by: Chad Stall, LPNC Guest Writer

The thought of bringing together as many political parties as possible was an inspiration from the French Revolution, one of the bloodiest revolutions that lasted for years and remembered for heads being severed from bodies. The French were not trying to free themselves from another nation, but from each other. This desire of France wanting a Republic and needing to eliminate their Monarchy started with hunger and ended with a supreme leader.  

In America, there is a hunger for political change, a hunger for a revival back to the great nation we all once knew, and there is a growing hunger for literal food. The separation of our classes is becoming more and more apparent, and the separation of citizens and their government continues to widen. I am not sure what is causing this phenomenon, or the reasons why, but most people I talk with can see it as well as feel it. This observation sparked curiosity in me. “Who are these third parties and what do they believe in? Why are we seeing efforts to bring new parties into North Carolina?” I feel the answer is simple. Too many people believe they have no representation. I would suggest those people are correct. The distance between citizens and government is too great. Maybe you have thought to yourself “Where is my representation?”

I began reaching out, having discussions and extending the invitations. Some accepted straightaway, others needed a little convincing. I did hit a couple of snags along the way finding Republican and Democrat representation. Nevertheless, my efforts paid off and we created a panel of eight individuals from seven parties. The Green, Forward, We the People (Kennedy), Veteran, Republican, Democrat, and two from the Libertarian parties all came together to share space and civil discourse. 

As people arrived, they began mixing and mingling. The panel took their places and began introducing themselves. One highlight was when Wayne Turner, Green party governor candidate, stood up and suggested we could all hate him because he is a "Socialist" and yet he was listened to and accepted for exactly who he claimed to be. I am not a believer in socialism, but the goal was to gather and share.  He made some good points.

As the event moved to public engagement, I could see heads from different political parties shaking in agreement with those I thought would be in opposition. This was something I didn’t think was possible, and yet there it was, happening in real time. When the topic of government transparency came up, there was very little disagreement, if any at all … a triumphant idea that is needed in our country more than ever. So, what is stopping us from transparency being provided? The answer is easy … lack of representation to the citizens.

Another great example was when Mike Ross (firetheuniparty.com) began sharing his inspiration to run for governor. The story of a military vet, who would ask for money from others; this veteran was arrested, and his service animal was tazed and taken away from him and killed by a car. You could see the consensus being made with no words being said other than Mike’s story. We all knew this was not fair treatment. 

Our media, and sometimes even our own political parties and elected representatives will only give us one angle or one side of a story. In politics these angles usually result in one fighting with the other over a topic they might not even understand.  The design to keep citizens fighting one another is purposeful and poisonous to our society. We must continue making the effort to maintain the element of humanity with each other. The existence of third parties is becoming more and more imperative if we want to keep our Republic.    

A revival of our great Republic is needed. Some of us witnessed a Republic in real time this week. May the third parties continue to rise and continue filling the void where representation has been stripped from citizens.

Thank you to all who participated, attended, and supported this event. Keep checking in at www.Pintsandpolitics.social for future events.

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