Make Poverty History
Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings.
–Nelson Mandela
Today is the United Nations Day for the Eradication of Poverty, which is being marked by a global day of action sponsored by a coalition of anti-poverty groups working under the name Make Poverty History. The coalition is calling on Canadians to “STAND UP and SPEAK OUT” at events being held across the country, the purpose of which is to demand trade justice, increased international aid, debt cancellation for poor countries, and an end to child poverty in Canada.
Click here for a list of events happening in and around Montreal, and here to endorse the campaign.
Everyday should be make poverty history day.
Let me be the cynic here. Because I usually am.
Can’t end poverty, the fact that we live the way we do, ensures that the poor will forever stay poor. So unless you are willing to give up your life of luxury and by luxury I mean stuff like coffee, running shoes and canned foods, there will always be poverty. That’s the beauty of free-trade, ain’t it grand?
As canadian we are so late on 2000 engadment for Poverty. It’s a shame.
This is such an important cause and a great campaign. I try to stay active in charitable organizations, and found this article very interesting. Kudos!
Thanks, all, for chiming in. Just to fine-tune your cynicism, Dave–it’s not that we’d have to give up coffee and running shoes, but that we’d have to pay a lot more for them. Nevertheless, your point stands. Also, Jean-Marc raises a good question: why haven’t we acted on the issues raised by Campaign 2000? Is it that poverty isn’t politically “sexy” enough?
Yes but if we payed more for it, we wouldn’t live the way we do anymore. If we payed an honest price for coffee, not many would drink coffee anymore and that would make for a lot of angry people at work in the morning.