US Social Forum Outreach Working Group Call - Wednesday, August 5th
Roll Call: Ahmina Maxey, EMAC; Fran Tobin, JWJ; Marca Bernsten, Peace Justice and Environment Project; Cindy Wiesner, GGJ; Maria Escobar, SLAP; Tammy Bang Luu, LCSC; Carlos Fernandez, NAAACC; Mallory, MayFirst People Link NYC
Agenda:
* Check-in * Review NPC discussion * Updates of work from last call * Calendar of conferences/events on the wiki * Sectoral organizing (which sectors should start targeting, who can help led the outreach work in those sectors) * Recruits for the outreach working group * Tools needed for the outreach work * Schedule regular outreach working group calls – does first Wednesday of the month work for folks?
NPC review: Confirmed the objectives: building on the first USSF in Atlanta, highlighting Detroit (the city, the people, the struggles, the conditions, the alternatives), intentionally focus on building participation of grassroots working class communities of color, poor people, reach out to base building organizations, and making sure the organized and un-organized communities of Detroit are participating in the USSF
Outreach goal is to have a minimum of 15,000 but to push for doubling the number of people who came to Atlanta, so shooting for 30,000 and that at least half of the people attending are from the Midwest Region.
Follow up from last call: Revolutionary Work in our Times (RWIOT) in Chicago had an event on the USSF as well as a meeting in Chicago with 45 people (Cindy, Fran + Carlos participated) InterAlliance Dialogue meeting in DC (included National Day Laborer Organizing Network, National Domestic Workers Alliance, Right to the City, Grassroots Global Justice, Pushback Network) - will focus on building for USSF. Pushback Network will apply to come onto the NPC Conversations starting on a healing “track” during or pre-USSF JwJ pulled together national and local AFL-CIO, including the Michigan Federation of Labor, on a phone call to push the USSF. Meeting today of local Detroit laborer unions. Interest from several unions -- ASFME (natl), UWA (outreach, needs more discuss) Talks are getting started in Chicago and Midwest. First meeting on the USSF. Some JwJ chapters in the Midwest have begun to discuss particpation. A couple of buses from the Midwest Social Forum (RadFest) came to Atlanta. Immigrant Rights communities in the Midwest would be good to target. Upcoming Events to outreach work: Student Farm Worker Alliance Encuentro, September 8 -10th (SLAP will represent) Labor Day Parade in Detroit, USSF Local Organizing Committee planning outreach for that event (DLOC outreach) G20 Actions in Pittsburg
Student Sector Student organizations come together in DC and Maria would like to talk about the USSF at this gathering Gathering is August 20th and 21st Tammy can join on the call with Maria and Carlos and speak on the USSF Maria has offered to help lead the sector on students
Discussion on Outreach Framework: Questions coming up around the regional organizing process. People want to get pulled in.
Regional method was the tactic that was used last time, need to map what we have and don't have. Some were more successful than others. We have the regional listserves. Some are still funtioning and some are not. Involve the regional point people from the last round Largest region was the SE, NE, and West SW built the South by Southwest process and organized the People’s Caravan Midwest people came out because of NPC that was held there NW brought Center for Social Justice Should we organize by region? On website put info in regions we know are interested On website also put info by sector
Website as a main tool for national outreach. Need outreach templates. Equipping people with tools. Mini powerpoint was created. What's up with the video from Atlanta?
Design Working Group has begun to develop some of the graphics around the USSF.
A proposal should be put together an intentional mapping as to how we will perform outreach. Specifically in the Midwest because that is the region of the Forum. Midwest piece because there has not been such good history of the social forum process, what is the methodology of outreach.
Do sectoral outreach with people we are connected to, and then perform regional outreach through these channels.
Need to think through the previous structure and come up with a framework for this round of outreach, may warrants a face-to-face meeting to think through this. Start the conversation now on the phone or plan a face-to-face mtg in Detroit to work out the structure. Face-to-face meeting for Outreach, with a few people doing the thinking beforehand prepared for the meeting. Proposed 2-day work meeting.
Do we want to put in the budget for Outreach WG to have face-to-faces with groups in different parts of the country? We have ~$10,000 in the budget for travel
Detroit Expanded (building on Belem Expanded at the WSF 2009) -- proposal as a committee of the Outreach Working Group. This is also a Program question, should have a discussion on this.
Ways to Move Forward: It's going to take a lot of work to create a framework for Outreach. Options for next steps: do work through Subcommittees between calls and have a 2-day meeting with a group working beforehand to come up with proposal
Toolkit for outreach
- powerpoint
- video
- posters, postcards
- 10 ways to plug in
Subcommittee will meet with Tammy, Ahmina, and Cindy For consideration:
- How does the People's Movement Assembly relate to the Outreach WG?
- Pull Stephanie in to this conversation
Goal is synergy across WG
Regular call 2nd Wednesday of each month at 1pm pst, 2pm mountian, 3pm central, 4pm est
Next call is Wed, Sept 9 at 1pm pst, 2pm mountain, 3pm central, 4pm est