1 00:00:05,280 --> 00:00:08,479 Speaker 1: Welcome back once again. You're listening to it could happen 2 00:00:08,560 --> 00:00:10,920 Speaker 1: here with the crew from Its Going Down taking over. 3 00:00:11,440 --> 00:00:13,520 Speaker 1: This is our second show and we'll be doing a 4 00:00:13,560 --> 00:00:16,159 Speaker 1: total of five episodes throughout the month of January. So 5 00:00:16,239 --> 00:00:18,239 Speaker 1: if you like what you here, please let the amazing 6 00:00:18,320 --> 00:00:21,480 Speaker 1: folks at cool Zone Media know. Yesterday we began by 7 00:00:21,480 --> 00:00:24,599 Speaker 1: looking at general strikes in US history, starting with the 8 00:00:24,640 --> 00:00:28,280 Speaker 1: mass plantation strike during the American Civil War. We spoke 9 00:00:28,320 --> 00:00:31,920 Speaker 1: with labor historian Robert Ovetts about the revolutionary and bloody 10 00:00:31,960 --> 00:00:34,400 Speaker 1: history of general strikes in the United States, and we 11 00:00:34,479 --> 00:00:37,120 Speaker 1: also looked at the immigrant general strike in two thousand 12 00:00:37,120 --> 00:00:40,960 Speaker 1: and six that successfully beat back drough Conian legislation that 13 00:00:41,080 --> 00:00:44,720 Speaker 1: sought to further militarize the border and attack and documented people. 14 00:00:45,000 --> 00:00:46,839 Speaker 1: On today's show, we're going to be looking at a 15 00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:49,960 Speaker 1: general strike that was called for by Occupy Oakland, which 16 00:00:50,000 --> 00:00:54,080 Speaker 1: took place on November two. Occupy Oakland was part of 17 00:00:54,120 --> 00:00:57,040 Speaker 1: the much larger occupy movement that beginning New York with 18 00:00:57,080 --> 00:01:00,040 Speaker 1: the occupation of Zukkati Park, but was seen as a 19 00:01:00,120 --> 00:01:03,160 Speaker 1: radical focal point for the growing struggle. Starting as an 20 00:01:03,160 --> 00:01:06,199 Speaker 1: occupation on October tent in front of Oakland City Hall 21 00:01:06,319 --> 00:01:11,119 Speaker 1: named Oscar Grant Plaza. On October, IRAQ war veteran Scott 22 00:01:11,160 --> 00:01:13,600 Speaker 1: Olsen was nearly killed after being shot with a police 23 00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:18,240 Speaker 1: projectile during clashes between police and demonstrators as law enforcement 24 00:01:18,240 --> 00:01:22,280 Speaker 1: attempted to evict the growing Oakland commune. Following the Olsen shooting, 25 00:01:22,400 --> 00:01:26,080 Speaker 1: thousands reoccupied Oscar Grant Plaza and the general strike was 26 00:01:26,120 --> 00:01:29,080 Speaker 1: called for A week later. Upwards of one hundred thousand 27 00:01:29,080 --> 00:01:32,840 Speaker 1: people took part in the strikes associated actions, which included 28 00:01:32,880 --> 00:01:36,720 Speaker 1: mass marches, a large anti capitalist black block which broke 29 00:01:36,760 --> 00:01:39,560 Speaker 1: bank windows, and the shutting down of the Port of 30 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:43,840 Speaker 1: Oakland with upwards of one hundred thousand people participating. But 31 00:01:43,959 --> 00:01:45,760 Speaker 1: before we hear from our guests on the subject, I 32 00:01:45,800 --> 00:01:47,919 Speaker 1: wanted to talk a little bit about the occupy movement 33 00:01:47,960 --> 00:01:50,520 Speaker 1: and Occupy Oakland and why it was so important. The 34 00:01:50,560 --> 00:01:54,200 Speaker 1: occupy movement itself grew amidst this growing anger over the 35 00:01:54,240 --> 00:01:57,559 Speaker 1: economic crisis, but also this fading belief in the hope 36 00:01:57,560 --> 00:02:00,760 Speaker 1: and change promised