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How to Use the Action Packet
1. Green Paper -Understanding the Free Trade Area of the Americas was written for activists working against globalization and the FTAA. It is a 20-page booklet that provides an understanding of the FTAA and the consequences it will bring.
This educational paper gives a basic background on the following topics:
what is expected to be in the FTAA;
discussion about the MAI, NAFTA, and the WTO and their relation to the FTAA;
the negotiating groups and committees within the FTAA and their significance;
the FTAA's connection to the Organization of American States, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the American Business Forum;
the significance of Fast Track;
NAFTA's Chapter 11 cases;
steps needed to comply with NAFTA/FTAA; the FTAA's lack of democracy and transparency;
the opposition that exists against the FTAA.
Included in the paper also are discussions on: immigration, forests, labor unions, sweatshops, indigenous issues in the North and South, genetic engineering, militarization, economic development in the South, financial flows, intellectual property rights, and dry canals.
The ACERCA FTAA Green Paper can be distributed at teach-ins, roadshows, and workshops. Please copy this educational piece and distribute it. Or your organization can purchase bulk orders through ACERCA for $3 ea.., $2 ea. for 10-25 copies and $1.50 ea. for 26+ copies. Prices include postage, and are set to cover production expenses only.
We encourage people to recoup the cost of the report by charging sliding scale rates for the paper and suggesting that people only take copies if they intend to use them. We have enclosed a 2-page fact sheet and a half-page leaflet which are more appropriate for mass distribution.
2. Fact sheet (pdf)
- The fact sheet was designed to distribute to large crowds of people.
It is short description of the FTAA and the likely effects of it.
Please make as many copies as your group wants to and place on tables
at events. This can also be handed out at demonstrations. You may
want to include your local community's contact information and next
meeting time.
3. Half-page Leaflet (pdf)-
These can be handed out at protests or events to inform people of
the upcoming demonstrations in Quebec City. Please put your local
contact information on the flyer. If the event you are present at
is far from your home, you can leave ACERCA's information on there
or put the local contact information for that area on the flyer.
4. Posters 1 , 2
(pdf)- Advertise your events!
Hang them up around town!
5. Letter to the Editor - This
letter can be used word-for-word or excerpted. If you get this letter
to the editor published please send ACERCA a copy so that we can keep
a file, Thanks! Please be sure your letter does not exceed 300 words,
or it may not get printed. Call your local newspapers or check their
letters page for information on submission. If there is a local issue
relating to the FTAA or Free Trade that you can mention in the letter,
it may help to insure that it is published.
6. Letter to Congress -
The letter to Congress should be sent both to your Congressperson
and Senators. This sample can be placed on tables at your local activist
gathering space and at events where many people will come and take
a copy. This can be retyped verbatim or reworded to fit individuals
interests. It is a good idea to provide people with the address of
their Congress representative and senators.
7. Press Release - This is
to alert the press about an action or event that your organization
is sponsoring to insure they show up to cover it. It also provides
them with basic information on the issue and some quotes they could
use in their stories. Retype it on your group's letterhead if you
have it. In the first paragraph be sure to mention the WhoWhatWhereWhenWhy
of your event. Fax the press release to all media outlets the day
before the action and follow up by calling them before 10 am the next
morning to be sure they received the fax and that they will be coming.
If it is an early morning action then call them shortly after sending
the fax.
8. Public Service Announcements
- Two sample public service announcements have been provided that
can be used on community, pirate or college radio stations. Send them
out widely, you'd be amazed who runs them. These announcements can
also be read at events, although spontaneous words are usually more
effective. Feel free to read these announcements as they are written
or tailor them to your liking. But keep them short!
9. Soundbite List -
This list has several soundbites for various questions that the press may ask you while you are at an event or protest. When going to a protest it is always important to be able to answer the question why you are there and have an articulate answer because the press likes to find us off guard to portray us as idiots. When being interviewed, it is critical that spokespeople not get sucked into the media's tangential questions, but stick to the agreed soundbites to insure that this is the statement that will be run on the 6 PM news.
It is important to have memorized 3-4 lines, no more than 20 seconds of speaking, about why you are opposed to the FTAA and what you propose instead of the FTAA. These will be the most asked questions the media will pound activists with. It is also a good idea of your group consents upon a message they will be trying to convey, so that it can be repeated to the press from several people. Then the press may actually get the message across that you want them to report.
10. Webliography & Contact List-
Network, get connected and stay organized! This list is far from complete
but it contains some of main organizations that are organizing against
the FTAA. If your organization is not listed, contact us and we will
add it! List of official and opposition websites related to the FTAA.
This can be displayed on tables at events or in activist offices so
people can obtain good information and resources.
11. Informational Piece on Colombia - Because of Colombia's key role in the expansion of the FTAA, we have enclosed this informational piece to spread the word. Use it as a hand out, or just to inform yourself and/or your group.
12. Flier on Native Forest Network's "International Day of Action for Forests Not Free Trade" (pdf)- The forests of the U.S. Canada and Mexico have been threatened by deregulation associated with NAFTA. The FTAA threatens to further this deregulation and threaten the forests throughout the hemisphere. Use this flier to promote a local action as part of the IDA. Contact the NFN to get plugged in (802) 863-0571. Ask for Jason.
*** This Action Packet is largely geared toward U.S. activists, but can be relatively easily adapted to other countries***
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