Over the course of the second half of the twentieth century, as global economic connections multiplied, the world’s wealthiest nations spearheaded a movement to create international economic agreements and organizations to regulate global trade. For many people around the world, such agreements and organizations came to embody the process of globalization. More specifically, they became the focus of widespread concerns about the equity of global economic trends. Since the world’s wealthiest nations created and, to a large extent, controlled organizations like the World Trade Organization (WTO), it seemed probable to many that such organizations served the interests of the wealthy, and not the world as a whole. As you examine the WTO’s statement of principles, its description of activities, and the photographs of anti-WTO protests, think about the reasons the WTO has come symbolize the evils of globalization for so many people. In your opinion, is such a connection justified? Why or why not?

Click here to see “The World Trade Organization: ‘What We Stand For.’”

Click here to see “The World Trade Organization: ‘What We Do.’”

Indian Activists Protest the WTO, 2009

Anti-WTO Protester, 2009

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER