The growing pauperization of our country can be stopped by declaring war on pauperization, which could and should be led by unions with labor councils’ support. If labor begins its work at the bottom of the wage level where there are no unions or labor contracts to have to adhere to, it would pretty much give us a free hand and all is fair in love and war.
Maybe with the unrest produced by bad law enforcement practices and the unfairness towards the underserved, which causes adversity, there is a window of opportunity for labor to lend support toward bettering the lives of the people who are suffering from inequality. Labor could help in local elections, fight for higher wages, universal healthcare, jobs and better education opportunities.
It is a lot easier to change a local city or county than the federal laws. People are already in the streets so why not help each other and if we can slow or stop inequality. We could change things for the better for all. An example of this is the fight for marriage equality. The Republicans passed a federal law in 1996, the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), that allows the states to deny same-sex marriage. Rather than be deterred, gay marriage proponents have worked at the state level all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which overturned key components of DOMA, thereby leading the way for 35 states to legalize same sex marriage—only 15 more states to go.
This could be the Winter/Spring of Respect for All, and the start to ending wage inequality by getting a living wage of at least $15 to $18 an hour for all low income workers, which would help businesses and create more jobs, more taxes, a better government, and safer towns.
Yes, they are coming for us. Workers need to have one another’s backs because no one else will. Neither the broader labor movement nor the Democratic party are prepared to meet the urgency of this moment. So it’s going to fall upon the rest of us to mount a real resistance against Trump’s authoritarian takeover. We’re going to have to get our hands dirty. I don’t care if you have a good, well-paying union job and you are in the middle class now—if you see a worker being dragged out of his workplace regardless of how skilled the job and potentially taken to another country, you should be ready to be there for that worker. When I.C.E. shows up, gather around and shame them into leaving. It has worked in other places. America is sleep walking into authoritarianism, and if there’s anyone out there who is a member of a labor union that is safe—at this point— and doesn’t think this applies to them. Understand that they just haven’t gotten to you yet. They’re coming for all of us. There are ...
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