in japan in the 1980’s, some business men began to use an old term in a new way. the original term, which directly translated means “global localization” was used to refer to the adapting of farming techniques to local needs and environments. But the new use referred to a marketing strategy that encouraged companies to understand local consumers so that profits could be maximized and global expansion would become fiscally feasible. some socially conscious folks are starting to use the expression “glocalization” in place of the bumper sticker standard “think globally, act locally” but obviously the term is more than a little problematic.

perhaps the biggest dilemma is that along with the well-intentioned activists, military and paramilitary forces are co-opting this idiom and implementing the strategy in reverse. in central and south america, the use of school of americas graduates has helped to curb resistance against the state. and if it works there, it’ll work here right?

presently, folks trained in methods of torture in the united states are working with roberto michelette in honduras to suspend the following rights: personal liberty; freedom of association and assembly; and the right to freedom of movement, to leave, enter, and stay within the national territory. This evening, less than two hours from the gates of ft. benning, in atlanta, georgia people experiencing homelessness are finding their own rights suspended indefinitely. arrested for asking for money, not having “proper identification”, sleeping outdoors, or simply sitting down on the sidewalk - our homeless citizens are never safe from police harassment.

with confirmation that xe, formerly blackwater usa, has trained members of the atlanta police force at its training center in north carolina, we can no longer deny that the military’s reverse glocalization is silencing and brutalizing america’s poor along with the huddled, disenfranchised masses abroad that we could more easily distance ourselves from.

may we seek to understand that the fight against systematic injustice is more than an intellectualized international cause. certainly, the struggle against “disappearing” and state sanctioned violence begins on peachtree street and trails through hundreds of fearful occupied nations. we should find the courage to hold those in power accountable, and the love to nonviolently resist with our neighbors who have been stripped of the power they are due. act locally, act globally, but before it’s too late, we must certainly act.

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