by Obama. While not see it seemed 37 00:02:00,760 --> 00:02:03,160 Speaker 1: to kind of sort of come out of nowhere, there 38 00:02:03,200 --> 00:02:06,760 Speaker 1: were certainly things that really helped influence it. Naturally, there 39 00:02:06,800 --> 00:02:10,480 Speaker 1: was the occupation by Chicago workers at the Republic Windows 40 00:02:10,480 --> 00:02:14,120 Speaker 1: and Doors factory, which signaled a real turning point, as 41 00:02:14,120 --> 00:02:17,120 Speaker 1: well as the occupation of the Wisconsin State Capital in 42 00:02:17,160 --> 00:02:21,160 Speaker 1: two thousand eleven against anti union legislation, and all this 43 00:02:21,280 --> 00:02:24,320 Speaker 1: was happened against the backdrop of the Arab Spring, and 44 00:02:24,360 --> 00:02:27,120 Speaker 1: then in the Bay Area the Oscar Grant rebellion and 45 00:02:27,200 --> 00:02:29,680 Speaker 1: riots in two thousand and nine and two thousand ten 46 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:33,080 Speaker 1: kicked off and had a massive impact, centering discussions around 47 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:36,120 Speaker 1: police race and white supremacy, as well as the role 48 00:02:36,160 --> 00:02:39,280 Speaker 1: of rioting and social movements. At the same time, students 49 00:02:39,280 --> 00:02:42,920 Speaker 1: and graduate workers occupied college campus buildings in New York 50 00:02:42,960 --> 00:02:47,040 Speaker 1: and across California, which really spread the concept of occupying 51 00:02:47,120 --> 00:02:50,959 Speaker 1: across the social terrain, as well as slogans like strike, occupied, takeover, 52 00:02:51,440 --> 00:02:54,840 Speaker 1: and occupy everything. Now, the explosion of the occupy movement 53 00:02:54,880 --> 00:02:57,480 Speaker 1: in the fall of two thousand eleven cannot be overstated. 54 00:02:57,560 --> 00:03:00,639 Speaker 1: Occupying cam It's became a focal point for people angry 55 00:03:00,639 --> 00:03:03,280 Speaker 1: at the general state of the world to gather discuss 56 00:03:03,320 --> 00:03:06,880 Speaker 1: an act and they became a real focal point for encounter. 57 00:03:07,080 --> 00:03:09,840 Speaker 1: While some cities saw these encampments come and go pretty quickly. 58 00:03:10,280 --> 00:03:13,440 Speaker 1: Then he saw concrete projects and organizing come out of them. 59 00:03:13,800 --> 00:03:16,359 Speaker 1: People were fighting to resist foreclosures, for instance, of a 60 00:03:16,400 --> 00:03:19,120 Speaker 1: lot of cities, and for many people this was where 61 00:03:19,160 --> 00:03:21,959 Speaker 1: they were introduced to anarchist concepts such as direct action, 62 00:03:22,160 --> 00:03:26,760 Speaker 1: horizontal organizing, and consensus decision making, which really brought these 63 00:03:26,800 --> 00:03:29,520 Speaker 1: ideas front and center to hundreds of thousands of people 64 00:03:29,560 --> 00:03:32,440 Speaker 1: in a real and tangible way. And while a lot 65 00:03:32,480 --> 00:03:35,040 Speaker 1: of people on the left from a variety of backgrounds 66 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:38,040 Speaker 1: took part, the real backbone of those involved and Occupy 67 00:03:38,120 --> 00:03:41,080 Speaker 1: were just everyday people who were new to social movements 68 00:03:41,120 --> 00:03:44,960 Speaker 1: and became activated by material conditions and just the zeitgeist 69 00:03:45,000 --> 00:03:49,200 Speaker 1: of what was happening at the time. Occupy was fascinating 70 00:03:49,360 --> 00:03:51,720 Speaker 1: for me, Like I was in the rest belt at 71 00:03:51,720 --> 00:03:54,200 Speaker 1: the time. Still at the occupy, I was a part 72 00:03:54,200 --> 00:03:57,000 