Convention Report: Pink - More Than a Fashion Statement
A convention report from the Kucinich website:
The hot fashion trend among Democratic National Convention delegates this year is pink, in the form of pink scarves. Not only are delegates of all stripes making a fashion statement with the scarves, they're making a political statement as well.
The scarves read "Give BUSH a pink slip!" and identify the wearer as a "DELEGATE FOR PEACE." They also say " Boston — 2004" and thus serve as a souvenir of the convention.
The Kucinich campaign first used the scarves at the Maine Democratic Convention in May. They were donated by Code Pink, an activist anti-war group. Originally brought in to identify Kucinich supporters at the Maine convention, the scarves became an instant hit among delegates for all the presidential candidates. Most delegates who asked for them liked the "Delegate for Peace" statement, but ALL of them were happy to suggest that Bush be given a pink slip.
"As a result of that," says Lu Bauer, the Kucinich co-coordinator for Maine and the head of Maine 's National Kucinich delegation, "we decided to bring them to Boston , too."
While the scarves have proved very popular on the floor of the Boston convention, they arrived there only after some difficulty.
The group brought a small number with them on Monday night, wanting to make sure that they proved as popular in Boston as they had in Maine . It was apparent in minutes that they were. Many delegates asked about them, and by the end of the night many of the Kucinich delegates went home without their scarves, having given them away to other delegates.
"Fear is taking over this country, and the antiwar movement has to stand up to the fear," he said. "Don't think that John Kerry will stand up to the fear. It's not his business. Don't think that the Democratic Party will. But if we lead, they will follow."
Medea Benjamin, founder of Global Exchange. cofounder of Code Pink, and noted author, created the Occupation Watch International Center in Iraq . Benjamin said corporations that invest in oil are above the law in Iraq , while Iraqis are desperate for a chance to rebuild their own country. "This is not privatization, it's piratization," she said. "We have to make Halliburton an issue in the next election."
She said that 48 percent of the soldiers who died in Iraq are from small towns with populations under 20,000. "What are we doing to our small towns?" she asked.
Benjamin reminded progressives to treat one another kindly, even if they vote for different on the way to build the progressive movement. "After November 2, we have to be able to look one another in the face," she said.
"Let's build a movement that's full of love and so inviting that our comrades in this country can't wait to join it."
Steve Cobble, political strategist, began by thanking Rep. Kucinich for his leadership in opposing the Iraq war, saying he hasn't received the credit he deserves for it. He suggested that people continue to support a Department of Peace, and was deferential to Kucinich volunteers about their experience on the campaign.
"I feel a little humble telling you how to do the things that you already know how to do, but the same things you did [for Kucinich] will work in a congressional campaign."
Rep. Kucinich's message was one of empowerment. "We're the ones who could be architects of a new world," he said. Of the Democratic Party, he said, "We can make it a party of peace, a party of hope."
Kucinich called for new thinking that would lead us away from violence, both internationally, and in our own homes and relationships. "We are here to change the world!" he said, to a raucous standing ovation.
During the question and answer session, audience member John Fitzgerald warned that the Republican Party is sending out surveys that ask whether voters will support the president if he bombs another country. Bennis responded that there is a faction of American society that is committed to what amounts to perpetual war, and that we must take them seriously.
But while the scarves were popular with delegates, some convention organizers didn't approve.
The convention has a tight control on signs?no sign gets in unless it's approved by the Kerry campaign and convention organizers. Some of those running the convention considered the scarves signs, not articles of clothing. As a result, people who entered the convention hall wearing their scarves entered with no difficulty, while some people carrying in scarves to give to other delegates were stopped.
Some convention officials also argued that the scarves were a danger because they had not been treated with a flame retardant. Kucinich Convention Manager Tim Carpenter countered that the scarves were articles of clothing, and that if the convention was going to impose a flame-retardant rule on clothing worn at the convention, there would be few, if any, hats on the floor, not to mention other articles of adult clothing.
The issue was not completely resolved until Tuesday night. Some of the first Kucinich delegates entering Tuesday were stopped by security and were forced to leave the scarves behind. Negotiations resumed, and only after it was agreed that the scarves were, in fact, clothing and not posters, and that they did not endanger life and limb, were they allowed in. Kucinich delegates went back out to security to pick up the scarves that had been left there.
As was the case the night before, the scarves proved very popular. Bauer reported that several hundred were brought in, and by 8:30 p.m. all of them had been distributed to delegates who asked for them.
Ironically, the attempt by some convention organizers to keep the scarves off the floor was the second time some scarves almost didn't make it into the hands of the delegates.
For a couple of hours on Monday, the Kucinich campaign faced the possibility that it might not release them.
That's because when the boxes were opened in Boston , it was discovered that they were in two different lots. The first lot was from the original stock as provided by Code Pink for the Maine convention, which came from sourced suppliers. But the second lot carried a tag indicating they were imported. Before the second lot could be distributed, the campaign had to backsource them to make sure they were not produced by sweatshop labor.
"We knew they would be a popular item, and would help spread the our message of peace," said David Bright, one of the Kucinich floor leaders at the convention, who also serves with Lu Bauer as the other Kucinich co-coordinator for Maine , "but before we could release them we had to source the material. If it had turned out that they were produced by sweatshop labor they would have stayed in the box."
Calls were made to the silk screener and back through the wholesaler to the distributor, who tracked down the manufacturer. To everyone's relief, the scarves were determined to have been manufactured in a legitimate and inspected factory.
"We're still a little concerned that the supplier didn't understand the importance of sourcing their material," Bright said, "It was our mistake that we didn't make ourselves clear that source of supply was an important issue. We'll be more diligent next time?and we'll get them treated for flame retardancy."
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