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The United States Social Forum: Perspectives of a Movement The United States Social Forum: Perspectives of a Movement Edited by: The USSF Book Committee Marina Karides Sociologists Without Borders Florida Atlantic University Walda Katz-Fishman Project South: Institute for the Elimination of Poverty & Genocide Howard University Rose M. Brewer scholar activist University of Minnesota-TC AfroEco Alice Lovelace Lead Staff Organizer, 2007 USSF Associate Regional Director SERO American Friends Service Committee Jerome Scott Project South: Institute for the Elimination of Poverty & Genocide @USSF Book Committee 2010 ISBN ############# Changemaker Publications Chicago IL USA http://stores.lulu.com/changemaker For those who struggled through Katrina and continue to this day; and for all of us who together are building another world Katrina is both a reality and a symbol. It is of course the most egre- gious human right violation that is ongoing right now. But it is also a symbol, that basically what we heard today, what we are reminded of, is that there is Katrinas all over this country. That if you are workin’ in the field of criminal justice, you are talkin’ about Katrina; if you are workin’ on healthcare, you are talkin’ about Katrina; if you are workin’ on hous- ing, you are talkin’ about Katrina; we are living a Katrina nightmare here in this country. All of us who are living this Katrina nightmare we have to name the source of it. And the source of it is this backward, racist capitalist sys- tem. Understand this my friends, we have to remind ourselves to under- stand, it’s really about us the people, we have to organize ourselves, we have to affect a shift in power, because the only way to have human rights accountability is when the people are organized. We’re talkin’ about a transformation of society. Look, Katrina reminded us that we cannot chose the historical conditions we find ourselves in but we can choose how we respond to those conditions. And for many of us we have cho- sen to fight, we have chosen to build a movement. What Katrina has also done, has reminded us of our historical mis- sion, our responsibility now is it to build a new people’s movement. Katrina and the US Social Forum, is to tell us and remind us, that we have the responsibility to build a new revolutionary movement here in this coun- try. —Mwalimu Johnson, Capital Post-Conviction Project of Louisiana 28 June 2007, Gulf Coast Reconstruction in the Post-Katrina Era, USSF Plenary Acknowledgments iv The United States Social Forum: Perspectives of a Movement The United States Social Forum: Perspectives of a Movement v The USSF Book Committee respectfully acknowledges the contributors to the volume. Most if not all authors are full time activists and so we appreciate the additional work it took to “write up” something for this collectively constructed project. We hope by presenting the voices of the grassroots to capture the orga- nizing process of the first USSF in text for the betterment of the movement. The editors have been careful to maintain the diversity in the authors’ expression. We thank Selah Abrams for footage of the Native American and the Gulf Coast Re- construction plenaries and James Larry Gilbert, director of Not Me Productions, LLC, for providing us with the audio-visual of the Gulf Coast Reconstruction ple- nary. The Sociology Department at Florida Atlantic University hosted the first and last face-to-face meeting of the USSF Book Committee. We appreciate Arthur Kastler’s generous set of eyes towards our last round of editing. vi The United States Social Forum: Perspectives of a Movement We, the organizers of the first United States Social Forum: Believe that there is a strategic need to unite the struggles of oppressed commu- nities and peoples within the United States (particularly Black, Latino, Asian/Pa- cific-Islander and Indigenous communities) to the struggles of oppressed nations in the Third World. Believe the USSF should place the highest priority on groups that are actually doing grassroots organizing with working-class people of color, who are training organizers, building long-term structures of resistance, and who can work well with other groups, seeing their participation in USSF as building the whole, not just their part of it. Believe the USSF must be a place where the voices of those who are most marginalized and oppressed from Indigenous communities can be heard–a place that will recognize Indigenous peoples, their issues and struggles. Believe the USSF must create space for the full and equal participation of un- documented migrants and their communities. Believe the USSF should link US-based youth organizers, activists, and cultural workers to the struggles of their brothers and sisters abroad, drawing common connections and exploring the deeper meanings of