Why Union MeMbership is important in 2024
The working class will only be liberated through collective action!
Hi I'm Becky Buttons and today I want to talk to you about why joining a union is important. It's not because unions themselves are such great institutions. They often have the same problems that any organizations with a top-down, hierarchal structure would face. Unions themselves are not above criticism. It is the power of collective action at the heart of unionism that makes it so important. Being vocally pro-union, being active in your union, supporting striking workers, all build collective consciousness.
Capitalists Own Too Much
We are living out a Monopoly game and we need to turn it back into Landlords Game before all of the wealth is held by two white guys with spaceships.
Wealth inequality has reached extreme levels. The wealthiest 1% hold a disproportionate share of the world’s wealth. This concentration of wealth allows capitalists to accumulate more assets over time, while the working class experience suppressed wages, oppressive productivity standards, and zero opportunities for upward mobility. Inflation decreases the value of currency and inflates the value of assets. Working people will never be able to accumulate enough capital through work to compete with the power held by the ruling class.
Collective Action Can Compete With Capital
Workers will never have the money needed to compete for power under capitalism. But we do have the numbers. And we are necessary to keep the machine operating. We can decide as a class to set aside our differences in the face of the one true oppressor of us all. Capitalism itself.
We all have to participate in capitalism to survive right now. But we can do our part to dismantle hierarchy and oppression and support collective action where we can.
