WAKE

WAKE UP UP
CANADA!
Find out why we
must stop the SPP!
They pushed No public, they're calling it
through Bad trade no media. the "security
hey, high-level
high-level and investment and prosperity
who are all government and
government and step away
Ñ
deals like nafta. from the partnership"
those powerful Dudes,
corporate types, Now they've got spp for short.
looking and they're
and they're up
up to
to a new trick up
door now!
bigwigs? no good!!
no good!! Hey, let go,
their sleeve.
you goon!

well, security is good let’s whoa!! wait They're busy changing

okay, you got
Ñ
and so is prosperity. just let a minute!! canada to increase
I’m sure they’re looking them do corporate profits And me. tell me more
out for the best their not so they're doing it all behind about this spp
interests of us all. thing. fast!! closed doors. thing.

c’mon, let’s go! we don’t have much time.

What's at Security and Prosperity Who's every time those characters meet our
country slips further and further
stake? Partnership calling away from us!!
the shots?
Harper Bush Calderón

Manulife Financial FedEx

CN Railway General Electric

Suncor Energy Ford Motor

Power Corp Lockheed Martin

Bell Canada Chevron

 A short history of the SPP
What’s the SPP? September 11, 2001 we’re proud to
announce the surveillance
NAFTA meets U.S. Homeland Security The tragedy of 9/11 opens the and petroleum partnership!
door to link trade with security. uh, george,
The Security and Prosperity Partnership is an informal agreement among it’s supposed to
be “Security and
March, 2005 Prime Minister
the three countries of North America (the United States, Canada and Paul Martin meets with U.S.
prosperity”

Mexico) to work in close cooperation to: President George W. Bush and

Mexican President Vicente Fox in
Waco, Texas. They announce

1 Create an integrated,
secure perimeter
around North America
“Security”
the formation of the Security and
Prosperity Partnership.

March, 2006 Prime Minister Stephen Harper (only too happy

to pick up where Paul Martin left off) meets with Bush and Fox in
Cancún, Mexico. They call together a group of top CEOs from

2 Ensure an uninterrupted
flow of goods within
North America and “Prosperity”
North America’s most powerful corporations, forming the “North
American Competitiveness Council.” The “NACC” provides the
politicians with on-going direction.
guarantee energy September, 2006 Reporters uncover a secret, high-level SPP
supplies for the U.S. meeting in Banff, Alberta, attended by some very powerful
business, government and military higher-ups from Canada,
To accomplish these goals, government and business leaders say they are the U.S. and Mexico. Even after submitting Access to Information
Requests, we still don’t know what our government was doing
working together to exempt goods and business people from “red tape” there. They say the meetings were “private”, not “secret.”
and “border delays”. Meanwhile, the rest of us face increased surveillance,
August, 2007 Harper, Bush,
restrictions on travel, racial profiling and invasive security checks. Is this a I’m real happy to be
makin’ good progress on the and new Mexican president
spp with my two new amigos,
democratic model? steve and felipe. Felipe Calderón meet in
Montebello, Quebec. They
agree to dramatically strengthen
corporate rights in four key areas
Boy, This they remember
sounds like the fights against free without democratic discussion.
something trade and globalization,
that should be and they don’t want to
discussed with go through that
all Canadians. again.
Why are they
keeping it
from us?
Why the big secret?
Most people haven’t heard much about the SPP,
and that’s no mistake.

NO
SPP but Aren’t
politicians
supposed to
debate important Good
changes like this question!
in Parliament?

What they said in Montebello

About protesting, Tom d’Aquino Meanwhile, three
of the Canadian Council of days after union
Chief Executives said: leaders unmasked In fact, the architects of the SPP don’t want
them, Quebec police
“...I don’t were forced to admit Parliament involved. Why? Because they don’t
do that because
civilized human
that some of the want democratic debate getting in the way of their
beings — those protesters “arrested” in plans, so they’ve found ways to avoid Parliament!
who believe in Montebello were really
democracy police agents with
— don’t do
that”. rocks infiltrating the
crowd!
 So, who
Who’s in
exactly is doing
this? I mean, who
has the power to make
the SPP... ...and who’s
fundamental changes
to our country
without discussing
These are the rich and
powerful CEOs of North
locked out.
it with us?! America’s biggest
corporations. They are Parliament
advising the govern- Members of
Let’s look
and see who’s ments on what changes Parliament
in there are needed and even — locked out!
writing new agreements
into the SPP.
Organizations
rkers,
advocating for wo
no us
These are the Civil society gro
ups
women, indige
,
national leaders, peoples, students
grou ps , low
cabinet ministers, racialized
peop le, fa rm ers,
income
bureaucrats and pu ic
bl
the environment,
military advisers. health care, etc.
— locked out!
The Media
These are the civil “After the
servants from the break, Paris
Hilton is The media
three governments back in the
news. We’ll — locked out!
working in small have a full
report...”
groups, each one
tasked with looking Canada
The Peoples of
at a different area.
The rest of us
— locked out!

