Setting The Stage For US Social Forum

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

In preparation for this year’s US Social Forum – set for June 22 through 26 – over 120 labor activists, organizers and community leaders gathered last weekend at the Greater DC People’s Assembly to “develop a people’s agenda for a more just Metropolitan area,” reports DC Jobs with Justice’s (DC JwJ) Ruth Castel-Branco. “In order for things to change, we need to participate in the electoral process, select leaders who will support our movements, and vote out those who don’t,” said Metro Washington Council, AFL-CIO President Jos Williams. Other panelists, including Amrita Wassan – a long-time community organizer – called for the need to build a more cross-sectoral movement, saying, “To really create change, we need to actually build across organizations and interests.” Once finalized, the Greater DC People’s Agenda will be presented at the US Social Forum in Detroit. DC JwJ is organizing a bus delegation to help people attend; tickets are $100 roundtrip. Additionally, the DC Labor Chorus will raise funds at a benefit concert tomorrow – “One Voice: Songs Of Peace And Justice” – to help send DC-area residents of color, youth and low-income families to the Forum.