[stop-imf] Top 10 Jubilee Reasons to Come to DC next week and for Sat 9/28

Wed, 18 Sep 2002 16:30:00 -0700

Date: Wed, 18 Sep 2002 09:17:42 -0400
From: coord@j2000usa.org

Hello Jubilee!

Here are the top 10 reasons to be in DC next week... and more details on
the events Jubilee is sponsoring....

I look forward to seeing you soon in Washington DC!! At least I hope
that most of you will be making the treck to put your bodies and your
spirits on the front line of the call for Jubilee Justice. 

If you need housing, check out our website for extremely affordable
options at http://www.jubileeusa.org/jubilee.cgi?path=/take_action&page=housing.html
It is first come, first serve... so check it out now...

As you have been hearing, we have a variety of events that we are
planning... and as we are getting closer, we have more juicy details for
you about these events. 

1. Many of you are participating in our GLOBAL SOUTH TOUR - Global
Struggles Against the IMF and World Bank. Check out our website for the
city near you and come out to listen to our partners from the South
describe their work and experiences. http://www.jubileeusa.org/jubilee.cgi?path=/learn_more&page=tour-schedule.html
There are eleven partners from Africa, Asia and Latin America traveling
to 29 cities. The tour has already drawn literally hundreds of people to
the events and has already resulted in additional busses of people
traveling to DC to participate in the teach-ins, the interfaith service
and vigil and the big rally. The full schedule, names and bios of the
speakers, and more on our website. 

Jubilee has been sponsoring this with 50 Years is Enough Network...
co-sponsors have included Essential Action, Center for Economic Justice
and others.

2. Register now for the Global Struggles Against the IMF and World Bank
teach-ins in DC September 25-27. (The earlier you register, the cheaper
it is!)

The Teach-ins will start on Wednesday evening the 25th with a panel of
international activists. Thursday and Friday will be packed with
workshops and sessions on all of the issues and topics that intersect
into globalization. There will be workshops where we will be able to
hear our Southern partners speak about their experience and analysis -
hot off their speaking tour. There will be sessions for strategy and
movement building, looking at the critical issue that face our movement.
There will be educational sessions on Debt, Trade, AIDS, Environment and
more and sessions that dig deeply into specific issues, like
illegitimate and odious debt or legislation and details of debt like the
PRSPs and Export Credit Agencies. 

These teach-ins will present a variety of views and they are open to
participants of any level of involvement on the issues. Friday evening
the teach-ins will close with a panel featuring Ralph Nader, Mohau Pheko
of South Africa and more! For more information and to register, check
out
http://www.jubileeusa.org/jubilee.cgi?path=/take_action&page=september.html
 If you register today you will get a discount on the price!

Join us, bringing your experience, insight and analysis, or just open
ears and hearts.... and be sure to invite your friends and colleagues to
join you. These events will also be great learning experiences for
people just jumping into the field, so if your are a part of a DC NGO,
feel free to send your interns or new staff for a crash course in globalization.

Jubilee and 50 Years is Enough have sponsored this event and it has been
co-sponsored by Essential Action, Center for Economic Justice and more.

3. An Interfaith Service and Candlelight Vigil will be a highlight of
the activities at the end of the month. The service and vigil will be on
Thursday night, the 26th and will have Rt. Reverend Peter Njenga, an
Anglican Bishop of Kenya as the keynote speaker. Bishop Njenga is the
former Provost of All Saints Cathedral in Nairobi, and has been a
consistent and outspoken advocate for economic and social justice in
Kenya.  He has been particularly active in raising awareness of and
productively addressing the HIV/AIDS crisis, police brutality, gender
oppression, and economic policies that hurt the impoverished.  He is
patron of the Interfaith Group Kenya, which was the lead sponsor of the
East African Seminar on Debt, held in Nairobi in July 2001, drawing
participants from nine countries in the region.   

