Shut down APEC actions at the Moscone Center in downtown San Francisco, CA - Nov 12 & 15th
At the close of our People’s Counter Summit Against APEC, we issued a unity statement to summarize the positions of the No To APEC Coalition during our 2023 campaign culminating in the 800+ person Counter Summit. The statement is titled “People and Planet against Profit and Plunder: Towards a World Beyond Profit-Oriented Systems!”
We publish this statement as the APEC Heads of State concluded their own Summit with the so-called “Golden Gate Declaration” to lay out the rosey-sounding false solutions they spent an entire year writing while desperately-needed practical policies for reversing the global economic, political and climate crises eluded them.
They tried to fool the people of the world by claiming to be “a vanguard of global growth” that would “unleash the enormous potential and tremendous dynamism across our region,” refusing to admit that the dynamism they refer to is actually the back-breaking labor power of billions of workers who were given no say in APEC gatherings. They once again touted the “rules-based multilateral trading system, with the World Trade Organization (WTO) at its core,” failing to mention the corporate CEOs who wrote the “rules” of the system to begin with.
Their declaration ended with a message of, “thanks to the people and City of San Francisco and State of California for the warm welcome extended to us.” The corporate puppets of San Francisco leadership may have laid out the red carpet to APEC this November, but the people had a different kind of welcome - we marched 10,000 strong against their opening day, shut down the entrances of the APEC CEO Summit for a number of hours and dogged down fascist heads of state like the Philippines’ Marcos, Japan’s Kishida, South Korea’s Yoon, Peru’s illegitimate Boluarte and even Biden himself with the united message, “War Criminals Out of SF!”
In contrast to the APEC Golden Gate Declaration, the No To APEC Coalition Unity Statement demonstrates what a united movement against imperialism and all profit-oriented systems looks like. APEC’s 2023 theme was “Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All,” but our unity has shown that we are more than resilient - we are relentless! A sustainable planet can only come about through an organized people, and our statement lays out very clearly that while we have much to fight against, we are committed to fighting for the better world we all know is possible.
When discussing the statement at the close of the Peoples’ Counter Summit, attendees shared how they saw the words of the statement playing out in the work of their organizations that they invited others to support them in, including the fight for indigenous peoples resisting colonization and neo-colonization, student campaigns to divest universities from weapons and fossil fuels, the fight to defend Palestine, Haiti and other countries facing violent intervention, the defense of the Uhuru Three and all activists facing trumped up charges, and finally the preparations to support the fight against the APEC 2024 meeting cycle in Peru.
We have a lot of work to do to win a world beyond profit-oriented systems, but we’ve done so much together this year to set our fight up for success! While the Biden administration hoped to showcase a completed Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) in its attempt to keep the US in its position of top plunderer of the world’s economy, our protests throughout the year successfully delayed IPEF’s completion for the time being! Our movement has much to celebrate.
We hope you find as much inspiration in our No To APEC Unity Statement as we have found in our member organizations through our months-long campaign together. Let’s keep up the fight and wield the full power of people and planet towards a world beyond profit-oriented systems!
In solidarity,
No To APEC Steering Committee
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People and Planet Over Profit and Plunder! Towards a World Beyond Profit-Oriented Systems! Peoples’ Counter Summit Against APEC – San Francisco, California – November 11, 2023
The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) DO NOT represent the interests of the people or the planet. They exist to increase the profit-making of big business by giving its owners control over trade and employment laws, privileged access to key decision-makers, and the green light to make super-profits off of our labor and steal from our wages and livelihood. APEC and IPEF lead to the wide scale plunder of much of the world’s resources, forced seizure of land and desecration of the environment to maximize the profit and power of big business and the ruling elite.
APEC gives the ruling elite and big business class all of this at the expense of the rest of us. The people are time and time again excluded from APEC and the policies it decides on, so that this class can keep control of our livelihoods as our living conditions worsen. It’s time to fight back so we can win a better world, a world beyond APEC and other profit-oriented institutions!
WE FIGHT FOR a world where all workers have pay and workplace protection, where all working people have the right to unionize and organize, where value is what you contribute to the community, NOT a world where workers are surviving month-to-month, being left alone to challenge the bosses, or valued by how much you produce for corporate owners.
WE FIGHT FOR collective and community control of land, consistent and unconditional access to nutritious and affordable food, liveable housing and shelter for all, NOT foreign control through corporate takeovers, urban food deserts and agricultural monopolies in rural areas that feed profits over people, crumbling, unsafe and unaffordable living situations that favor real estate investment over peoples’ needs.
