Last Call for the Freedom Train

Once the Freedom Party submits its petitions to the Board of Elections in Albany, the fire will be ignited when a challenger files a General Objection. This General Objection is merely filed with the Board of Elections and, six days later, the challenger may file "Specs".

This is a specific attack on the petitions including the signatures, the Subscribing Witness Statements and the Cover Sheet. Only registered voters of any political persuasion can sign petitions. A challenger must specify their objections.

Even if no petitions for the Freedom Party had been signed before by August 9, there would still be enough time to collect 15,000 signatures. This could be easily done by 1,000 volunteers or "freedom fighters" in New York State collecting 3 signatures per day for the next 5 days.

On this past Sunday in Suffolk County, James Patnaude and Lloyd Gibbs, for example, collected 170 signatures in one day. It should be easier in venues like Brooklyn, Queens, Harlem, Bronx and southern Westchester County with heavy concentrations of Blacks.

History is in the making. It will be the first time in the history of the United States that Blacks will have established a political party with ballot status. This will be an extension of the efforts of Fannie Lou Hamer and the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party.

These efforts in 1964 yielded the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This legislation tells the story. Blacks only secured voting rights, the right to enroll in a political party and to get political parties to speak for them. This is akin to plantation politics where Blacks picked the cotton and whites reaped the benefits. We must speak for ourselves.

Harriet Tubman taught us that it is not easy to get Blacks to leave the plantation. She was armed to the teeth. This was necessary because many Blacks believed that they were already living the "good life".

In 2010, you still need some "persuasion" to get many Blacks to sign a petition for political freedom and, consequently, political rights. This means having a say in our own lives. Only political parties have political voices. Many Blacks still believe that they are living the "good life" today.

Why did Andrew Cuomo, in 2010, nail down the endorsement of the Independence Party? See also the political strategy of Michael Bloomberg for Gracie Mansion in 2009. Different political parties simply mean "different strokes for different folks".

Compare the political strategy of William Thompson. People go to the prom in two's. This principle also applies to statewide politics in New York in addition to city-wide politics in New York City. Thompson was only operating in one gear.

Petitions can be picked up and dropped off in Brooklyn on Wednesday, August 11 at UAM's weekly forum, 1068 Harriet Tubman (Fulton Street) (nr. Classon) at 7:00 p.m.; The petitions can also be picked up at Sankofa Academy, 1670 Fulton Street (cor. Schenectady Ave.), on this Monday through Friday from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. and all day on this Saturday and Sunday. The telephone number is 347-365-9989. They can also be picked up at Sista's Place, 456 Nostrand Avenue (cor. of Jefferson) in Brooklyn.