The WTO Protests: 10 Years Later

Steve Scher
11/23/2009 at 10:00 a.m.

Ten years ago, the streets of downtown Seattle were filled with tear gas and armored police. People dressed as sea turtles marched side–by–side with labor unions. Dumpsters burned. Hundreds of protestors were arrested. The 1999 annual meeting of the World Trade Organization led to the largest street protests and demonstrations this city has ever seen. What affect did those protests have on the WTO and on global trade policy? How did they change the nature of protesting and policing? Where you in Seattle in 1999? How did the WTO protests affect you? Did you participate? What memories stand out 10 years later? Did the protest change your view of Seattle?

Related Event

There is a three day teach–in and strategy session called "The People's Summit" at multiple venues in Seattle this upcoming weekend: November 27 – 29. There are also multiple events and speakers including Amy Goodman, "The Yes Men" and a celebratory, storytelling dinner. More information at SeattlePlus10.org (see Related Links below).

Guest(s)

Naomi Klein is a Canadian journalist who writes about corporate globalization. She is the author of "No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies" and "Fences and Windows," which was recently released in a 10th anniversary edition. Her most recent book is "The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism."

Paul Schell was the Mayor of Seattle in 1999. He joins us from Palm Springs.

Jeff Schott is a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. He works on international trade policy and economic sanctions. During the Tokyo Round of multilateral trade negotiations in the 1970s, he was a member of the U.S. delegation that negotiated the GATT Subsidies Code. Currently, he is a member of the Advisory Committee on International Economic Policy of the U.S. Department of State.

David Solnit was an organizer with the Direct Action Network for the 1999 WTO demonstrations in Seattle. He is the author of the new book "The Battle of the Story of the Battle of Seattle."

Margaret Levi is a professor at the department of political science at the University of Washington. She is a co–chair of the WTO History Project there. She studies labor unions and global justice campaigns.