On the doorstep of the third millenium, the desire for a new life calls
upon us to leave behind feelings of impotence and to take steps
together, in solidarity, to

create the kind of society that we want. To begin with, let us make our
voice heard with an outcry that resounds in the eardrums of those who
govern us, who only have ears for the powerful. With this cry, we will
tell them that if

there is not a future for everybody, there will be no future for anyone.
The dominating project of "death", with its irrational logic of exclusion,
is leading to the self-destruction of humanity. An outcry to announce
that the time has come for the project of "life", of human dignity and
common sense: that is the Cry of the Excluded.

What is the Cry?

It is a great peoples' demonstration to denounce all forms of exclusion
and to point to possible solutions and alternatives. It is a process in
which the most diverse sectors of excluded people have a voice and
presence, and participate in all stages.

The Cry was born in Brazil five years ago, as a response to the
increasing social exclusion caused by the application of neo-liberal
adjustment policies. As similar demands were heard in other countries
of the region, various co-ordinations of social, trade union and
ecumenical movements agreed to promote the Latin American Cry of
the Excluded under the theme: "For Work, Justice and Life". The high
point will be October 12 1999.

Objectives

- To denounce the neo-liberal model as excluding and perverse, that
threatens and destroys life and the environment

- To strengthen the peoples' sovereignty and the defense of life

- To redeem social debt, and

- To fight against payment of the foreign debt.

Lines of orientation

- To denounce the present situation: foreign debt, social inequalities,
oppression, lack of democracy, unemployment, etc.

- To give voice to aspirations: life, dignity, justice, peace, democracy,
solidarity, etc.

- To join forces: in terms of spaces (local, national, sub-regional and
international) and organizational process (movements, co-ordinations,
networks, etc.). In other words, the Cry is composed of many specific
cries, each of which refers to a concrete situation, which converge into
a bigger cry.

Criteria

The Cry is:

- A broad space for coming together to organize hope, under the
precept of "unity in diversity", respecting the autonomy and rhythm of
each specific dynamic.

- A participatory dynamic, developed through the commitments and
responsibilities of those involved, without the need for any form of
bureaucracy.

- A decentralized dynamic, where the participants can organize their
own initiatives, but taking care to communicate to the others through
the entity assigned to facilitate intercommunication.

- An axis of social interlinking, that is an invitation to co-ordinate
actions and formulate common agendas and projects.

- An initiative designed to stimulate initiatives and creativity at all levels,
starting from the central challenges of each concrete situation.

- An opportunity to make links and build permanent communication
bridges between organizations that group together the excluded, over
and above any organic considerations.

Preparation

- Organize a broad co-ordinating team in each country,
incorporating social and ecumenical movements, NGOs, etc.

- As far as possible, centralize the information from each country in
a secretariat, using the existing infrastructure of an organization.

- Create a network of local and regional facilitators and people
willing to contribute either to local activities or with suggestions for
national co-ordination.

- Decentralize actions on the day of the Cry, with the aim of carrying
them out in as many places as possible, thus facilitating the
participation of excluded people.

- Contribute financially, where possible, so that it becomes a
collective construction with the participation of all.

Perspectives

In the year 2000, the Cry of the Excluded will be expressed at a
continental level with a great peoples' march towards the financial
center of the world: New York.