Howard: "Another World Without Borders Is Possible"
October 19, 2006
Please Distribute Widely
The first annual Southwest Border Social Forum was held last week in Ciudad Juárez, across the border from El Paso,
Texas. Amber Howard reports:
"This forum was organized due to a call for a U.S. Social Forum that arose out of the World Social Forum, which took
place this year in Caracas, Venezuela, January 24-29. Since the decision made in Caracas to hold the first US-based
forum in June 2007 in Atlanta, Georgia, regional meetings are starting to take place so that different issues can be
presented to a national and international audience. Originally planned for early May, the first Southwest Border Social
Forum, one of these regional meetings, was delayed until October due to the demonstrations and marches by immigrants and
their supporters on and around May 1st, 2006."
"...A large portion of the marchers included past immigrant laborers known as braceros who participated in the U.S.
guest worker program that existed between 1942 and 1964. Many of these people, predominantly men now nearing old age,
are still waiting for the Mexican government to pay them the remains of their due earnings. A portion of the workers'
earnings were withheld during their time employed in the fields of the United States and given to the Mexican government
with the idea that it would be given back. It is generally recognized that this money has disappeared. One marcher,
Javier Romero, who participated in the labor program from 1957-1964 simply declared, 'Government, pay us our money.'"
Read the full story here:
Subcomandante Marcos and the Other Campaign caravan are at the border now as well, in Tijuana, and will soon be in
Ciudad Juaréz. Stay tuned...
From somewhere in a country called América,
Dan Feder
Managing Editor
The Narco News Bulletin