WHAT IS THE ESF?
The ESF = The European Social Forum
It's coming to the UK in mid October 2004
Thousands of people will come to london for meetings, discussions, workshops, and protests and actions...
The ESF is the european version of the World Social Forum, started in 2001 as a grass roots counter conference to the World Economic Forum (another unaccountable meeting of big business and goverments). Thousands gathered in Brazil to discuss alternatives under the banner "Another World IS Possible!" - last year it was held in India with tens of thousands participating. In Europe the ESF has been held over the past two years in Florence and Paris. There are also local social forums being set up in cities eg. manchester.
Currently it looks like the main themes of the ESF will be around War, Environmental Crisis, Poverty, Racism and Asylum, Labour + Privitisation / Neoliberalism, and Europe. But hundreds of other events will take place at the same time. The main venue will be Alexandra Palace in north london, and the bloomsbury area south of Kings Cross. There will be two main days, with a large official demonstration on the third day.
It's supposed to be a massive meeting place, a place for co-ordinating and building campaigns and strengthening networks. It has a charter of principles, and on paper looks pretty good...
WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE ESF?
The problem with the ESF is that its organising process is overly controlled by old left political parties. While it is supposed to belong to all of the grass roots groups and campaigns that make up the 'movement of movements' - here in the UK, the organising process is under the control of the SWP (socialist workers party), Socialist Action, and the GLA (greater london authority - mayor ken livingstone's mob).
Sadly this has made the entire organising process unaccountable, untransparent, non-participatory, exclusionary and downright unrepresentitive. While some people (calling themselves the 'horizontals') have tried to work within the process to make it more transparent, they are increasingly frustrated. At the same time many other european organisers are becoming seriously concerned over the state of the UK process.
Make no mistake, there will still be thousands of people at the ESF in October, but many of them will be oblivious to the sham of an organising process. However when the core values of the event are missing from the way it is organised, something has to be done...
You can read all about this in depth at:
http://www.esf2004.net
(the open unofficial renegade esf website)
Also see:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/actions/2004/esf
WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING?
As those who have been trying to work within the process become increasingly frustrated, a growing number of people are choosing to organise autonomously outside of the process, while others are opting for a one foot in, one foot out approach. Many are united in their criticism of the organising process as dominated by the SWP etc.
*AUTONOMOUS SPACES*
People are organising now to create several autonomous spaces that can host a variety of events, and an alternative programme, becoming a real example of putting ideas into practice. However the goal is not to be isolated, but to interact with the official event, spreading ideas, providing alternatives, and demonstrating another way of organising. People are needed to help shape this vision, to contibute and participate.
For more, check the 'Autonomous Spaces' link on:
http://www.esf2004.net
*OTHER RELATED PROJECTS*
*INDYMEDIA*
The Indymedia uk Network is asking for help in setting up an indymedia / alternative media centre, to organise and facilitate the reporting of the ESF, the autonomous projects, and the protests and actions. Other plans include holding events, screenings, creating a more experimental tech / media laboratory, and supporting other similar initiatives around the ESF. This will only be possible if more people get involved...
Indymedia is also concerned that alternative and community media should have access to any official ESF media centre facilities, and that the technology for running such should be based on open source and free software.
*EUROPEAN CREATIVE FORUM*
The European Creative Forum is an open forum organising regular monthly events. They have been lobbying for a more cultural and creative programme within the ESF, and are planning and supporting a range of autonomous initiatives, from street interventions to art installations.
*MEDIA CULTURE AND COMMUNICATIONS RIGHTS NETWORK*
The Media Culture and Communications Rights Network is a grouping of individuals and progressive electronic networks, community and alternative media groups, freedom of expression and civil liberties campaign groups - From Privacy International to the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters, from Indymedia to the Electro Hippies. They have been lobbying for communications rights as a theme of the ESF, but are organising outside of the process to hold a one day European Forum on Communication Rights just prior to the ESF, and a programme of events throughout the ESF. They welcome more participation...
*NOMAD*
NOMAD is both an autonomous project and a model for the DIY delivery of the tech infrastructure for simultaneous language translation at international meetings. Based on open source free software, it uses computers to stream the audio between speakers and interpreters, before distributing it to the audience. It's important to the ESF because the cost of hiring commercial systems for 20,000 people is incredibly expensive, however it is much bigger than just the ESF... The project it is still in development and needs support...
*BABELS*
Babels is an autonomous international network of volunteer interpreters and translators whose main objective it is to cover the interpreting needs of the Social Forums and of other international events, as defined in the calendar of the “call of the social movements”. From being viewed as 'crazy autonomous amateurs' two years ago, they are one of the few groups who have proved to the ESF just how successful self-organisation can be, and are now indispensible to the core organisation of the Social Forums. They need volunteer interpreters and translators...
For info on all of these projects check out:
http://www.esf2004.net
Also see:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/actions/2004/esf
Also see the official ESF website:
http://www.fse-esf.org
(including details of how to propose seminars and workshops within the ESF - deadline for this, end of July)
The ESF = The European Social Forum
It's coming to the UK in mid October 2004
Thousands of people will come to london for meetings, discussions, workshops, and protests and actions...
