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Toronto takes action against the TPP and toxic trade deals outside Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland's office on Spadina/Bloor.
Photo credit: Albert Yang
DEMOCRACY MOVEMENT LAUNCHES NATIONWIDE ACTIONS
ACTIONS ROLL ACROSS THE NATION DEFENDING INTERNET FREEDOM BEFORE HISTORIC FCC VOTE & IN OPPOSITION TO CONGRESSIONAL FAST-TRACKING OF LARGEST U.S. TRADE DEAL EVER
On February 26th the FCC will cast their historic vote on Net Neutrality. Simultaneously, when Congress reconvenes after the congressional recess, they are preparing to bring Fast Track of the Trans-Pacific Partnership up for a vote. The Rolling Rebellion for Real Democracy is confronting these two current issues of people power vs. corporate power that will have a major impact on people's lives.
Firstly, the issue of Net Neutrality. A people-powered movement has convinced the FCC to reclassify the Internet to ensure equal access for all without discrimination. Kevin Zeese of Popular Resistance notes that “Net Neutrality is essential for the exercise of Freedom of Speech in the 21st Century. Now the telecom companies are trying to convince their puppets in Congress to undermine the FCC's decision and once again, the people are fighting back.”
Secondly, TPP and Fast Track. For three years a movement opposed to secretly negotiated corporate trade agreements has stopped Congress from giving President Obama Fast Track trade authority. Fast Track would allow him to sign these secret agreements and then push them through Congress without hearings or amendments, with only brief debate on and an up-or-down vote. These trade agreements are structured solely in the interest of corporate gain. The TPP and Fast Track are bringing together odd bedfellows like in Spokane, WA where Tea Party members and Occupiers are coming together in opposition.
Eleanor Goldfield a musician with Rooftop Revolutionaries and activist with the Rolling Rebellion says passage of the TPP and Fast Track would “turn corporate personhood into corporate nationhood by creating international court systems and trade tribunals that allow corporations to challenge laws enacted by countries in the interest of public health, safety and justice.”
With this sovereignty, corporations would hold sway over nearly every facet of our lives, from food to Internet access. As Julian Assange wrote, “If you read, write, publish, think, listen, dance, sing or invent; if you farm or consume food; if you’re ill now or might one day be ill, the TPP has you in its crosshairs.”
In the month of February, people are protesting at the grassroots level, combining their efforts into a national movement for equal access Internet and against secret trade deals. Years of organizing have brought these issues to a head. Now, activists have been mobilizing throughout the congressional recess and coordinating high-visibility actions in cities from coast to coast.
In Washington and Oregon a “Fair Trade or BusTour” complete with hand-painted murals and packed with constituents is paying visits to undecided members of congress. In San Diego, CA community-members will take to highway overpasses to deliver to their representatives their message emblazoned on LED light panels. In more than 10 cities across the U.S. activists will use guerrilla light projection to illuminate monuments and building facades with slogans like “Don't Let Comcast
Choke Your Freedom,” “No Slow Lanes, Open & Equal Internet For All,” and “TPP Dismantles Democracy - www.stopfasttrack.com.” Multiple were organized at telecom companies like Comcast, AT&T, and Time Warner Cable who are second only to defense industries in the amount that they spend lobbying and buying favors from representatives who are supposed to serve "We The People." On February 25th in Washington, D.C. a new documentary “Killswitch:
The Battle to Control the Internet” was screened before members of congress and activists from across the country. Today activists will unveil a larger than life killswitch to dramatize the stakes of the historic FCC vote.
The FCC's announcement to vote in favor of Net Neutrality is a complete paradigm shift from less than a year ago; a true show of the effectiveness of focused, dedicated grassroots action.
If we continue to fight and win these battles, they will stand as tremendous victories of people power over corporate power. The people will have stopped some of the most powerful corporate lobbies in the United States including the telecoms and hundreds of transnational corporations.
