The "American Way" : Solidarity Requires Sacrifice

Weekend Edition June 13-15, 2014
The "American Way"

Solidarity Requires Sacrifice

by RON JACOBS


It was a dismally cold winter across much of North America. In the state of Vermont, USA where I live, temperatures were below 0 degrees Celsius for all but four days in January. Most of those days, the temperature was well below that zero. To illustrate how cold many days were, the tears that streamed from my eyes because of the temperature froze on my cheeks. To add to this winter misery, many regions also experienced floods when ice backed up. If I were a more religious man, I would think the gods were punishing this people for their greed and the blood they have shed to feed that greed. However, not being religious, I forge on, doing what I can to wage battle against the forces thriving from the world’s misfortune. Not just thriving, actually, but being responsible for much of it.

Despite nature’s relentless assault this winter, it is the ongoing offensive of the superrich against the world that creates the true despair in our world. Anecdotal stories pop up in the news: an elderly couple dead because their heat was shut off when they could not afford to pay their heating bill; propane costs skyrocketing to higher levels than ever before due to manipulation of the propane market; the rich men and women in the US Congress cutting not only heating subsidies to low-income individuals but also the food subsidies (known as food stamps) to these individuals; the list goes on. Meanwhile, funds for war and other machinations of imperial dominance are not just granted, they are increased. Nationally and internationally, whatever resistance exists is ignored, silence or both.

Yet, there are vaguely hopeful signs. Across the United States, resistance to the increased transfer of working peoples’ wealth to the wealthiest among us—or austerity, if you prefer—is being mounted. Workers, unionized and otherwise, are organizing strikes, demanding wage increases and job guarantees, and even considering socialist candidates in some areas of the ultimate capitalist nation. The victories are few and their permanence is always in question, but the act of resistance itself has revitalized those individuals involved. In Chicago, teachers in the public school system have held one day work stoppages in opposition to the austerity moves of the Chicago mayor and his friends in the charter school business. For those who don’t know, charter schools are (with a few exceptions) essentially corporate initiatives designed to privatize public education. University of Illinois faculty struck for one day in support of their part-time colleagues. There have been similar actions around the continent.

The town I live in is Burlington. It is the most populous city in Vermont, which is a mostly rural state. The University of Vermont, which is located in Burlington, faces work actions after its administration announced austerity measures that did not include any cuts to the administration. At a small college administered by a priestly order of the Catholic Church, custodians found themselves at an impasse in their negotiations with the administration. Students, faculty, other staff and local unions all worked together demanding the administration negotiate a fair contract. A contract was finally signed. One of the primary reasons given by the union was the solidarity shown by the campus and local community.

More:
http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/06/13/solidarity-requires-sacrifice/