By Julia Dowling
Friday, October 8th was a day for economic justice. Jubilee activists joined with individuals from faith communities, the IMF Resistance Network, and global south advocates. We gathered together with a call for reform of the International Financial Institutions that keep the world’s poorest trapped in a cycle of debt. Wahu Kaara, nobel peace prize nominee and head of the Kenya Debt Relief Network, cried out “Amandla!” to the crowd before marching – giving us the energy it would take to reform some of most powerful global institutions.
With five football-fields worth of multi-colored paper chains and a 21-foot long puppet shark representing an IMF loan shark, we marched in front of the World Bank and IMF as delegates and media attending the meetings looked on. The Associated Press, Agence Presse France, Reuters, and many other outlets took advantage of the visual by snapping pictures, posting them on their sites, and attaching them to articles about the Fall Annual Meetings.
Dozens of reporters with microphones and cameras at the ready covered the march and the final, peaceful act of hanging our chains on the White House fence.
Our march for economic justice brought messages – your messages –of an end to crippling and unjust debt for the world’s poorest citizens to President Obama. It was both an energizing and rejuvenating event that will inspire as we continue to work toward economic justice.
For more information on all the press coverage the March for Economic Justice received, check out our press hits page. To see incredible photos from the event visit the photo album here.
Image courtesy of AP
