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December 2000

Staff Editorial
There is hope in an era of Bush.
by the PERSPECTIVE staff

UC Endorsement
Steve Smith and James Coleman are the liberal's choice.
by the PERSPECTIVE staff

Canadian Comrades
It really is better up there.
by Danny Schlozman

Triumph or Tragedy?
Clinton's legacy is one of calculated compromise.
by Jeffrey Theodore

Buying Survival
Africa needs money, now.
by Ved Lekic and Alexandra Neuhaus-Follini

Pharmitas
Pharmaceutical companies fund Harvard research.
by Nathan Perl-Rosenthal

Students for What?
Folic acid has a hidden message.
by Shelby Meyerhoff

Greens Take Root
PERSPECTIVE talks to Cliff Ginn.
by Dev Purkayastha

A Year to Remember
A year from Seattle, the WTO protests go on.
by Bob Elliott

Cry Freedom
America's ideal of freedom is questionable.
by Nikhil Jaikumar

Introspective
In Defense of Money
by Brad Hershbein

Salmagundi

The Back Page
Keeping Christmas
by Julia Silvis

A year ago, people throughout the world gathered to watch the evening news coverage of the events in Seattle. Protesters marched through the streets, fought with police, and dodged tear gas, batons and rubber bullets. The national news portrayed the situation as entirely chaotic. Thousands of police were brought in to end the rioting that occurred in the city. No protest zones were set up around the city center to limit the impact on the WTO meetings. After a few days, the National Guard was brought into the city, people's civil liberties were suspended, and a curfew was enforced. A police state was set up to ensure that the meetings proceeded. And then, almost as quickly as the protesters gathered, they dispersed. The WTO, the activists, and the police, left the city with scars that remain today.

In the following year, the memories of Seattle have stayed with its participants and the people who watched the nightly news. To some people, the Seattle protests were just a riot organized by anarchists in an attempt to destroy the city. But to many others, the efforts of thousands impacted the way they saw the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the global economy. These protests raised questions about global environmentalism and trade have formed the basis of a new activist movement throughout the world.

The WTO is an international organization that attempts to open trade with all markets of the world. It was formed under the Uruguay Round of talks held under GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) from 1986-94. Overall, there are currently more than 130 members of the WTO and about thirty are looking for membership. Current members include the entire EU (European Union), the United States, along with most of the Americas, and countless Asian and African countries. The organization believes that free trade will eventually provide countries with greater opportunities for success. For third world countries, the WTO believes strongly in provisions requiring all WTO members to safeguard the trade interests of developing countries.

As a part of its jurisdiction defined by the GATT agreement, the WTO examines laws that might inhibit trade. These laws include laws designed for environmental and small business protection. In nearly every case examined, laws that might inhibit trade have been ruled illegal by the WTO. The economic system that the WTO has created strongly supports and encourages expansion of multinational corporations. These corporations, such as Nike, are notorious for their human rights and environmental transgressions in the name of profit.

Instead of a global economy controlled by corporations, the protesters in Seattle believed that a more regional economy would be better for the people and the environment. Their philosophy affirms that local control of economic practices by politicians who have a more accurate view of conditions is better for the planet and workers. Clearly, the idea of local control needs explanation. More than anything, the protesters want to see economic policies controlled by people who directly understand the conditions of the worker. This understanding, the protesters believe, cannot be gained on an international level. Instead, their proposed system would place the legislation in the hands of the nations, or even better, the states of those nations. This would allow for those politicians who are directly elected by the people make the legislation that impacts the people. This system allows for policies to be developed to effectively address the concerns of the workers on a local level in cases such as human rights violations. Further reasoning about the need to end corporate globalization rests on the environmental issues. Local companies and policies can more directly address these issues. It is very difficult, for instance, to have an effective international pollution ordinance, because such legislation generally goes to the lowest restriction, instead of the highest. By allowing national standards, the government can weigh carefully the economic need for such polluting and the environmental costs to achieve a proper balance.

To accomplish their goals protesters sought to eliminate the WTO as a governing body for international trade. Prior to the gatherings in Seattle, activists and protesters had tried for years to go through legislative channels to express their concerns. The problem with such solutions is the distance the WTO and similar organizations are from the people. In the WTO, for instance, there is no direct election of members. Instead, nations appoint members. Therefore, there is little recourse of action to take against the members of these organizations. Beyond that, in general politicians refuse to uphold the anti-globalization cause. The reasoning behind such a stance was simple: money. The politicians entrusted to best serve our country's needs, are paid for by multinational corporations. This funding goes to both sides of the aisle, totaling around 10 billion dollars this year. Clearly, this quantity of money significantly impacts the legislation in this country.

Protesters saw that they would get the most notice if they took to the streets. In Seattle, the protests aimed to shut down the WTO meetings. The results were two fold. First, the protesters were able to directly influence the governing body of world trade. This was done by physically inhibiting their meetings. Also, the activists that were there were able to get their message to the general public through both independent and corporate media sources. People throughout the world were exposed to the protesters through the nightly news, cable television, radio broadcasts, and the internet.

