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USSF Cultural Working Group

April 29, 2009

6pm EST


6 attendees


Walda – facilitator

Jerome from Atlanta

Harlan from Detroit

Will Copeland from Detroit

Bill from Detroit

Nadir from Detroit


Discuss tasks from NPG for working group

Q: Should program and cultural committee be together or separate?

Suggestion from Jerome, problems with coordination in Atlanta because cultural group and program group were separate. Perhaps for now one group, and then later separate after cultural group grows.

Live and Peace Art Party – Harlan offered suggestion; wants to insure that people are not involved in organizing for “cosmetic” reasons.

It was decided that determining goals and objectives would help us understand the scope of working group. Electing co-chairs tabled until everyone has a better understanding.

   * What are your main goals? Objectives?
        1. Infusion of culture in USSF
        2. Self-organized workshops and sessions proposals
        3. Organize concerts, poetry slams, etc. to give cultural context to forum
        4. Programs in community before and during social forum - How do we get people from the forum to those spaces? How do we get people from those spaces to the forum?  What about after?  Opportunity to organize and connect communities across the world.  Insure that there is a take away for everyone involved.
        5. Opening march
        6. Connecting religious community with culture committee and program committee
        7. Plenaries and speaking engagements – What role can culture play in those events?  National planning committee makes decisions about these events. Committee and working group can make suggestions.
        8. Be very creative about how culture is infused in the program

Q: Does program committee do blueprint for layout and open spaces? Logistics committee works with program committee.

               * Atlanta had monthly meetings with different committees meeting with each other.  Overlapped locally.
               * Over 1000 workshops in Atlanta. Organized by program committee.
               * Program committee works with technology committee to get program out

Q: How can we hold people accountable for their work on the committee? See how people take assignments and complete them. If they don’t complete them, move on to someone who will. This is the only way they can be held accountable.

Comment: Helpful to have advice from Atlanta about what worked and didn’t in 2007.

Next meeting: Wednesday, May 13 6pm EST

Will Copeland will report from this working group to local organizing committee.


Minutes by Nadir nadir@distortedsoul.com