Dear President-elect Barack Obama, We wish to congratulate you on your recent electoral victory. Throughout the electoral campaign we, the undersigned, followed with great interest your repeated commitments to fair trade and the renegotiation of poorly designed trade agreements like the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). After the election we visited your web site and were pleased to see the quote: "Obama and Biden believe that NAFTA and its potential were oversold to the American people. They will work with the leaders of Canada and Mexico to fix NAFTA so that it works for American workers." It also states that you "will use trade agreements to spread good labor and environmental standards around the world and stand firm against agreements like the Central American Free Trade Agreement that fail to live up to those important benchmarks.". We think this is a good start at revisiting U.S. trade policy, but feel that other areas must be addressed. We firmly believe that future agreements between our countries must work for the people of every country. Hence, a new model for trade that supports widely recognized international development, human rights and environmental goals is greatly needed. Additionally, in light of deepening food crisis, we strongly urge you to include a thorough reassessment of agricultural market and trade deregulation that has unleashed damaging price volatility which threatens food security in all countries, but which poses the greatest threat to the poorest citizens in developing countries who are the most susceptible to food price spikes. Agricultural trade deregulation has allowed multinational agribusiness cartels to dump commodities into local markets, forcing farmers to migrate from the countryside to urban centers and north across the border. Therefore, renegotiating the Agricultural chapter on NAFTA with the full participation of small and family farmers' associations would be a tremendous step forward. In 2008, we launched a policy proposal entitled "NAFTA Must be Renegotiated; A Proposal from North America Civil Society Networks" prepared jointly by Canadian, Mexican and U.S. organizations that calls for a revision and renegotiation of NAFTA so as to establish economic relations based on social justice within a paradigm of sustainable development." In this proposal, we synthesize ten priorities for the renegotiation of NAFTA based on our work of many years, namely: agriculture, energy, foreign investment, financial services, the role of the State in the provision of services, employment, migration, environment, intellectual property rights and dispute settlement provisions. To this end, we urge you to consider the Trade Reform, Accountability, Development, Employment (TRADE Act) as a starting point for a new dialogue on developing an alternative fair trade model based on a democratic, participatory and transparent process that puts enhancing human rights and equitable development ahead of the current approach of trade for trade's sake that puts corporate profits of a few above human rights, public health, the environment and prosperous local communities. The TRADE Act was introduced earlier this year by Sen. Sherrod Brown, Rep. Mike Michaud and eighty of their Congressional and Senate colleagues who worked closely with a broad range of civil society constituencies who provided input for this important legislation. Finally, we have also worked closely with our allies in Canada and Mexico for a halt to the undemocratic and corporate - led Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP), because it excludes Congressional oversight, lacks any consultation with civil society, it leads to further deregulation that benefits only corporations and has led to an increase of militarization and violation of civil liberties. We support the statement you made earlier this year that: "Starting my first year in office, I will convene annual meetings with Mr. Calderon and the prime minister of Canada. Unlike similar summits under President Bush, these will be conducted with a level of transparency that represents the close ties among our three countries. We will seek the active and open involvement of citizens, labor, the private sector and non- governmental organizations in setting the agenda and making progress." Please count on us to work with you to create a new model for economic, political and social relations in the North American region that will have implications for the United States and the entire Americas ' hemisphere. Sincerely, Across the Americas Agribusiness Accountability Initiative Alliance for Democracy Americas Policy Program Association for the Sovereignty of Colombia (ASOCOL) California Food and Justice Coalition Carolina Interfaith Task Force on Central America Center of Concern Chicago Religious Leadership Network on Latin America Connie Hogarth Center for Social Action Cumberland Countians for Peace & Justice Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) Ecumenical Committee of US Church Personnel in Nicaragua Equal Exchange Family Farm Defenders Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy Friends of the Earth U.S. Global Exchange Grassroots International Holy Cross International/ Justice Office Howard County Friends of Latin America Hudson Valley Community Coalition Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy Institute for Policy Studies, Global Economy Project International Labor Rights Forum INTERCONNECT Jobs with Justice of East Tennessee Labor Council for Latin American Advancement Massachusetts Chapter Lancaster Coalition for Peace and Justice Liberty Tree Foundation for the Democratic Revolution Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns Movement for Peace in Colombia National Catholic Rural Life Conference National Family Farm Coalition National Lawyers Guild Network for Environmental & Economic Responsibility, United Church of Christ NETWORK: A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby Nicaragua Network NY Citizens Trade Coalition NYC Mennonite Immigration Program Orange County Peace and Justice Coalition Pesticide Action Network North America Philipstown for Democracy Quixote Center Rockland Immigration Coalition in New City NY Rural Coalition Solidarity Committee of the Capital District Student Trade Justice Campaign (STJC) The Oakland Institute Trade Justice NY Metro U.S. Labor Education in the Americas Project (USLEAP) U. S. Nicaragua Friendship Committee United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) United Food and Commercial Workers, Local 1500 United Methodist Church, General Board of Church and Society Washington Office on Latin America Witness for Peace Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, U.S. Section World Hunger Year (WHY) In solidarity,  |