Progressives Should Vote for Jill Stein and Ajamu Baraka to Transform Americas Lesser Evil System

WikiLeaks DNC emails show a rigged Democratic Primary that essentially tilted the playing field in favor of Hillary Clinton and against Bernie Sanders . Before Clinton earned the presumptive nominee title, The Washington Post writes that DNC officials were Plotting a narrative about how Sanders’s campaign failed. As for the DNC’s manipulation of American media in favor of Clinton, Heavy.com writes Politico Reporter Agrees to Let DNC Review Article About Hillary Fundraising Before Publishing. In addition to publications reporting on the election, The Hill states that both Chuck Todd and Jake Tapper were likely influenced by DNC narratives. Thus, Bernie Sanders was never given a fair chance to win, and even Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid stated “Bernie really had a movement out there, and it wasn’t right to treat him that way…I knew… everybody knew…that this was not a fair deal.” I highlight the DNC’s influence upon American media and how it helped the DNC cheat Bernie Sanders in the following YouTube segment .

However, there’s a way to alter and transform America’s “lesser evil” two-party system in 2016. This form of politics has given Americans a mass incarceration epidemic under Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton openly backed by Bush’s neoconservatives, and a possible Trump presidency. Long term, we risk merging both Republicans and Democrats into one party.

Jill Stein and her VP Ajamu Baraka offer Americans a continuation of the movement Bernie Sanders helped ignite this election cycle. Dr. Stein recently made the perfect choice for her vice presidential pick and Ajamu Baraka is well-known human rights activist and foreign policy analyst. Baraka’s experience is highlighted in a Bustle article by Amee Latour titled Who Is Ajamu Baraka? Jill Stein’s Vice President Pick Is A Seasoned Human Rights Activist:

Who is Ajamu Baraka, Stein’s vice presidential pick ? He’s got an extensive record of advocating for human rights both in the United States and abroad.

Over the years, Baraka has taught political science  and guest lectured at several colleges. He’s currently an associate fellow at the progressive think tank Institute for Public Policy. The main thread that runs through the past several decades of his biography is his commitment to protecting human rights, which he has pursued in various ways. From leading trainings for grassroots activists to giving briefings to Congress to serving on the boards of international human rights organizations, Baraka has done this work on different levels.

Baraka worked with Amnesty International to uncover human rights violations within the United States and to oppose the death penalty in the ‘90s. From 2004 to 2011, he served as the founding executive director of the US Human Rights Network , the first group in the United States whose goal was to apply international human rights standards to the country. The Network spearheaded the Katrina Campaign on Internal Displacement, which sought to designate people who lost their homes during the hurricane as “internally displaced,” a designation that highlights the government’s responsibility to protect them. Baraka currently coordinates the Black Left Unity Network’s Committee on International Affairs.

Stein herself has advocated for human rights  for decades, mainly with her environmental activism that focused on the needs of people in poverty, people of color, and Native Americans. The Stein-Baraka ticket is fiercely progressive, offering two candidates whose primary political experience is not in office, but in the sphere of activism and advocacy.

With Baraka, Jill Stein has a VP pick who embodies progressive principles; everything from demilitarizing the police and preventing overreaching military interventions is what binds both Green party candidates.

As for Stein, the Green Party presidential candidate represents the antithesis of Hillary Clinton. Stein’s appeal to Bernie voters is highlighted in an Atlantic piece by Clare Foran titled Can Jill Stein Lead a Revolution?:

Stein is in high demand. The populist progressive tells me that after Bernie Sanders endorsed Clinton two weeks ago, effectively ending his insurgent campaign for president, a lot more people started paying attention to her campaign. “The floodgates opened,” Stein says. “I almost feel like a social-worker, being out there talking to the Bernie supporters. They are broken-hearted. They feel really abused, and misled, largely by the Democratic Party.”

It’s hard to miss the anger and frustration. At the start of the week, Sanders supporters took to booing the mere mention of Clinton’s name at the convention. Dozens of die-hards even staged a dramatic walkout after Clinton won the nomination. Stein insists she feels their pain.“I think the Democratic Party is really struggling right now,” she says. “It’s become a zombie party.”

…So, can Stein really lead a political revolution? Her diagnosis of the problems plaguing the country isn’t so different from Sanders’s assessment. Like the senator, she sees a country overrun by big money and corporate power. She wants to make health care a right, break up big banks, and ensure that high-quality education is accessible for Americans. Stein has also embraced positions that put her to the left of the senator. At the Bernie-or-Bust rally, she called for reparations as part of a conversation on fighting racism rooted in the “criminal institution of slavery.”

Bernie’s movement continues with Stein and Baraka, and despite the vapid fear tactic stating Trump will destroy the planet, Bernie or Bust voters are leaving the Democratic Party for the Green Party. For those who don’t understand the Bernie or Bust movement and why it has in many ways merged with Jill Stein, I explain this political merger within the following YouTube segment .

Furthermore, many progressives don’t see a massive difference between Trump or Clinton, especially since neither will push to break up Too Big to Fail Banks, and Trump is actually less hawkish than Clinton. Finally, perhaps nothing better describes the frustration of voters regarding Hillary Clinton than an Atlantic piece by Ron Fournier titled Why Can’t Hillary Clinton Stop Lying?:

Yet I’m not angry at Trump; I expect him to be repugnant. I am angry at Clinton, because she followed up her convention with another unnecessary lie; another excuse for people to distrust her; another thin reed upon which undecided voters could justify a belated allegiance to a man who former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg called “a dangerous demagogue.”

On Sunday, the former secretary of state told  FOX News’ Chris Wallace that FBI Director James Comey cleared her of misleading the public about her rogue email server at the state department: “Director Comey said my answers were truthful, and what I’ve said is consistent with what I have told the American people, that there were decisions discussed and made to classify retroactively certain of the emails.”

That’s wrong and she knows it, which makes it a lie.

“Clinton is cherry-picking statements by Comey to preserve her narrative about the unusual setup of a private email server,” wrote  Washington Post fact-checker Glenn Kessler, who awarded Clinton the maximum four “Pinocchios” for her whopper. “This allows her to skate past the more disturbing findings of the FBI investigation.”

Read here  if you want to know about the FBI’s findings.

While Fournier will likely be voting for Clinton, and not Trump, the former Secretary of State’s penchant for lying is a glaring weakness even for her supporters. Although Trump’s Tweets and abrasive personality get headlines, Hillary Clinton isn’t much better in the eyes of most Americans, as evident by horribly low favorability numbers . Clinton’s questionable decision-making and inability to even acknowledge FBI Director James Comey’s refutation of her public announcements (regarding her server) explain why the majority of Americans view Clinton to be “not honest and trustworthy.”

Ultimately, Stein and Baraka offer more than just a protest vote. They offer Bernie voters and other progressives a chance to continue his political revolution, especially since the only thing that DNC officials care about is winning. Progressive values, pertaining to ending perpetual counterinsurgency wars and stopping the TPP (Clinton pushed for the TPP 45 times , before opposing the deal), are ignored not only by the Democratic platform, but will likely be ignored by Hillary Clinton.

Voting for Jill Stein and Ajamu Baraka sends a message to the world. In 2016, with Bernie Sanders cheated of a fair election, and Trump being the primary reason to vote for Hillary, it’s time to make a statement with Stein and Baraka. America can survive four years of Trump, but it won’t be able to sustain “lesser evil” politics forever.