So how can they

make such big
oh, they’re clever,
that’s how.
Their sneaky strategy: “harmonize” regulations
changes without
Parliament The people behind the SPP are making big changes. But instead of changing laws,
or the
Canadian they are changing regulations. How? By harmonizing Canada’s regulations
public with those of the United States — that’s how they get around Parliament. Why
knowing
about it? is this a problem? Because in most cases it means Canada will now be doing
things the U.S. way, whether that’s good for us or not. In most cases it will mean
tougher, stricter regulations for ordinary people and looser, weaker regulations for
business, designed by and for themselves. The result? Higher profits for companies
who’s got the at the expense of peoples’ rights and protections!
weakest labour
regulations?
we do, for sure.
Here’s an example from the airline industry:
okay, let’s how Else is “Going to”?
use yours Canada is under pressure to lower its standard All this going it’s already
of one flight attendant for every 40 airline to affect us? affecting us.
Take a look...
passengers and accept the U.S. rule of one for
every 50 seats. These changes will benefit the
bottom line but will put public safety at risk!
Canadian unions are strongly fighting to stop
this measure from going ahead.
 And I’m
Thirsty. what

The SPP is already affecting Canada! I’m

Freezing.
country are we
in, anyway?

“SECURITY” “PROSPERITY”
agenda agenda

our energy and water resources loosening environmental

seen as fundamental to U.S. regulations, faster approval
national security of licenses for pipeline
development and a five-fold
our police and immigration data
increase in the export of raw
bases are shared with U.S.
bitumen to be processed in
security forces
the U.S.
a Canadian “no-fly list” and “risk
rapidly developing the tar sands
profile” for every traveller and
transportation worker, along with
in response to U.S. demand helps
This is
the future
drive up the value of the Canadian
increased racial profiling
dollar which affects Canadian
new pandemic plan integrates our manufacturing jobs of North
public services and security forces
the threat of bulk water exports to America!
with those in the US and Mexico the United States
increasing infrastructure our regulations being viewed as “barriers to
for mass surveillence of the business and trade” instead of “rules necessary
population using iris and digital to protect the public good”
face scans and fingerprints. What he said in Montebello
“Risk management” means that rising levels of pesticide residue on our fruits
and vegetables While police fired tear gas and pepper-
everyone is considered a potential
spray at protestors in Montebello, Quebec,
threat less public oversight in the approval of new drugs and Prime Minister Stephen
our public health care system food safety, and more U.S. corporate control of Canadian Harper ridiculed the
TV and radio demonstrators, saying:
treated as the infrastructure for
“emergency preparedness” our public services and institutions being undermined “Does the
in favour of public-private partnerships and privatization standardization
corporate executives take part in of Jelly beans pose
decisions about surveillance, the migrant workers being forced to work under dangerous a threat to our
sovereignty?”
protection of critical infrastructure conditions for low pay, abuse and no access to
and emergency planning citizenship rights

“Working people across this country know the

Another North America SPP is not about security and prosperity for us.
It’s about the corporate class being able to get
is possible! Help build it by: a stranglehold on this country.”
Barb Byers, Executive Vice President, CLC
Montebello, August 2007

1 Finding out more about the Security

and Prosperity Partnership
www.canadianlabour.ca
2 Contacting Prime Minister Harper and MPs directly
and tell them to stop the SPP immediately until it is
discussed honestly and openly with Canadians The SPP is anti-
And
there’s no
www.canadians.org democratic!! we all time to
Prime Minister Harper: lose. They’re
www.policyalternatives.ca Phone: 613-992-4211 / Fax: 613-941-6900 need to stand up
and say STOP THE moving very
www.commonfrontiers.ca EMail: Harper.S@parl.gc.ca fast!
www.rqic.alternatives.ca SPP NOW!!
www.polarisinstitute.org Find your MP at: www.parl.gc.ca

3 Defending the Canada we have built over

the years with quality public health care
and education, good jobs and a strong
4 Working with citizens groups in the U.S. and
Mexico to defend all three of our countries from
corporate domination of our governments and
social safety net. institutions.

Canadian Labour Congress • www.canadianlabour.ca

Illustrated & designed by Tony Biddle, www.perfectworldproductions.com
Based on CLC research and analysis.
© 2007, Canadian Labour Congress