1d ago

What keeps Americans from being mad about the state of their country?

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I’m mad. I’m very mad. I’m also very tired of watching political movements get shut down by the people who respond with “yes, we need to do better” followed by a handful of performative actions, and absolutely no substantive change.
I believe in a general strike. Wholeheartedly. I believe it would make real change. How the hell do I organize one safely? How do I trust any of the other people online who claim to be organizing them?
- Jane McAlevey No Shortcuts: Organising for Power in the New Gilded Age is a great book to learn about unions and union strategy
- You don't? We were talking about a general strike in much larger numbers when r/antiwork fractured and we would hear the same thing, "we need time to prepare, we need to orginize." Years later, it's all the same excuses. The time to strike is now. You won't be ready in 5 years you won't be ready in 5 months. You're only ready when your courage surpasses your doubt.
  
  You're only ready when your courage surpasses your doubt.
  This. The real answer is that Americans won't come together in solidarity to address this situation until almost every non-wealthy citizen in this country has their quality of life decline so much that they have nothing left to lose. We're going to have to lose all our creature comforts before we take this seriously as a society. And honestly, by then, we'll have lost so much power that it'll be too late.
  Realistically, the time is right now, and, if we're being candid, it probably already past.
  We are sooooo fucked.
  
  I'm with you 10p%. We have to be louder about it though, most people just don't even see it. I don't have much faith in people to hear the message but we are not the deciding factor. The message needs to go out.
  
  A strike takes a lot of preparation, most of which is unionising and convincing your coworkers to join the strike when it’s time. A strike at a workplace is only successful if 75% of workers join in on it. Some US unions are ready for it, but a lot aren’t. If you want to contribute, join a union or start unionising. Resistance is built from the bottom up and strong unions are the most effective method.
  Read Jane McAlevey No Shortcuts: Organising for Power in the New Gilded Age to learn about how to make a successful union and how powerful a successful union can be.
  
  Then why us there no organizing? My work is unionized.
  
  Join the union and find out. Most unions are still following the old ineffective strategy of advocacy instead of organising. But they are usually somewhat democratic so you do have a say in that.

164 comments