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last modified June 8, 2021 by facilitfsm


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Intervention of Ian (Attac France) scheduled for Saturday May 22 on the occasion of the presentation of the history of the WSF by the CI

As Gus and others reminded us at our last meeting, the world is changing, the WSF must respond to new challenges: the current evolution of capitalism, the growth of inequalities, the globalization of finance, the fragmentation of the left, (the left in France or in the world?) the multiplication of fields of social struggles, and I am surely forgetting some. There are fights which have won some victories and which are making themselves heard among new generations, anti-racism, feminism or even ecology. Thanks to many of you here, these fights are part of the very DNA of the WSF, @1 and we must continue to remember that these are fights that the WSF has carried since its inception, but we also have a lot to learn from new forms of mobilization which have sometimes succeeded better than us in defending these causes.The WSF is no longer at the center of international solidarity, other forms of collaboration, groupings and international associative coalitions, are formed outside of it and do without them very well. Is the WSF obsolete? In spite of what many say, especially in Europe, we are a small group within Attac France to think not, and to be persuaded that the WSF by its seniority, its international character, the imagination which surrounds it, and its actors, still have a role to play with people and associations in the crises to come. It remains an incredible tool for exchange, action and inspiration, but we are at a key moment, it must innovate, and adapt to respond to this new state of affairs and not become obsolete, inaudible or anecdotal, otherwise it is in danger of disappearing.

Of course as Francine recalled, and more broadly the reforming group, the debate between the WSF "space or political actor" must continue, indeed many members of the IC wish it and think that a reform in this direction is the key to the future. @2 While waiting for the question to be resolved (or not), this debate should not inhibit the activity and goodwill of other WSF sympathizers and IC members, and prevent it from fulfilling the objectives that the charter aims and allows.

The virtual WSF 2021 provided some ideas on what it is possible to do, and on @3 what the near future of the WSF could be outside of this debate; despite its flaws and its relative impact, this edition had the merit of showing us two things. @4 First of all, new tools exist to reach more people, among others outside our usual public, and the WSF has not exploited them effectively until now. Then, it is possible to work daily together with an international team to build something concrete in a short time.

@5 It is therefore in this context that a small group came together after the WSF 2021 in the desire to maintain continuity in the process of the forum. This continuous process may have several objectives, although this remains to be discussed, I will summarize this in two main objectives. 

1 / Organize, show solidarity and strengthen the visibility of the WSF to make @5B face-to-face forums strong and important international moments at the popular and media levels.

First of all, that of forging links, of strengthening the communication tools and the visibility of the WSF to make the next face-to-face forums strong and important international moments at the popular and media level. We want to resume dialogue with groups or struggles which have a historical link with the Forum, but which @6 by force of circumstances have moved away from it. We want to strengthen our link with popular movements and civil society in Asia, Africa and Oceania, which are much less represented than South Americans and Europeans, and create links with youth so that the event of Mexico and the following are strong moments of gathering of international struggles. There is no miracle solution, we must build relationships of trust, and that takes time, but also to build joint projects. We also want to facilitate the @6B link between the forums, which as Felix said, are sometimes not very connected. @7 We lose a lot of our production and our means of communication from one forum to another. We must therefore create tools to facilitate the transition between one forum and another, increase our communication strike force, better organize and strengthen our communication tools, create archives and link them to keywords to flood the web with our struggles. and take them out of the invisible in order to fill peoples' imaginations with images of victories and possibilities..  

2 / Exchange and fight against the cultural hegemony of neoliberalism and its fallout

We must not only come together, we must also be active together, the WSF is one of the best placed to oppose "neoliberalism (and especially its fallout after more than 30 years of hegemony) and domination. of the world by capital and any form of imperialism ". @8 The charter has its faults, but, despite our debates, it is deeply political since it is clear on one thing: it speaks out against capitalism, patriarchy, neo-liberalism, imperialism, and extractivism worldwide. So here is the second objective of this continuous process in my opinion: to show, despite what some hammer at us, that of course an alternative exists to the inegalitarian and ecocidal system in which we live and that "another world is possible". @9 There are many of us "employing ourselves to build a planetary society centered on the human being and the Planet " and it must be shown. @10 Davos or the G20 or the G7 communicate every day on their social networks and on their site without engaging their participants, then Why not us? Our world today is being made day after day, our imagination too, and not once every two years. @11 Editorial compromises, without adding confusion to our message, are possible with a few simple rules and a little goodwill. It is partly our responsibility to accompany on a daily basis and to arm little girls and boys everywhere in the world who do not understand why the world is unjust. They need to be told that They are right to be indignant,Show them that we can fight on a daily basis to improve our living conditions and those of our loved ones and that, if we choose this path, we do not fight alone.


So those are the many goals and some examples of what the ongoing process could be. So yes, all that we have all said and wanted at one time or another, and clearly it will not be easy, moreover until today we have had a lot of trouble doing it. We hope that the new communication tools will allow us to change that. But technique is not everything; 12@ here is also why the proposal of our group intends to take root much more in the field of the concrete and in the daily work than in the debates on the form that the forum should take. @12B This debate has a disproportionate place in the discussions and takes a lot of time and effort.energy to the members of the IC (once again it is of course necessary but sometimes it slows us down and frightens the goodwill). @13 We are motivated to give life to discussions that bring us together, and to give them a tangible result. @14 We are convinced that we can continue to work concretely and build a story together despite our contradictions, our disagreements and our differences. @15 It can be learned, it will take time, it will require concessions, and we will have to ask ourselves in the long term, the question of financial means, but with a little organization and goodwill it is possible.

@ 16 Everything has to be built, the form it can take, the teams, the organization, but as you have been able to understand, this group will be a production group which has a strong desire to give rapid and concrete results, but also to '' learn from our common work experiences.