With global leaders arriving in the City of Angels for the US summit, the Washington Post and Al Jazeera report there could be major no-shows by Latin American leaders who warned they would not attend until until all were Western Hemisphere countries. invited.
The push came after the Biden administration decided to oust the undemocratic leaders of Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela. Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador may be among those who refuse to travel to Los Angeles for meetings.
This will not be the first drama around such meetings. Summits held in Quebec City in 2001 and Mar del Plata, Argentina in 2005 sparked massive globalization protests and the closure of America’s protest-free trade zone – and serious conflict with police.
As the Montreal Gazette reported a month after the summit in Quebec, the summit attracted a diverse crowd of demonstrators as “anarchists and church groups looked side by side at the police. They fired in a single cloud of tear gas.” Breathed, hit by the same plastic bullets, drowned by the same water cannons. ”
What we do know for sure is that practical problems will affect thousands of Angelenos. Freeway and road closures will jam DTLA, and yes, the summit will affect the film industry as well.
The White House has promised some livestreaming to the public, but no details have yet been released. Here’s what the summit is about, what to expect, where not to drive, and several alternative events you can attend:
meeting mission
Administration officials say the summit – which will be attended by President Joe Biden – will focus on protecting democracy and human rights in the Western Hemisphere, as well as efforts to ensure irregular migration, climate change and equitable development as the region is hit by the pandemic. Emerges from 19. Epidemic.
However, the talks have been mired in controversy for months and the list of attendees was uncertain just days before the first sitting.
US officials have said repeatedly that the autocratic governments of Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela would not be invited to the talks because of their human rights records. But Mexico and other countries in the region have close ties with those countries, and have called the invitation decision an exclusion.
Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador has threatened to skip the meetings if invitations are not issued, but he may still send an envoy. Unlike Washington, which considers three autocratic governments as pariahs, Mexico’s leftist leaders maintain regular relations with them.
“If all countries are invited, I am going to attend the summit,” said López Obrador. “If not all countries are invited, then the government’s representative, Foreign Affairs Secretary Marcelo Ebrard, is going to attend.”
A US official told the Associated Press that Biden has invited a Cuban representative to attend the summit as an observer. It is unclear whether Cuba will accept the invitation – which will be extended to someone in the foreign ministry, not the foreign minister himself – and whether it will placate López Obrador’s concerns.
López Obrador’s absence would be a blow to the US, which hosted the summit for the first time since 1994. Mexico is a longtime ally, a top US trading partner and the second most populous country in Latin America.
As of the end of last week, it was still uncertain whether Bolivia, Chile and Honduras would participate. However, one question becomes clear. According to three top officials in his government, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has decided to leave.
Although White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said a final guest list was still being worked out, senior administration officials, who declined to be identified when discussing plans for the summit, were on the RSVP list, according to the Associated Press. Raised questions. Although he stressed that the event is an important occasion for national leaders to meet, he also said that López Obrador’s presence would not undermine US efforts to tackle issues such as migration.
Many events aim to compete with the summit.
From a major alternative summit being held in LA Trade Tech downtown, to an inaugural rally for the People’s Summit, to a protest near LA Live, to a discussion at UCLA, next week has something for everyone:
- Community, progressive, pro-labor and other groups, including CHIRLA, CARECEN and SEIU 721, are teaming up to host the Choice of America Summit at Los Angeles Trade Technical College at 400 W. Washington Blvd. (Enter on Grand Avenue). It will feature music and the arts, workshops, speakers, debates, panel discussions and performances that highlight the preferences of working and poor people, and serve as a critique on America’s impact in the hemisphere. The three-day program is detailed on the program’s website: https://peoplessummit2022.org/program
- An inaugural rally for the People’s Summit titled “Migration and Human Rights in America” will be held on Wednesday, June 8 at 9:30 a.m. at the corner of the Olympics and Broadway, with a focus on migration and immigration. Angelica Salas, executive director of Chirala, one of the organizers of the People’s Summit, will also attend the official Summit of America event on Tuesday, June 7, as a representative of “civil society” organizations.
- A series of events will take place as part of the “Anti-Imperialist Summit of America”. They include a panel discussion on Saturday, June 4 at 10 a.m. at 4301 S. Central Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90011, as well as via Zoom at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83564906380); and poster-making and banner-making, as well as a film and panel talk on “Defending Our Americas: Building Resistance to Imperialism and Militarism,” Sunday, June 5 from noon to 3 p.m., at the Harriet Tubman Center for Social Justice, 5278 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90019.
