USA: One year ago, Occupy Wall Street burst
into the public consciousness. Similar actions had been tried just
months earlier, but failed to take root. Up until its second week, OWS
itself seemed to be yet another localized action that would fail to make
a real splash.
USA: One year ago, Occupy Wall Street burst
into the public consciousness. Similar actions had been tried just
months earlier, but failed to take root. Up until its second week, OWS
itself seemed to be yet another localized action that would fail to make
a real splash. But when images of the NYPD’s netting and pepper
spraying of a number of Occupy protesters found their way onto
televisions and Facebook feeds across the country, the “straw broke the
camel’s back.” The occupation of Zuccotti Park showed millions of
Americans that they were not alone in their frustration at the
stagnation and decay of the country’s economy, political setup, and
society generally.
How can we beat the 1% – Cover Picture Socialist Appeal 69“Occupy”
as a tactic was inspired in large part by the Egyptian Revolution,
which unfolded live on televisions worldwide in the form of the
occupation of Tahrir Square. Tens of thousands in Wisconsin had used a
similar tactic when they occupied the state capitol to protest Governor
Walker’s anti-union laws. However, despite the symbolic significance of
the mass concentration in Tahrir Square, this wasn’t enough to bring
down Mubarak. Just as the movement was about to run out of gas, when it
seemed Mubarak might be able to eke out a victory and wear out the
movement, the Egyptian working class decisively entered the scene of
history. It was the strikes of the Egyptian workers, in particular those
at the Mahalla textile mills and the Suez Canal that were the decisive
blows, forcing the military to remove Mubarak or face the prospect of
losing control of the situation altogether.
In Wisconsin, no strikes were organized, and the mass movement was
derailed into a demoralizing and demobilizing recall election that
failed to inspire and failed to kick out Walker. In New York, and in the
hundreds of cities where occupations spontaneously sprung up, the labor
leaders likewise did far too little to actually lead the movement to
victory. The steam eventually ran out. Repression, cold weather,
infighting and tiredness took their toll, and today, Occupy continues
mostly in name only, or in small, atomized “affinity groups.” Whether or
not the anniversary of Occupy will lead to a renewed wave of
occupations remains to be seen. We certainly hope it will. However, what
is needed is a strategy to actually win. How can movements like Occupy
actually bring about the change the majority so urgently needs?
The key is the role of the working class. While protests against the
status quo can raise awareness, they cannot in and of themselves bring
about fundamental change. The working class is in a unique position to
do this. Due to its relationship to the key levers of the economy, the
working class has the capacity to actually bring capitalist society to a
halt. After all, whether in Egypt or in the USA, not a wheel turns, not
a light shines, and not a single product is made without the bones,
brains, nerves, and muscles of the workers! The Fortune 500 CEOs and
boards of directors are utterly incapable of running society without the
workers. But we can run society just fine with out them. This is the
real meaning of the “1%” vs. the “99%.” It is a recognition that while a
handful of parasites currently run society in their interests, the
majority have the capacity to run things differently.
There was an important collaboration between the labor movement and
Occupy, especially in NYC and in the Bay Area. From offering office and
storage space, to paying for the publication of the OWS newspaper,
organized labor lent essential support to the movement. However, this
alone was never going to be enough to stop business as usual. There are
hundreds of thousands of organized workers in NYC. Just imagine if the
labor leaders had called a general strike and an all-out occupation of
lower Manhattan by New York’s powerful working class. Without
transportation, telecommunications, electricity, hotel, restaurant, and
janitorial services, etc., the Wall Street “banksters” would be left
suspended in mid-air. This would have sent shock waves throughout the
country, and would have been enthusiastically supported by millions.
After decades of attacks, the labor movement is like an army ready
and willing to fight, but receiving no orders to do so from the
leadership. There has been a political and organizational void when it
comes to organizing a fightback against the austerity being imposed by
Democrats and Republicans alike. It is therefore no wonder that a
“spark” such as OWS attracted the attention of millions and transformed
the national political dialogue. It had an electrifying effect on the
rank and file of the labor movement, who would have eagerly mobilized to
show their real power and support those braving the cold and police in
Zuccotti Park.
But even a mass occupation and the shutting down of Wall Street would
not suffice. The labor movement also requires bold leadership, greater
organization, majority-rule direct democracy, a political program, and
perspectives for changing society for the better. To coordinate all of
this on a national scale we need a political party with elected
officials that will truly fight in our interests. We need a labor party,
under the direct and democratic control of the membership, accountable
only to the unions and the working class majority, not Wall Street.
Armed with a socialist program, such a party would rapidly transform the
American political landscape and decisively defeat the 1%.
