The Membership may also request a revision of any Coordinating Council decision by submitting a petition signed by at least five members in good standing to either the Coordinating Council or directly to any General Membership Meeting. Once a revision petition has achieved five signatures and has been submitted, it must be addressed at every subsequent Coordinating Council and General Membership meeting until it is resolved. If a petition is submitted during the course of a Coordinating Council or General Membership meeting when agenda alteration is permitted, it may be addressed at that meeting.

4.4. Coordinating Council

The Coordinating Council of the Green Party of Seattle shall be composed of members elected by the Membership. These shall include, but not be limited to, a Facilitator, Secretary, Treasurer. At least one of the three officers (Facilitator, Secretary, and Treasurer) elected must be a woman. Voting for these CC members will be by blind balloting, with each of the three officers being elected separately using instant runoff voting. The total number of Coordinating Council members shall not exceed seven. Voting for at-large CC members will be by blind balloting, with the officers elected from the group of candidates using instant runoff voting. CC members must be members in good standing of Green Party of Seattle.

4.5. Coordinating Council Sessions

The Coordinating Council shall meet at least once a month. Any Green Party of Seattle member in good standing may propose agenda items, but only Council members may vote.

4.6. Coordinating Council Powers

The Coordinating Council shall initiate, finalize and oversee the Strategic Plan; develop and implement the annual Budget; oversee the Political Platform; develop Political Strategy; hire and supervise any employees of the Party; and charter working groups. The Coordinating Council shall facilitate work between Membership Meetings. The Coordinating Council shall make endorsements and statements only in keeping with policies set by the General Membership Meetings. If and when necessary, the Coordinating Council shall serve as the legal Board of the organization. At each General Membership Meeting the Coordinating Council shall report on its activities since the previous General Membership Meeting. Major Coordinating Council decisions may be brought to the Membership for review and revision.

4.7. Coordinating Council Terms of Service

The Coordinating Council members shall be elected for one year terms by the Membership. They shall be limited to three consecutive terms, after which they shall be ineligible for service for a period of not less than one year.

4.8. Facilitator

The Facilitator shall facilitate or arrange for facilitation of the Coordinating Council and General Membership Meetings. The Facilitator shall also prepare the agenda for these meetings, with the assistance of the Secretary. Agenda items may also be submitted by any member in good standing. All agenda items submitted by the membership should be part of the minutes. The Facilitator shall assist with conflict resolution within the Party.

4.9. Secretary

The Secretary shall be responsible for taking and publishing minutes of all Membership and Coordinating Council meetings, notifying the membership of upcoming meetings, and keeping and making available accurate records. The Secretary shall exercise special care to make records, announcements, and other important communication easily accessible to members without Internet access. The Secretary shall assist the Facilitator in developing the agendas for the CC and GM meetings.

4.10. Treasurer

The Treasurer shall prepare yearly budgets and monitor ongoing expenses. The Treasurer shall keep the accounting, or arrange with a qualified professional to do so, and will report monthly to the Coordinating Council and the Membership Meeting. The Treasurer and one other specified Coordinating Council member may sign checks.

4.13. Suspension and Removal

Any member of the Coordinating Council who has not attended three consecutive CC in-person meetings and/or CC conference calls without explanation, shall be considered to have resigned. The Coordinating Council will announce an election to fill the vacancy as specified in 4.2. Any member of the Coordinating Council or of the Green Party of Seattle may be suspended or removed for cause by a 3/4vote of the Coordinating Council. This decision may be overturned by a 3/4 vote of the membership as referenced in 4.3. The term of suspension or removal shall be determined by the Coordinating Council. A suspended member is not in good standing, and may not participated in consensus decision making, voting, or electronic communications. A removed member is restricted as a suspended member is, and additionally may not attend meetings, except those portions of meetings where the appeal is part of the agenda.

4.14. Appeals

Any member who is suspended or removed from membership may appeal her/his suspension or removal. Appeals may be made to the Coordinating Council or directly to the Membership. One appeal may be submitted per term of suspension or removal.

4.16. Caucuses

A caucus of likeminded members may form at any time. A caucus shall be free to work with the CC, Working Groups, or the General Membership. A caucus should be consulted by other bodies of the organization on issues dealing with their area of interest.

4.18. Other Functional Bodies

At least five members in good standing may establish other functional bodies or working groups on an interim basis. The Coordinating Council shall review and confirm the functional body or working group and confirm the chair of the functional body or working group.

