[P2P-F] Fwd: [NetworkedLabour] Fwd: [fse-esf] #18M Blockupy Call for March 18: Our time to act has come

Wed Feb 18 18:03:33 CET 2015

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Orsan <orsan1234 at gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Feb 18, 2015 at 8:39 PM
Subject: [NetworkedLabour] Fwd: [fse-esf] #18M Blockupy Call for March 18:
Our time to act has come
To: "<networkedlabour at lists.contrast.org>" <
networkedlabour at lists.contrast.org>

### please spread widely ### inform your networks ### stay tuned via
Twitter: @blockupy / #18M and facebook.com/blockupy.europe

see http://blockupy.org/en/ for more info and for downloads of the
call/flyer

<mime-attachment.jpg>

*Our time to act has come!*

*Transnational actions against the European Central Bank’s opening: March
18th 2015 in Frankfurt*

2015 began with something unheard of. The people in Greece stood up against
all threats from  Europe and elected a new left government. This, after 5
years of ruining the country of Greece, where the people lived in constant
struggle against the humanitarian crisis and social destruction. A
government was elected to stand up to the European institutions, rather
than to accept more austerity measures imposed on its people. We  support
the decision by the Greek people to reject the neoliberal doctrine of "no
alternative." We feel empowered and see the possibility of another future.
Especially since this is connected to other important ongoing popular
movements, like in Spain. Just recently in the streets of Madrid hundred
thousands of people said out loud: *We can and we will win again!* Next,
the people in Greece and all over Europe filled the squares on February
11th, the day the Eurogroup started renegotiating the Greek debt. A
transnational wave of solidarity actions was unleashed.

This feeling of empowerment gives hope to millions of people in Europe and
encourages the resistance against the crisis regime. Solidarity with the
people in Greece and their democratic decisions is not only an obligation
for us, but  it is also in our common interest: the interest of all of us
who all over Europe struggle against the logics of austerity and fight to
improve their working and living conditions.

*This is why we say: Our time to act has come! This is why we call
everybody from all over Europe to join the transnational actions against
the ECB**’**s opening on March 18th in Frankfurt! *

It is true, the European crisis regime has changed over time – EU emergency
meetings seem to have stopped, countries are leaving the Euro rescue fund.
However, seeing the pressure put on Greece right now we have to realize
that this does not mean the EU and ECB’s crisis policies are over.
Blackmailing has not stopped – to the contrary. Whenever the European
institutions are threatened, they react, they blackmail and don’t hesitate
to bring back harsh austerity measures. Simultaneously we are facing
something which almost feels normal now: a terrible new normality of
precarity and poverty has become a reality through neoliberal policies that
have been implemented during the crisis. These policies are safely embedded
in state institutions and were never meant to be temporary.  Austerity
policies promote authoritarian governance, the further dismantling of
democratic participation, the attack on working conditions, taking
advantage of the hierarchies built on the borders regime. They are linked
to the militarization of state and foreign policy, to growing racism and
rightwing extremism. These last years with the infamous Troika and
neoliberal governance have paved a way for a new phase in Europe: a
precarious model of very limited social rights, a model of control and
competition that we refuse to get used to!

And we hear them now, the elites and governments crying out loud - with
Germany in the forefront – against the demands of the people in Greece to
stop and reverse privatization, demands for social rights and for taxing
the rich, for not paying the debt and interest they did not cause. They
fear the domino effect going through Europe; they are afraid that their “
program” of competitiveness and neoliberal control enforced as the European
model is going to crumble now.

One of the central agents of the blackmail and the normalization of
austerity, of the stick and carrot, is the ECB. A crucial part of the
infamous Troika (EU Commission, ECB and IMF), who along with the EU
Council, promoted austerity and privatization, resulting in impoverishment
and precarity of large parts of the populations in Europe. By demanding to
not accept Greek bonds as collateral for central bank loans, the ECB
enforces the continuation of austerity policy directly and is clearly
taking side with the German government.

Blockupy therefore affirms its call for broad transnational actions against
the ECB when it inaugurates its new headquarter in Frankfurt on March 18th.
A tower 185 meters tall, resembling a fortress with its security fence and
moat, a symbol of power costing a staggering 1,3 billion Euros. Our call
for strong, broad, and lively European protests months ago has already left
marks: the ECB announced that they are downsizing their grand gala into a
coffee party. But we never cared about the numbers of guests. Our protest
is the radical critique of its work – the planning, enforcement, the
normalization of austerity measures.

We know that Frankfurt is the right place to be for all of us – the
precarious, migrant and industry workers, socially active, emancipatory
forces. Of course we know not even left governments can solve all the
problems. The real dynamic starts on the streets and in the squares, the
assemblies and associations, inside and outside the workplaces as a social
dynamic. More than just demonstrating our solidarity with the people in
Greece and their democratic decision, we will make clear that this is not a
conflict of interest between the people in Europe. It is our struggle for
all the people of Europe! The struggles in Greece and elsewhere have opened
this path for all of us.

*If not now, then when!? Louder and stronger than ever, we call for
transnational actions on March 18th at the ECB in Frankfurt! March 18th is
the right moment for all of us to be in Frankfurt*. Now is the time to
intensify all our efforts and to reach out to everybody to join the
struggle. Now is the time to be the site for transnational struggle in and
against the belly of the beast. Now is the right moment to hold the ECB
accountable for its policies and to powerfully demand a different political
direction. March 18th is our crucial chance as well as our responsibility
to build a common, effective force from below – if they want capitalism
without democracy, we say, we want democracy without capitalism.

On March 18 we will take the streets and the squares of Frankfurt, around
the new ECB building and in the inner city with thousands of people from
all over Europe. We will do that in the early morning around the ECB with
actions of civil disobedience to stop the ECB from celebrating themselves
and disrupt their normal work day. Everyone should and is welcome to
join – they
are activities designed for mass participation with a common consensus. We
will then convene in a strong, diverse, lively rally and manifestation in
the afternoon.

*Join us in action! Join us for the blockades of the ECB at 7 am; at the
rally at 2 pm and the demonstration through the inner city of Frankfurt at
5 pm*

First we took Athens, now Frankfurt!

For more info go visit our website at http://blockupy.org/en/; the closer
we get to March 18th, the more detailed info you will find – about the
activities, bus coordination and accommodation, the program of the rally
and the march and much more. If you have any questions tell us at
international at blockupy-frankfurt.org or stay tuned via Twitter: @blockupy /
#18M and facebook.com/blockupy.europe

*Who we are:* Blockupy is part of a European wide network of various social
movement activists, altermondialists, migrants, jobless, precarious and
industry workers, party members and unionists and many more from many
different European countries from Italy, Spain, Greece, Belgium, the
Netherlands, Denmark, France, Germany and other countries. Together we want
to connect our struggles and powers beyond nation-state lines. Together we
want to create a common European movement, united in diversity, which can
break the rule of austerity and will start to build democracy and
solidarity from below. Blockupy and the actions in Frankfurt are only one
step along this path. As a transnational movement we oppose explicitly each
and every attempt for racist, nationalist or antisemitic divisions as well
as conspiracy theories to interpret the world.

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Corinna Genschel

Mitarbeiterin Neue Soziale Bewegung Kontaktstelle

Fraktion DIE LINKE. im Bundestag

Platz der Republik 1, 11011 Berlin

Telefon +4930/227-52097

Telefax +4930/227-56183

Mobil +49176/62890775

corinna.genschel at linksfraktion.de

www.linksfraktion.de

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