Feature Archives

Former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Curtis Hebert, Jr. revealed that Enron CEO Kenneth Lay threatened Hebert that he should obey or Lay would have his close friend Bush fire Hebert. Hebert refused to obey and was fired. Recently Hebert made a new, even more explosive charge: he says Bush also let Lay interview him and other candidates for FERC chairman in the first place. In other words, Bush gave Enron "hire and fire" authority over the FERC, betraying his oath to the American people by setting the fox to guard the henhouse and allowing the massive meltdown that cost Americans billions.

Help the Public Power campaign,  4/3   |   Santa Cruz teach-in,  3/8

On Feb 23, approximately one hundred-fifty demonstrators gathered at Senator Diane Feinstein's office in San Francisco to express their discontent with the course of capitalist globalization, particularly the upcoming FTAA summit. A small group of activists met with government officials, while speakers outside called for an end to the exploitation of so-called free trade. At 5:30PM, the crowd marched through the downtown streets, briefly joining pro-Palestinian activists, who voiced their anger at Israeli brutality and called for Palestinian self-determination. The Anti-FTAA protesters then continued to Bechtel Corporate headquarters, lambasting the company's attempted seizure of vast quantities of Bolivia's natural resources, a move blocked by Bolivian activists. The spirited procession, marked by torches, giant puppets, and colorful banners, culminated at the Mexican Consulate, where participants cheered as Critical Mass rode past."

By January, Canadian border patrol had already begun to turn away suspected demonstrators, including renowned activist Lorenzo Kamboa Ervin. Canadian authorities, preparing the largest police deployment in the country\'s history, will establish a four square mile security perimeter in downtown Quebec, surrounded by an enormous metal fence. There are plans to clear six hundred plus inmates from a local prison for the duration of the Summit to house arrested protestors. Local legislators also unsuccessfully attempted to pass a bylaw which would have made it illegal to \"wear or have in your possession a mask, hood, ski mask, or any other object of the same nature to cover one\'s face, in whole or in part.\" The intensity of the state\'s authoritarian response is not surprising. As the overall movement to contest global capitalism continues to grow, that system\'s guardians persist cutting back the rights of its opponents. Meanwhile, FTAA opposition gears up by tearing down the security fence erected to keep out unwanted protesters. Read a document outlining citizen\'s rights.

Broad coalitions are planning massive demonstrations in Quebec City during the April convention, as well as solidarity actions along both US/Canadian and US/Mexican borders, and throughout the Americas and the Caribbean. The Anti-Capitalist Convergence (CLAC) and Summit of the Americas Welcoming Committee (CASA) are organizing a Carnival Against Capitalism, which will include teach-ins, workshops, concerts, street theater, direct action, protests, and more. An autonomous, decentralized, and non-hierarchical network, CLAC/CASA intends to shutdown the anti-democratic proceedings. The Hemispheric Social Alliance (HSA), a coalition of organizations and social movements from North, Central and South America will simultaneously convene in Quebec for the Second People's Summit of the Americas, designed to challenge neoliberal development models and generate alternative policies. Hear more about the resistance movement.

Alliance for Responsible Trade (ART), which includes representatives of environmental, human-rights, U.S. labor, women's, family-farm, development, religious, and public-policy organizations, has presented the Committee of Government Representatives on Civil Society Participation with "Alternatives for the Americas: Building a Hemispheric Peoples' Agreement." The document contends that "trade and investment should not be ends in themselves, but rather the instruments for achieving just and sustainable development. Citizens must have the right to participate in the formulation, implementation, and evaluation of hemispheric social and economic policies. Central goals of these policies should be to promote economic sovereignty, social welfare, and reduced inequality at all levels."