European Social Forum
The European Social Forum (ESF) is an annual meeting held by members of the alternative globalization movement to coordinate campaigns in Europe, share and refine organizing strategies. It is related to the World Social Forum.
The first forum was held in Florence in November 2002 (following this, 1,000,000 people marched in the streets of Florence to oppose the plan of the Bush II regime of the USA to use violent methods to change the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq). The massive protests on February 15th 2003 can be seen as an offspring of the Florence forum.
The second European Social Forum held in Paris in November 2003. In France there has been a lot of critique of the organization for not being open enough. The participation of the French Socialist Party, the Parti Socialiste, also raised a lot of critical voices, since the party has been one of the proponents of liberalization of markets in the 1990s.
