Vol. 71/No. 31      September 3, 2007

The theme of the event is “Another Quebec is marching… Let’s build it together.” It will be a forum for wide-ranging discussions and debate, on questions ranging from fight against imperialist war, to the struggles of Native peoples, to how to fight against environmental degradation.

More than 300 workshops and roundtable discussions have been scheduled. The topics include: “The Immigration System, Foreign Temporary Workers and the Labor Movement in Canada”; “Social Conservatism—Threat to the Right to Abortion in Quebec?”; “Globalization and the Environment”; “The Union Movement—Challenges and Convergence with Social Struggles”; “Six Nations Land Reclamation Against Canada’s Encroachment”; and “The Undocumented.”

The workshops are sponsored by a wide array of organizations such as the Quebec Federation of Women, Alternatives, the League of Rights and Liberties, National Network of Youth Against Racism, Coalition for Justice for Adil Charkaoui, Aboriginal Women of Quebec, Confederation of National Trade Unions, and Canadian Union of Postal Workers.

Most of the workshops and cultural events will take place at the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM)/émile-Gamelin Park.

The Quebec Social Forum comes out of a series of gatherings of “antiglobalization” forces, called the World Social Forum, that began in 2001 in Porto Alegre, Brazil. In recent years they have taken place in Nairobi, Kenya; Caracas, Venezuela; Bamako, Mali; and Karachi, Pakistan. The most recent such event, held in Atlanta in late June, was attended by about 6,500 people.

The big majority of the participants at the Montreal gathering are expected to come from Quebec. Over the past three months, “Mobilization Caravans” have crisscrossed Quebec to build the event. Organizing meetings have taken place in Joliette, Charlemagne, Quebec City, Sherbrooke, Trois Rivières, Chicoutimi, and other cities.

The event will begin with a mass assembly, and will end with a march through Montreal.

For information on the Quebec Social Forum and how to participate, go to the website www.forumsocialquebec.org or e-mail info@forumsocialquebec.org.  
 
 
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