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A difficult question because ‘they’ are not a single group of people at all. They come from all walks of life; all ages, genders, races and social classes and come from many counties. It is convenient for the mainstream media and commentators to lump them into a single group but this is far from the truth. The only unifying factor that could reasonably be applied to the protestors is that they are people who are unhappy with the present global, political and financial system. Beyond this, the origin, motivation and aims of the individuals and groups who make up the protesters is so diverse as to make any expert or press speculation about what the Anti-capitalist/Anti-globalization should or should not be doing/thinking meaningless. Their Anti-capitalist/Anti-globalization ‘label’ comes from the fact that the disparate groups of people involved will often pick important global political/financial meetings (e.g. G8, IMF, World Bank etc..) to make their presence known.

So what groups compose the Anti-capitalist/Anti-globalization protestors?

It varies with the country currently hosing the political/financial meeting. In general it’s possible to say that the groups represented tend to be one of the following: NGOs (Non-Governmental Organisations), Left Wing Groups, Anarchists, Environmentalists and Human Rights Activists. Each of these groups has their own aims, ideology and tactics. Some groups encompass several of these grouping whereas other barely touch on one area. As you can see it’s potential a huge area of discussion and it would be almost impossible to cover them all so the FAQ will focus on general ideas and some examples. Before reading any further I'll give the perspective of the author - this article has been written by an anarchist so be aware of my bias.

Who or what are NGOs?

NGOs or Non-Governmental Organisations are groups set-up by people with the aim progressing on a cause or issue. Their beliefs come from the issue they are focused on. Often they are international with groups in many countries. They only answer to themselves on matters of policy and tend to be hierarchically structured. Examples include Greenpeace (who focus on nuclear and environmental issues), Amnesty International (who focus on human rights issues) and the Red Cross (who care for victims of conflicts). Not many NGOs could be considered ‘anti-capitalist’ as they tend to be interested in reforming or influencing the current system rather than advocating a new system. Some NGOs are actually funded by governments such as ATTAC or Oxfam. Others masquerade as what the popular image of an NGO is while representing a very different, for example the ‘Global Climate Coalition’ who sound like an environmental group, but are funded by oil companies to oppose climate change laws. The Red Cross recently attracted criticism after accepting money from the controversial multi-National Nestle as well as oil companies.

However, that’s not to say all NGOs are only wearing the ‘mask’ of caring, just that they only represent themselves. This can be positive and negative, take for example Greenpeace who only accept money from members and so don't have their interests diluted and so their actions are often focus and effective such as StopESSO.com the campaign to boycott one of the world's nastiest oil companies. It's positive in that it attacks ESSO, but does that mean we can ignore other companies such as BP who are involved in other nasty practices?

Who or what are Left Wing Groups & Anarchists

'Left Wing' is phrase used to describe people who's ideology is that of placing social equality foremost. Within this area there are sub-beliefs such as Socialism, Maoism, Trotskyism, Marxist-Leninist Theory, Anarchism, Trade Unionism, Anarcho-syndicalism and so on. This FAQ will not attempt to cover all these branches, instead it will focus of what unites and divides these ideologies. Broadly speaking all left Wing ideologies (should) oppose anything that attempts to create inequality - racism, sexism, homophobia, capital and so on. Where the ideologies split into two branches is that some believe in taking over the functions of the state (Maoism, Marxist-Leninist Theory, etc.) and make the state work for the benefit of the people. Some have called this the 'dictatorship of the masses'. Others (Anarchism, Anarcho-syndicalism, etc.) believe that the state is the creator of inequality and so freedom is gained by abolishing the state and allowing people to form their grass-roots democracy so everyone takes authority for their own existence.

