March 1998
CORE's Roy Innis joins LP; mulls New York governor's run
Roy Innis, the well-known African-American civil rights leader and head of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), has joined the Libertarian Party and is currently deciding whether he will seek the party's 1998 nomination for governor of New York.
Innis, 63, a self-described "life-long Democrat" famous for his numerous non-Democratic political positions, officially joined the LP on February 4 -- and said he will make a decision about a gubernatorial run before the New York LP convention on March 14.
"I like the idea [of running]," he said. "I see this as a chance to do something for the state -- and it will reverberate around the country."
But Innis said he was concerned that he might not have the time available to run a "credible and competitive" campaign.
"The board of directors at CORE are against his running for governor this year because they do not believe he has the time to run for governor and run CORE," said Lloyd Wright, the State Chair of the New York LP.
Words of praise
Whatever his final decision, Innis had words of praise for the Libertarian Party when he joined at CORE headquarters in New York, an event attended by LP National Director Ron Crickenberger, LP Communications Director Bill Winter, past NY State Chair Blay Tarnoff, and NYLP Treasurer Jim Harris."You have the kind of principles this country needs more of," said Innis. "The Republicans are unable to deal in a forthright way with what's going on in this country."
After the meeting, Wright said he hoped that Innis would decide to run.
"[An Innis campaign] would virtually guarantee that we achieve major party status in New York," he said. "He's a very impressive man. He has a grasp of the issues, he's spoken all over the world, he's willing to buck the establishment, and he's the highest profile candidate we've ever had -- if he runs.
Wright also said that Innis seemed to be a good ideological fit for the Libertarian Party.
"On virtually all issues, he is in agreement with us," he said. He's with us on the personal freedom side; he's with us on guns; and he's with us on economic issues."
A follow-up meeting is planned with Innis in late February, said Wright, to discuss possible Libertarian support for his campaign.
Whatever Innis decides, said Wright, "Just signing him up for the party is a major coup."
Innis, 63, is the president of CORE, the third-largest civil rights organization in America, and has a reputation as a powerful public speaker.
CORE -- and Innis himself -- have long been out of step with traditional, left-leaning civil rights organizations. The CORE mission statement says that "the most fundamental freedom for all people is the right to govern themselves."
Personally, Innis is an outspoken defender of the Second Amendment, and said in 1995: "It's the good people that are hurt by gun laws. The only people who don't have guns [in New York] are the good people."
