Young activists from across the country will arrive in Austin today for the third annual Campus Greens National Convention, to be held on the UT campus.
The four-day gathering offers seminars and workshops on a variety of topics including campaign management, fund raising, electoral reform and "eco-feminism."
As a part of their platform, neither the national Green Party nor the Campus Greens accept corporate campaign donations, which keeps the party from mobilizing its efforts as effectively as they would prefer, said Karla Aguilar, a senior at the University of St. Thomas in Houston.
"As activists, we are at a disadvantage," said Brent Perdue, a history senior and UT Campus Green member. "We need the skills and the tools to organize."
Organizers of the convention also will use the meeting to address homosexual rights and a boycott of the Taco Bell fast-food chain for its association with a produce distributor accused of unfair labor practices.
"Pro-activism in preemptive times" is the weekend's theme, said Aguilar, who joined Campus Greens in 2001 and is one of the principal organizers of the convention.
"We want to teach these young activists how to run effective and winnable campaigns," Aguilar said. "Once people know how to stand up for themselves, democracy becomes contagious. People will demand change of their society."
Austin was selected for this year's convention for its active student voice and the state's association with President Bush.
"There are a lot of active students in Austin," said Brian Sandberg, the national director of Campus Greens. "To take a fight to Bush's administration in his backyard is appropriate."
Austin's progressive attitude made it the front-runner to host the convention, Perdue said.
"We've been on the forefront of activism this year. We were able to get 5,000 people to walk out of class to protest the war," Perdue said.
The convention will wrap up Saturday night with a rally at Austin Music Hall, where former Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra and Green Party presidential candidate David Cobb will speak to attendees on the future of the party and its current platform.
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