June 21-26: Building a Cross-Continental Movement
SOA Watch Encuentro
We invite you to be part of a historic gathering in Venezuela this summer that will launch a vibrant South-North SOA Watch movement of the Americas!
From June 21-26, 2010, anti-militarization activists and human rights defenders from across the Americas will be gathering at the South-North SOA Watch Encuentro in Venezuela to strategize on ways to work together to close the SOA/ WHINSEC, and to open connections that honor the dignity and sovereignty of all people.
The Encuentro will bring together grassroots organizers and human rights leaders from  Argentina, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the United States, Uruguay, and Venezuela. The Encuentro builds upon the visits of SOA Watch's Partnership America Latina (PAL) to 16 Latin American countries that led to announcements by 5 countries of their withdrawal from the SOA/ WHINSEC.
If you are an SOA Watch activist that has participated in organizing efforts to close the SOA, and if you have the interest and energy to help launch this new phase of the SOA Watch movement, we invite you to apply to participate as a representative to the Encuentro.
Participation will be limited to approximately 12 representatives from the U.S. and Canada, in order to ensure a balance of representatives at the gathering from different corners of the Americas. A balance of representation from different parts of the U.S. and Canada will also be a goal. Spanish language fluency is not a requirement for participation, as there will be translation at the event.
Representatives to the SOA Watch Encuentro, along with their local groups, are expected to raise funds for their round-trip airfare to Venezuela, and for the Encuentro fee of $500 that covers all in-country transportation, food, lodging, materials and translation.
History is made by movements of people who organize themselves to struggle collectively for a better world.
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SOA Watch at the United States Social Forum
The dates of the SOA Watch Encuentro were deliberately chosen to coincide with the U.S. Social Forum (USSF). Encuentro and USSF organizers are working together to connect the two historic events.
The United States Social Forum (USSF) is taking place from June 22-26, 2010 in Detroit, Michigan. The USSF will bring together grassroots groups to develop collective consciousness, vision, and strategies needed to realize another world.
The USSF National Planning Team is currently considering a proposal for live video link between the Encuentro in Venezuela and the June 24 USSF plenary in Detroit.
We have also submitted a workshop as part of the USSF, in which anti-militarization activists who are gathered at the USSF in Detroit can interact and strategize with the SOA Watch Encuentro participants in Venezuela.
SOA Watch is part of the Latin America Solidarity Coalition and its efforts to coordinate the presence of Latin America Solidarity groups at the USSF in Detroit. If you are unable to join us in Venezuela, we invite you to join us in Detroit!
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SOA Watch Encuentr
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