File spoon-archives/aut-op-sy.archive/aut-op-sy_1997/aut-op-sy.9707, message 32


From: "Karl Carlile" <joseph-AT-indigo.ie>
Date: Sun, 6 Jul 1997 19:49:36 +0000
Subject: (Fwd) Re: ism's, class consciousness, and SOLIDARITY


------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
Date:          Sun, 6 Jul 1997 11:59:20 +0100
Reply-to:      rkmoore-AT-iol.ie
From:          rkmoore-AT-iol.ie (Richard K. Moore)
To:            WORLD SYSTEMS NETWORK <wsn-AT-csf.colorado.edu>
Subject:       Re: ism's, class consciousness, and SOLIDARITY
X-To:          wsn-AT-csf.colorado.edu (world-system network)


7/05/97, Karl Carlile wrote:
>The point I am
>making is that much of feminism is sexist both in its language and
>corresponding politics. ... By reinforcing divisions along gender
>lines their anti-male sexism reinforces division among the working
>masses along these same lines and consequently weakens the working
>class on the political plane.

No disagreement with the above.

In terms of elite/media-encouraged divide-and-conquer, feminism
apparently succumbs on several fronts:
         Abortion * divides feminists from other women and from
         "Christians".
      Men-blaming * divides feminists from men.
       Bitterness * separates feminists from full collective
       empowerment.

(This is perhaps stereotyping - my apologies to enlightened feminists
who may see this discussion as a bunch of typical men blabbing about
what they don't understand.)

---

What I've been trying to express in several previous messages is that
remedying divisiveness is not best approached by focusing on the
points of division.  Such an approach is "giving the initiative to the
enemy (the elite)" and "fighting on the enemy's chosen ground" and
"reactive problem solving".  The fundamental flaw in reactive
problem-solving is that it loses impetus in the face of success, and
gains impetus in the face of failure - the energy feedback loop rules
out ultimate success but burns up lots of energy in the attempt.

We cannot expect a dramatic conceptual breakthrough with abortion or
with man-woman relations that will heal the feminist rifts - the more
these issues are discussed, the more elaborated become the differences
(kind of like my debates with Andrew, which never seem to converge -
and we're more open to dialog than are radical feminists or
fundamentalist Christians). It's the _debate_ about abortion that
keeps the differences alive.

And contrary to the apparent hopes of Andrew et al, we cannot expect
academic findings about race and ethnicity to sway the National Front,
the skinhead, nor the redneck - they aren't listening.

---

If our goal is to encourage class solidarity we must focus on building
coalition IN SPITE of differences - we must educate the proletariat
(so to speak) about who the major enemy really is, what the real
stakes are, and focus our message on the shared concerns and interests
of the proletariat as a class.  We must focus on our positive vision.

Transformations come about because of the positive dynamics of a new
regime, not because the contradictions of the old regime have been
neutralized - they never will be in their own context: their tension
is what maintains the old regime.  Building solidarity is about
building solidarity, not about eliminating differences.

Fear is the simplest way to bring people together, and during
_threatening_ wars (not Vietnam) enthusiastic national solidarity
arises spontaneously (with social conflicts _still unaddressed_). 
Racist populists use fear to unify one "race" against another
(_despite_ ongoing internal conflicts). To some extent fear of
corporate globalism is an appropriate proletarian unifier, but it is
not enough.

The first task may be for people to understand that they _are_
proletarian. One of Malcom X's points was that middle-class Americans
are brainwashed into thinking of _themselves_ as capitalists, tricking
them into identifying with capitalist interests instead of their own. 
No wonder they shot him, that's a potent message.

But ultimately, success in building solidarity lies in our ability to
project a vision of citizen empowerment, of socialist prosperity, of
practical sustainable economics, and of democratic social harmony.

Forget the 'isms and find our collective strength...

in solidarity,
rkm



                                      




                          Yours etc.,
                                     Karl   


     --- from list aut-op-sy-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu ---

   

Driftline Main Page

 

Display software: ArchTracker © Malgosia Askanas, 2000-2005