Speaker 1: of the first march of five thousand people there. There 73 00:03:57,040 --> 00:03:59,320 Speaker 1: may be like two or three hundred people at the 74 00:03:59,360 --> 00:04:01,920 Speaker 1: general assemble the night before, So most of the people 75 00:04:01,920 --> 00:04:04,360 Speaker 1: that showed up were not people currently connected at that 76 00:04:04,480 --> 00:04:07,480 Speaker 1: point to any kind of political organizing. They were just 77 00:04:07,520 --> 00:04:09,000 Speaker 1: people that showed up because they heard about it on 78 00:04:09,040 --> 00:04:10,840 Speaker 1: the internet and they showed up to do the thing, 79 00:04:11,200 --> 00:04:14,360 Speaker 1: and that camp a lot lasted nine months, but we 80 00:04:14,360 --> 00:04:16,560 Speaker 1: can start to see the impacts that that kind of 81 00:04:16,560 --> 00:04:19,880 Speaker 1: breakdown of that division between people who declare themselves political 82 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:23,359 Speaker 1: and quote everybody else. We start to move forward past Occupy, 83 00:04:23,440 --> 00:04:26,400 Speaker 1: we start to see that manifest during my Ground Uprising 84 00:04:26,400 --> 00:04:28,160 Speaker 1: and Ferguson. We start to see that manifest during the 85 00:04:28,160 --> 00:04:32,360 Speaker 1: George Floyd Rebellion, where this kind of division between those 86 00:04:32,400 --> 00:04:35,640 Speaker 1: that declare themselves to be political agents and those that 87 00:04:35,680 --> 00:04:38,080 Speaker 1: have not declared themselves to be so just ceases to 88 00:04:38,120 --> 00:04:41,320 Speaker 1: really exist. And it's in those moments where we really 89 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:44,560 Speaker 1: actually see uprisings occur. Occupied pointed out an important thing 90 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:46,280 Speaker 1: which is a fallacy in the way that we think, 91 00:04:46,279 --> 00:04:49,320 Speaker 1: and that we think that radicals make revolts happen, when 92 00:04:49,320 --> 00:04:52,000 Speaker 1: in reality, people make revolts happen, and our job is 93 00:04:52,040 --> 00:04:54,640 Speaker 1: to antagonize circumstances. And it's only at the point in 94 00:04:54,640 --> 00:04:58,000 Speaker 1: which that division breaks down between quote us and everybody else, 95 00:04:58,320 --> 00:05:01,719 Speaker 1: that revolts actually occur. And Occupy it was a really 96 00:05:01,760 --> 00:05:04,479 Speaker 1: important point in a trajectory of I think a sector 97 00:05:04,520 --> 00:05:06,480 Speaker 1: of the American anarchist movement and a sector of the 98 00:05:06,520 --> 00:05:11,640 Speaker 1: American political scene starting to really internalize that understanding, starting 99 00:05:11,680 --> 00:05:13,960 Speaker 1: to really grasp how different that is from the way 100 00:05:13,960 --> 00:05:16,120 Speaker 1: that we have been taught to organize. And we're still 101 00:05:16,160 --> 00:05:18,880 Speaker 1: seeing the ramifications of a lot of that work today, 102 00:05:18,960 --> 00:05:21,800 Speaker 1: many many many years later, looking at like occupy are 103 00:05:21,839 --> 00:05:24,479 Speaker 1: looking at any of these big moments. When we look back, 104 00:05:24,560 --> 00:05:27,840 Speaker 1: we can see all these things that like contribute to it, 105 00:05:27,960 --> 00:05:29,599 Speaker 1: you know. And I think that this thing that you're 106 00:05:29,600 --> 00:05:33,240 Speaker 1: spoking to Tom of like the kind of losing that 107 00:05:33,240 --> 00:05:36,520 Speaker 1: thing of like professional activists or like the political actor 108 00:05:36,600 --> 00:05:39,560 Speaker 1: in a situation is like so important, and I think 109 00:05:39,560 --> 00:05:41,720 Speaker 1: that that is something that can really inspire us in 110 00:05:41,800 --> 00:05:43,719 Speaker 1: terms of what's happening in this moment too, or like 111 00:05:43,800 --> 00:05:47,320 Speaker 1: how general strikes happen, or how something that occupy happens. 