solidarity. Believe the USSF is important because we must have a clear and unified ap- proach at dealing with social justice issues, and meaningful positions on global issues. Believe that a USSF sends a message to other people’s movements around the world that there is an active movement in the United States opposing US policies at home and abroad. Believe that the USSF will help build national networks that will be better able to collaborate with international networks and movements. We believe the USSF is more than an event. It is an ongoing process to contribute to strengthening the entire movement, bringing together the various sectors and issues that work for global justice. The United States Social Forum: Perspectives of a Movement vii Nosotros, los organizadoros del primer Foro Social Estadounidense: Creemos que hay una necesidad estratégica de unificar las luchas de comunidades y pueblos oprimidos dentro de los Estados Unidos (especialmente las comunidades Afro-Americana, Latina, Asiática, de las Islas Pacificas e Indígena) a las luchas de naciones oprimidas en el Tercer Mundo. Creemos que el FSE debería conferirle la mayor prioridad a grupos que actualmente están organizando a nivel de base con personas no blancas de clase obrera, que están entrenando organizadores, que están construyendo estructuras de resistencia de largo plazo, y que pueden trabajar en colaboración con otros grupos, considerando su participación en el FSE como la construcción de la totalidad y no su parte solamente. Creemos que el FSE tiene que ser un espacio donde se escuchen las voces de aquellos más marginalizados y oprimidos en las comunidades indígenas – un espacio que reconozca a las gentes indígenas, sus temas, y sus luchas. Creemos que el FSE debería vincular organizadoros, activistas, y obreros culturales jóvenes a las luchas de sus hermanos y hermanas en el extranjero, enlazando conexiones comunes y explorando el significado más profundo de la solidaridad. Creemos que el FSE es importante porque nos urge tener un enfoque claro y unificado al lidiar con temas de justicia social y posiciones significativas en cuanto a temas mundiales. Creemos que el FSE comparte con los movimientos populares a través del mundo el mensaje de que hay un movimiento activo en los EEUU que se opone a las políticas estadounidenses tanto en el interior como en el extranjero. Creemos que el FSE comparte con los movimientos populares a través del mundo el mensaje de que hay un movimiento activo en los EEUU que se opone a las políticas estadounidenses tanto en el interior como en el extranjero. Creemos que el FSE ayudará en la construcción de redes nacionales que podrán colaborar mejor con redes y movimientos internacionales. Creemos que FSE es más que un evento singular. Es un proceso continuo que contribuye al fortalecimiento del movimiento entero, unificando a los varios sectores y temas que obran hacia la justicia social. viii The United States Social Forum: Perspectives of a Movement National Planning Committee of the First US Social Forum 2007 50 Years is Enough Network (International) AFL-CIO (International) AlternateROOTS (Regional) American Friends Service Committee (National) CAAAV Organizing Asian Communities (New York City, NY) Center for Community Change (National) Center for Media Justice (National) Center for Social Justice (Seattle, WA) Center for Third World Organizing (National) Farm Labor Organizing Committee / AFL-CIO (National) Grassroots Global Justice (National) Indigenous Environmental Network (International) Indigenous Women’s Network (National) Independent Progressive Politics Network (National) Jobs with Justice (National) Labor and Community Strategy Center (Los Angeles, CA) Miami Workers Center (Miami, FL) Michigan Welfare Rights Organization (Detroit, MI) National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights (National) National Youth Media Council Native Social and Civic Justice (Seattle, WA) North American Alliance for Fair Employment (International) NYC Aids Housing Network (New York City, NY) The United States Social Forum: Perspectives of a Movement ix Padres Unidos (Denver, CO) People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond (New Orleans, LA) People Organized to Win Employment Rights, POWER (San Francisco, CA) People Organizing to Demand Economic and Environmental Rights, PODER (San Francisco, CA) Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign (National) Project South: Institute for the Elimination of Poverty & Genocide (Regional) REDOIL (Alaska) Ruckus Society (National) Service Employees International Union (SEIU) (International) SHAWL Society (Wellpinit, WA) SisterSong (National) Sociologists Without Borders (National) Southwest Network for Environmental and Economic Justice (Regional) SouthWest Organizing Project (Albuquerque,
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