WE FIGHT FOR safe and breathable air, clean and healthy water and nutrient-rich soil, a stabilized climate system, and protection of biodiversity and the natural world, NOT for pollution and stripped land from corporate-negligence and plunder, business “resiliency” that prioritizes profit-driven mass extinction with a slow shift from fossil fuels for corporate monopolies while the people are hit with floods, droughts, heatwaves, superstorms and rising seas.
WE FIGHT FOR safe and empowered communities, just and lasting peace, social services like education, healthcare and safe infrastructure, NOT for police violence and harassment on behalf of big business, perpetual economic rivalry that fuels global military conflict, and endless military spending on wars of aggression for profit.
WE FIGHT FOR full transparency from our political leaders and to be active players in all decisions that affect us, for national liberation and self-determination for socio-economic development and an end to the racism, gender oppression and other social inequalities that follow the profit motive, and for international solidarity, NOT for economic deals prioritizing profit and plunder that fuel national oppression and imperialist globalization!
To achieve this world, these many fights must be united as one. To wage this united fight against the profit-oriented system that APEC and IPEF are a part of, we must build a mass movement across all issues, generations and borders. The No To APEC Coalition has been an example of such a movement, and the months-long campaign, counter summit and the actions we will take against the APEC heads of state are proof of the power we can have when we fight together.
The No To APEC Coalition thus resolves to:
1. Directly confront the APEC Heads of State Summit while it meets here in San Francisco and do what we can to SHUT IT DOWN!
2. Build unity between our struggles here in the US and international solidarity with other countries impacted by APEC and IPEF on issues of shared concern, including support for future anti-APEC actions in Peru 2024 and other countries in the years to come.
3. Continue to uplift the interests of people and planet over profit and plunder for the long term. Wherever APEC and IPEF go, the people fight back, and wherever people are struggling for a brighter world, we’ll be there to join the fight! -
¡Las Personas y El Planeta sobre Las Ganancias y El Saqueo! ¡Hacia un Mundo Más Allá de los Sistemas Orientados al Lucro!
Declaración de Unidad de la Coalición No a APEC
Contracumbre del Pueblo Contra APEC – San Francisco, California – 11 de noviembre de 2023
El Foro de CooperaciónAsia-Pacífico (APEC) y el Marco Económico Indo-Pacífico (IPEF) NO representan los intereses de la gente ni del planeta. Existen para aumentar las ganancias de las grandes empresas al dar a sus propietarios control sobre las leyes comerciales y laborales, acceso privilegiado a quienes toman decisiones clave y luz verde para obtener súper ganancias a expensas de nuestro trabajo, robando nuestros salarios y medios de vida. APEC e IPEF llevan al saqueo a gran escala de muchos de los recursos mundiales, a la toma forzada de tierras y a la profanación del medio ambiente para maximizar las ganancias y el poder de las grandes empresas y la élite gobernante.
APEC le brinda a la élite gobernante y a la clase empresarial todo esto a expensas del resto de nosotros. Una y otra vez, las personas son excluidas de APEC y de las políticas que adopta, para que ésta clase pueda mantener el control sobre nuestros sustentos de vida mientras empeoran nuestras condiciones de vida. ¡Es hora de contraatacar para poder ganar un mundo mejor, un mundo más allá de APEC y otras instituciones orientadas al lucro!
LUCHAMOS POR un mundo donde todos los trabajadores tengan salario y protección en el lugar de trabajo, donde todas las personas que trabajan tengan el derecho de sindicalizarse y organizarse, donde el valor sea lo que contribuyes a la comunidad, NO un mundo donde los trabajadores sobreviven mes a mes, quedando solos para desafiar a los jefes, o siendo valorados por cuánto produces para los dueños corporativos.
LUCHAMOS POR el control colectivo y comunitario de la tierra, acceso constante e incondicional a alimentos nutritivos y asequibles, viviendas dignas y refugio para todos, NO por el control extranjero a través de adquisiciones corporativas, desiertos alimentarios urbanos y monopolios agrícolas en áreas rurales que priorizan las ganancias sobre las personas, situaciones de vida deterioradas, inseguras e inasequibles que favorecen la inversión inmobiliaria sobre las necesidades de la gente.
LUCHAMOS POR un aire seguro y respirable, agua limpia y saludable, suelo rico en nutrientes, un sistema climático estabilizado y la protección de la biodiversidad y el mundo natural, NO por la contaminación y la tierra despojada debido a la negligencia y saqueo corporativos, la ‘resiliencia’ empresarial que prioriza la extinción masiva impulsada por las ganancias con una lenta transición de los combustibles fósiles para los monopolios corporativos mientras la gente sufre inundaciones, sequías, olas de calor, super tormentas y el aumento del nivel del mar.
