IMF Protests Start Small With 75-Person Rally

Activists kicked off a weekend of protests against the International Monetary Fund and World Bank today, calling for the elimination of those organizations at a rally near their offices in downtown Washington.

About 75 people participated in a speakout organized by Global Justice Action, a Washington-based anti-capitalist group, at Edward R. Murrow Park, just across the street from the World Bank's headquarters on Pennsylvania Avenue NW. Speakers accused the IMF, the private organization that oversees global finance, of contributing to the worldwide economic meltdown and creating policy harmful to people in impoverished countries.

The weekend's events, which are scheduled to include rallies and "confrontational street protests" as well as a larger rally Sunday, were planned to coincide with the IMF and World Bank spring meetings.

"The IMF has a shameful track record of giving failed policy advice during times of economic crisis," said Ruth Castel-Branco, a community organizer with workers' rights campaign Jobs With Justice. "The stakes are high . . . and this is the time to stand up and fight back."

The protests were planned as a reaction to the G-20 economic leaders' decision this month to earmark $1.1 trillion for a combined IMF-World Bank rescue fund, but participants also railed against insufficient aid to Africa and the closing of the Franklin homeless shelter in Northwest Washington.

Nathan Harrington, a high school teacher in Prince George's County who was among the protesters, said the common thread is anger at world leaders for prioritizing money over citizens' well-being.

"They're trying to prop up a system that's broken when what we really need to do is create a new system based on democracy," Harrington said.