Eugene will have its first visit from a 2008 presidential candidate when congressman Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, speaks Monday at the First United Methodist Church.
Kucinich’s talk will focus on his work toward implementing a “Department of Peace” in the United States Government.
“He’s going to talk about the department of peace movement and about the D.C. political climate for actually making that a reality,” said Mary Van Noy of the Democratic Party of Lane County. “You can expect that he will talk about the war a bit.”
Kucinich has been outspoken about the war in Iraq since before it began, Van Noy said. He has consistently voted against the war and has crafted legislation that would end the war, bring troops home and restore Iraq’s autonomy, according to his Web site.
“We wanted to give the public an opportunity to hear him speak about his Department of Peace legislation,” Van Noy said.
The Democratic Party of Lane County supports all candidates that visit, and this event will serve as a fundraiser for the organization, Van Noy said.
The event will take place tonight at First United Methodist Church at 1376 Olive St. and will begin at 6:30.
Tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at www.dplc.org, in-person at Greater Goods and Tsunami Books, or at the door. Tickets will go on sale at 5:30.
– Jobetta Hedelman
Dennis Kucinich’s bio:
Kucinich was born in Cleveland, Ohio on Oct. 8, 1946. He is the oldest of seven children.
At age 23, Kucinich was elected to Cleveland’s City Council.
Kucinich was elected mayor of Cleveland in 1977, when he was 31, and at the time was the youngest person ever elected to lead a major American city. While he was mayor, city banks attempted to pressure him into selling the public electric company to a private investor. The banks plunged the city into default for $15 million, and Kucinich lost his re-election bid in 1979, but he returned to the city council in 1981-82.
In 1994, Kucinich was elected to the Ohio State Senate and has been the 10th district Ohio representative in the United States House of Representatives since 1997.
Kucinich is known for promoting environmental and peace-based initiatives. He opposes the war in Iraq and has advocated for the creation of a cabinet-level Department of Peace.
In 2003, Kucinich received the Ghandi Peace Award.