The SAGE Coalition was formed shortly after numerous St. Lawrence students returned from actions in Washington, DC, in April 2000, against corporate dominated neoliberal economic globalization championed by the IMF and World Bank. The group is truly a coalition, with its members coming from many different St. Lawrence organizations.
Student interest began at St. Lawrence University with a small group who started to become aware of globalization and corporate power. They had a few speakers, asked teachers to talk more about the subject, and began a group called QUACK, Questioning the Undebated Ascent of the Corporate Kingdom. Interest in student activism began on a small level, with five to ten students attending rallies and both legal and illegal protests for Mumia and the School of the Americas. After four SLU students were arrested at a protest, footage was showed on campus to students interested to see what had gone on. SLU students also began to appear on CNN and other major news networks. Curiosity continued to build, and after the Seattle protests in November of 1999, the general public had their eyes opened to the seriousness of globalization, direct action, and activism. So when a small group of students decided to go to Washington D.C. on April 16 for the IMF World Bank protests, it was easier to talk to other students about it and get about 50 people to attend. The A16 protest-goers got local and national news coverage, and showed footage upon returning, raising interest even further. Upon their return, they decided with such a large SLU turnout, they should give their group an official name, and came up with SAGE Coalition, St. Lawrence Activist for Global Equity.
SAGE Coalition is an umbrella organization, encompassing any activism or projects that SLU students want to take part in. They are a non-hierarchical group that is completely democratic and open to all students. SAGE is committed to raising awareness about global issues to the students here and to others. They are not an official school club, to keep their independence and autonomy. Since named, SAGE members have worked with bringing speakers, sponsoring teach-ins, raising awareness about sweatshops and the St. Lawrence Aquarium, globalization, and continually attending protests, including the Presidential Inauguration, the Republican Convention, FTAA in Quebec City, and N17 protests in Ottawa against the World Bank, IMF, and G-20.
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