The ride on the Green Line to the Fleet Center was swarming with Nader supporters. It was packed so tight that you wouldn't fall down if you lost your balance; one woman even got her foot caught in the subway door. And then the chanting started... "Let Ralph debate! Let Ralph debate!"
Ralph Nader is the Green party candidate for president this November, but you won't see him this Tuesday night alongside Gore and Bush when they kick off the debate series at the University of Massachusetts - he doesn't have 15 percent support in the national polls. He currently has the support of five percent of eligible voters, or 14 million people.
The Boston rally at the Fleet Center on Sunday was one of a series of Nader's "super rallies" designed to get people excited about Nader and the Green Party, and to encourage them to spread the word to all their friends and relatives. Striving to give supporters in attendance a good taste of his views, several politically progressive supporters also spoke at the rally Phil Donahue hosted.
Historian and Boston University professor emeritus Howard Zinn opened the program. Following him was the vice-presidential candidate Winona LaDuke, and political commentator Michael Moore, who introduced Nader after a fiery speech. A leader from the Rainbow Coalition also made a brief plug for members of the progressive community in Boston to band together and be active beyond the campaign.
A number of Tufts students attended the event, which drew an estimated 12,000 people. Sophomore Jesse Alderman, Tufts' campus representative for the Nader platform, sold 90 tickets to the rally here in a single week. "I have been amazed at the response at Tufts," he said.
Alderman's reason for supporting Nader is simple but practical. "I don't see very much difference between Al Gore and George W. Bush. They have extremely similar policies that are in the corporate interests," he said. "College students have been so turned off by candidates that don't represent their interests one bit."
The speakers all focused on Nader's philosophical distance from the major party candidates. In addition to their words, one of the highlights of the event was the screening of Nader's notorious campaign commercial on giant hanging monitors.
The ad is a parody of the popular MasterCard advertisements. The video clip opens with images of George W. Bush and Al Gore on the campaign trail as a narrator says, "Grilled tenderloin for fund-raiser: $1,000 a plate. Campaign ads filled with half-truths: $10 million. Promises to special interest groups: over $10 billion." Nader, alone in an office surrounded by mounds of paperwork, then replaces Gore and Bush on the screen. The narration continues: "Finding out the truth: priceless. There are some things money can't buy. Without Ralph Nader in the presidential debates, the truth will come in last."
The entire audience of the Fleet Center was on its feet, cheering and applauding at the end of the commercial. It was not the only standing ovation given at the rally. The crowd jumped to its feet as each and every activist took the stage.
Zinn, historian and author of A People's History of the United States, was another highlight of the rally. Zinn has spoken at Tufts, and he encourages students to get in the habit of looking at things from a different perspective. Specifically, he advocates for examining history from the perspective of working people, not the ruling class. "We know why they're keeping Ralph Nader out of this election - it's because he has a fatal flaw. He tells the truth," Zinn said.
Freshman Angie Mae Rodday went to the rally specifically to see Zinn speak. "My high school history teacher knew him, and I think he makes a lot of good points," she said.
Nader's running mate, LaDuke, also spoke at the rally. One of Time Magazine's 50 most promising leaders under 40 years of age, she identifies herself differently. "I'm a mom of three, I'm concerned about the future of this country, and I'm running for vice president of the United States," she said in her address on Sunday. LaDuke lives on the White Earth Reservation in Minnesota and works on restoring the local land base and culture there.
Filmmaker and author Moore was the next to speak at the rally. Angered by Nader's exclusion from the debates, Moore offered a sneak preview of Tuesday's event. This involved him repeating varying policy statements twice while jumping from one side of the podium to the other, thus representing both Gore and Bush at once. Not a difficult task, he claimed, given his view that they are, in essence, the same.
"Why am I voting for Ralph Nader? I'm voting for Ralph Nader because it's the right thing to do," Moore said. Encouraging voters to "vote their conscience," Moore made a special plea to young people in the audience not to settle for less in the election, in politics, and in life. "You start going down a slippery slope," he warned.
Moore also addressed the argument that some people have made questioning why anyone would vote for Nader when it's clear he won't win the election. "Is there some kind of mathematical problem I'm missing? Does anybody know who started this rumor that Ralph can't win? Well, Ralph can't win the World Series for the Red Sox, but you can't say that Ralph can't win this election."
The highlight of the afternoon, of course, was Nader himself. Cheers erupted and confetti flew as he took the stage. He started with an observation of the irony of speaking in the Fleet Center. "I still call it the Garden," he commented. He proceeded to criticize the major party candidates and explain the focus of his campaign. "How are you going to shift the power to workers, voters, taxpayers of America? That's the central issue," he said.
Nader then went on to describe some of the many reforms he was pursuing in the coming election. These include teaching civic skills to children, rehabilitating drug users instead of jailing them, ending tax loopholes for the rich, and instituting real campaign finance reform to restore democracy and put power back in the hands of the people. Nader refuses to accept more than the maximum contribution allowed by federal regulations from any individual, and he won't accept any money from corporations.
But, the campaign was eager to accept any money that audience members would offer, halting the program of speakers to pass out contribution boxes. The money, they hope, will enable them to hold rallies in other cities. This will help them bring Nader directly to the people, without the media filter or the corporate interests.
"If we as people do not pay for our politics, we leave it to the corporations to do it for us," said Nader organizer Mark McDougal.
This request for money, on top of the $10 minimum ticket donation, is a big step up from the campaign Nader ran in the 1996 presidential election when he refused to accept any contributions from the audience. One supporter at the rally in Boston remembered this time. "The campaign was extremely disorganized. They wouldn't accept any money," he said of the 1996 effort.
This year has been different, though. "I thought it was well-coordinated for the amount of funds that they had," freshman Ian Greenhouse said.
Nader closed by urging the audience to heighten its political discourse. "Replace some of your small talk with exciting political talk about the future of our country." He encouraged the rally attendees to tell their friends, family members, co-workers, and acquaintances about his platform against a corporate America. A win, according to Nader, is expanding the local, county, and state Green Party-line awareness.
The Tufts students at the rally were very much aware of Nader's slim chances at winning the general election in November. Freshman Emily Good, a registered member of the Green Party in New York, said it would be great for now if the party supporters just grew enough to include representatives in Congress.
Alderman is planning on printing more handouts and flyers to be distributed on campus. "Hopefully this will create a momentum for us," he said.
Students from Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern, and MIT accompanied the Tufts contingent. Rodday was excited to see the youthful turnout. "As college kids, it's really our responsibility to think for the future," she said.
