Abel Collins | |
| Running For: | US House of Representatives - 2nd District |
| Representing: | Rhode Island |
| Political Affiliation: | Independent |
Information About Abel Collins
About Abel Collins
I’m Abel Collins, a concerned citizen running for Congress as an Independent. I’m not your typical candidate. I’m a working class dad without the time or money that most people have when they seek office. Be that as it may, I can’t in good conscience stand by and watch as our democracy and the justice it was built to establish slip ever farther away. I am running because I want to be able to look my children in the eyes in twenty years and tell them honestly that I did everything I could to put things right.
Although I have never been a politician, in my career of community activism I have developed the skills and experience necessary to run a winning campaign and be a true representative of the people. I believe firmly in leading by example, and I know that we need to wrest control of our governance away from the powerful interests that have seized it, so I am running to prove that politics are not all about the money. We, the people, still have the power and I’d like to ask you to join me in showing it. Indeed, I hope that others around the state and the country can use this campaign as a model in coming elections as we work to take matters back into our own hands.
A little about myself:
I live on the same small farm in Matunuck that I was raised on, a farm my wife and I have come to call Fieldsong Farm. My roots delve deeply into the soil of Rhode Island. I trace my lineage on both sides back to ancestors who came to the Rhode Island colony in search of religious freedom. I am the direct descendant of Roger Williams who founded the colony on that very principle. My namesake, Abel Collins, was a Quaker abolitionist who ministered in South Kingstown, and I am humbled by the long family history of civic-spirited individuals who helped to build the wonderful Rhode Island communities that persist to this day. I would like to think that I carry on in their tradition. I am a Quaker myself, and I also now spend much time with my family in the Unitarian Universalist faith community. Both settings guide me to bring the teachings of peace and social justice into the world.
Growing up, I was the quintessential nature boy; the snake-catching turtle-hunter who could name all the birds. I identified as closely with nature as I did with people, and the seeds of my environmentalism were established early. I excelled through the South Kingstown public school system, and I was fortunate to continue my studies at Brown University where I graduated with a degree in political science in 2000.
The Rhode Island job market I graduated into was dismal then as it is now, and like many in my generation I struggled to find a rewarding career. I was searching for a way to do public good, and I found work in many fields from construction, landscaping and hard labor, to dealing poker at Foxwoods, to trapping mosquitoes for infectious disease testing, to delivering mail for the US Postal Service, until at last I settled into the non-profit environmental community. As an environmentalist, I have worked for Clean Water Action, the Apeiron Institute, and Sierra Club where I currently serve as the RI Chapter’s program manager.
In these positions and also as a poet and part time farmer, I am proud to have contributed to the causes of social and economic justice as well as environmental justice. I have found it particularly meaningful to have organized transit riders in the fight to keep our public transportation system whole. It has been a pleasure and an honor to speak with many thousands of Rhode Islanders about issues they care about and to help create a sustainable state and a sustainable future.
At the same time, it has been distressing to see people increasingly lose faith in the government. It is clear that in these troubled times we need public servants, not servants to political parties who are in turn servants to corporations and the major campaign donors who own them. As Americans, we take great pride in liberty and individualism. We don’t ask for much besides a fair shot, but fairness and opportunity now only exist for a diminishing class at the top of our society. Together we can change that and right now is the time to start.
I am Abel Collins, a concerned citizen. Let all the concerned citizens rise and speak up together in November.
Issues Important to Abel Collins
Connect With Abel Collins
Abel Collins in the News
- Handy's proposal would challenge Citizens United ruling - The Providence Journal
- Handy Bill would Let Voters Revoke Corporate Personhood in RI - Patch.com
- Ask Matt: Game of Thrones, Rectify, Orphan Black, Americans, Following, Good ... - Helena Daily World
- Ed Markey Wins Massachusetts Democratic Senate Primary - Huffington Post - Huffington Post
- La Graciosa 4-H - Santa Maria Times - Santa Maria Times
- Woonsocket Rep. Lisa Baldelli-Hunt Announces Run For Mayor - Patch.com
Abel Collins Needs Your Support
You are one of 525 potential voters who have discovered why Abel Collins is an important political leader. Abel Collins is not the same old, poll tested, corporate backed politician who is only looking out for the self-interest of the few at the expense of the many.
Please take the next important step in supporting Abel Collins as a candidate for US House of Representatives by donating time and money to Abel Collins's campaign
Also, take a moment to educate your family and friends about the importance of Clean Elections, Fair Elections, Fair Trade, Green Energy as important campaign issues that Abel Collins will work hard to improve, and help make the United States of America a better place for every American, and not just a select few.
