<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">From Malmö, Sweden,
September 19 2008</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">Dear America, and
everyone, hi</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">After
posting your / America Vera-Zavala's message on various lists yesterday, and
even though appreciating very much, America, your responding so fully to my
request that you give us all this background, I feel I need to comment on one
aspect of what you have said.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">In short, I
think we need a much more critical engagement with what each one of us says and
does.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">Yes,
Vandana Shiva's speech at the opening of the ESF here was full of hope, and we
need hope – but not, I feel, such uncritical hope, and certainly not the kind
of populist hope that she expressed, where she almost – in my understanding –
dumbed down to the audience. <span style=""> </span>Which is partly
what populism is about.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">Is it
enough to simply say that The Giants are falling, and that we, The People, will
forever carry on ? <span style=""> </span>(Which is what she
said !)<span style=""> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">Is it
enough to suggest / imply that somehow, in some unspecified ways, the
resistances that are, yes, taking place around the world to the greed of corporations
have themselves led to the collapse of the sub-prime market in the US, and in
turn of Lehman Brothers ?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">Vandana
gave a very similar, rousing, speech at Rostock last year, in June 2007 (where
again, she was the star speaker) – only adding in Lehman Brothers this time,
and maybe subtracting some corporations – Cargill, I think. <span style=""> </span>Is it enough to simply put the collapse of Enron
and the Lehman Brothers in the same category, and to suggest that both are victories
for The People and of people's<span style=""> </span>movements
?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">Yes,
everything interconnected, but I think that the Social Fora are contexts where
a much deeper, more nuanced engagement is required. <span style=""> </span>Where we all need to struggle for this – and where
we should not let each other off so lightly. <span style=""> </span>My feeling anyway, is that speeches like this
only play to the gallery, and hugely simplify the complexity of capitalism and neoliberalism
and of movement and resistance… I personally felt that it was a very
disappointing speech (though not without amusement; as usual, she punched her
punch lines, and waited for applause, and in one or two cases, there was an embarrassing
absence of applause).<span style=""> </span>I do not think
that speeches like this should have space at social fora, and would like to
urge organisers of events like the Social Fora and of anti G8 demos to choose their
speakers more carefully, less for populism and star quality (and after all is
said and done, these two often go together) and more for engagement.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">And it was towards
this deeper engagement and understanding that I requested you, America, and before
you, friends at Fronesis who referred me to you, to locate the ESF in the rich social
and political history of this part of the world. <span style=""> </span>Thanks for doing so.<span style=""> </span>I hope you do not mind this rejoinder on
another part of your blog, and would like to urge you to, please, post more,
and root the ESF even more deeply in struggles in Sweden
and Europe for social justice !<span style=""> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">For instance,
is it a fact that – as I have understood from others – the area where the Forum
is taking place is a working class and immigrant area ? <span style=""> </span>In which case, how has the ESF attempted to actively
relate to this very local history ? <span style=""> </span>The
Mumbai Forum in 2004, for instance, absolutely did not; it did not relate at
all to the fact that Mumbai has one of the largest Muslim populations among
Indian cities (they were absent from the Forum), and despite the presence of large
numbers of Dalits, which outsiders celebrated so much, <span style=""> </span>failed totally to consciously relate to
mainstream movements in the city… Or to the city's role as being the gateway to
India
for global markets…</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB">Jai</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="" lang="EN-GB"> </span></p>
<br><br><div><span class="gmail_quote">On 9/18/08, <b class="gmail_sendername">America</b> <<a href="mailto:america@americavz.com">america@americavz.com</a>> wrote:</span><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;">
<a href="http://americavz.com/blogg/" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">http://americavz.com/blogg/</a><br>
<br>
ESF day 1<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
I meet my wonderful friend Jai Sen at Nya Tröls <<a href="http://www.nyatrols.se/" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">http://www.nyatrols.se/</a>>and
he tells me to blog, the first thing he does. We haven´t met for at
least a couple of years since the last social forum in Mumbai or maybe
the globalisation conference in Oslo. Jai Sen is an activist from
India, Delhi and he is the editor, along with Peter Waterman of the
book Challenging Empires <<a href="http://www.blackrosebooks.net/wsf.htm" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">http://www.blackrosebooks.net/wsf.htm</a>>.
A new edition of the book will be launched tomorrow at one
o´clock at Babels, Jerico café, the same place where the seminar <<a href="http://fronesis.nu/seminarium/" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">http://fronesis.nu/seminarium/</a>>will be Friday morning.<br>
<br>
Jai wants to know where he is. He is in Malmö, Sweden, and it is day
one of the European Social Forum, but that is not enough for him and I
can see what he means, what is the political mapping today of Malmö and
what is the history.<br>
<br>
I tell him that one thing I know is that at the famous
Möllevångstorget, there was riots during the spring of 1917. That
spring was the closest Sweden ever came to a revolution. There was
hunger and protests, riots and marches all over the country. At
Möllevången there was riots, women were asking for bread.<br>
<br>
Same evening, same bar. I am talking to my friend Tan Mogul, from
Istanbul, urban activist. He will be speaking at a seminar tomorrow
morning at <<a href="http://www.esf2008.org/program" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">http://www.esf2008.org/program</a>>9.30 <<a href="http://www.esf2008.org/program" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">http://www.esf2008.org/program</a>>in
Rosengård. So I ask him, do you know Rosengård, yes yes he tells me and
points it out at the map. No, the history? He has no clue he will be
speaking at the Swedish Saint-Denis. The suburb, centre for problems,
immigrant problems, social problems, unemployment problems, all kind of
problems. The place where Zlatan is from. They all get impressed when I
tell them that. No one from Istanbul asks me if it is dangerous to go.<br>
<br>
I have been on stage for hours this evening.<br>
<br>
It is the opening evening of the Euro Social Forum and I have been the facilitator of the inauguration <<a href="http://www.esf2008.org/news/inauguration-of-the-fifth-european-social-forum" target="_blank" onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)">http://www.esf2008.org/news/inauguration-of-the-fifth-european-social-forum</a>>
program. I am happy that it has started. Speakers have made their
visions come through. Vandana Shiva gave a fantastic speech about the
hope, Enron gone, Monsanto will go and by saying those words she made
anti-capitalist struggle real.<br>
<br>
Folkets Park was filled with people. And when the first part of the
inauguration program was over I ran to inaugurate the Latinamerican
park a few blocks away. Maybe 500 persons listening to me, Ignacio
Ramonet and latinamerican music. Back to Folkets Park and the artists.
Friends ask me who is singing.<br>
<br>
Who is Mikael Wiehe, well he is the Swedish Bob Dylan.<br>
<br>
I think this is the way to explain things to our activists guest from around the world.<br>
<br>
If you want to make it short.<br>
</blockquote></div><br><br clear="all"><br>-- <br>______________________________<br><br>Jai Sen<br><a href="mailto:jai.sen@cacim.net">jai.sen@cacim.net</a><br><a href="http://www.cacim.net">www.cacim.net</a><br>CACIM, A-3 Defence Colony, New Delhi 110 024, India<br>
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