Who or what are Environmentalists or Human Rights Activists

Environmentalists are those who believe in equal or greater focus of time and resources being given over to nature. They espouse the belief humans cannot live without (or separate from) nature so we must learn to respect it and preserve it. Environmental groups can range from 'establishment' groups such as Friends of the Earth to direct action groups such as Earth First! Human Rights Activists are those to campaign to ensure that those who would trample of fellow human beings in their quest for power/money are stopped, that all humans deserve basic fundamental rights (such as the right to life, the right to food, free speech, to water etc..) that cannot be violated by anyone. These types of groups can vary from local community groups concerned with issues within their neighbourhood to international groups such as Human Rights Watch. Within this arena you can also find Animal Rights Activists. These groups and individuals take this same idea of basic fundamental human rights and extend it to animals, so animals have the right to habitat, to live free from cruelty and so on. They also have a range of groups from PETA who campaign against the fur trade to Hut Saboteurs who actively disrupt fox and stag hunting at great personal risk.

Are all the Anti-capitalist/Anti-globalization movements totally separate groups?

No way! The strength of the movement comes from mixing-up ideas and aims, for example 'Earth First!' are a radical environmental group that mixes anarchist ideas with environmental ideas. Global Exchange is a group that welcomes all ideas and opinions, believing that all aspects of the struggle are connected. Human Rights Activists can get involved with Environmentalists when issues of contaminated land where people live arise. The bottom line is that in the complex world we live in, everything is connected. More and more individual groups and people are waking up to this fact. The struggle for environmental justice is the struggle for human justice. The struggle for true democracy is the struggle for equality. As the charismatic Zapatista commander remarked on the issues he and his people were struggling for, "We are all Zapatista."

So what do Anti-capitalist/Anti-globalization protestors want?

The groups will want different things. An environmental group may want protection for a patch of woodland or a change in the law to protect a species. A human rights group may want to see a dictatorship put under pressure to respect it's people or to free it's prisoners of conscience. A socialist group may want to take over the state, while the an anarchist group may be seeking to dismantle that state. But, one thing all are united on is that the present system is not doing the right thing and that people need to get involved to change things for the better, because nobody else is going to do it for us!

What is their problem with the media coverage?

Within this movement, the media are often referred to as the 'corporate media' to reflect that the majority of news outlets in the world are owned by just 6 companies. Media is a reflection of the problems we face - it is hierarchicly organised, ruthlessly controlled by a few rich people and primarily interested in representing corporate views rather than reflecting the reality of our world. For example in the United Kingdom; BskyB, one third of UK Newspapers including ‘The Sun’ and ‘The Times’ are all owned by the same man - Rupert Murdoch. He also owns ‘20th Century Fox’ in the US, ‘Star TV’ in Asia, the LA Dodgers, the National Rugby League and Fox Interactive and most of the newspapers in Australia to name but a few. His empire is worth and estimated $5.3 billion. In the 'democracies' of the world this man is courted by politicians because he often hold the power to elect or topple governments. They call this 'freedom of speech' just watch what you say...'

Where can I find out more?

Books

-A good non-ideological introduction to the ideas covered is Naomi Klien's 'No Logo'
-To help in building an anlyitic understanding of the status-quo try Noam Chomsky's 'New Military Humanism' which is about the Kosovo War, Plan Columbia and Palestine.
-Also highly recommended are 'Propaganda and the Public Mind' by Noam Chomsky and David Barsamian.
-I'd also recommend the easily accessible and very readable 'Death Blossoms' by the radical writer, former black panther and death-row inmate Mumia Abu-Jamal.
-Being an anarchist, I can't help but also recommend Colin Ward's 'Anarchy In Action'.

Websites

-For news you can't beat www.indymedia.org its a news site that allows anyone to both comment on other news articles and post their own stories. Also of note for news is Ainfos at www.ainfos.ca which is an anarchist news site.
-For analysis try Zmag at www.zmag.org and the anarchist site www.infoshop.org
-Finally for MP3 and spoken word try http://www.radio4all.net which in an anarchist site hosting radio shops, talks and discussions by various people from cyber culture to third world debt.

Films

-'This is What Democracy Looks Like' is a good start, it's a documentary about the Seattle protests.
-'Land and Freedom' directed by Ken Loach is a good watch. It's loosely based on the book 'Homage to Catalonia' by George Orwell (author of 'Animal Farm' and '1984') of the Spanish Civil War - which was a defining moment in history for those of us who believe a better world is possible.
-'Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky And The Media' is another documentary - it's long and involved by very powerful and in-depth.

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