Using high visibility, creative actions, the Rolling Rebellion has and will continue this fight. For more information, please visit www.rollingrebellion.org.
Popular Resistance, Backbone Campaign, www.occupy.com, and more teamed up to launch the rolling rebellion and reignite the fight for a real
democracy.
Photos by Rick Barry of Broken Shade Photo
Michael Beasley of Spokane Coalition Builders
For Immediate Release: Day before Wikileak of TPP Document - 13
Cities Mobilized to Shine a Light on Secret Trans-Pacific Partnership
"Trade" Deal Telling Congress "Don't Fast Track a Train Wreck - FLUSH
the TPP!"
CONTACT: Bill Moyer 206-356-9980 | bill@backbonecampaign.org
| or Eric Ross 805-776-3882 | eric@backbonecampaign.org
| 805-776-3882 | VoteNoFastTrack.org
SEATTLE - On Tuesday evening citizens in Seattle and 12
other cities appeared on overpasses and roadsides to pull the
Trans-Pacific Partnership, aka TPP, out of the shadows and into the
light of public scrutiny. From Dallas to DC, San Diego to Seattle,
Tucson to Detroit, Baltimore to Bellingham, Spokane to Chicago
people took their messages to interstate overpasses, prominent
monuments, and busy city streets using coordinated daytime and
nighttime, high visibility tactics.
They deployed giant banners saying No New NAFTA, mobilized LED light
panels saying "(thumbs up) Democracy, STOP The TPP," and projected with
spotlights messages like "Don't Fast Track A Train Wreck." These
coordinated citizen's actions coincided with ongoing TPP negotiations
taking place in Salt Lake City, Utah from November 12-24
and today's anticipated release by Congressperson Rosa DeLauro and
George Miller detailing the growing opposition to "Fast Track" among
Congress, and preceded today's surprise release by Wikileaks of a leaked
chapter of the secretive "TPP" agreement. [Here
is Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch initial interpretations of the
chapter on intellectual property.]
The TPP has been called NAFTA on steroids, a "Corporate Coup," and
concerned citizens from across the nation are calling on Congress to
"Flush It!" and to oppose President Obama's request to renew "Fast
Track" authority to commit our country to this secretive agreement that
has less to do with trade, than it does with dismantling any domestic
policies that undermine future profits for transnational capital and
corporations.
Bill Moyer, Executive Director of the Backbone Campaign stated "Only a
bought a sold government would sign a treaty that sacrifices our
capacity as communities and country to pass laws for workers benefit,
and the protection of our communities and our natural resources."
The Trans-Pacific Partnership has been negotiated under secrecy for 3
years. Obama is now pushing to have it swiftly approved to much to the
dismay of members of Congress, most of whom haven't even been allowed to
see the text. While Congress is constitutionally required to negotiate
any international treaties, Fast Track or granting Obama Trade Promotion
Authority would forfeit the Congress' responsibility and the public's
right to weigh in on the TPP negotiations.
Perhaps in response to growing citizen outrage letters were release
today from both Democrats and Republicans challenging President Obama's
request for renewal of Fast Track authority. [From Today's Public
Citizen announcement: The
151-signature DeLauro-Miller letter, additional
letter from Democratic Ways & Means members, One
of two letters, this led by Representative Walter Jones (R-NC)]
One of the illuminated messages on Tuesday read "Corporate Tribunals
WTF?" This referred to how the TPP would give more power to corporate
interests including the ability for foreign companies to sue for
taxpayer compensation if any domestic law diminished the company's expected future profits.
Masked as a trade deal, the agreement has been negotiated under
supervision of 600 unelected corporate "trade advisors" while the text
has been hidden from members of Congress, the press, and the public.
What has been learned about the TPP has come through leaked texts, and
is alarming to members of Congress worried about sovereign powers being
negotiated away, public health officials, labor representatives,
environmental groups, and advocates of consumer issues.
