 Welcome Dean
It is time to take a stand and play our part
by supporting the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party
Chris Urkofsky & Hamid Karimi
February 23, 2005
iranian.com
In the aftermath of the 2004 election, we, like
other Democrats, have searched for ways to equip and empower the
Democratic
Party
to take our country back from the right-wing extremists who have
dominated all 3 branches of our government for the past few years.
As a progressive organization that believes in the need for profound
reforms within the Democratic Party, BAIAD -- Bay
Area Iranian-American Democrats -- celebrates
the election of Howard Dean to the Chair of the Democratic National
Committee.
Regardless of the current stigma attached by the media to the
label liberal, most Americans retain strongly progressive views
on issues of taxation, environmental protection, health care, Social
Security, and corporate regulation. Virtually every major poll
shows that nearly two of every three Americans believe that Republicans
favor the wealthy and corporations over the interests of workers
and the middle class. Accordingly, a recent Gallup poll shows that
two thirds of Americans think that the way to remedy Social Security
is to limit the benefits of wealthier retirees and for higher income
workers to pay Social Security taxes on all their wages -- not
just the first $90,000.
In the aftermath of the corporate accounting scandals, the vast
majority of Americans have consistently expressed a desire for
a crackdown on corporate power run amok. Likewise, the majority
of Americans support a repeal of the Bush tax cuts and the closing
of corporate tax loopholes to pay down the ballooning deficit.
Despite this desire for tax equality and corporate accountability,
Democratic organizations funded by corporations continue to parrot
Republican criticisms of populist Democrats as "far left
extremists". Ignoring the general progressive leanings of
the American electorate and victories by economically progressive
Democrats in red states, these self styled 'centrists' advocate
a brazenly corporate agenda. They term effective corporate regulation 'anti-business' and
responsible tax policy 'class warfare'.
During the past two years, Governor Dean has been a vocal proponent
of an alternative to the reliance of our party on corporate largess:
the power of Democratic grass-roots organizations. In the months
before the 2004 Presidential election tens of thousands of Democratic
volunteers met, campaigned, and blogged their way into the political
mainstream. Chairman Dean has emphasized that building on that
momentum by nurturing this powerful movement is essential to the
restoration of American democracy.
Today our adopted country is at a crossroads. The Iranian-American
community has achieved economic and social maturity in time to
influence a historic struggle over the principles that will govern
this land. It is time to take a stand and play our part by supporting
the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party and rejecting those
who advocate flexibility in our principles of economic justice
and civil rights while rigidly resisting any attempt to ensure
corporate responsibility. One thing above all others is clear:
before we can remove the Republicans from the White House, we must
restore real Democrats to the leadership of the Democratic Party.
The election of Howard Dean to the Chairmanship of the Democratic
National Committee is an important first step.
 About
Chris Urkofsky & Hamid Karimi are members of the Bay
Area Iranian-American Democrats -- BAIAD --
a grassroots political organization that stands for protecting
the rights and interests of Iranian-Americans by empowering
the Iranian-American political voice. BAIAD seeks to promote social
justice through political participation, grassroots activism, public
and political advocacy, and education.
BAIAD is in the process of being chartered (officially recognized)
by the Santa Clara County Democratic Party.
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Welcome Dean
