Web Series: WTO Anniversary

This series was originally produced for KBCS-FM in Seattle, Washington by Jill Freidberg, a video and radio producer who co-produced the documentary, This is What Democracy Looks Like, about the 1999 WTO protests.

Focusing on five issues related to the 1999 WTO protests, the series examines the legacy of the demonstrations 10 years later and takes a constructive look back at mistakes that were made in '99, lessons that were learned, and work that came out of those lessons.

FSRN broadcast two parts of the series:

Ten years after WTO protests, a legacy of activism
Today marks the 10-year anniversary of the protests in Seattle that took place during the World Trade Organization's meeting. The week brought together a coalition of environmentalists, labor activists and human rights groups and drew attention to the WTO's growing influence throughout the world. It also led to a new alternative gathering of activists, called the World Social Forum and then, the US Social Forum. In the first of a two-part series, FSRN's Jill Friedberg has more on the legacy of the protests, ten years later.

WTO protests spark Indymedia Centers and online, grassroots publishing
This week marks the 10 year anniversary of the protests in Seattle that took place during the World Trade Organization's meeting. The week brought together a coalition of environmentalists, labor activists and human rights groups and drew attention to the WTO's expanding influence throughout the world. It also led to new innovations in independent media and a growth in citizen journalism. In the second of a two-part series, FSRN's Jill Friedberg has more on the legacy of independent media centers, ten years later.

The series also includes three other segments:

Community activism: After the WTO protests, a debate emerged about future strategies: Was it more effective to travel from one protest to the next, or to stay home and do grassroots organizing around the local impacts of trade agreements? Jill Friedberg speaks to activists who decided to stay local, and focus on grassroots community organizing and transforming protest politics in a wider organizing movement.

Racism within the movement: The WTO protests were noticeably white, and many claimed that racism within the movement was partly to blame for that. To what extent have white activists sought to understand and address racism in the movement? In this installment of the WTO anniversary series, Jill Friedman speaks with Scott Winn, founder of the Coalition of Anti-Racist Whites, an organization that was formed after the WTO protests, in direct response to discussions about racism within the anti-globalization movement; and to Colin Rajah of the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights and author of several articles and essays about the lack of people-of-color at the WTO protests.

Teamsters and Turtles: During the WTO protests, much attention was paid to the "teamsters and turtles" coalition, a coming-together of labor and environmental activists. What became of that coalition? Jill Friedman speaks to David Foster, executive director of the Blue Green Alliance and Dan Leahy, former director of the Alliance for Sustainable Jobs and the Environment.

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