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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 3, 2006)
...’Battle in Seattle’ (From Page 1) politician, a delegate and a cop. “We did not want to give only one point of view,” said Los Angeles co- producer Mary Aloe in a press state- ment. “When you see the movie, you’ll find lots of gray areas. It’s nei- ther sympathetic nor unsympathetic to protesters and police.” The film has a budget of around $10 million — small by the standards of major Hollywood productions, but sizable for an independent film. Fun- ders include Insight Film Studios of Vancouver; Aloe’s Proud Mary Pro- ductions in Los Angeles; Remstar Corporation of Montreal, Grosvenor Park of Toronto, and an as-yet-un- named Seattle-based private equity firm. It’s not clear yet to what extent the film will employ union members. Don Ramsden, business agent of Vancouver, B.C.-based International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 669, said he expected to con- clude an agreement with Insight cover- ing camera operators, and Ramsden said the actors and directors will almost certainly work under agreements with the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), the Union of BC Performers, and the Di- rectors Guild of Canada. With most of the financing for “Battle in Seattle” coming from Canada, it may be hard for U.S. film industry unions to characterize the film as a “runaway production.” But increasingly, U.S.-based film and television producers are moving production to other countries, with Canada — particularly Vancouver and Toronto — among the most popular locations. Vancouver, dubbed “Hollywood North” benefits from a favorable ex- change rate, lower-wage union con- tracts, universal health insurance, and, since 1999, federal and provincial government subsidies. The subsidies include a rebate for up to a quarter of labor costs, provided that the produc- tion employs local Canadian workers. U.S. film unions are gearing up to fight back by filing a trade complaint, and persuading local governments in the United States to match foreign subsidies. Seattle approved its own film industry tax incentive, but it won’t start until Jan. 1, too late for “Battle in Seattle.” “Battle in Seattle” is far from the first production to be set in Seattle but filmed in Vancouver. Still, the choice is stunning given the movie’s subject, a protest of corporate globalization. In 1999, at the invitation of Presi- dent Bill Clinton, trade ministers from around the world planned to spend four days in Seattle discussing the ex- pansion of the WTO, which negotiates and enforces international trade agree- ments. In response, an extraordinary international coalition of union, stu- dent, environmental, religious and public interest groups planned a week of protests, criticizing the WTO as a secretive and unaccountable interna- tional agency writing the rules for a corporate-led globalization. Protest organizers’ work bore fruit on Nov. 30, 1999, the first day of the summit. About 10,000 mostly-youth- ful protesters formed human chains and blocked streets around the Seattle Convention Center. Their blockades prevented trade delegates from getting to the meeting. Police used force and tear gas to try to dislodge them, but protesters stood their ground, helped by devices like tripods, chains and locked metal cylinders that prevented police from pulling them apart. Meanwhile, as many as 35,000 people, mostly union members, rallied in and around Seattle Center’s Memo- rial Stadium. Rallygoers included union members from 144 countries, and members of 50 U.S. unions from 25 states. To get them to the rally had taken 185 buses, nine charter planes and two trains, including one from Oregon. After the rally, the unionists marched, meeting up with other marches at prearranged locations. The massive combined march passed near the Convention Center, where the blockade continued even after the WTO announced the meeting would be called off for the day. With all the groups converging, police decided it would be politically disastrous to con- tinue to use tear gas around such a large group of ordinary citizens. As marchers left the area however, police attacked again, and smaller groups of protesters got the worst of it. Some protesters set Dumpsters afire in the streets, and committed acts of vandalism, singling out Niketown, K ramers/metro mailing service 3201 N.W. YEON PORTLAND, OREGON 97210 (503) 274-1638 FAX (503) 227-1245 Starbucks, McDonalds and Planet Hollywood, all were closed for the day on the advice of police. Other young people, attracted downtown by the chaos, committed random acts of violence, including assaults on pro- testers. By nightfall, downtown Seattle was a police state. Mayor Paul Schell declared a suspension of civil liber- ties, including the right to protest. 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Newton Tip of the week: If you have a claim for injury or disease, you should make sure your lawyer considers your workers’ compensation, Social Security and disability pension rights together to maximize your total recovery. We represent people on all types of injury and disease related claims. n Workers’ Compensation n Construction Injuries n Personal Injury/Product Liability n Death Claims n Asbestos/Mesothelioma n Social Security Disability We provide straight answers at no cost on any of the above areas of law. THE ONLY UNION MAILER Visit our Web site at www.kramersmailing.com area for the rest of the week. Faced with so much public attention, the talks about expanding the WTO col- lapsed on the fourth day. Over the next two years, similar anti-globalization protests accompa- nied nearly every major global eco- nomic summit. Advocates of so-called free trade were on the defensive. Lo- cal backlash over the Seattle police re- sponse led to the resignation of Police (Turn to Page 12) heavy-duty armored vehicles zoomed around the city, using copious tear gas, pepper spray and clubs at the slightest provocation or none at all. Some 500 people, including protest- ers, bystanders and even office work- ers in the wrong place at the wrong time, were arrested, carted off on buses in plastic handcuffs, and held in jails and a nearby naval base for up to five days. Smaller protests continued outside the downtown “protest-free” CALL US or VISIT OUR WEB SITE ( 503) 228-5222 http://www.stc-law.com MEMBERS OF TEAMSTERS LOCAL 223 — Eric Brending, Owner — NOVEMBER 3, 2006 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS PAGE 5
