The Road Back From Detroit, A Youth Report Back

On Monday July 26 The Georgia Peace & Justice Coalition hosted a report back from the 2010 United States Social Forum which was held a month earlier in Detroit. This was no ordinary report back, instead of getting an academic analysis of the events in Detroit attendees were treated to more personal narratives from the young people who road to Detroit in the AFSC organized van.
The reason Georgia Peace & Justice Coalition decided to have a report back in this format was two fold.

1. The United State's Social Forum was HUGE! It would be so difficult to give an accurate summery of what went down. As Amber Keller said, " You could ask ten people and get ten different opinions". It seems the best way to get a comprehensive report on the many aspects of the Forum and the actions items that are coming out of it is to visit the official USSF 2010 site:

http://www.ussf2010.org/

2. For those of us that went there was a general feeling that this year's USSF was much more youthful then the last, and perhaps more youthful then other national progressive mobilizations. We wanted to create a venue where young people could discuss how the experience effected them, and how they plan to apply the lessons of Detroit here in Atlanta.


Erica Schoon, With American Friends Service Committee, played emcee for the evening and members of the Georgia Peace & Justice Coalition provided a pretty amazing dinner spread. It was an evening of tummy warming food and heart warming stories.











Tim Franzen
American Friends Service Committee

"Be the Changers" to Re-Converge at GSPHE Summer Conference!

Many of you will remember in May our report back from the 2nd annual “Be the Change” Youth Convergence in which we shared our excitement about this year’s chosen issue--public education. It’s time for an update on what the “Be the Changers” are up to now!

As a recap: In 2009, the first convergence was held at Koinonia Farm near Americus, GA. The youth in attendance participated in workshops and discussions and ultimately decided to focus their combined statewide efforts on "truth in recruitment" issues over the next year. The original group, along with many who joined their forces, achieved a number of de-militarization successes in GA.

In May 2010, the second youth convergence was held again at Koinonia. This year, the youth in attendance decided to focus their energies over the next year on Georgia's public education crisis. We again formed four committees--Legislation, Media, Art, and Direct Action. In addition, we agreed upon five major points that we think youth (and those who support youth) in Georgia should use as guiding goals in our work. As a reminder, those points were:

1. EDUCATION IS A HUMAN RIGHT.
Young people, particularly those at the K-12 level, have the right to a quality education.

2. NO MORE FEE HIKES, TUITION HIKES, OR BUDGET CUTS.
Students are not ATMs. We didn't cause this crisis, and we shouldn't have to pay for it.

3. GEORGIA'S BUDGET NEEDS TO BE RE-ASSESSED.
We don't want to fix this problem at the cost of other important programs of social uplift that are also being underfunded. We need to explore new solutions.

4. NO MORE FURLOUGHS OR LAYOFFS.
We need our teachers and school workers!

5. TAKE LOCAL ACTION FOR BETTER EDUCATION.
While we are in the process of pursuing statewide solutions, we cannot forget to lend a hand in our local communities through mentoring, tutoring, supporting teachers, etc.

Over the summer, individuals have been pondering these five points, researching, and spreading the word to their friends. The four committees have been meeting via conference calls to brainstorm, set goals, and decide what form their projects will take. The entire group of "Be the Changers" (including more and more who have jumped on board the committees via word of mouth since May) have been deciding how to best address the urgent need for change in Georgia's current education crisis.

Finally, it's time to get back together, introduce all the new faces, report back on what the four committees have been working on, and collaborate with those already working on education in Georgia. The FREE Summer Conference being hosted by the Georgia Students for Public Higher Education on August 7-8 in Atlanta is going to be a great opportunity to do that.

The "Be the Change" group includes high- schoolers and is focusing on K-12 as well as higher ed, but we have a lot of overlap with the higher ed movement and can benefit hugely from combining our efforts in that department. For that reason, we are proposing that everyone interested in the "Be the Change" Youth Education Campaign come to the summer conference to get plugged in. The GSPHE organizers of the Summer Conference are creating a space on Saturday the 7th during the conference for this “Be the Change” meet-up info-sharing session.

During the session, we will have at least one member of each of the four committees present a brief summary of what the committee has worked on so far and what ideas are on the table for the year moving forward. We will talk about how we can work together with each other and other organizations and what we should prioritize as we move into the school year.

The conference is going to be the best way to meet your fellow activists in person and the most FREE way for all of us to reunite since GSPHE is providing FREE registration, FREE housing, FREE food, and travel stipends!! The conference is open to students, educators, parents, and anyone else interested in education in Georgia. Although the conference is free, you still have to register. Click here to register and provide your info for the free food, housing, and travel. Kick off the school year right!

Stay tuned for a report on the August 7th “re-convergence” session. To join the Youth Education Campaign’s email list or to join one of its committees, email me at erica.scap@gmail.com. See you in Atlanta!

Erica Schoon
American Friends Service Committee

Detroit USSF Trip a Success!

After a jam-packed week in Detroit and a long van ride back, I'm finally beginning to catch my breath and process everything I saw and learned at the US Social Forum. The Atlanta group stayed busy, spreading out and attending events all over the city.

We were at workshops--AFSC's youth organizing against military recruitment, video messages from the Zapatistas about "The Other Campaign," the legalization of marijuana, justice and water issues, justice and sports, transformation theory, socialism, anarchism, etc. Some of us also attended opening and closing ceremonies and the evening plenaries, with panel members from all over the US and even international speakers.

We were at concerts, parties, and spoken word events by the river and at venues around the city. We explored the city and learned about the tough issues Detroit is facing. Some of us even saw a HUGE art installation called the Heidelberg Project taking up a whole block of houses, many of which are run down and abandoned.

Most of all, we were meeting people from all over the world doing important work, having discussions and debates, and getting a sense of the spirit of the people working for change in the US! Many of us on the Atlanta caravan did not know each other before this trip, but we hope to continue to work together in the future and to bring more Georgians on board with us.

Erica Schoon
American Friends Service Committee

Here are some highlights from some of the Saturday recaps: