For Our Friends Headed to the US Social Forum in Detroit
22 June 2010
Readers:
This week in Detroit tens of thousands of progressive activists from around the U.S., and the world, will be gathering in Detroit for the U.S. Social Forum, and the Democracy Center will be there as well. If you are also in Detroit for the Forum this week, join us Wednesday for two workshops being organized by the Democracy Center and our friends.
See you there!
Jim Shultz
Taking Aim at Multinationals: Strategic Lessons from Anti-Corporate Campaigns on the Environment The leading actors in the destruction of our environment are multinational corporations, from oil giants like Chevron to water profiteers like Bechtel. Much of what we demand from governments are actually rules governing what corporations can do. Throughout the world, social justice and environmental activists are sidestepping the middleman (government) to take direct aim at corporations, and they are winning. This interactive workshop is a companion to one organized in April at the People’s Summit on Climate Change in Cochabamba, Bolivia.
When: Wednesday, June 23rd, 10:00am – Noon
Where: Cobo Hall: D3-25
Presenters: Marcela Olivera (Red Vida, Cochabamba, Bolivia), David Solnit (anti-corporate activist, Oakland, California), Jim Shultz (The Democracy Center, Cochabamba, Bolivia)
Read more about the successful campaign against Bechtel here.
More Powerful than Nations: the Growing Threat of Global Trade Agreements and Tribunals Trade tribunals in institutions such as the World Bank are a powerful tool for multinational corporations to overrule the will of the people and even of national governments. It is through this system that Bechtel tried to sue Bolivia for $50 million after the Cochabamba Water Revolt, and that the cigarette giant Phillip Morris is now suing the people of Uruguay to overturn important health protections. It is also going to be a process through which corporations can challenge new rules to curb global climate change. Learn about the threat this system poses and what we can do about it.
When: Wednesday, June 23, 2010, 3:30pm – 5:30pm
Where: Cobo Hall: D3-22
Presenters: Elizabeth Peredo (Fundacion Solon, La Paz Bolivia), Manuel Perez Rocha (Institute for Policy Studies, Washington, DC), Jim Shultz (The Democracy Center, Cochabamba, Bolivia)
Read more about the fight against these unfair trade rules here.
10 responses to For Our Friends Headed to the US Social Forum in Detroit
Jim,
You better watch out on your way back to Bolivia. Evo is once again threatening to kick USAID out of Bolivia. Their sin: teaching indigenous people in Bolivia about protecting nature. Now the indigenous are not willing to be simple puppets that stand next to him and rubber stamp his crazy ideas of drilling for oil in the Madidi and builing the Bala dam. This has Evo furious, after all, only he and he alone can possible know what is best for every single one of us.
Jim, why oh why do you promote multinationals if this is a forum against multinationals?
The US Social Forum tells it’s best to fly in multinationals such as Southwest, Delta, and Spirit Airlines. What about promoting huge hotel conglomerates such as Hyatt and Doubletree? I’m not even going to talk about the sweatshops in Detroit you call restaurants you’re promoting.
The forum divides budgets to attend the forum in three categories (lowest, medium, highest) that ranges from $330 to $1,525. What about equality? Where’s the social justice in that?
Yes, one can rail against “oligarchs” and “imperialists” on one hand and then have a close relationship with China and Russia, who are exactly that. The world never ceases to amaze.
Bolivarianism? Simon Bolivar was hardly from a poor background, nor was he a believer in power to the masses from accounts. The state that existed in Bolivia until 1952 made that out too.
Don’t rail against the big B. Bolivar was a product of his times, and a good one at that. Bolivarianism is bastardized statist psychobabble from egomaniacs and demagogues in Latin America used to justify their ultracorrupt regimes.
It would be too funny if Evo´s government kicks Evo´s buddy Jim out of Bolivia…for being a gringo spy or a CIA agent…
Jim, no pal of Evo’s, or even democracy at large, remains, as any gringo burgeois, unlikely to be bothered by the Bolivian Government in the least, not even with regards to those cocaine factories he indulges hallucinatin’ about, all over the green foothills of Tiquipaya, which as even a fourth-grader in Cocha, knows is required blabbery to pay faltering imperial lip-service to engage dialogue…
unless, of course some shred of evidence comes to light, & Jim truly becomes a collaborator of the plurinationalists, AND well-to-do gringos, and the corporate shyster we all dream to become for a better world.
please attached an english or spanish translation…
Amen to that.
Two concerns upon perusing USSF site: First, are all the “cancelled events” really cancelled, (maybe a wrong title problem?), and secondly how come there doesn’t seem to be any reference adressing the ineffably infamous ATP (Alien Tort Provision Court), the only apparent recourse for any non-yank instance to loose time & resources fighting a revolving windmill schemed for failure?
I didn’t know the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) was involved in this matter.