ARTICLE V. DECISIONS

5.1. Methodology

Robert’s Rules of Order will be followed at General Membership Meetings (GMM’s), except as otherwise provided in these Bylaws. Decisions regarding meeting process motions will always be taken by majority vote. Otherwise, except for amendments to these Bylaws, the GMM shall seek consensus in its decision making, after hearing all views and concerns in full, subject to time constraints. Significant minority concerns shall be recorded in the minutes of the meeting. If it is not possible to reach consensus within a reasonable amount of time, the decision shall be taken by simple majority vote for candidate endorsements, and by 60%majority vote otherwise.

ARTICLE VI. AMENDMENTS

6.1. Procedure for Amendment

Proposed amendments to these Bylaws must be submitted to the Secretary no later than three weeks prior to the Membership Meeting at which the proposed Amendments shall be considered. In order to be considered, an Amendment must have the support of three members in good standing.

6.2. Notification

The Secretary shall communicate to all members at least two weeks in advance of a Membership Meeting at which an amendment or amendments to these Bylaws are to be considered [a] the date of the meeting, [b] the complete text of the amendment(s) under consideration, and [c] any other information useful in considering the value of the proposed amendment(s).

6.3. Ratification

Amendments to these Bylaws may only be adopted by a two thirds majority vote of a Membership Meeting.

Donate to Green Party of Seattle

Note from GPSEA Acting Treasurer:

Full Disclosure, we will not share your personal information unless there is an inquiry from Washington State, and then we will of course comply. Please follow this link to our Donation Page. You must be over 18 to donate.

GPSEA Meetings are now online via Zoom and are open to the public. However, in order to vote on proposals or bring proposals to the group, you must be a member of GPWA [Green Party of Washington], not be an officer of any other political party, and live or work or attend school in Seattle or King County.

We are all unpaid volunteers and we value your time as well. The link to Volunteer is here at the GPWA site.

Welcome to the real Grassroots. The Donation button says “Green Party of Seattle Treasurer”, however funds go into the GPSEA account, not to me personally. I’m not great at fundraising, but maybe the next Treasurer will be.

The reality is that we operate on very little money and are mostly powered by people who serendipitously show up to do things like plant trees, feed un-homed neighbors, collect signatures, help plan marches, maintain web pages and databases, table at community events, comment on legislation, monitor City of Seattle Council Meetings, attend GPWA meetings, represent us at the National Committee, road trips to Olympia, put up signage send out emails, etc. We are a herd of different free-thinking cats yet cohesive enough to move forward as a community on the things that we agree on.

Although it breaks my little EcoSocialist heart to say so, we have a huge potential for growth as the political home of the original Green New Deal, but not without more money.

Real talk: The Green Party Political Platform is the only one that makes sense, mainly because it is the only one built on sustainable public policy. The cartel parties of War and Wall Street have blinders on. Sending rich people to space on the corporate welfare dime is not an actual solution. There is no planet B.

Don’t donate money if that creates a hardship for you, your time is also valuable and we would really appreciate some of that as well. We do not collect monetary donations from PACs, businesses, or corporations.

Thank you for helping us grow!

-Alice B Green, Treasurer GPSEA

SEATTLE CITY HALL

Greens must engage with the political process, and be the change that we want to see. Responsive Public Policy starts with empowerment of the Grassroots. We all benefit from Climate and Racial Justice, Social Safety Nets like Housing, Healthcare, Food Security, and Emergency Infrastructure, and Eduction.
Collaborative problem solving based on Public Listening and Citizen Input will make Seattle strong.

Use your voice.
Talk to your City Council Representatives, they work for you.

More Seattle City Council Videos on the Seattle Channel.

OLYMPIA

Our  EverGreen State capital is where Legislators convene to make policy decisions. Olympia is where voters and lobbyists can meet with representatives and talk face to face about their concerns.
Building Policy for the common good is the whole point of politics.
Politicians that have a real call to public service actually do this work and are willing to meet with constituents.
Talk to your Legislative District Representative, know who they are.

Look up Bills by topic in the Washington State Legislature.
Washington State Senate and State House Representatives together make your State Legislature.
HB= House Bill. SB= Senate Bill. Bills have Sponsors, is your LD Representing you?
Companion Bills mean sponsors in both houses support the legislation.

