The June 17 Southam News editorial attack on social-justice activists concerned with the exploitative policies of the G8, "Tiresomely familiar," can only have come as a disappointment to anyone who is eager to understand the issues surrounding the upcoming summit and the widespread resistance to it.
The assumption that "leading Western governments are trying to spread the benefits of globalization" seems to be a blind and unsubstantiated assertion that runs contrary to the evidence at hand. Witness, for instance, the way Western states have used their control of institutions like the World Bank to push through disastrous economic programs in developing countries, resulting in mass unemployment and the cutting of basic services to the poor. These governments, under intense lobbying by big business, have overseen a trend whereby each year more wealth is siphoned into the hands of a tiny elite while the majority of the world's people continue to live in abject poverty.
The fact that the G8, an exclusive club of the eight most powerful countries, meets at all, is an affront to poor people everywhere.
The Take the Capital days of protest against the G8 are organized by grassroots groups that fight back against the marginalization, criminalization and exploitation of people in our communities. We are disgusted that the G8 summit will cost $300 million and provide delegates with a luxurious stay while a housing crisis continues in our cities. The protests that will take place in Ottawa on the 26 and 27 June will be a celebration of our resistance to a system that places profit above all else.
It is outrageous when newspaper owners so wholeheartedly declare their support for the treachery of states and capital, in a style reminiscent of state media in totalitarian countries. While we sincerely hope Southam newspapers will provide more balanced coverage in future, we also suggest that readers draw their own informed conclusions about the protests and about the serious issues at hand.
Andrea Schmidt
Kieran Oberman
Organizers with Take the Capital
Ottawa
FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. NoNonsense English offers this material non-commercially for research and educational purposes. I believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C § 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner, i.e. the media service or newspaper which first published the article online and which is indicated at the top of the article unless otherwise specified.