If there’s one thing that Occupy and the World Indigenous Peoples movements have in common, it’s fighting privatization. Like its predecessor of colonialism, neoliberalism is the greatest threat to both social democracy and indigenous sovereignty.
As we examine mobilizations from both indigenous and non-indigenous sources around the world, we see patterns of resistance that are useful in conceptualizing possibilities for victory over the forces of neoliberalism. In short, we not only support, but also learn from each other.
As noted this morning on The Real News, democratizing student union protocols was key to the successful mobilization of the Quebec student strike, now in its eleventh week. Initially mobilized around opposition to tuition increases, the strike is now involved in fighting against the cultural revolution of privatization. Defending social democracy from the neoliberal iceberg connects the students with a society that is under attack on all fronts.