Ethan Parke

Civil Rights

I believe we are all entitled to the same rights and freedoms, no matter our gender identity or sexual orientation. We should fight against policies that dehumanize those who are different from ourselves and we should strive for equality under the law for all people. I subscribe to the views of theologian Martin Buber, who said we can choose authentic relationships instead of seeing others as objects. Learn more

Economy

I believe the current generation of young adults needs help paying off student loans, finding affordable housing and childcare, and accessing health care. These are economic challenges that are creating downward mobility for the first time in generations. Learn more

I believe the AmeriCorps model should be expanded to include public health outreach, childcare, senior citizen assistance, summer education support, and other public works. In the absence of federal support, Vermont could start its own service organization that would employ people of any age to address human needs in our communities while providing members with training and job experience. Learn more

Education

I believe every family with three- and four-year-old children should have access to 20 hours of pre-K classes per week during the school year, as part of each child’s standard public education. Learn more

I believe every schoolchild in Vermont should have access to healthy school breakfasts and lunches at no charge, just as is provided in many European countries. The federal government helped us achieve this during the pandemic—now it’s time for the state to step up. Learn more

Environment / Energy

I believe the way for Vermont to reduce its carbon footprint in the heating sector is to incentivize energy efficiency upgrades in public and private buildings. It makes sense in my view to financially help homeowners and others to insulate and tighten up structures, rather than to penalize them for buying carbon based fuels. Insulate first—then convert. Learn more

I believe in public lands and private land conservation. We need to save our large forest blocks before they are fragmented by roads and houses. Forest preservation is one of the best strategies to combat climate change. Learn more

I believe that dangerous pesticides should be banned, period. The organic movement has taught us that good crop yields can be achieved without chemicals such as neonicotinoids, which kill bees and other pollinators. The herbicide glyphosate has been labeled a carcinogen by the World Health Association. Its use should be prohibited. Learn more

Guns

Like everyone, I am horrified, sickened, and filled with despair whenever a mass shooting occurs in our country. I am the father of a school age child, and I regard her protection, and the protection of all children, as a sacred duty. People in other countries think we in the US have lost our minds with our lax gun laws. How can this be? What can be done? As a candidate for public office I am compelled to address this issue in the strongest possible terms. To ignore it would be a sin. Learn more

Apart from the horror, gun violence in America has now become a leading public health issue. There are many measures we could take to save lives from the scourge of gun violence, but in my view, the single most important action we could take would be to make assault weapons like the AR-15 illegal. Guns like these were purchased legally and then used in the recent mass shooting in Buffalo and in the massacre of schoolchildren in Uvalde, Texas. If elected, I pledge to sponsor a bill to ban these military-style weapons in Vermont. If the US Congress won’t pass a federal law on this, states must act on their own. Learn more

Healthcare

I believe health care should be a right, not a privilege available only to those who can afford it. In the face of perpetual inaction by the US Congress on Medicare for All, we need to reopen the discussion about systemic reform at the state level. Other states (Maine and New Mexico, for example) are far ahead of Vermont on this issue. Single payer should not be “off the table.”. Learn more

I believe, as Martin Luther King, Jr. said in 1966, that “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health is the most shocking and the most inhuman…” I think Reverend King was referring to health care as well as to the social determinants of health, as they pertained to African Americans and poor people. This injustice is still not eradicated, even after the enactment of Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act. We need health care for all if we are to end our centuries’ long legacy of racial oppression. Learn more

I believe senior citizens should always be guaranteed access to supplemental Medigap policies. Currently, insurance companies can deny enrollment to seniors switching from Medicare Advantage to traditional Medicare. This exposes seniors to crippling medical debt, even though they have basic Medicare. Learn more

I believe that under our current system, fee-for-service reimbursement is the best way to ensure patients are not denied the care they need. It is a myth that fee-for-service is the driver of health care costs, and I dissent from the disheartening mantra of “managed care,” “accountable care,” and “value-based care,” none of which have anything to do with access, cost control, or quality, and instead only enrich profits of insurance companies and large health care institutions. Learn more

Housing

I believe it’s not enough to pack affordable housing units within downtown centers. We also need to think about sidewalks, benches, greenspace, community gardens, playgrounds, and recreational paths as normal adjuncts to multi-unit affordable housing projects. Learn more

Taxes / Budget

I believe we rely too heavily on the property tax to support education. The current tax structure puts an unfair burden on seniors on a fixed income who own their homes. At the same time, a high-income Vermonter, who might choose not to own an expensive house, contributes proportionally less to education. Learn more