DALLAS – Activists from the civil rights, environmental, labor and peace movements have already come together in here as the new year begins. At least three joint actions have brought the formerly separate groups closer together.
On Dec. 29, environmentalist Molly Rooke organized a discussion at the Angelika theater after a showing of the film Life and Debt.
Seventy-five people heard Rooke and two other panelists discuss the topic of the film, the effects of undemocratic globalization and broader problems connected with the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the World Trade Organization.
The movie came from a short book, A Small Place, by Jamaica Kinkaid. It explains the effects of undemocratic globalization on one country, Jamaica. The Jamaican music and interviews with the principal players, good and bad, in the destruction of Jamaica’s domestic economy make the movie well worthwhile. Discussion was concerned with the flames burning in the streets of Argentina for the same reasons that the film exposed.
It was also pointed out that workers in the United States are hardly exempt from the bitter experiences caused by undemocratic globalization.
Layoffs and environmental problems are hitting North Texans just as they are hitting every country involved with worldwide neoliberalism. The panelists talked about consumer boycotts, political activism and “direct action.”
The Martin Luther King holiday will bring activists together for least two activities. A cookout is scheduled for 5-7 p.m., before the Dallas Central Labor Council meeting at 1408 N. Washington.
Speakers are civil rights leader Rev. Holsey Hickman and Sister Patricia Ridgley. Ridgley won the “Peacemaker of the Year” award from the Dallas Peace Center.
A representative and a video greetings will come from Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas), leader of the Congressional Black Caucus. Johnson has launched “A World of Women for World Peace” to conduct discussions throughout America.
On Jan. 19, union activists will march in Dallas’ King Parade for the 12th year in a row. They will meet around the “Jobs with Justice” banner in front of city hall at 8 a.m.
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