Ron:
Happy New Year! This is the type of dialog that should have occurred before you published anything about me. Can we agree, everyone deserves a fair chance?
As to your questions:
1) Yes, I was invited to speak at the Davie/Cooper City Republican Club meeting. However, I did not attend. Instead, I attended the Davie/Cooper City Democratic Club Meeting. I did not want to continue speaking at the GOP meetings knowing that my decision was to change parties. I changed my party after notifying members of the Republican party. When given candidate questions, I simply could not support the Republican position on issues such as (Marriage Amendment, War In Iraq, stem cell research, etc..). The Republican party recommended a consultant who offered me pictures in the Black Republican Magazine, endorsements, a possible job in the future, and money to stay in the race. Honestly, I do not know if he was really speaking on behalf of the party or just puffing smoke. In either case, I had to be true to who I am inside. My convictions simply would not allow me to go along to get along. I maintain some friendships in the Republican party; but, it was just not for me.
2) Why Dem vs. Republican? or Why do I fit in the Dem Party vs GOP? The answer is simple. The democratic party is all I know. I was an active democrat for 14 years. We are talking about a difference of 14 years as a democrat to 3 years as a republican. It's like living in Florida all your life and then going away to college. Eventually, one will come back home.
On the issues:
I believe in equality for all. I endorsed fairness for all families and joined Florida Red and Blue prior to your blog. I believe we can really Leave No Child Behind by ensuring private schools are held accountable, too. If we must have choice then let's give parents a BETTER CHOICE FOR A BETTER EDUCATION! GAACS created a program called A+ Platinum School Program which is an answer to the No Child Left Behind debacle. As a educator, I believe it is wrong to siphon money from any scored public school and give it to parents to send their children to an unrated private school. All schools receiving state/federal funds should be held accountable for the education of Florida's children. I support middle class families that work long hours but still can not afford healthcare. I believe there should be healthcare for all. My mother takes 15 pills a day and pays over $400 a month in health insurance. I believe the taxpayers should come before corporations, lobbyists, and special interest groups. We must fund social security and stop the Republican agenda to privatize everything. It sets an unfair balance. I believe the War in Iraq is one of the greatest forms of genocide in our nation's history. We must bring our troops home immediately. The president has asked for enormous amounts of money to fund a war that should have never began. We should protect the American people from real terrorists by funding our first responders. 9/11 happened in New York not Iraq! We need open, fair, and honest government; as well as fiscal responsibility on the part of our president. These are just some of the reasons I am a democrat.
Thank you for asking the questions and giving me a "fair chance to respond".
Freda
Freda Stevens
phone: 954.802.3553
This is in response to our article on 12-04-07 at Browardforchange.com and Changeintallahassee.com
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