Global Uprising: Confronting the Tyrannies of the 21st Century: Stories from a New Generation of Activists

In their epilogue to "Global Uprising," Neva Welton and Linda Wolf point out that in the context of 9/11, "Now, more than ever, we must examine the the consequences or our denial, ignorance and complacency [in dealing with global affairs]. We must strive to better understand world history, religious beliefs, cultural diversity, and the impact of ideologies and policies that oppress and marginalize people. Terror is still terror, no matter what its origin: whether it stems from a sudden, deliberate act or is visited every day upon a people through poverty, starvation, enviromental destruction, economic enslavement, or poltice and military brutality.""Global Uprising" is just the type of book we need to help us understand our role as global citizens--not global consumers, as Bush and the free market corporate head and stock holders world would have us to be. What we get in this book are the voices of people--mainly young--who have allowed their consciousness and love for justice and peace to become workers against environmental racism, the Prison Industrial Complex, global sweatshops, the World Trade Organization, corporate media, factory farms, Shell Oil Co. in the Ogoni region of Nigeria, and many other injustices that rarely get heard or written about in the dominate media.These are passionate, ofter personal stories, of people throughout the world who are in solidarity with the children of Iraq who are dying because of U.S. military actions and sanctions, the Indigenous Peoples of Chiapas, who live under constant attack by the government of Mexico, and with U'Wa people of Colombia whose land has been affected by the US oil giant Occidental Petroleum. These and many more groups and issues finally get heard in this book. Each of these stories would make powerful documentaries or movies, for they're about what happens to a people who must suffer under capitalist/imperialist world order that seeks undermine undeverdevloped or weaker regions of the world for economic control and profit.And despite the sometimes hopelessness of the struggle, these stories are inspiring for those of us who realize that we can't simply limit our lives to buying the latest stuff we really don't need, living rich while most of world lives in starvation, or allowing this racist/imperialist government to bomb countries, primarily inhabited by people of color--and killing tens or thousands of innocent people."Global Uprising" is not a joy to read, but it does serve as a testimony that we can take action against tyranny and oppression and demand a better, more equitable world for all citizens.