112 00:05:47,480 --> 00:05:50,279 Speaker 1: Is that things happen, like there are sort of moments 113 00:05:50,320 --> 00:05:52,560 Speaker 1: that are kind of outside of our control. It's not 114 00:05:52,640 --> 00:05:55,159 Speaker 1: something that can be like planned for, and if you 115 00:05:55,240 --> 00:05:57,920 Speaker 1: do all the right things, then you get a general strike. 116 00:05:58,279 --> 00:06:01,440 Speaker 1: But you can kind of like be related to circumstances 117 00:06:01,480 --> 00:06:04,479 Speaker 1: and to each other and then different things happen. Um 118 00:06:04,560 --> 00:06:08,240 Speaker 1: Like thinking about the George flood uprising in twenty like 119 00:06:08,560 --> 00:06:12,000 Speaker 1: none of us predicted COVID, you know, and like how 120 00:06:12,040 --> 00:06:14,400 Speaker 1: that might have contributed to what happened in that or 121 00:06:14,480 --> 00:06:17,400 Speaker 1: just like all these different circumstances that come together to 122 00:06:17,440 --> 00:06:21,159 Speaker 1: make these moments um and I think that you know, 123 00:06:21,400 --> 00:06:23,279 Speaker 1: something like what's going on now we could look back 124 00:06:23,320 --> 00:06:25,240 Speaker 1: and look at all these different things that are happening 125 00:06:25,279 --> 00:06:27,599 Speaker 1: that then make something big happen and we never really 126 00:06:27,920 --> 00:06:31,480 Speaker 1: know or can control that. A lot of the striking 127 00:06:31,600 --> 00:06:34,599 Speaker 1: and occupy it serves the purpose of not us just 128 00:06:34,680 --> 00:06:37,719 Speaker 1: coming together collectively, but it also serves as purpose of propaganda. 129 00:06:38,080 --> 00:06:41,080 Speaker 1: And it just reminds me of this idea important idea 130 00:06:41,120 --> 00:06:43,920 Speaker 1: of us occupying public spaces and the reason why we're 131 00:06:43,960 --> 00:06:46,720 Speaker 1: not allowed to occupy public spaces because it's like sort 132 00:06:46,720 --> 00:06:48,640 Speaker 1: of taking the power. And when there's lots of us 133 00:06:48,640 --> 00:06:51,360 Speaker 1: occupied in public spaces, the media covers it and then 134 00:06:51,400 --> 00:06:53,159 Speaker 1: it's like, well, what are these people talking about? What 135 00:06:53,200 --> 00:06:55,599 Speaker 1: are they doing? And that would then itself also serves 136 00:06:55,640 --> 00:06:58,400 Speaker 1: like as a propaganda mechanism to like spread so like 137 00:06:58,480 --> 00:07:01,159 Speaker 1: I like just like listening to and I remember when again, 138 00:07:01,240 --> 00:07:02,760 Speaker 1: like occupy was one of the moments that I was 139 00:07:02,760 --> 00:07:04,880 Speaker 1: one of the people who viewed myself as not political 140 00:07:04,920 --> 00:07:06,680 Speaker 1: but I cared about what was happening in the movement 141 00:07:06,720 --> 00:07:08,440 Speaker 1: because that was the first time I heard we are 142 00:07:09,600 --> 00:07:11,800 Speaker 1: I think about moments of radicalization that I think of 143 00:07:11,880 --> 00:07:13,440 Speaker 1: this one as being one of them as a person 144 00:07:13,480 --> 00:07:16,200 Speaker 1: who's just like recently and as a five years ago 145 00:07:16,280 --> 00:07:18,720 Speaker 1: recently awoke, Like these are moments that I remember, like 146 00:07:18,880 --> 00:07:21,600 Speaker 1: had an impact on me