The ESF is the european version of the World Social Forum, started in 2001 as a grass roots counter conference to the World Economic Forum (another unaccountable meeting of big business and goverments). Thousands gathered in Brazil to discuss alternatives under the banner "Another World IS Possible!" - last year it was held in India with tens of thousands participating. In Europe the ESF has been held over the past two years in Florence and Paris. There are also local social forums being set up in cities eg. manchester.
Currently it looks like the main themes of the ESF will be around War, Environmental Crisis, Poverty, Racism and Asylum, Labour + Privitisation / Neoliberalism, and Europe. But hundreds of other events will take place at the same time. The main venue will be Alexandra Palace in north london, and the bloomsbury area south of Kings Cross. There will be two main days, with a large official demonstration on the third day.
It's supposed to be a massive meeting place, a place for co-ordinating and building campaigns and strengthening networks. It has a charter of principles, and on paper looks pretty good...
WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE ESF?
The problem with the ESF is that its organising process is overly controlled by old left political parties. While it is supposed to belong to all of the grass roots groups and campaigns that make up the 'movement of movements' - here in the UK, the organising process is under the control of the SWP (socialist workers party), Socialist Action, and the GLA (greater london authority - mayor ken livingstone's mob).
Sadly this has made the entire organising process unaccountable, untransparent, non-participatory, exclusionary and downright unrepresentitive. While some people (calling themselves the 'horizontals') have tried to work within the process to make it more transparent, they are increasingly frustrated. At the same time many other european organisers are becoming seriously concerned over the state of the UK process.
Make no mistake, there will still be thousands of people at the ESF in October, but many of them will be oblivious to the sham of an organising process. However when the core values of the event are missing from the way it is organised, something has to be done...
You can read all about this in depth at:
http://www.esf2004.net (the open unofficial renegade esf website)
Also see:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/actions/2004/esf WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING?
As those who have been trying to work within the process become increasingly frustrated, a growing number of people are choosing to organise autonomously outside of the process, while others are opting for a one foot in, one foot out approach. Many are united in their criticism of the organising process as dominated by the SWP etc.
*AUTONOMOUS SPACES*
People are organising now to create several autonomous spaces that can host a variety of events, and an alternative programme, becoming a real example of putting ideas into practice. However the goal is not to be isolated, but to interact with the official event, spreading ideas, providing alternatives, and demonstrating another way of organising. People are needed to help shape this vision, to contibute and participate.
For more, check the 'Autonomous Spaces' link on:
http://www.esf2004.net *OTHER RELATED PROJECTS*
*INDYMEDIA*
The Indymedia uk Network is asking for help in setting up an indymedia / alternative media centre, to organise and facilitate the reporting of the ESF, the autonomous projects, and the protests and actions. Other plans include holding events, screenings, creating a more experimental tech / media laboratory, and supporting other similar initiatives around the ESF. This will only be possible if more people get involved...
Indymedia is also concerned that alternative and community media should have access to any official ESF media centre facilities, and that the technology for running such should be based on open source and free software.
*EUROPEAN CREATIVE FORUM*
The European Creative Forum is an open forum organising regular monthly events. They have been lobbying for a more cultural and creative programme within the ESF, and are planning and supporting a range of autonomous initiatives, from street interventions to art installations.
*MEDIA CULTURE AND COMMUNICATIONS RIGHTS NETWORK*
The Media Culture and Communications Rights Network is a grouping of individuals and progressive electronic networks, community and alternative media groups, freedom of expression and civil liberties campaign groups - From Privacy International to the World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters, from Indymedia to the Electro Hippies. They have been lobbying for communications rights as a theme of the ESF, but are organising outside of the process to hold a one day European Forum on Communication Rights just prior to the ESF, and a programme of events throughout the ESF. They welcome more participation...
*NOMAD*
NOMAD is both an autonomous project and a model for the DIY delivery of the tech infrastructure for simultaneous language translation at international meetings. Based on open source free software, it uses computers to stream the audio between speakers and interpreters, before distributing it to the audience. It's important to the ESF because the cost of hiring commercial systems for 20,000 people is incredibly expensive, however it is much bigger than just the ESF... The project it is still in development and needs support...
*BABELS*
Babels is an autonomous international network of volunteer interpreters and translators whose main objective it is to cover the interpreting needs of the Social Forums and of other international events, as defined in the calendar of the “call of the social movements”. From being viewed as 'crazy autonomous amateurs' two years ago, they are one of the few groups who have proved to the ESF just how successful self-organisation can be, and are now indispensible to the core organisation of the Social Forums. They need volunteer interpreters and translators...
For info on all of these projects check out:
http://www.esf2004.net Also see:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/actions/2004/esf Also see the official ESF website:
http://www.fse-esf.org (including details of how to propose seminars and workshops within the ESF - deadline for this, end of July)
