Jackson People's Movement Assembly kicks off the Summer of Our Power

This June, the Jackson People's Movement Assembly will officially launch the Climate Justice Alliance Summer of Our Power.  Moving like 3 tributaries from the East Coast, the West Coast, and the Mid-West, the Summer of Our Power will build and gather strength on the Road to Paris and beyond by connecting and uplifting the existing just transition work of the Our Power pilot sites and other member groups on the frontlines of the climate crisis.  The series of actions throughout the Summer will culminate in support for Gulf South Rising and the 10 year Anniversary of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

In Texas, Mississippi, Kentucky, Arizona, Michigan, and California, Our Power Campaign pilot sites are waging transformative campaigns against the extractive industries, and building just transition models for local living economies. As we advance toward the COP 21 in Paris this December, and the world continues to confront the global climate crisis, the solutions we need are coming from frontline communities in the US and in the Global South. The Jackson People's Movement Assembly will build on the powerful model of economic democracy and development that Cooperation Jackson is advancing, and focus on how to broaden and expand the southern movement for climate justice and a just transition.  As Cooperation Jackson wrote:

The South is also one of the global epicenters of the petro-chemical driven extractive economy, which is at the heart of the capitalist-imperialist world system, and the primary cause of climate change...

We have to end the region’s dependence on the extractive economy in a manner that ensures that the workers, families and communities that are dependent on these industries for their livelihoods are not abandoned and disposed of. And deeper still we have to defend Mother Earth – our survival as a species and the species we depend upon require it.

Grassroots Global Justice is partnering with Cooperation Jackson to support this Assembly, and we are offering a limited number of travel stipends to support participation from organizations in the Southern region, and organizations affiliated with the Our Power Campaign, the Climate Justice Alliance, and the Grassroots Global Justice Alliance.

Stay posted this summer for actions across the country, turning up the fight to build an economy for the people and the planet!

World March of Women

17 WMW committee members from 13 organizations in 9 states came together in the Bay Area between May 6-8th, 2015.  We shared and celebrated the impacts of the March 8th and April 24th actions and how important it was for our members to do actions in support of the workers at Rana Plaza. 

Members are excited to prepare for the Road to Paris, and our plans to bring a feminist framework into the climate justice mobilizations.  In response to the many inquiries from organizations not currently in GGJ who want to be a part of the WMW, we invite organizations that are interested in becoming more active in this growing movement to contact Helena at helena@ggjalliance.org and learn about how you can be an Member or Ally of the WMW.

Photos of WMW Gathering in Oakland

#SayHerName National Action Alert

Mya Hall. Aiyana Jones. Rekia Boyd. These are a few of the names that will be held up in today's national day of action, slated to sweep at least 17 cities across the United States, demanding an end to "state violence against All Black Women and Girls," including those who are transgender.

Organized by Black Youth Project 100 (BYP100), Black Lives Matter, Ferguson Action, and numerous community organizations, the wave of protests come amid a growing nation-wide movement for racial justice that many are calling Black Spring.

Organizers say now is a critical time to highlight the black women who are heavily impacted by police and vigilante violence—and who are at the forefront of organized resistance.  Read More

USSF Convergences

In its nearly a decade of existence, the US Social Forum (USSF) has been one of this country's largest and most successful movement building processes: a space for people to come together to develop solutions to the 
economic and ecological crisis and continue building a powerful multi-racial, multi-sectoral, inter-generational, diverse, inclusive, internationalist movement that transforms this country and
 changes history.

In 2015, in addition to the Jackson PMA, the United States Social Forum will gather in two core locations for simultaneous Social Forum convergences that will be expressed in technology and in spirit.

GGJ played a very active role in the first 2 US Social Forums in 2007 and 2010, and we have seen the impact of movement gathering spaces that allow organizers and activists to share stories, lessons and strategies that further our collective movement building.  For more information on the 2015 USSF convergences, click the links below:

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - June 25-28

San Jose, California - June 24-27

Maria, Ricky, and Greg Presente!

We honor the lives of three working class leaders who passed on this month.  Your legacies live on in all our work for justice.

María Guardado, longtime member leader in the Labor/Community Strategy Center.  As a survivor or kidnap and torture by the US-backed death squads in El Salvador in the 1980s, Maria dedicated her life to confronting US imperialism and ending torture.  Her story is told in the film "Testimony" and LCSC will be publishing her poetry later this year.

Melvin “Ricky” Maurice Maclin, vice president of United Electrical Workers, UE Local 1110, leader of the historic six-day factory occupation of Republic Windows and Doors by Local 1110 members in December 2008 and founding member of New Era Windows Cooperative, died on May 5, after being diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer in early April.

Greg Margolis, long time member of Portland Jobs with Justice, Co-chair of JWJ Global Justice and Trade Committee, and also active with many other social justice groups. Greg fought fought tirelessly for worker rights, solidarity with the immigrant rights movement, the rights of homeless people, and so many more struggles.