European Social Forum wraps up with march and calls for action

People came from every country of Europe, and every continent of the world to attend the European Social Forum this week in Malmo, Sweden. On Saturday, for the first time, it was possible to see them all in one place when 15,000 marched through the streets of Malmo, Sweden.

As with all social forums, the topics covered ranged widely from the dangers of climate change to trade union issues to strategies for countering growing European arms trade and involvement in foreign wars.

Participants called for a global day of action on climate change on December 6 to coincide with the next round of international climate talks, and especially, to prepare to turn out in large numbers at the Copenhagen talks scheduled for the following year.

There is a call for action to counter the growing militarization of Europe, where the arms trade has been growing rapidly during the 2000s. Many speakers questioned Europe's involvement in NATO, and called for an end to the military association with the U.S.

Europe's fraying social safety net was a key topic, with the European Union -- responding to neoliberal globalization in the same way as so many other countries -- cutting social spending and security, increasing work hours, reducing work security.

The social forum media center is closing down now that the forum is over. I will post more from Malmo soon.