LUCHAMOS POR comunidades seguras y empoderadas, una paz justa y duradera, servicios sociales como educación, atención médica e infraestructura segura, NO por la violencia policial y el hostigamiento en nombre de las grandes empresas, la rivalidad económica perpetua que alimenta el conflicto militar global y el gasto militar interminable en guerras de agresión con fines de lucro.
LUCHAMOS POR la plena transparencia de nuestros líderes políticos y por ser actores activos en todas las decisiones que nos afectan, por la liberación nacional y la autodeterminación para el desarrollo socioeconómico y el fin del racismo, la opresión de género y otras desigualdades sociales que siguen el afán de lucro, y por la solidaridad internacional, NO por acuerdos económicos que priorizan el lucro y el saqueo que alimentan la opresión nacional y la globalización imperialista.
Para lograr este mundo, estas muchas luchas deben unirse como una sola. Para librar esta lucha unida contra el sistema orientado al lucro del cual APEC e IPEF forman parte, debemos construir un movimiento masivo que abarque todas las cuestiones, generaciones y fronteras. La Coalición No a APEC ha sido un ejemplo de dicho movimiento, y la campaña de varios meses, la contracumbre y las acciones que tomaremos contra los jefes de estado de APEC son prueba del poder que podemos tener cuando luchamos juntos.
La Coalición No a APEC resuelve:
Enfrentar directamente la Cumbre de Jefes de Estado de APEC mientras se celebra aquí en San Francisco y hacer lo que podamos para CERRARLA.
Construir la unidad entre nuestras luchas aquí en los Estados Unidos y la solidaridad internacional con otros países afectados por APEC e IPEF en cuestiones de interés compartido.
Continuar promoviendo los intereses de las personas y el planeta sobre las ganancias y el saqueo a largo plazo. Donde sea que vaya APEC e IPEF, la gente contraataca, y dondequiera que las personas luchan por un mundo mejor, estaremos allí para unirnos a la lucha.
POINTS OF UNITY
1. We oppose APEC as an exclusive and elitist Country club of the rich representing the interests of big business that spends millions of dollars of the peoples’ money on a gathering that makes decisions about trade that prioritize profits over people. The ministers and heads of state meeting at APEC do not represent the interests of the vast majority of citizens they govern, making these meetings illegitimate in the eyes of the people.
2. We oppose APEC as a forum for corporations and institutions to push so-called “free trade” to exploit their workers and put the benefits of corporations over the rights of nations and peoples. APEC promotes so-called “free trade,” which in reality means driving down wages, stealing land from peasants and indigenous people, driving forced migration, destroying the environment, plundering natural resources, and pumping up corporate profits
3. We oppose the false solutions to peoples issues that APEC peddles. Their “solutions” to recovery after the pandemic, reversing the economic downturn, promoting a greener economy, empowering women in the economy, and helping youth and education, will only worsen the crisis for the people because their number one priority is profit. These rosy-sounding phrases hide the intention to secure control of an energy-efficient economy, keep commodity and housing prices high, putting people into more debt and leaving poor women and families to fend for themselves. The only true solution to the crises of our times is international workers solidarity!
4. We support the right of nations and peoples to self-determination and sovereignty. While not the only great power nation in APEC, the US still wields the most influence, and it uses it for its own means. No country has a right to intervene in or control politically, economically or militarily the nations and peoples of the Pacific Rim and the world. US intervention represents the interests of big business. We oppose APEC as an arena for the US to assert its agenda to contain and attack its global rivals, particularly China. The US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) is meant to block out the China-led economy and seize control of less powerful countries. These actions are economic coercion and bring us closer to war.
We are inviting all organizations to JOIN the No to APEC Coalition and ALL INDIVIDUALS to fight against neoliberal attacks on the people and planet at the APEC Summit and all their backroom deals!
We support all oppressed & exploited peoples as they confront corporate greed!