After an inspiring service, we will walk in candle light to the US
Treasury to hold vigil reminding ourselves of the important role the US
plays in the international financial institutions.... thinking, praying
and reflecting on our role as US citizens to call on our government to
take a lead in ushering in Jubilee.  All will be welcome at this
uplifting event. Again, the details are on our website at http://www.jubileeusa.org/jubilee.cgi?path=/take_action&page=september.html
This event has been sponsored by Jubilee and the Religious Working Group
of the IMF and World Bank.

4. Saturday, September 28th there will be a Debt and AIDS march that
will kick off at noon at the US Treasury department and travel to the
Ellipse to call attention to the links between debt and AIDS. This march
will feed into the rally on the Ellipse that will involve speakers,
music, concerts, puppets, t-shirts and more as we mobilize to draw
attention to the deadly policies of the IMF and World Bank. While the
institutions meet to discuss the economic future of billions, we will
call on them to become more transparent, cancel the debt, end harmful
structural adjustment policies and all policies that are destructive to
people and the environment. This will be a non-violent gathering and we
will have a permit for the space. This rally will lead into a permitted
march that will end again at the Ellipse. For those that would like to
participate in non-violent civil disobedience, you can get in touch with
others at http://www.globalizethis.org .

The Debt and AIDS march has been sponsored by Jubilee and Health Gap and
others. The Rally has been sponsored by the Mobilization for Global
Justice and endorsed by Jubilee and many others.

5. Jubilee has also been supportive of a Global Justice Film Festival
that has been running in DC all month. There are 15 films that are
followed by a discussion on the critical issues that are raised in the
films. Already the film festival has drawn crowds as big as a hundred or
more to the events and the discussions have been lively! Jubilee will
lead, with TransAfrica Forum the discussion for "Life and Debt" on
Monday the 23rd, so if you are already in town, join us at 501 3rd St.
NW at the Communication Workers of America building. More info on
http://www.50years.org/film_festival/index.html .

The primary sponsors of this festival have been 50 Years is Enough,
Center for Economic Justice, DC Labor FilmFest and the DC Metro Labor
Council, Jobs with Justice, Essential Action and Jubilee USA Network.

6. New Rules for Global Finance, CIDSE/Caritas, Center of Concern invite
you to attend Towards a Fair and Orderly Resolution to Debt Crises, a
Conference to discuss proposals to replace the Paris Club approach with
a formal mechanism for restructuring developing countries' debt
September 26, 2002 from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm at the World Bank Building
J 1050 (18th St, between G and H, ground floor) in Washington, D.C. A
downloadable flyer is available at
http://www.jubileeusa.org/newrules.pdf . 

7. Jubilee has been sponsoring a rolling fast as a prayerful and
thoughtful way set aside the month of September in a call for Jubilee
Justice. Already 34 people have agreed to fast for one day in September
in remembrance of the suffering caused by debt and as a personal act to
usher in Jubilee. Feel free to join the fast. Let us know who you are
and which day you will be fasting. Your name will be listed on our site.
For more information, please see http://www.jubileeusa.org/jubilee.cgi?path=/take_action&page=fast.html

8. Jubilee has been having some media success... read all about our
expose of a leaked WB and IMF report at
http://www.jubileeusa.org/HIPC_Failing.html . Keep watch for more news
on debt... the buzz is on... and you can become a part of it by
approaching your local media outlet and pitching them the story of
Jubilee Justice. We will have a new report for the media done by early
next week.

9. Jubilee will have our NEW education and action packet out by the end
of the month as well.... if you come to DC you will be the first to have
an option to buy! Otherwise, you can order our packet through our
office. 

10. Finally, for those of you who are Network Council Members, we are
having our one day Network Council Meeting on September 30 from 9-5 at
the Center of Concern. We will be electing new members to our
Coordinating Committee... so send in nominations with bios this week and
all members should make plans for whom to vote for Jubilee leadership. 

See you soon!

Marie Clarke

*****************************************
Marie Clarke Brill
National Coordinator
Jubilee USA Network
222 East Capitol Street, NE
Washington, DC 20003
(202) 783-0215
(202) 546-4468 - fax
marie@j2000usa.org
www.jubileeusa.org

Joining hands to break the chains of debt