Capitalism is a mode of power that permeates every sphere of life. The power of all powerful people and institutions are dependent on it. The hierarchy of government needs capital, the hierarchy of the church needs capital, racial hierarchy needs capital, gender hierarchy needs capital, and on and on. Actions affecting one sphere reverberates into all others. All of the things listed in the title are the result of a power struggle between dominant capital and everyone else. When they try to gain more and more power across all the different spheres, building up and bolstering more and more hierarchies, they do so by siphoning it away from us. Normally they'd face escalating resistance, but here in the US, our resistance has been DOGSHIT.
“Oh, but Starbucks and Amazon are unionizing!”
Amazon unionized one warehouse out of over ONE THOUSAND. Starbucks's unionized stores number in the 10s, while there are almost 15.5 THOUSAND stores in the US ALONE. The unionization rate between 2020 and 2021 has DROPPED. On a macro-level, our resistance has been DOGSHIT.
“Well what about the great resignation? And the rise in wages?”
And yet that hasn't increased labor power one bit. In fact, if we take the differential power between dominant capital and us, capital's power has been increasing at an exponential rate. This is because capitalist have employed one of their most ruthless weapons in the struggle for power: inflation. Rather than be due to supply, demand, increase in the money supply, etc., inflation is rather an intentional tool used by capitalists to siphon power away from us. The ever-rising profit margins we've seen aren't the result of some error in the economy or business owners acting outside the norm, but the intended consequence of inflation. So just quitting isn't doing much to retake power.
“But how is a general strike going to help prevent Roe v. Wade from getting overturned? They're two separate spheres.”
As I said before, capitalism IS power, it is a mode of power that infects EVERYTHING. A general strike doesn't just hurt business, but government too. The federal government can't run an infinite war deficit if capitalists don't have the capital to loan to them. Local governments that run on a deficit aren't able to fund growing police budgets if they can't find buyers for bonds. Income taxes don't get paid if you don't work. And not to mention, politicians all around the country tend to have enormous stock portfolios, business investments, and rely on Capitalists for their continued power. A general strike won't just hurt dominant capital, but it will deal severe harm to politicians, including supreme court justices.
“But political strikes aren't protected by the law/it's illegal for my industry to strike/why should I risk my job for this?”
The history of the labor movement is mainly the history of people without legal protection organizing and committing labor actions anyway. Illegal strikes? Did it anyway. Not allowed to unionize? They did it anyway. And for considerably less in terms of demands. Colorado coal miners went to WAR over the right to be paid in dollars, the use of a different unit of measurement for measuring coal, and for their employers to follow the law among other things. They risked their jobs, got fired, fought, and died, not to obtain a living wage or a middle class income, but to be less poor. The risks of a general strike to you personally is NOTHING in comparison, and the reward for striking is far GREATER than what our ancestors fought for. Tl;dr: It doesn't matter, fucking do it anyway.
“But my coworkers aren't on board/we aren't organized enough/we don't have the numbers”
There is never a “right” time for revolts and mass change. We are regressing to levels of inequality and power concentrations that haven't been seen in over a century. If you're worried about your coworkers, talk to them. Organize. Boss gets angry? Tell them to go fuck themselves and keep organizing. Fight back for fucks sake. Claim back your power and assert it, and do what you can to get others to do the same. If you get fired, then so what? You're still withholding your labor.
And the alternative? Are you going to just sit back and watch as your wealth, standard of living, power, and freedom gets eaten away at faster and faster speeds as we spiral into fascism and climate-induced oblivion? Are you going to let indecision, insecurity, and cowardice prevent you from fighting back? It doesn't matter if you're a part of a wildfire or a lone candle, do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
“Say I do decide to join the strike. How will I get the means of survival for myself and those who depend on me?”
During the 1919 Seattle general strike, people came together and helped each other out. Work with your community, talk with your neighbors, organize the neighborhood. Mutual aid isn't just an incredibly powerful tool, but one of the most innate and natural dispositions of humanity. Mutual aid organizations exist throughout the country. Democracy and cooperation are your greatest friends.
“What about bills?”
You're sacrificing your power, having it siphoned into the hands of capitalists. Deny them that power, and convince others to do the same.
“Ok, so how will we express the strike? Are we going to picket? Protest?”
The media would pounce on any and every opportunity to twist the narrative on the strikers. Cops will look for any opportunity to beat up anyone. Do not give them that opportunity. Do not give them anything. Stay home. Take a rest. Engage with your community. Better yet, if you really want to piss off dominant capital, enjoy yourself. Do something leisurely. Have a picnic at the park, a barbecue at grandma's house, go on a stroll, bunker down at the library with a good book. If I know anything about psychology, it's that enjoying yourself during the strike would be taken with immeasurable offense by dominant capital. They want to seem dominant, to feel like you depend on them (thus giving them leverage). Leisure and enjoyment during a strike denies them this.
“What should the demands be?”
The reversal of all the things listed in the title and more. But we shouldn't settle for concessions and demands, we need to strike to reclaim our power. When the strike becomes big enough, we'll see dominant capital go through the 5 stages of grief.
- They will deny it, omitting its existence from the media, dismissing strikers, downplaying the movement, infiltrate our circles to sow hopelessness and futility, etc.
- Then they will get angry. The media will do whatever it can to paint the strike in a bad light. They'll lie, cheat, manipulate all they can. Politicians will shout and whine with outrage, capitalists will go red with anger. Whatever is done, don't give them an excuse to act violently towards us. During the 1919 Seattle general strike, onlookers noted that the city was among the most orderly and peaceful areas in the history of this country. If they threaten with strikers with death for refusing to go and work at a supposedly “voluntary” job, call their bluff. I highly doubt the dogs of the state would be willing to bring back mass chattel slavery for the sake of “the economy” (though communities should plan to fight it in case they aren't bluffing).
- Then they'll bargain, give concessions, say that they won't overturn Roe v. Wade, raise wages, enhance worker protections, etc. This is where we need to show the most discipline and not give in. Don't settle for crumbs when we can have the pie.
- Then they'll feel hopeless; this is the stage that is most unpredictable, and we need to be vigilant to prevent dominant capital from engaging in stupid/harmful acts.
- Then we'll win, as they accept their loss.
For too long, people have been complacent, cowardly, and apathetic in the face of exponentially worsening conditions. It's time to stop and fucking do something! We're running out of time, things are getting worse at an exponential rate, and lives are at stake.
Edit: I've been hearing a lot of talk about a Mother's Day strike. That sounds like a fitting date to begin.