[CTC] Trade Justice Events During the Seattle APEC Counter-Mobilization

[Arthur Stamoulis]

For folks who are in or have colleagues in the Pacific Northwest, I wanted to make sure you saw that the Seattle Town Hall on “Digital Trade” now has a date and that the start time for this month's March and Rally was pushed back a few hours.  Please help spread the word!  Thanks, Arthur


Trade Justice Events During the Seattle APEC Counter-Mobilization

As officials from Washington, D.C. and multiple countries throughout the Asia Pacific region gather in Seattle later this month for closed-door, invite-only talks on trade and the global economy, please join the Washington Fair Trade Coalition and other allies in demanding transparency, labor rights, environmental protection, and consumer privacy in ongoing trade negotiations.  

Events co-hosted by the Washington Fair Trade Coalition include:

Monday, August 8: Seattle Town Hall on “Digital Trade.” <https://actionnetwork.org/events/town-hall-on-digital-trade>  (4:00pm; University of Washington, Seattle.) Join U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal, plus local and national labor, civil rights and consumer leaders, for a town hall spotlighting Big Tech’s attempts to rig trade deals in ways that undermine personal privacy, data security, AI accountability and anti-monopoly policies at home and around the world.  This is the newest front in trade policymaking, and decisions made this year could impact people for decades to come.  The exact room at UW is still being finalized.  RSVP Here for Details. <https://actionnetwork.org/events/town-hall-on-digital-trade>

Sunday, July 30: Trade Justice Contingent at the APEC Counter-Mobilization March & Rally. <https://tradejusticeedfund.org/events/trade-justice-contingent-at-the-apec-counter-mobilization-march-rally/>  (NEW TIME: 2:00pm; Cal Anderson Park; 1635 11th Ave, Seattle.) Join us for a rally in the park, then help deliver a petition signed by over 10,000 people calling for transparency in Indo-Pacific trade talks, as we bring it directly to officials at the Seattle Convention Center.  Look for the Washington Fair Trade Coalition banner and other trade-oriented signs — we’ll have plenty for you to march with!  RSVP Here for Details. <https://actionnetwork.org/events/trade-justice-contingent-at-the-apec-counter-mobilization-march-rally/>

Saturday, July 29: Trade Justice Workshop at the PNW People Over Profit APEC Counter-Summit. <https://tradejusticeedfund.org/events/trade-workshop-at-the-pnw-people-over-profit-apec-counter-summit/> (1:00pm; UW, Architecture Hall, Rm 147; 3943 Stevens Way, Seattle.) Hear from labor, environmental, digital rights and other organizers on the status of Indo-Pacific trade negotiations; the struggle between corporate-driven trade rules and people’s interests; and what you can do to make a difference. Part of a larger People’s Summit  <https://www.pnw-pop.com/peoples-summit>with additional workshops on the rights of workers, women, migrants and the planet. RSVP Here for Details. <https://actionnetwork.org/events/trade-workshop-at-the-pnw-people-over-profit-apec-counter-summit/>

How You Can Help: In addition to RSVPing for the events above, please (1) forward this invitation to supporters, friends and anyone else you think might be interested; (2) promote the upcoming events via social media using this toolkit <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TPSPQKtYjG1fMYLn8mmu9dSSr3lu1GeGHqztCDSLgsc/edit?usp=sharing>; and (3) share this flyer <https://tradejusticeedfund.org/wp-content/uploads/WAFTC_TradeJusticeEventsDuringAPEC_Flyer.pdf> at any upcoming meetings.  

For More Information: contact Julie Bouanna of the Washington Fair Trade Coalition at julie at washingtonfairtrade.org <mailto:julie at washingtonfairtrade.org>.

Background: Many of the countries involved in the Asia Pacific Economic Forum (APEC) meetings in Seattle this summer are also part of the ongoing Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) trade negotiations.  IPEF already includes fourteen countries, and between them, would set rules governing approximately 40% of the world's economy. More countries are expected to join IPEF, too, and it is likely become the template for additional U.S. trade deals across the Americas, Africa and beyond.  

If big corporations get their way, IPEF will set rules that facilitate more offshoring of good-paying jobs, exploitation of workers abroad, rip-and-ship resource extraction that accelerates global warming and deregulation for Big Tech in areas like consumer privacy, AI accountability and anti-monopoly.  

We’re asking you to join us in demanding that trade rules instead prioritize workers, consumers and the planet while officials from each of the IPEF countries are in town!

Together, we can stop greedy corporations from rigging IPEF and other trade deals in their interests! 

In solidarity, 

Julie Bouanna (she/her) | State Director
206-227-3079 | julie at washingtonfairtrade.org <mailto:julie at washingtonfairtrade.org>
Washington Fair Trade Coalition | www.washingtonfairtrade.org <http://www.washingtonfairtrade.org/>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.citizenstrade.org/pipermail/ctcfield-citizenstrade.org/attachments/20230719/36e7a7c9/attachment.htm>