“Enough is enough! We are the 99%!”
This is the sentiment being expressed by the brave youth now occupying
Freedom Plaza in New York City, just a few feet away from Wall Street.
This is the pent-up feeling of millions—no—billions of people around the
world. Enough unemployment! Enough war! Enough poverty! Enough
discrimination!" The Wall Street campaign is growing – here is what the US Marxists have to say.
“Enough is enough! We are the 99%!”
This is the sentiment being expressed by the brave youth now occupying
Freedom Plaza in New York City, just a few feet away from Wall Street.
This is the pent-up feeling of millions—no—billions of people around the
world. Enough unemployment! Enough war! Enough poverty! Enough
discrimination!
#OccupyWallstreet PosterWe
live in the wealthiest and most productive era in the history of
humanity. But the absurd, irrational, and inhumane limits of capitalism
mean there are not enough jobs, homes, or food to go around in a world
of plenty. This has always been the grim reality for hundreds of
millions around the planet. But now it has come home to the world
epicenter of capitalist greed, speculation and indifference to human
suffering: Wall Street.
And it is spreading. The occupations have
spread to cities around the country and around the world, inspired by
each other’s heroic resistance to the cuts, austerity, and misery being
imposed on us all. It is the beginning of a new awakening, a new
consciousness, and most importantly, a new desire to act, to actually do
something. Thousands of youth, formerly derided as apathetic and
apolitical, have now sparked the imagination of millions.
Not
since the anti-globalization movement of 1999 and 2000 have we seen such
a convergence of struggles. September 11, the Patriot Act, a decade of
wars, and sincere illusions in the Democrats largely drove the anger and
dissatisfaction underground. Now it is coming back with a vengeance, on
an even higher level. No longer is “globalization” in the abstract the
enemy. The enemy is clearer than ever: corporate domination of the
economy and politics. More and more people are coming to understand that
the root of all these ills is one and the same: capitalism.
By
definition, capitalism is a system that defends the interests of the
capitalist class. Since less than 1% of the population are actually
capitalists, it is a system that operates against the interests of the
other 99%. It follows that if we limit ourselves to finding solutions to
the crisis within the boundaries of capitalism, we are limiting
ourselves to solutions that can only truly benefit the top 1%. We need a
different approach. We need to look beyond the narrow horizons of our
current system. The working class majority has every right and an urgent
necessity to democratically run the society in its own interests.
#occupy movement has yet to coalesce around a clear program and
leadership. Given the lack of a bold lead by the unions and the absence
of a mass workers’ party in this country, this should come as no
surprise. But events and experience will help the most advanced layers
draw revolutionary conclusions. So far, the movement has not drawn in
the broader layers of the working class, of organized labor. But this is
always the way mass revolutionary movements begin. The youth are the
proverbial “barometer” of society, the first to move into action. But
the problems facing the working class cannot be resolved through mere
reforms or tinkering of the system. They hoped against hope the crisis
would pass—but it has only gotten worse. Sooner or later, they too will
have to enter the path of mass struggle, and when they do, the whole
dynamic will change.
Already, many unions have declared their
solidarity with the occupiers on Wall Street. Solidarity statements are
important. But what is really needed is decisive action. New York City’s
1.2 million organized workers could shut down Wall Street in a
heartbeat by freezing transit, cutting off electricity, phone lines, and
water, suspending waste disposal and janitorial services, shutting down
hotels and restaurants, and mobilizing tens of thousands of workers to
physically occupy lower Manhattan. The #occupy movement must reach out
to the unions, must spread it to every workplace, school, and
neighborhood. For their part, the unions must take the initiative and
reach out to the #occupy movement, bolstering its forces with the
colossal numbers, power, and resources of organized labor.
Three
years ago, many of these young people rallied behind Obama’s promise of
change. Now they are taking things into their own hands. With the
presidential elections just 12 months away, Americans are frustrated and
angry. 90% believe the economy is rotten, a new record. The government
has its lowest approval ratings ever. Only 15% of Americans trust the
federal government to do what is right always or most of the time. Just
one year ago that figure stood at 25%. And yet they overwhelmingly want
the government to provide jobs, health care, education, Social Security,
and rebuild the country’s crumbling infrastructure.
might seem an inexplicable contradiction. But deep down, it shows that
Americans are seeking a collective solution to their problems. However,
they do not trust the current government representatives and structures
to do it. Rightly so! Both the Democrats and Republicans are at the beck
and call of the big corporations. It is these unelected, unaccountable
entities that really call the shots in government and the economy. It is
they who determine who works, who has a home to live in, who has access
to health care and education—and who doesn’t.
The electorate
wants to “throw the bums out!” But who should replace them? The
government can either defend the interests of the workers, or it can
defend the capitalists. Either it will use its power and resources to
improve the lives of the majority, or it will harness these to further
enrich the wealthy. If it does not make inroads on the wealth and
property of the rich, it will push working and living conditions for the
masses down even further.
No matter what “intentions” a
politician may have, it is what they actually do that counts. The proof
of the pudding is in the eating. Republican and Democratic
administrations only offer variations of the same pro-corporate
policies. Even if we grant that there are “good Democrats” and even
“good Republicans,” the indisputable fact is this: they will never get
anywhere within the overall apparatus of their respective parties, which
are totally dominated by big business. This is why we need a workers’
government. And to achieve that, we need a labor party armed with a
socialist program.
So far, the labor movement has not offered a
lead, either on the streets or in politics. But this can and will
change. The pressure is building. The mood in favor of a labor party is
simmering in the ranks of the unions. Obama’s anemic jobs bill is being
pushed by the union tops, but the rank and file know it is not enough.
This bill will do little to reverse the utter decimation of millions of
good union jobs. It cannot succeed in bridging the growing polarization
of wealth and society. Over the last ten years, the income of the top 1%
has risen by 18%, while that of blue-collar male workers has fallen by
12%. The so-called "American Dream" has been shattered.
the 2008 crisis, we were told the “green shoots” of an economic
recovery were right around the corner. The recovery came—but only for
the rich. In Greece, Spain, Tunisia, and Egypt, the social explosion
came sooner. But similar conditions lead to similar results. The
conditions workers and youth face around the world are fundamentally the
same. As night follows day, the crisis of capitalism has now led to the
“green shoots” of the class struggle right here in the belly of the
beast.
The Workers International League welcomes the #occupy
movement with open arms. We have been participating in it in cities
around the country from the start. But it is only the beginning of the
beginning. The masses of workers have not yet entered the stage of
history and seized their destinies in their own hands. But at a certain
stage they will, of this we can be sure. We in the WIL are confident
that this small seedling will in time grow into a mighty oak of
revolution, which will sweep capitalism and all its evils aside once and
for all. Our task is to connect the ideas of revolutionary socialism
with this movement, which contains within it many of the future leaders
of the American socialist revolution.
Contact the Workers International League in the USA and get involved in the struggle for a better world!
[This is the Editorial of the US Socialist Appeal Issue 63, www.socialistappeal.org]
