Reaction Paper- Reclaiming the Commons
Reaction Paper - 1
“RECLAIMING THE COMMONS” by Naomi Klein
Written By: Maisha Samiha 500 337 823
Submitted to: Dr. Abbas Gnamo POL 601-01
Date: February 16, 2011
Reaction Paper # 1
My paper is based on the article entitled “Reclaiming the Commons”, by Naomi Klein. In this article the author defines what anti-globalization movement means in her own words. The meaning and origins of the term anti-globalization movement is disputed amongst various socialists and economists, but Klein says that anti-globalization movement can mean different things to different people based on their interests in a particular issue. It is therefor the movement of many movements.
Before going in depth about the article, it is important to know from where the idea of anti-globalization comes from and how the movement came into being. Some argue that is all started from Seattle, but a lot of them are unaware of the fact that AGM has gone through three waves. The first wave was back in 1970, when oil prices skyrocketed due to economic downturn, which lead to strikes, protests and demonstrations. The second wave erupted with the end of the cold war, during the early 1990’s and the third wave democracy spread like wild fire. The third and most important wave was during the 50th anniversary of Bretton Woods when the WTO emerged from the GATT. The third wave lead to many activist groups to rise and this lead to overlapping emphasis on various issues like; anti-capitalist groups, women’s rights groups, global inequality groups, and many others.
Klein mentions that people join the AGM because of similar interests and ideologies, which might be different from the regular mass. I personally think that people who do not agree with the common norms of society join these groups in an attempt to show their rebellious attitude towards the big corporations and political powers. It is a known fact that one individual cannot tackle an entire organization and therefore,
“RECLAIMING THE COMMONS” by Naomi Klein
Written By: Maisha Samiha 500 337 823
Submitted to: Dr. Abbas Gnamo POL 601-01
Date: February 16, 2011
Reaction Paper # 1
My paper is based on the article entitled “Reclaiming the Commons”, by Naomi Klein. In this article the author defines what anti-globalization movement means in her own words. The meaning and origins of the term anti-globalization movement is disputed amongst various socialists and economists, but Klein says that anti-globalization movement can mean different things to different people based on their interests in a particular issue. It is therefor the movement of many movements.
Before going in depth about the article, it is important to know from where the idea of anti-globalization comes from and how the movement came into being. Some argue that is all started from Seattle, but a lot of them are unaware of the fact that AGM has gone through three waves. The first wave was back in 1970, when oil prices skyrocketed due to economic downturn, which lead to strikes, protests and demonstrations. The second wave erupted with the end of the cold war, during the early 1990’s and the third wave democracy spread like wild fire. The third and most important wave was during the 50th anniversary of Bretton Woods when the WTO emerged from the GATT. The third wave lead to many activist groups to rise and this lead to overlapping emphasis on various issues like; anti-capitalist groups, women’s rights groups, global inequality groups, and many others.
Klein mentions that people join the AGM because of similar interests and ideologies, which might be different from the regular mass. I personally think that people who do not agree with the common norms of society join these groups in an attempt to show their rebellious attitude towards the big corporations and political powers. It is a known fact that one individual cannot tackle an entire organization and therefore,