ORGANIZATIONS THAT SIGNED ON
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International League of Peoples' Struggle - US (initiator)
BAYAN USA
International Migrants Alliance - USA
International Women's Alliance
San Francisco Living Wage Coalition
San Francisco Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines
The League of Filipino Students at San Francisco State University
Gabriela San Francisco State University
Malaya Movement San Francisco
GABRIELA USA
Advocates for Peace Justice and Rights
Justice For Brandon Lee
Anti-Imperialist Action UMBC
Myanmar Student Union - Skyline College
League of Filipino Students - UCB
Anakbayan USA
Anakbayan Santa Cruz
Anakbayan CCSF
Anakbayan Daly City
California-Nevada Philippine Solidarity Task Force (UMC)
Philippines US Solidarity Organization West LA
National Lawyers' Guild-SF Bay Area chapter
Palestinian Youth Movement
Malaya Movement USA
DISRUPT.CSUN
Mt. Diablo Rising Tide
Revolutionary Marxist Students (all branches)
PUSO-South Bay
IBON International
Oil and Gas Action Network
Extinction Rebellion San Francisco Bay Area
Trabajadores Unidos Workers United
Kalikasan Solidarity Organization
Gabriela Oakland
Westside Community Coalition
People Organizing for Philippine Solidarity
Anakbayan San Diego
Malaya Movement San Diego
Catalyst Project
Malaya Movement Seattle
QUIT! Queers Undermining Israeli Terrorism
SARI - South Asians Resisting Imperialism
Oakland-Berkeley Revolutionary Study Group
Freedom Socialist Party
Black Alliance for Peace
United National Antiwar Coalition
Haiti Action Committee
Workers World Party-Bay Area
"Comfort Women" Justice Coalition
Block Corporate Salmon
Western Regional Advocacy Project
Young Democratic Socialists of America - San Francisco State University
Showing Up for Racial Justice San Francisco
Richmond District Rising
Peoples Power Assembly
GABRIELA Santa Cruz
Clownbloc PDX
UC Divest Coalition at UCLA
CA Poor People's Campaign-Bay Area Region
Massage Parlor Outreach Project
Food Not Bombs Friday Food Share
Center for Political Education
Stanford Students for Housing Justice
California Trade Justice Coalition -
Samidoun Seattle
United Students Against Sweatshops
Pacific Asian Nuclear-Free Peace Alliance
Community Liberation Programs
Anakbayan San Jose
American Party of Labor
GABRIELA Daly City
Students for Justice in Palestine at Cal State Northridge
Rising Tide North America
Raging Grannies Action League
Palestinian Youth Movement
Alliance of South Asians Taking Action
Freedom to Thrive
Pacific Northwest People Over Profit Coalition
The Inland Empire Tamalera
Malaya Tri-City
Critical Resistance (National)
GABRIELA Santa Cruz
New York Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines
GABRIELA Sacramento
West Side Tenants Association
Nikkei Resisters
Global Labor Justice
GABRIELA Seattle
East Bay Democratic Socialists of America
Party of Communists USA
Movement for People’s Democracy
Revolutionary Feminist Collective – Bay Area
United Auto Workers Region 6
African National Women’s Organization
Bay Area CISPES
Lavender Phoenix
Arab Resource & Organizing Center
Revolutionary Student Organization – Santa Cruz
UC Divest Coalition
Malaya Movement South Bay
Milwaukee Anti-war Committee
Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club
Cal Young Democratic Socialists of America
Northern California Pilipinx American Student Alliance
Socialist Unity Party
Anakbayan Inland Empire
Interim Revolutionary Feminist Committee
Interim Revolutionary Feminist Committee, Pacific Northwest
California Democratic Socialists of America
Jobs with Justice San Francisco
Coalition on Homelessness
GABRIELA Excelsior
West District United Women in Faith
CFT: A Union of Educators and Classified Professionals
No Tech for Apartheid
Left Party – International Left
Alameda Labor Council
Oakland Education Association -
Worker Student Solidarity Coalition
Excelsior Barista Association
Koreans For Decolonization
Kapwa Health Collective
350PDX
Democratic Socialists of America, San Francisco Chapter
Minnesota Peace Action Coalition (MPAC)
Nodutdol for Korean Community Development
Pilipinx American Collegiate Endeavor
Dissenters
Sông2Sea
Black Alliance for Peace
Liberation Road
Radical Women – U.S.
International People’s Democratic Uhuru Movement
Starbucks Workers United West States
Moana Nui
Youth Climate Finance Alliance
Malcolm X Center for Self Determination
Freedom Archives
Nikkei Decolonization Tour
Causa Justa :: Just Cause
Hawaiʻi Peace and Justice
Korea Policy Institute
Media Alliance
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO Sacramento Chapter
American Federation of Teachers – Oregon
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, Sacramento Chapter
Jewish Voice for Peace at UCLA
Raizes Collective
Jobs with Justice San Francisco
Party for Socialism and Liberation Sacramento
Women Rising Radio
Bangladeshi Students Association of Stanford
Stanford Students for Justice in Palestine
Stanford YDSA
Nikkei Uprising
MEDIA LANDINGS
International Coverage
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National Coverage
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Local Coverage (pre-Nov)