The ideals from Seattle spread quickly to other countries throughout the world as the WTO, International Monetary Fund (IMF), Organization of American States (OAS), and others continued to meet. At the next WTO meeting after Seattle, thousands of people gathered in Bangkok, Thailand to protest. Thailand, the home of some of the most egregious infractions of human rights by electronics and textile producers was set as a place for East Asian countries to exert economic influence in the global economy. With millions of workers unemployed, leaders of these countries looked for monetary profit in exchange for large corporations to establish work centers in the poorest areas.

In the United States, protests resumed with the gathering of several hundred people in June in Detroit for a meeting of the Organization of American States held across the river in Windsor, Ontario. This group of North and South American nations met to discuss the implications of the WTO legislation related to the FTAA (Free Trade Area of the Americas) agreement. This agreement would serve to create a free trade zone for all of the American States. This means that tariffs and other taxes are eliminated on trade between member states. The goal of the agreement is to open all markets in the Americas to free trade.

Later in the year, the national conventions for the Democrats and Republicans became a site for further protests. Both organizations strongly believe in NAFTA and the work of the WTO in opening new markets for trade. Protesters there were met with much stronger opposition there than in other areas. In Los Angeles, police immediately removed and jailed protesters. Unlike in Seattle and Detroit, however, the action by the police was invisible. In LA and Philadelphia police waited until people were in jail to beat and humiliate protesters. Because of this, the general public was unaware of the serious infractions of civil liberties that were taken by police. Many of the people in LA were released after jail solidarity tactics were used effectively. In Philadelphia, however, protesters were not nearly as lucky. Some arrested protesters remain in jail today.

More recently, protesters gathered in Prague, the site of numerous populous movements within the twentieth century. In Prague, people mobilized to protest the annual meeting of the IMF; a group that gives aid to countries that allow multinational corporations to exploit their people. The protests brought tens of thousands of people together throughout the city in protest of the actions of the IMF. Here, as in Seattle, the size of the crowd was able to limit the effectiveness of the meetings.

Several major changes have come about because of the actions above and countless smaller actions in the last year. One of changes we've seen is the creation of independent media organizations separate from the corporate media that dominates the television and print media today. The independent media organization (www.indymedia.org) started in Seattle with a small collection of cameramen and writers. During the days of the Seattle protests, these independent people wrote stories from the front lines of the protests. Their work showed the police brutality that occurred in on the streets and expressed the ideas and opinions of those involved. Soon, people in other cities announced their interests in being a part of a grassroots media organization. In the last year independent media organizations have grown in most major cities in the United States and the world. These organizations report on stories that often are never covered by the mainstream media. The organization has become so extensive that it has worked to get media credentials for media events, although, because of their leftist leanings, many reporters have been denied credentials at the School of the Americas protests and similar events.

Outside of the response of the media, the police here in the United States have drastically changed their action toward protesters in the last year. Seeing the destruction and loss of control that occurred in Seattle, many police organizations have overhauled their policies toward peaceful protesters. Instead of abiding by the law and constitution, police are now suspending civil rights in areas that they believe will be the site for protests. This allows police to take any physical action they want against those engaged in peaceful protesting. For instance, here in Boston, outside of the presidential debates, people were beaten severely and attacked by horses while sitting, holding peace signs, and taking no violent actions toward the police. An action by the police that we would consider only a part of a dictatorship has become all too common within our borders. Also, many police organizations have changed their strategy from on street physical attacks to attacks within jail walls. This way, the public and the media have a more difficult time seeing the unlawful actions taken by police.

The actions of the last year have also brought a new sense within the American people, and, in fact the people of the world. This new sense, a new spirit of democracy as some call it has even influenced our politics at the presidential level. The people moved to action by the Seattle protests mobilized Ralph Nader as President. These protesters became the heart of the progressive campaign that developed in the months leading up to the election. Supporters of Nader saw him as the only candidate that had the strength of character to represent a strong belief in democracy and justice. His policies reflected these beliefs, focusing on the elimination of NAFTA and the WTO while reworking education and tax structures to benefit inner city and lower-class Americans. Although Nader did not reach his goal of gaining 5% of the popular vote and, in turn, matching federal funds, Nader did develop the Green Party as the primary third party in America. This party, with continued support from the activist community could grow as a result of the election success into a viable and active party in American politics.

Most importantly, however, the real influence of the Seattle protests has been a revival of the activist spirit in America. Prior to last year, people who worked for environmental causes or for workers rights were in the background of the political spectrum. These causes received little attention from media, and, because of a lack of attention, their messages were silent unheard by most Americans Today, the independent media centers, along with other mainstream media outlets, are beginning to spread the message of activists.

The mainstreaming of leftist activism has brought a new sense to the American people. They have begun to question institutions and ideas once seen as sacrosanct. As the independent media center states, for the first time on a large scale, economic polices of the World Bank, the WTO, the International Monetary Fund, and the rest of the institutions which make up the international economy are being directly questioned, not just by the people whose lives and cultures are being destroyed, but an enormous movement around the world. And from this questioning, coalitions throughout the world have developed based upon environmentalism, workers rights, and social justice.

Questions? Comments? Please contact perspy@hcs.harvard.edu