By Mary Westwood, Chair of the Yellowstone County Platform Committee
(Any opinions expressed in this article are those of the individual author, but the words of the Montana Democratic Platform are available to all and should encourage discussion and understanding among all Montanans.)
This Wednesday, May 18th, all Democrats in Yellowstone County will meet at the BEA meeting room at 510 29th Street North (enter off the alley) beginning at 5:30 p.m., or as soon as you can arrive, to discuss and approve Yellowstone County additions and changes to the state Democratic Party Platform.
This is your chance to have a voice in what your State Party stands for and will work on for the next two years. We need your best ideas to show our fellow Montanans that we are the party that most represents their values and their dreams. Refreshments will be provided.
Here’s how the process works. When you show up at the meeting room, you will sign in, be given a copy of the current Montana Democratic Party Platform and choose which planks you want to work on. Once all the planks have been reviewed by the plank committees made up of local Democrats, we vote as a body on the final draft. Those ideas are then taken to the State Platform Convention in July where, hopefully, they will be adopted by the delegates to that Convention.
To be an effective participant in Wednesday;s meeting, you should familiarize yourself with the State Democratic Party Platform before the local Convention. You may access it at https://montanademocrats.org/wp-content/uploads/MDP-Platform-2020.pdf . The sections contain the full language of the Platform, including action steps that may or may not have been completed.
Any Montana Democrat can attend the State Platform Convention and advocate for a particular idea. This is your chance to have a say in what your Party stands for, so please join us Wednesday night for this important event.
Please let me know if you will be coming so I can make we have enough food and other accommodations for the Convention. Contact Mary at mew528110@aol.com or call me at (406) 245-7704. The full language of each plank is available through the Montana Democratic Party website or I can supply you with it.
I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU ALL AT OUR PLATFORM CONVENTION THIS WEDNESDAY, MAY 18TH!