SOLIDARITY
If you are running for office as a member of another party Green Party of Seattle members may still endorse you as their “preferred candidate”.

Fill out our candidate questionnaire so that members may review it, come to a meeting and tell us why we should vote for you. Greens base political endorsements on the Green values based framework. Our endorsement is relevant to other Progressives because of these values.
CANDIDATE QUESTIONNAIRE 
Email to Hello@ gpsea.org
Mail a hard copy to:
Green Party of Seattle
PO Box 70493
Seattle WA 98127

Critical Thinking for Green Voters.

Are the people in office working for us?
Do they represent their constituents or only their party? 
Do they actually work on public policy?
Do they facilitate positive change?
Do they make sense, or deflect from difficult topics?
Do they communicate a vision, or transmit fears?
Do they strengthen communities or disenfranchise them?
Do they make more time time for citizens or for lobbyists?

Is public policy useful? Is it helping citizens live dignified, healthy and rewarding lives? Does it protect the vulnerable with social safety nets? Does it preserve natural resources for the future? Does it respect biodiversity? Is it sustainable?
Politicians do not walk on water.  [Not even Bernie is perfect folks.]
Human beings make mistakes;  are they accountable when they do?

Greens are in solidarity with all issue driven groups in alignment with our ‘four pillars’. We prefer Social solutions to Extractive Capitalism.

[Reprinted with permission from TRU.] Message from Tye donate to TRU’s Solidarity Fund:

Not Biden, Not Trump? Put up a sign about it.

From CJ Sellers, Chapter Lead of East Seattle Greens:

“I have Howie Hawkins/Angela Walker campaign yard signs for our Washington chapters and maybe some left over for folks out in unorganized areas. I’ll be bringing them around the state starting tomorrow [9/23] in Seattle. Let’s talk about getting you a sign? PM me.”

Are you living on the Microsoft side of the waters from Seattle? Their chapter is picking up steam, join today! [We already know all the artsy free thinking non conformist science believing geeks understand there is no planet B. Even tho we might not be ‘joiners’ by nature, let’s be that herd of ‘different kind of cats’ together.]

Contact C.J. Sellers [ [email protected] | 425-324-6867] to officially join this chapter if you live in the areas east of Seattle including East King County or Snohomish County.

Message facebook or [email protected] and Alice [text 2673722958] can distribute signs on Friday in the am.

Resilient Future Priorities Announced by Climate Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy.

Seattle, Washington. – September 23, 2020. The Green Party of Seattle in alignment with the nation’s broadest climate-action coalition. Climate Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy will set forth priorities for investments in the long-term resilience of both the City of Seattle and in Solidarity with other Washington communities. 

Climate Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy is a Coalition of leaders from labor, social justice, health, faith, business and environmental organizations. Seattle Greens hold these groups in earnest Solidarity and hold space for the business sector to recognize where their true long term interests lie.

Coalition members from across Washington’s economic sectors and geographies are advocating for relief and recovery efforts that prioritize the needs of at-risk workers, low-income communities, communities of color, and tribal communities and set our state on a climate resilient future. The Resilient Future platform includes five major priorities for lawmakers to consider as they plan for the 2021 legislative session:

People-Focused Solutions: Support communities hit hardest by the health, environmental, and economic crisis with direct investments. 

Equitable, Participatory Decision-Making Process: Engage frontline workers, communities of color, tribal nations, and others most impacted by the health and economic crises in all decision-making processes.

Progressive revenue sources that drive down pollution: Ensure that corporations and the very wealthy who’ve done well in Washington do right by Washington.  

Climate-Resilient Investments: Invest in building a clean and resilient economy to support healthy and prosperous communities. 

Clean & Just Approaches: Enact policies to reduce pollution, increase climate protection, strengthen the power and voices of workers, create good jobs with protected collective bargaining rights, and address structural inequalities.

The Green Party of Seattle believes Washington state must lead an equitable and just economic transition toward a Sustainable Future that values Planet, People, and Peace.

###

Green Party of Seattle Contacts:

Lisa Canar, Communications, [email protected]

Margaret Elisabeth, Community Activism Reporter,  [email protected]

Alice B Green, Acting Secretary GPSEA, [email protected] text 267 371 2958

Dehumanizing people for their “otherness” goes deep into the DNA of Capitalism. Mainstream society is taught that Slavery went away a long time ago. Clearly it did not.

One hand taketh and one hand giveth away… The 13th Amendment was added to the Constitution of the United States and officially abolished slavery in December of 1865:

“Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.”

