Howie Hawkins in Albany May 14 for Two Anti-Poverty Demonstrations
Howie Hawkins, who is seeking the Green Party nomination for Governor, participated in two anti-poverty demonstrations in Albany on Monday, May 14. The first demonstration began in Academy Park at 11 am to support the Driver’s License Access and Privacy Act (A10273). Enacting the bill would enable undocumented immigrants to obtain drivers licenses in the interests of public safety, the economy, and community integration. The second demonstration was the first New York action of the national 40-day Poor People’s Campaign. It will begin at 2 pm in West Capital Park. The first week’s theme is “Somebody’s Hurting Our People: Child Poverty, Women, and People with Disabilities.” “Access to drivers licenses for undocumented workers and raising the welfare grant above the poverty line are policies that all working people should support because most of us will need public support at some point in our lives,” said Hawkins. He noted a 2013 survey conducted by the Associated Press that found that “4 out of 5 U.S. adults struggle with joblessness, near-poverty, or reliance on welfare for at least parts of their lives.” “This common experience of the immense majority of Americans ought to be the basis for a winning majoritarian working-class politics. We can win the Economic Bill of Rights that the Martin Luther King’s 1968 Poor People’s Campaign, like today’s campaign, was seeking, including a job guarantee, a guaranteed income above poverty, universal public healthcare, and affordable housing and quality education for all,” said Hawkins. (Photo by GPNY Co-Chair Peter LaVenia)
