HSA trip underway!
We did it! Thanks to your support, Tom flew out late yesterday for the Hemispheric Social Alliance Meeting in Brazil. He wanted to pass along his thanks for all of the activity and donations that made this trip possible. Attending this meeting is a real win for the Alliance for Responsible Trade and for the dream of building bridges between people on a firm foundation of justice.
The HSA coordination meeting in Brazil follows an intense week of activity in Washington. ART members, our Colombian partners, and members of the Interfaith Working Group on Trade visited 27 Congressional offices in 5 days!
Our efforts focused on educating the newly elected democrats, on Senator Levin who chairs the Committee on Trade, and on the staff of the Ways and Means Committee. We sent a clear message for the need to change course in trade policy and to oppose renewal of the undemocratic "fast track" trade authority given to President Bush. We urged members not to succumb to administration pressure to settle for cosmetic changes, but instead to insist on a fundamental reorientation in trade policy in order to truly address the problems inherent in the current model.
Important linkages were also established between the Colombians and the U.S. human rights community - a priority for partners in countries where these "free" trade agreements are negatively impacting human rights. Incredibly, there is a trend among the elites to characterize popular opposition to the FTAs as terrorist activity! By building bridges between those working for justice in their countries and U.S. activists and decisionmakers, we hope to undermine such ridiculous attacks.
We look forward to reporting to you once Tom returns regarding plans for coordinated work between social movements north and south in the year ahead.
You can do your part by letting your Congressperson know that you support a complete reassessment of the terms of trade in favor of the environment and workers' rights, and that you won't settle for cosmetic change.
Thanks again!
The Alliance for Responsible Trade