Corrections by the General Assembly: Delete red text; Add green text.

Green Party of California Proposals (June 25, 2006, version)

SPONSOR: PLATFORM WORKING GROUP

PRESENTER: KCM Curry kcmcurry43@yahoo.com

CONTACT: KCM Curry kcmcurry43@yahoo.com, Elizabeth info@green247.org

SUBJECT: Reconciling Victims, Perpetrators, and Communities and Converting Prisons and Jails Into Healing Communities.
Grassroots democracy, social justice and equal opportunity, feminism and gender equity, respect for diversity, and personal and global responsibility are the involved 10 Key Values of the GP.

BACKGROUND: On June 25, 2006, the GPCA decided that the following talking points shall be proposed to the subsequent General Assembly for decision in the form of proposed amendment to an existing plank in the GPCA Platform.

PURPOSE: Amendment of the Criminal Justice plank of the GPCA Platform in the form of a talking point.
PROPOSAL 1: The GPCA immediately adds the following statement to the Criminal Justice plank of its Platform as a talking point.

G

Each prison and jail must provide the most effective, and comprehensive cures for violence, addiction, and the root causes for incarceration. These curative measures must be nonviolent, and could include such tools as counseling, aptitude testing, halfway houses, hospices, retraining, and formal education.

G

Each prison and jail must have separate facilities for violent offenders.

G

Executive or judicial government or other not-for-profit organizations must operate all prisons on a not-for-profit basis.

G

Investigations must be conducted with the minimum of intrusion upon the disenfranchised.

G

Disenfranchised survivors of violations, who have succeeded at restoration, must be hired to advocate for victims of similar violations.

G

We support testing of (recidivist violent) criminals for psychotropic substances and low-dose cumulative effects of toxic chemicals and drugs as a medical alternative to incarceration. Mitchell has a concern about this.

COMMITTEE DECISION: The ideas were first presented to the Green Issues WG at the 2003 San Francisco plenary. An initial written form was posted on the Women’s Caucus discussion board in April 2004. It was first posted on the Platform WG list-serve in May 2004, enabled for further consideration at the May 2004 Ventura Plenary, revised extensively thereafter, and was voted at the Sylmar Plenary of May 2005 to receive General Assembly assessment. It was included for General Assembly discussion at the Yolo Plenary of December 2005 but was not published in the Plenary program but had comments at and after the Platform Working Group Meeting at that Plenary. It was revised and invited back by the General Assembly at the Ventura Plenary of June 2006. On June 25, 2006, the Platform Committee elected a new presenter by consensus.

TIMELINE: There will be a two-minute time limit per expert on the subject. For the sake of time, it is requested that others ask any questions in writing in advance.

RESOURCES: Two large screens 6 ft x 6 ft and two overhead projectors. Someone to prepare the handouts and posters of reference material.

Note: Please mail your corrections and suggestions immediately.