I spoke at the State Convention for the LP Minnesota on Saturday. I talked about growing up Libertarian, my activism, and why I left the party and why I have enough faith to rejoin it again.
“This Libertarian Moment isn’t nearly over, it’s literally just started. We need to remember always to look at our wins, and to own them as a movement. We need to build coalitions with one another, to not judge our success by our number of elected officials by the LP, but by our ability to change the hearts and minds of the population so they come to us, and we change the future – that we show them what they’re capable of when they’re free to do anything they desire, as long as they don’t hurt other people and don’t take their stuff.
It’s time, I think, to build an optimistic, positive brand as the LP. For us to share in the successes the movement has had, to open our arms and our hearts to the new generation of liberty activists, and to be the liberty option on the ballot, and be one in a series of productive, useful and powerful forces for change. It’s time to make the LP a good investment of resources and time and to help the greater movement achieve liberty within our lifetime.
In 1996, I was a nine year old girl with a broken heart, suddenly realizing I was on the losing team. I’ve seen that look on too many activists’ faces when they measure their success by the votes cast for LP candidates. Don’t let that be your key performance indicator. I was wrong in 1996 but I didn’t know it, and it took me two decades to really see the larger picture. We lost a battle. But we’re winning the war.
Liberty is the human story, the path of our species is always heading out and up and freer than before. I promise you, I promise that little 9 year old I was, that we are on the winning team.”
Read the transcript of the speech at The Libertarian Republic.
This content was also republished on Independent Political Report.
AVENS OBRIEN 