USSF Writers network May 12, 2010
Dear USSF writers,
Excitement is building as we enter the final six weeks before the US Social Forum meets in Detroit. Please make an effort to step up your efforts to help us get the word out far and wide in the local press and op-ed pages, community newsletters, blogs, mainstream press, wherever you can think of!
Please also be sure to check the USSF website (www.ussf2010.org) and http://wiki.ussf2010.org/wiki/Press_and_People_Stories for recent press stories on the US Social Forum. These are good sources of ideas for your own pieces and for news outlets. If you can, take a few moments to comment on the pieces. For instance, the author of the story on Requium for Detroit in the The Guardian could use some support in defending Detroit and the USSF. The more perspectives on why the USSF is necessary the better! (http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/may/07/real-requiem-for-detroit)
Think about the groups heading to Detroit—they may be near you, or you may want to interview folks from different places to encourage others to think about how THEY can be part of the excitement building in the lead-up to Detroit’s USSF. There are many different ‘hooks’ for stories about the USSF, and the website has details about what groups are planning to give you some leads and ideas.
If you haven't seen the USSF mentioned in a publication you read, contact the editors with information. Many folks in my area are increasingly interested as the date draws near. Give them the “scoop” before the big news breaks when 30,000 people come to Detroit to work on changing the country and the world.
REGISTRATION UPDATE: Nearly 6,000 individuals and 1300 organizations have registered for the USSF! More than 1200 workshops have been submitted, and 300 cultural activities.
- You can search the workshop list online for themes and organizations.
- Under-represented areas include: Delaware, Wyoming, Montana, New Hampshire,
Oklahoma…Writers can help outreach to these areas
Story Ideas
Human Rights of Immigrants:
The Arizona immigration law has generated much discussion and debate. People who come to this country for a variety of reasons, largely due to the economic policies of our own government which make it increasingly difficult for them to earn a living as farmers or producers in their own countries. Activists attending the U.S. Social Forum will be working to increase understandings of how globalization impacts the lives of people around the world while they work to build a movement to make economic policies more just and equitable. Groups organizing to defend the basic human rights of immigrants in this country who face discrimination and harassment because of laws like that passed in Arizona. A panel of distinguished United Nations human rights experts recently issued a statement claiming that the Arizona law violates international human rights (the Associated Press) http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/05/11
Indigenous Rights and Climate Justice –Another World/ Another Politics is Possible
US Social Forum NPC member Tom Goldtooth, Indigenous Environmental Network, was part of a delegation to meet with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. The meeting was organized by President Evo Morales to present the declaration from the recent World People’s Congress on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth, which was held in Cochabamba, Bolivia in April.
The delegation is an example of the new kinds of politics emerging in response to the crises our world is facing. This call for new politics is a central idea and principle of the World Social Forum process. The world’s first indigenous president organized the Cochabamba Summit as an alternative to the failure of the official inter-state negotiations to reach an agreement to curb global warming at the UN Conference in Copenhagen last December. The Summit brought together people’s organizations and governments, and the final declaration called for dramatically different approaches to addressing climate change. Not only did delegates reject the carbon market regimes being promoted in the official negotiations, but they called on the United Nations to pass a Declaration on the Rights of Mother Earth. This would, for the first time, recognize the importance of respecting and protecting our earth’s ecosystem as a basic prerequisite to governance of human societies. www.boliviaun.org
Detroit Groups Calling Mass Demonstration to End Urban Waste Incinerator: Clean Air, Good Jobs & Justice for All! A coalition of Detroit organizations is calling on allies at the USSF to join them for a June 26 rally, march and demonstration. For more details see: www.cleanairgoodjobsjustice.org
Oil Rig Disaster in Gulf Shows Need for Major Changes
The oil spill resulting from the explosion on an oil rig being leased by BP shows how costly our fossil-fuel intensive economy really is. As politicians and oil executives point fingers and try to dodge responsibility, many thousands of barrels of oil are spewing into the sea. One question that needs more attention is why our governments allow such risky behavior by large corporations when they don’t have adequate emergency plans? Another possible world is one that takes seriously the “precautionary principle” which is enshrined in much international environmental law and which draws upon the wisdom of indigenous peoples to make the aim of protecting Mother Earth a priority. The principle says that when scientific information is lacking or unclear, humans must err on the side of caution. Thus, if there is no plan for dealing effectively with this sort of disaster, no offshore drilling should be allowed anywhere.
Obviously, the political power of oil companies will make the struggle to enforce the precautionary principle a tough one. But tens of thousands of activists are coming together this June for the United States Social Forum to discuss plans for making our political systems work for people and the environment. In addition to outlining visions of what sort of world we would like to see, people representing those groups who have not been benefitting from the economic globalization being promoted by our political leaders will be developing plans, strategies, and networks to help make a new world a reality. The events in the Gulf are an important reminder of the urgency of our work in Detroit this June 22-26!
- Links to previous muse and memos-- with more story ideas: http://wiki.ussf2010.org/wiki/USSF_Updates
- Please send your stories to: writers@ussf2010.org