- A multi-organization protest is planned for Wednesday, June 8 at 4 p.m. on Olympic Boulevard and Figueroa Avenue. Organizers include Union del Barrio, Black Alliance for Peace, United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), Frente Sandinista de Liberacion Nacional (FSLN), Socialist Unity Party, American Indian Movement – Southern CA (AIM SoCal) and Harriet Tubman Center for Social Justice. Huh. , More information can be found on the event’s Facebook page and the Black Alliance for Peace website.
- The UCLA Berkeley Center for International Relations will host its Democracy Dialogue program on Wednesday, June 8 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., to discuss “how to protect democracy in America and strengthen the Inter-American Democratic Charter” . The program features a master class led by Chilean President Gabriel Boric, followed by a Q&A. More information can be found on the event website and the event’s Facebook page. register here.
Summit will affect these freeways and roads
Unless you’re going to an event, stay away from downtown Los Angeles and west of I-110 between the 10 and 101 freeways beginning late Monday night. The Los Angeles Mayor’s Office and CalTrans say the roadways below should be avoided from 10 p.m. on Monday, June 6 until noon on Saturday, June 11:
- EB and WB I-10 connectors to NB I-110;
- NB the I-110 exit at Pico Blvd. and 9th, 6th, 4th and 3rd streets;
- SB I-110 exits at Sixth St. and Wilshire Boulevard;
- NB and SB on Figueroa Street, from Washington Boulevard to 3rd Street;
- EB and WB on Pico Boulevard from Union Avenue to Grand Avenue;
- EB&WB on 7th Street, from Bixel Street to Flower Street; And
- EB&WB on Wilshire Boulevard, from Bixel Street to Flower Street.
- Close and service effect details are here,
Do you have to go to DTLA next week with all roads closed, security, events and protests? Motorists who must go downtown should exit below, say officials:
- WB on I-10, exits 16A Santa Fe, 15B Alameda Street, 15A Central Avenue, 14B San Pedro Street and 14A Convention Center;
- EB on I-10, use Convention Center/Grand Avenue/Olive Street, 14A Maple Avenue, 14B San Pedro Street, 15A Central Avenue, 15B Alameda Street and 16A Santa Fe Avenue;
- On I-110, use NB, 20B 37th Street and Exposition Boulevard and 20C Adams Boulevard, or change to EB&WB on I-10 or I-101.
Yes, Summit Will Affect Hollywood
FilmLA warned the film industry that because the activities of the Summit are concentrated in the DTLA, which is roughly bounded by 101 Freeway, 110 Freeway, 10 Freeway and Alameda Street, it is “almost certain that the proceedings will be held in the downtown area during the proceedings.” Filming requests will not be approved.”
According to FilmLA, filming requirements such as posted parking, lane closures and complete road closures “will not be specifically permitted.”
In addition, “permit requests to film elsewhere in the city – due to the high resource demands on the LAPD and other departments – may also see slower processing times during the summit. Filmmakers are encouraged to apply with FilmLA early.” which gives a lead time of three to five business days longer than usual.”
More information and help from local agencies:
Cyclists, DASH users, subway riders and people who board the plane can find out more below. Twitter is expected to be jam-packed with descriptions both helpful and dramatic. Here are some online spots to get you started:
- Unified LA (City of Los Angeles): Twitter account @unifiedla and website at http://unifiedla.lacity.org.
- Caltrans District 7 (lane/ramp closure): Twitter accounts @CaltransDist7 and @CaltransHQ.
- Los Angeles Department of Transportation (DASH Route): Twitter accounts @ladotofficial and @ladottransit and website at http://ladottransit.com/whatsnew.
- Metro (buses and trains): Twitter account @metrolaalerts.
- Los Angeles International Airport (airport): Twitter accounts @FlyLAXStats (travel time to and through the central terminal area) and @FlyLAXAirport.
- During the incident, people using Metro’s bike share program could see service interruptions due to the temporary removal of three bike share stations from Thursday, June 2. The stations will return on June 13.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
,@BikeMetro It is completely unacceptable to remove some of the most used stations in the system for a week and a half with zero notice. pic.twitter.com/rzJvrCKYHd
— Rabi Abonour (@rabonour) 2 June 2022