"The TPP, the largest ever of it's kind, is a race to the bottom
international agreement on domestic and international policies of food
safety, internet freedom, medicine costs, financial regulation, and the
environment," says Kristen Beifus, executive director of Washington Fair
Trade Coalition."
Trade Justice organizations have declared December 3rd a "Global Day of
Action Against the TPP to resist toxic trade agreements." Citizens are
urged to take action in their own community, contact their
congressperson, and learn more about the TPP's dismantling of democracy
by visiting VoteNoFastTrack.org.
Citizens can find out where their congressperson stands and tweet them
Tuesday's coordinated actions were organized by the Backbone Campaign,
which specializes in "amplifying citizen engagement with creative
tactics and artful activism" in collaboration with Public Citizen's
Global Trade Watch, PopularResistance.org, Fair Trade Coalitions in
Washington and Oregon, the Overpass Light
Brigade network, and more.
The coordinated day of action follows on the heals of an action in
September when to the surprise of secret service, members and allies of
PopularResistance.org and the Backbone Campaign "redecorated"
the United States Trade Representatives office by scaling the building
and unfurling giant banners demanding a release of the TPP text. The
Backbone Campaign is grateful to Wikileaks for beginning that process.
View the growing collection of photos from the 11-12-13 actions HERE.
To speak with organizers of yesterday's day of action please contact
Bill Moyer at 206-356-9980 or Eric Ross at 805-776-3882.
Info and Collaborator Web Sites:
Thanks to our many awesome collaborators both mentioned and not!
Watch
Coalition
Coalition
Brigade
Brigade
Diego Overpass Light Brigade
Rising Tide
Talking Points
###
Backbone Campaign's mission is to provide creative strategies, artful
activism trainings, and creative action support to progressive
activists, organizers and organizations around the US and beyond in
order to invigorate and nurture a people-power, community-based, and
internationally-networked nonviolent social movement for human rights,
thriving communities, and ecological well being. Backbone Campaign's
vision is a world where human dignity, community resilience, and
ecological well being is built upon a foundation of democratic
economic and political systems and diverse, thriving culture where
human rights, the rights of communities and nature are truly
inalienable and honored.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will boost demand for U.S. farm and food products across the Asia-Pacific region, increasing farm income, generating rural economic activity, and supporting local jobs. Japan is already a major market for U.S. agriculture, despite substantial trade barriers. The TPP agreement will help break down those barriers and create exciting new opportunities.
A group of musicians and activists gathered at Mr. Smalls in Pittsburgh, Pa., for the Rock Against the TPP tour on Thursday, November 3.
Rodrigo Samayoa
Online Campaigner
Leadnow.ca
Cel: 778.870.1961
Skype: jorosafi
Follow us on Twitter @Leadnowca
Follow us on Facebook
Rodrigo Samayoa
Online Campaigner
Leadnow.ca
Cel: 778.870.1961
Skype: jorosafi
Follow us on Twitter @Leadnowca
Follow us on Facebook
「この国は、世界を向いて地方を振り返らない。」
反TPPを訴えるポスター。
「この国」って表現を用いた批判は、なんか筑紫哲也風味になってイヤだなぁ。
ネガティブな表現では自らを律する意味を含め「我が国」と表現するのが良いかと。
President Obama intends to Fast Track the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) if we don’t act to stop him. Why should the non-GMO movement care about the TPP? Because it will allow corporations like Monsanto to undermine EVERYTHING that we are working for, worldwide. Join the Twitter Storm on Sunday night to help get the word out, and tell Congress to oppose Fast Track. Please take action and share with everyone you know.
Email your Representative here: action.citizen.org/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KE...
Twitter Storm #TPPMarchOnTheMedia
When: Sunday, August 11 from 10PM - 11PM EST
Monday, August 12 from 2AM - 3AM GMT
FB Page: www.facebook.com/TPPTuesdaysMarchOnMedia
READ MORE: www.nationofchange.org/trans-pacific-partnership-and-mons...