50th Anniversary March Demands Jobs and Justice

Latest


 
DETROIT — The theme of the August 24, 2013, 50th Anniversary March on Washington rally is “Rally for Jobs and Justice.”
While capitalism was expanding in 1963, it is contracting now.  It is causing more conflict between the “owning class” and the workers. Conditions are worse and very different now than they were 50 years ago.
According to economic reports, 53% of all American workers make less than $30,000 per year. More than 100 million Americans are enrolled in government “means tested” welfare programs. In 1950, one out of 50 Americans was on Medicaid. Today it is one out of six. The U.S. Census cites 146 million American as being poor or low-income. In contrast, the wealthiest one percent has a greater net worth than the bottom 90% of Americans combined. Forbes states that the 400 wealthiest Americans have more wealth than the bottom 150 million Americans.
It is important to note that the capitalist system (the foundation of these problems) is undergoing a crisis because the privately owned technology (computers and robots) is replacing human labor. This is permanently wiping out jobs, and the result is there aren’t enough people with money to buy everything that is produced, so the economy is collapsing. On top of this, those who are becoming permanently unemployed are a threat to the system, because their needs can no longer be met by capitalism. Therefore, the ruling class is on the offensive to protect it’s private property. The brutal and savage attack on welfare recipients was the format for increasing the assault on the rest of the working class.
Governors in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota led the charge, culminating with President Clinton’s  “welfare to work.” In addition, the rulers and their cronies are attacking the work force by diluting the Voting Rights Act to reduce its impact to zero power. Having “emergency managers” take over many cities further negates the peoples’ votes. Sequestration plans currently in effect (based on an agreement between the Democrats and Republicans in Washington D.C.) are having disastrous consequences for an increasing number of people. Social Security and Medicare, long thought to be untouchable, are on the table, impacting millions of Americans.
Workers are more receptive to new ideas today than they were 50 years ago. They are beginning to see that the current economic system is in contradiction to workers’ needs.  They can be alerted to the fascism we are facing and the form it is taking. They can be urged to reject the calls by the ruling elite and its cronies that “we are all in this together.” It’s time to call for nationalization of the banks and corporations in the interest of the people. The schools and healthcare should be publicly owned. The corporate government took over the corporations and banks when it needed to in order to protect their profits. The people should be able to nationalize the corporations to make them serve the people’s needs.

+ Articles by this author

Free to republish but please credit the People's Tribune. Visit us at www.peoplestribune.org, email peoplestribune@gmail.com, or call 773-486-3551.

The People’s Tribune brings you articles written by individuals or organizations, along with our own reporting. Bylined articles reflect the views of the authors. Unsigned articles reflect the views of the editorial board. Please credit the source when sharing: ©2024 peoplestribune.org. Please donate to help us keep bringing you voices of the movement. Click here. We’re all volunteer, no paid staff.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Featured

Pushing People into a Really Bad System Will End Really Badly

President Trump's executive order fuses drug use and homelessness, ignoring that homelessness can cause or exacerbate substance use because people use drugs to cope with pain. Forced institutional settings rather than housing will not help the ill or unhoused.

Chicago Resistance Speaks: ‘Until All Are Free, None Are Free’

An uprising is growing as the government tries to impose a dictatorship. Chicago resistance leaders recently offered their thoughts in public remarks made at demonstrations and press conferences.

Los Angeles Continues to Rebuild and Resist

Angelinos, suffering from the profit over people economy, continue to rebuild after the fires and to protest immigration raids, while also experiencing joy in such difficult times.

Chicago Teachers Union Says: Trump, Stay Out of Our City

Chicago Teachers Union rejects any unlawful federal occupation of their city, while welcoming federal leadership that fully funds public education, restores SNAP, and expands Medicaid to healthcare for all.

Journalist Says Why ‘I Can No Longer Work With Reuters’

A photojournalist says why it is impossible for her to maintain a relationship with Reuters "given its role in justifying and enabling the systematic assassination of 245 journalists in Gaza."

More from the People's Tribune