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PHOTOS: Green Party Supporters Calling For Open Debates

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Before the start of the debate on Monday night with Democrat presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton and Republican candidate Donald Trump, supporters for the Green Party candidate Jill Stein came out to Hofstra to call for #OpenTheDebate and allow the third party candidate to participate. From the #OpenTheDebate Facebook page, The letter below is pure gold.

We’re going to pin this post to the top of the page, and ask you to submit your own LTE as a comment to this post, send it off to your local papers, and then add any links of published letters, op-eds, etc. that make the case to #OpenTheDebates. And if you agree with the premise that “we can’t have a representative republic without a free exchange of ideas and an informed public,” then be sure to sign the petition at bit.ly/opendebates and help push the public opinion meter from “concerned” to “outraged.”

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John O’Donnell of Redacted tonight with Lee Camp was on scene interviewing people on why they feel the Green Party candidate Jill Stein should be allowed to join the debate and “what is the point of this Green Party movement?” This woman said, There has to be some semblance of Democracy. We have to have 3 parties”. John jokingly said we were spoiled Americans who don’t need more than 2 choices. Another woman said, “when you have more choices that’s how Democracy flourishes”

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John O’Donnell moving along to interview Arn Merconi

Arn Merconi who ran for the Senate for the Green Party in Colorado who said, “We only need 600 votes in Colorado and Jill and I could win and take back our Democracy”. “The message is this Arn said, They’re spending billions of dollars to make sure that your vote doesn’t count they don’t want you to vote, they want you to watch this circus. Get out in the streets in the next 40 days and make some noise. Do some protests.

IF YOU’RE OK WITH GLOBAL WARMING STAY ON THE COUCH, IF YOU’RE OK WITH ENDLESS WARS STAY ON THE COUCH, IF YOU’RE OK WITH ANOTHER #BLACK LIVES MATTER DEATH, STAY ON THE COUCH”.

People matter more than profits “I will fight to end the military industrial dominance of our government with its endless greed and killings, end our dependence on fossil fuels by 2050, providing single payer healthcare for all as a right not as a privilege and break up the Big Banks and power of Wall Street that has been stealing resources from our children and grandchildren.”

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David Cobb an activist for the Green Party, “Let’s be clear, We are not witnessing a political debate, WE ARE EXPERIENCING A POLICE STATE. We are miles away from a public institution where candidates for office are refused entry onto the public grounds much less allowed to Give their voices. What we recognize is this,, the Green party is the only political party calling for an end to the racist, sexist, class oppressive structures in society of this country”. “The green party is the only political party calling to ween ourselves off the addiction to coal, oil and onto sustainable energy”.
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Cheri Honkala, a 2012 vice presidential nominee with Jill Stein who, together with Jill Stein, were handcuffed and detained for 9 hours when they tried to enter the presidential debate at Hofstra. “It wasn’t as bad of a police state as it is today. In 2012 when we came onto the college campus, we demanded we be part of the debates AND INSTEAD WE WERE ARRESTED, WE WERE HANDCUFFED SIDEWAYS ON METAL CHAIRS, TAKEN BY SECRET SERVICE AND MADE TO DISAPPEAR FOR 9 HOURS” “DO WE HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT? crowd,, ‘YEAH’ IS THAT WHAT DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE?, crowd, ‘NO’ “SOMETHING IS WRONG when you live in a country WHERE THEY CAN JUST SILENCE US AND MAKE US DISAPPEAR”. “No one knew where we were for those 9 hours. If they don’t open the debates, are we going to pen the debates?”, crowd, ‘yeah’
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Dragonfly,, AKA Robin Laverne Wilson, who also helps out the Reverend Billy and the Stop Shopping Choir, “That’s what Democracy Is, someone who represents All of the people. I challenge Chuck Schumer to talk to me and talk to the people and hold themselves accountable for all of the money he’s been lining his pockets with and nothing for us to show for it”.
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Yanet Indigo, “We have to come together like this every day, we need to talk to out neighbors, we need to talk to our families, we need to talk to our friends, we need to get on everyone’s nerves. A lot of people do not understand what is at stake. For what ever reason, they are hiding the truth, that’s what these closed debates are all about”.
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Amaju Baraka began by calling the televised debate a phony debate because “If you’re not going to include all of the people who have popular support in this country it can’t be anything else but a Phony Debate”. Jill Stein saying how the “THIS, OUT HERE, IS WHAT DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE. The real debate is over here, the police state is over there”. Jill spoke about stopping the TPP, Trans Pacific Partnership and moving towards renewable energy. “This is a WIN, WIN, WIN”. She spoke of a world that works for all of us. “WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED, WE CAN HAVE THIS WORLD WE DESERVE but, Not by giving it over to a LESSER EVIL POLITICIAN because it is a race to the bottom”. For more of Jill Stein’s Speech please check youtube April Watters

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Cheri Honkala and the rest of the Green Party #OpenTheDebate supporters doing a sit in in a parking lot as they move closer toward Hofstra where the televised debate with Clinton and Trump is taking place to demand that Jill Stein be allowed to be a part of the debate.
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Anonymous supporters doing performance art and showing the Democrats and the Republicans holding Jill Stein being roasted over a fire.
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#OpenTheDebate to Jill Stein supporters making their way towards Hofstra
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A Nassau country PD rep speaking with Cheri Honkala. Cheri announcing that the people are “Tired of watching their children go to bed hungry and families not being able to hold onto their houses and are losing their homes”. Cheri spoke about what’s happening in Dakota with the pipeline, we’re tired of the TPP, THE LAST THING WE CAN ALLOW THEM TO TAKE FROM US IS OUT VOICE’. The Police Officer says,, “You’re intention is to not go in the direction that we tell you?” Honkala replies, “No, our intention is to Open up the debate”. The officer’s reply was, “You understand that this is private property”. Honkala then says,, “Good Point” and we all head to the street where another sit in occurred and over 20 arrests were made.
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Honkala being arrested by Nassau county Police

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Another arrest being made of #OpenTheDebate supporter
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Arn Merconi being arrested at the #OpenTheDebate sit in out near Hofstra U where the televised debate with Clinton and Trump was taking place.
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Dragonfly being arrested
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Another supporter of Opening the Debate being arrested.

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Please check April Watters YouTube for the complete video footage and Support!

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