 

This Constitutional phrase reveals how deep the roots of African American incarceration, and other racially biased policies are entrenched and entwined with ‘American Exceptionalism‘.

Systemic racism continues in the form of legal slavery conducted in the privately run for profit prisons in our country today. Slavery is illegal unless one is committed of a crime.

Mainstream culture in the U.S.A. may be consumerist and vain, but until recently it did not seem particularly hateful. In spite of the over 700 military bases worldwide and a ‘Defense’ budget that eclipses the economies of entire nations. America [re: North America except for Canada and Mexico] is the leader of the ‘free’ world, right?

Hate groups are on the fringe of society, but most normal citizens are not hateful bigots. We want to think that.

We can do better, we can be better. We can work for a Sustainable Future. Skill building, creating, working, trading and caring for others are components of human civilization. Local free market economies should build connection and promote free flow of resources to sustain our communities.

Capitalism Kills. EcoSocialism decentralizes wealth and promotes Life.

A sustainable future is possible. The Duopoly will not build it for us.

We must build it ourselves, from the ground up. Please join us.

Endorsement of Sherae Lascelles for Legislative District 43, Position 2.

Seattle, Washington. – September 12, 2020. Green Party of Seattle endorses Sherae Lascelles for State Representative Position #2 of Washington’s 43rd LD. Votes were taken by email due to physical distance constraints and the last vote was counted at 11:30 pm on 9/11/2020.

Citizens of the 43rd Legislative District are the most diverse in Washington State along several lines of  intersectionality. The geographic area covers parts of Seattle’s Downtown, First Hill, Capitol Hill, South Lake Union, Washington Park, Madison Park, Eastlake, Montlake, Portage Bay, Wallingford, Fremont, the University District (including the UW campus), Green Lake, and parts of Phinney Ridge and Ravenna. 

Green Party of Seattle members feel that Lascelles’ level of community engagement makes them the ideal candidate to represent the 43rd; the views that were expressed in their candidate questionnaire are consistent with the GPSEA core values of NonViolence, Grassroots Empowerment, Social Justice, and Environmental Wisdom.

The Green Party of the United States is an Eco-Socialist party. Greens as a Geo-political force believe that no human on Earth is illegal, and a Sustainable Future can not co-exist with abusive corporate entities that enslave and commodify both human beings and nature. 

Sherae Lascelles is running on a platform of Harm Reduction, Mutual Aid, and Civic Engagement. GPSEA finds alignment here with the basic foundational premise of Green politics: A Sustainable Future for All.

Greens in Seattle are politically active within other issue-driven movements where there has been much cross pollination of ideas, such as the ‘Green New Deal’ but this has not translated to running political campaigns. As mainstream political consciousness realizes that the Duopoly does not serve them, they begin to see through the political tactic of ‘Divide and Conquer’ used to consolidate political and economic power at the top. ‘Third Party’ independents are banding together to find alignment on issues that matter to everyday people.

Thank you for helping us grow!!!

First Peoples Acknowledgment:

We acknowledge the First Peoples of the Coastal Salish Sea and the Duwamish River Valley, and honor with gratitude the original stewards of this place and their generations past, present, and future.

We honor the Land itself and the other Living Beings that make their home here.

Greens freely offer the conditions of Respect, Community, and Good Will in order to Nurture, Regenerate, and Energize us all as we move forward.

Green Party of Seattle Is Back:
Updated Documents Coming Soon, including edits to the March 2017 Bylaws.

ARE YOU A MEMBER OF THE GREEN PARTY OF WASHINGTON [GPWA] IN GOOD STANDING AND LIVE IN KING COUNTY? YOU MAY SELF-NOMINATE IN OUR DISCUSSION GROUP ON LOOMIO. WE NEED YOUR INPUT!

Politicians often run to the head of the parade to take credit for ideas that are not new. It is the people marching forward who are the ones who really lead.

Greens must go further than we have before, past Conservation, beyond Sustainability, to lead a Regenerative Culture Shift. Much has been lost, and it is no longer enough to Conserve or Sustain, we must Regenerate. We can pivot into science and green technology in a positive way, informed by our own sense of connection to our natural world. Regenerative investments in individuals, communities ecosystems and the planet will involve collaboration. This is how we grow.

Become a GPWA member or update your membership: https://www.gp-wa.org/membership_gpwa