| |
|
|
LEARNING
ABOUT THE GLOBAL ECONOMY
The Institute for Labor Studies has sponsored since 1996 several conferences
on NAFTA, the I-35 Corridor, and Building International Labor Solidarity.
It also serves as a resource for area unions, the Greater Kansas
City Fair Trade Coalition, and
The
Cross Border Network for Justice and Solidarity and ILS Director,
Judy Ancel,
has developed particular expertise in issues relating to the maquiladoras
and maquiladora workers in Mexico.
Reports on international labor
and political issues
Crossing the Border to Cananea
In 2010 a group of labor educators,
union staff and students went to Cananea Sonora, Mexico to investigate
the ongoing copper strike by Los Mineros Union. They produced a report
and video for presentation at the 2011 United Association of Labor
Education Conference. The video and report are called
Crossing the Border to Cananea
High Stakes and Teachable Moments for North American Workers
Highlights include:
-
The origins of the
Cananea strike and the downward pressure on labor rights
in Mexico
-
The corporate shape
shifting and global reach of Grupo Mexico which holds
the Cananea mine concession
-
Interviews with leaders
of Section 65 of the Miners union and with community
members showing the inspirational resistance to
government and corporate attempts to destroy their way
of life
-
Health and environmental
dangers which span the border
-
The growth of worldwide
solidarity and the significance of the strike and
solidarity with Cananea for all North American workers
-
An appendix of resources
and documents including ready-made lesson plans
for worker education
To download the report and video:
UMKC visitors to Cananea mine
Honduras Under the Coup
 In
2009, ILS Director Judy Ancel joined a Global Exchange human
rights delegation to Honduras to observe the
effects of the coup against President Manuel Zelaya. The group
met with union leaders active in the Resistance, with Xiomara Castro
de Zelaya, wife of the deposed president and The with U.S.
Ambassador Hugo Llorens. The group also witnessed violent repression
of peaceful demonstrators in the streets.
See the
report.
Reports on the impact of "free" trade
-
The
High Cost to Kansas of "Free" Trade:
Trade-Related
Job Loss in Kansas and the Third Congressional District, May 9,
2005. A Report authored by The Institute for Labor Studies on the
impact of free trade agreements on jobs and the economy.
-
Offshoring
the Missouri Economy: Free Trade Job Losses and Their Impact
on Missouri Workers, September 1, 2004. A report authored by The
Institute for Labor Studies detailing the trade-related job losses
in Missouri and their effect on depressing the standard of living.
- Living
on a Maquila Wage is a short group role-play aimed at learning
the difficulty of being a minimum wage worker for a multinational
corporation in Mexico.
- NAFTA and Fast
Track remarks by ILS Director Judy Ancel to Town Hall Meeting
and debate hosted by Congressman Dennis Moore August 30, 2001.
- Myths of
Free Trade a pamphlet on Mexican labor rights under NAFTA.
There
are many useful websites to learn about the global economy:
Links
on International Labor Issues and Globalization
Economics
from local to global
Trade
Agreements and Their Results
Mexico NAFTA and the Maquiladoras
International
Labor Rights and Solidarity Organizations
|
|
