It’s been 25 years since a massive public uprising in the streets of Seattle led to the shutdown of the World Trade Organization (WTO) “Millenium Round” Ministerial Conference. That week became a historic turning point for global trade and governance, organizing and mass nonviolent protest, and police repression tactics.
Roughly 80,000 people participated in those protests, including me. In the summer of 1999, I moved to Seattle and joined the Direct Action Network (DAN), the all-volunteer network that issued the call to shut down the WTO meeting, planned the direct-action blockades in Seattle, and organized and trained thousands of people to take part.
Seattle remains a potent example of what’s possible by combining effective organizing, mass mobilization, creative civil disobedience, and a little good luck. Especially in the wake of the recent elections, such histories are vitally important, not just for continued learning, but to remind us of what’s possible, even against great odds. That’s why we’re so grateful for the Shutdown WTO Organizers’ History Project, a website with history, analyses, tools, and references that are essential to understanding Seattle. The site was put together by WTO Shutdown organizers, and includes a terrific roundtable discussion about what happened and its ramifications; resources about Seattle and organizing, including books, documentaries, and anthologies; materials about the role of art and music; movement reflections; and more.A book recently published and marketed for the 25th anniversary of the events, One Week to Change the World: An Oral History of the 1999 WTO Protests, seeks to tell the story and explain the meaning of “the Battle in Seattle.” But as I wrote in this review and response to the book, it falls short of its aim, and ultimately misses the point. This is yet another reason why it’s so important for organizers to tell their own stories about organizing, as we see on the WTO Shutdown website.Last thing! We’re recruiting 50 new monthly sustainers to support our organizing in 2025. If you’ve got capacity to join us as a monthly sustainer, at any amount, we’d be so grateful. To those of you who have already joined us: THANK YOU.We hope you find time to check out some of these resources about the WTO Shutdown. And if you have questions or comments, just reply to this email — I’d love to hear from you. Thanks for being part of our extended community.
In solidarity,
gabriel
gabriel sayegh
cofounder
