Jump to content

Caroline Killeen

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Caroline Pettinato Killeen
Born(1926-01-15)January 15, 1926
Scranton, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedDecember 2014(2014-12-00) (aged 88)
Italy
OccupationsUnited States activist, perennial political candidate, nature lobbyist
Known forrunning in the United States presidential race on a pro-marijuana platform

Caroline M. Pettinato Killeen (January 15, 1926 – December 2014)[1] was an American activist, perennial political candidate, and self-proclaimed nature lobbyist.[2] She ran as a United States presidential candidate at least five times between 1976 and 2008,[3] and officially qualified for the ballot in the New Hampshire primary in 2008 as a Democrat[4][5] She ran for Mayor of Tucson in 1983, receiving 31 votes.[6]

Early life

[edit]

Killeen was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania,[7] and adopted by Peter (or Pietro) Pettinato and Antoinette Pettinato.[8][9] Both of her parents were born in Italy; Pietro Pettinato ran a grocery store.[10] She was briefly removed from the Pettinato home in 1934, when police found evidence of abuse.[11] She sold the Pettinato home in Scranton in 1954, for $10,000.[12]

Career

[edit]

Killeen moved to New Mexico in the 1950s, intending to enter a convent. She did not take final vows to become a nun, though she was sometimes later described as a "former nun".[13] She earned a meager living in Tucson[14][15] and Florida[16][17] as an agricultural worker, waitress, a cashier, and a careworker.[7][18] She also redeemed recycling and sold seeds and stickers to raise money.[19] She biked across the U.S. several times to raise awareness of environmental and anti-nuclear issues.[2][20] "When you bicycle, you have time to philosophize," she told an interviewer in 1970. "Our country needs philosophy, it needs more concern about the individual as a whole, not just as a commodity. We have so many machines we begin to act like them."[21] She rode from Scranton to Florida in 1965,[22] from Tucson to Detroit in 1970,[23] and from Florida up the East Coast in 1973.[24]

In 1976, Killeen rode across the country on her first campaign as a write-in candidate for president. "I had this psychic insight that the country is ready for a woman president," she explained. "It's the Bicentennial year. People are hoping something revolutionary will happen."[7] She ran for president in 1984,[25] but also rode to Canada that year, seeking political asylum.[26][27] In 1987, at the age of 61, she rode a bicycle across America to protest against the arms race between the Soviet Union and United States.[20] She ran as "the Hemp Lady", advocating marijuana legalization.[28] Her run for president in 1992 earned her an extended mention in an Australian newspaper article titled "Hopeless Candidates".[29] In 1996, she ran for president again, riding across the country at age 70, again speaking about the value of hemp as a crop.[30] She was named "Freedom Fighter of the Month" by High Times magazine in June 1996.[1]

Personal life

[edit]

Killeen married Douglas Keffer in Texas in 1979.[31] She moved to Italy by 2007, and began calling herself "Caroline of Assisi".[3] She died in Italy in 2014, in her eighties.[1]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Garnick, Darren (November 20, 2015). "The Hemp Lady: A Provocateur on Pedals". The Boston Globe. pp. E1, E5. Retrieved September 16, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b Culbertson, Drena (June 2, 1977). "Cyclist Has a New Cause: Now she's Johnny Appleseed". The Free Lance-Star. p. 21 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b Dorgan, Lauren R. (November 9, 2007). "Vote for Me!". Concord Monitor. p. 7. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ McGillis, Alec. Clinton and Giuliani Take Obama to Task The Washington Post (November 2, 2007).
  5. ^ MTV Choose or lose 2004: Born In The U.S.A.? You Can Run For President — Here's How Archived January 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ Murphy easily wins 4th term as Tucson mayor Prescott Daily Courier (November 9, 1983): 6A.
  7. ^ a b c Kirchhoff, Herb (July 21, 1976). "She pedals a ride-in campaign". The Times. p. 15. Retrieved May 22, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Pidgeon, James (January 6, 1966). "Bicyclist Shoots for Tough Goal; Woman Pedals 1,250 Miles". Tampa Bay Times. p. 10. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Mrs. Pettinato Claimed by Death; Funeral Monday". The Tribune. February 19, 1949. p. 5. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Pietro Pettinato, 73, Grocer, Taken by Death". The Times-Tribune. November 17, 1951. p. 4. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Cop Finds Child, 9, in Chains; 'Unruly', Foster Parents Say". The Tribune. September 4, 1934. p. 1. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "$10,000 Realty Deal". The Tribune. October 21, 1954. p. 4. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ Howard, Jena (March 20, 1987). "Former nun on mission to plant treees for peace". Florence Morning News. p. 15. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Lynch, Dan (October 3, 1972). "Cyclist's Message: 'Dump Nixon and McGovern'". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 23. Retrieved May 22, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Caroline runs on bare purse". Tucson Citizen. July 5, 1976. p. 6. Retrieved May 22, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Miss Pettinato Wheels Along". The Times-Tribune. December 1, 1966. p. 23. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ Markham, Wayne (June 7, 1974). "She's Tired of 'Pedaling' Protests". The Miami Herald. p. 140. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ Secrest, Tracey (April 21, 1992). "Trying to 'Killeen Up America'; Write-in candidate making fifth run at White House". The York Dispatch. pp. C1, C2. Retrieved May 22, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ DeWitt, John (June 4, 1982). "'Kill-A-Watt' Killeen mounts campaign against DeConcini". Arizona Daily Star. p. 14. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ a b "Pedaling for Peace: Former Nun Is Bicycling Across America to Protest Arms Race". Los Angeles Times. April 12, 1987. Archived from the original on November 7, 2012. Retrieved July 17, 2011.
  21. ^ Schultz, Terri (May 21, 1970). "She Pedals for Clean Air--Says Bike is Better than Belching Car". Chicago Tribune. p. 19. Retrieved May 22, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ^ Casey, Tom (January 23, 1966). "Ex-Waitress Here Makes 1,275 Mile Bike Trip". Scrantonian Tribune. p. 3. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ^ Leekoff, Deborah (July 3, 1970). "Teacher Pedals Cross-Country in Protest of Polluted Air". Hartford Courant. p. 3. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ^ Sharpe, Lora (October 20, 1973). "Cyclist peddles impeach gospel". The Pocono Record. p. 1. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ "'Kill-a-Watt' Killeen seeks presidency". Tucson Citizen. April 1, 1983. p. 37. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ Kreher, Charles (August 8, 1984). "Woman Peddles Away to Self-Imposed Exile". Albuquerque Journal. p. 22. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ Pegnam, Peter (September 20, 1984). "Perpetual candidate seeks political asylum". Tucson Citizen. pp. 1, 2. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ^ "Activist's plate request is denied". The Boston Globe. August 10, 1996. p. 17. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ^ Lawson, Mark (April 11, 1992). "Hopeless candidates". The Age. p. 125. Retrieved May 22, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  30. ^ Leyden, Liz (August 25, 1996). "In N. H., hemp backer bids for Oval Office". The Boston Globe. pp. 35, 36. Retrieved May 22, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  31. ^ "Local candidate gets Texas vote". Tucson Citizen. March 21, 1979. p. 37. Retrieved May 23, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Caroline_Killeen&oldid=1355780547"