‘Another South Is possible’

Hundreds of workers, immigrants, Katrina survivors, youths, women, lesbian, gay, bi and trans people, and other peace and justice activists from throughout the U.S. Southeast met June 16-18 in Durham, N.C., for the first Southern regional Social Forum. The gathering took place at North Carolina Central University, the second-largest Historically Black College and University in the state.

The Forum brought together many leading grassroots organizations, from the Appalachian mountains to the Gulf Coast, from the major cities of Atlanta, Miami and Louisville to small towns in the Mississippi Delta, to discuss, learn and network with each other.

In a format typical of the global social forum movement, workshops and spontaneous discussion groups came from the self-directed action of the participants. People involved in particular struggles organized dozens of workshops. These included union organizers from the Smithfield meat processing plant, and the “Women of Color and survivor-led, Durham-based” UBUNTU, which formed to deal with the Duke lacrosse team rape case.

Migrant laborers from Florida and North Carolina spoke of their struggles for respect and living wages. Poor women from West Virginia and Georgia talked about how they are defining their own issues and leading the fight for housing, health care and education in their communities. Palestinian activists discussed the connection between U.S. policies in the Middle East and domestic issues.

Young people met to talk about how to counter military recruiters and to oppose the war. There were sessions for Katrina survivors and lesbian, gay, bi and trans activists. Serious discussions took place about how to build Black-Brown unity.

Plenary sessions brought together panelists who discussed the political implications of the Katrina crisis for the movement, the impact of immigration, and the role of militarism in the South. Music, singing, drumming and spoken word intermingled to bring out a culture of resistance throughout the weekend.

The ever-present message was solidarity, unified action and optimism.

The Southeast Social Forum was an event in its own right—but additionally on Sunday a panel discussed the opportunities and tasks presented by the upcoming U.S. Social Forum to be held in Atlanta in 2007.

International, regional and local social forums have become an important tool in the growing awareness of a global movement to counter war, oppression and economic injustice.

For more information, go to www.ussocialforum.org To the read the June 15 Black Workers For Justice statement for this event, go to workers.org.