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Globalization, Privatization, War: In Defense of Public Education in the Americas   A conference sponsored by the International Committee of The Professional Staff Congress   October 26, 2002 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.   At the Borough of Manhattan Community College City University of New York

As governments attempt to establish the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and reduce public responsibilities for education, some private organizations seek to assume them within their culture of profit-making. Furthermore, the U.S. government’s declaration of virtually permanent war on a loosely defined “terrorism” adds new strains to the mission of public education in our hemisphere.  

“How may such changes affect access to public higher education? And how can we resist the negative effects of potentially endless war and ruthless profiteering?  This conference offers an opportunity to debate the issues.” 

Topics include the impact of privatization and corporatization on public education, contingent labor organizing, academic freedom, racism internationally and access to higher education, health and safety internationally, migration in the Americas, education in a time of war, gendered dimensions of the crisis, intellectual property and distance learning in the Americas and public education unions in a globalized environment. 

The conference format will include two tiers of discussion-oriented workshops framed by plenary speakers. Opening speakers will include representatives from Mexican, Canadian, and U.S. members of the Civil Society Network for Public Education in the Americas (Red Social para la Educación Pública en las Américas—Red SEPA), of which the PSC is a member union. A closing speaker will be Professor Manning Marable of Columbia University and a founding member of the Black Radical Congress. 

This conference will be a contribution to the October 2002 international campaign in defense of public education throughout the Americas, “Schools for People, Not for Profit,” organized by Red-SEPA.

There is no registration fee, but we ask that you register by October 18 for the conference: email to ccage@pscmail.org; fax to Chris Cage at 212-302-7815, or mail Chris Cage, PSC, 25 West 43^rd Street, NY, NY 10036. The PSC is the union that represents faculty and professional staff at the City University of New York.