Dear Leftlinkers, I thought you might be interested to read the following piece. As you know, the World March of Women campaign is a campaign against poverty and violence. If you could distribute this article among your own networks, it would be helpful to building the campaign. many thanks and all the best, Cathy Picone on behalf of the national coordinating committee for the World March of Women in Australia =========================================================== ACTU Women's Congress Supports World March of Women At the weekend's Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) Inaugural Women's Congress, ACTU President Sharran Burrow formally presented World March Liaison representative, Cathy Picone with the ACTU's endorsement of the World March of Women campaign. The worldwide campaign, initiated by women in Canada, now involves women in 157 countries. Worldwide, 5,000 groups have endorsed its extensive list of demands aiming at the elimination of poverty - which is increasing everywhere in the wake of economic globalisation - and the elimination of violence against women. A lunch time media event arranged for last Sunday attracted a good deal of publicity for the campaign. 160 delegates attended the ACTU Women's Congress over two days - they are active trade union women from all around Australia. In addition, women from other women's organisations also attended Sunday's lunch time rally/ media event. At the rally, women and members of the media - along with the trade union choir - filled the carpark at the front of the Australian Education Union building on Greenhill Road. Bread and Roses - the Rising of the Women Sharran Burrow (on behalf of the ACTU) and Cathy Picone (on behalf of the World March of Women campaign) addressed the rally. Together, Sharran and Cathy then released four white doves while the trade union choir sang "Bread and Roses": "As we go marching marching, unnumbered women dead Go crying through our singing their ancient call for bread Small art and love and beauty their drudging spirits knew Yes it is bread we fight for but we fight for roses too As we go marching marching, we bring the greater days The rising of the women means the rising of the race No more the drudge and idler, ten that toil where one reposes But a sharing of life's glories - bread & roses, bread & roses!" (Inspired by a banner in the huge 1912 walkout of textile workers in Lawrence, Massachusetts.) Sharran formally handed over to Cathy a package indicating the ACTU's support of the World March. The package featured a large colour photograph of bread and roses. In her speech, Sharran had talked about the Federation des Femmes du Quebec's "Bread and Roses" March back in 1995 - the starting point for the worldwide campaign. A Lively Media Event The release of the white doves made a lively picture for the TV cameras. Many thanks to the ACTU women for organising an excellent media event. The trade union choir sang a bracket of songs including "Bread and Roses". A vase of tall roses and several loaves of bread displayed on a table nearby made a colourful backdrop picking up the symbolism. Afterwards, the entire group had our photo taken by a photographer who'd climbed onto a high ladder while we all held our WMW2000 signature support cards aloft. In the main hall where the Congress participants met each day and heard from a range of speakers including Sharran Burrow, Helen Creed, Barbara Pocock and Margaret Reynolds, the walls were decorated with brightly coloured union banners. Out the front behind the speakers on the dais, another large banner specially made for the Congress was prominently displayed. That banner centrally featured the World March of Women logo. The TV coverage was very good on Channel 7 and even better (more extensive) on SBS and ABC TV. Would You Like to be Involved? If you would like to distribute cards for signature among your friends and networks, please contact the national organising committee at the address below. The cards can be signed by women and men. The committee is also seeking to involve women interested in initiating small scale grass roots meetings in your workplaces, schools and neighbourhood centres on October 17th, UN International Day for the Eradication of Poverty when the seven-month WMW2000 campaign culminates with the presentation by an international political delegation of millions of cards to Kofi Annan at UN headquarters in NY. Any woman is welcome to initiate such a meeting. If you would like to do so, please get in touch with us. For further information, please contact: World March of Women in the Year 2000 - Australia c/o Women's International League for Peace and Freedom GPO Box 2094, Adelaide SA 5001 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] fax: 08 8377 0706 phone: 08 8296 4357 web site for Australia: http://www.uq.net.au/march2000/ web site for overseas: http://www.ffq.qc.ca/marche2000 The national coordinating committee for World March of Women 2000 in Australia acknowledges the support for its work given by Senator Kate Lundy, Jenny Macklin, Member of the House of Representatives for Jagajaga, Cheryl Kernot, Member for Dickson, Hon Dr Carmen Lawrence, Member for Fremantle, Faye Lo Po, NSW Minister for Women, the YWCA and the Australian Virtual Centre for Women and the Law. -- Leftlink - Australia's Broad Left Mailing List mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.alexia.net.au/~www/mhutton/index.html Sponsored by Melbourne's New International Bookshop Subscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=subscribe%20leftlink Unsubscribe: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?Body=unsubscribe%20leftlink