seeing people on the street 147 00:07:21,800 --> 00:07:25,040 Speaker 1: taking public spaces, and I think that perhaps that's something 148 00:07:25,080 --> 00:07:27,640 Speaker 1: that we should continue to do. And maybe it's not 149 00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:29,480 Speaker 1: one of those things where it's like maybe not as 150 00:07:29,560 --> 00:07:32,360 Speaker 1: large as occupy, maybe it's not consistently large, but like 151 00:07:32,400 --> 00:07:34,880 Speaker 1: maybe we as civilians to just take over public spaces 152 00:07:34,920 --> 00:07:37,280 Speaker 1: all the time, just as a reminder to ourselves that 153 00:07:37,360 --> 00:07:38,840 Speaker 1: we do have the power to do that. Like we 154 00:07:38,880 --> 00:07:40,400 Speaker 1: can't have a free store here because we want to. 155 00:07:40,440 --> 00:07:42,120 Speaker 1: We don't have to ask the government for permission to 156 00:07:42,120 --> 00:07:43,960 Speaker 1: do anything, Like I think it's a huge first step 157 00:07:43,960 --> 00:07:47,600 Speaker 1: of becoming ungovernable and speaking of things that belong in 158 00:07:47,600 --> 00:07:50,560 Speaker 1: a free store. We're now going to hear from our 159 00:07:50,600 --> 00:08:02,080 Speaker 1: sponsors for us understand how the Oakland General strike of 160 00:08:02,760 --> 00:08:05,240 Speaker 1: took place. We first have to go back to what 161 00:08:05,440 --> 00:08:08,720 Speaker 1: made Occupy Oakland so important to so many people just 162 00:08:08,760 --> 00:08:11,720 Speaker 1: a few short weeks in October. In the following interview, 163 00:08:11,880 --> 00:08:15,160 Speaker 1: you speak with It's Going Down contributor, author and translator 164 00:08:15,200 --> 00:08:19,480 Speaker 1: based in Mexico, Scott Campbell about his memories of occupy 165 00:08:19,600 --> 00:08:21,560 Speaker 1: and what set the stage for a massive strike on 166 00:08:21,640 --> 00:08:25,040 Speaker 1: November two. We didn't speak with Tova, who was involved 167 00:08:25,040 --> 00:08:29,200 Speaker 1: in the Occupy Oakland Labor Solidarity Committee, about Bay Area 168 00:08:29,280 --> 00:08:32,640 Speaker 1: labor unions becoming involved in the strike. So to kick 169 00:08:32,679 --> 00:08:35,680 Speaker 1: things off, Scott tell us about Occupy Oakland, what it 170 00:08:35,720 --> 00:08:39,160 Speaker 1: looked like, how life and Oscar Grand Plaza was organized, 171 00:08:39,440 --> 00:08:41,960 Speaker 1: and about this living, breathing thing many came to call 172 00:08:42,120 --> 00:08:45,880 Speaker 1: the Oakland Commune. If you were to walk into Occupy Oakland, 173 00:08:45,880 --> 00:08:51,079 Speaker 1: I think you'd be overwhelmed. Um. It was an amazing, vibrant, 174 00:08:51,480 --> 00:08:56,520 Speaker 1: self managed, auto jestive community where you had folks living 175 00:08:56,640 --> 00:09:01,720 Speaker 1: there in in Oscar Grant Plaza. You had food, childcare, 176 00:09:02,280 --> 00:09:07,480 Speaker 1: medical care, libraries, UM, all sorts of projects UM in 177 00:09:07,520 --> 00:09:12,520 Speaker 1: a self run sort of directly democratic assembly based, communally 178 00:09:12,600 --> 00:09:16,520 Speaker 1: organized space. And it was open to anyone except for 179 00:09:16,559 --> 00:09:21,040 Speaker 1: police and politicians who wanted to come and participate in 180 00:09:21,200 --> 00:09:25,240 Speaker 1: this sort of radical experiment, this radical form of being 181 00:09:25,240 --> 00:09:28,640 Speaker 1: with one another outside the constraints of how society normally 182 00:09:28,679 --> 00:09:31,880 Speaker 1: constructs us to perform and interact with one another. And 183 00:09:32,320 --> 00:09:34,720 Speaker 1: I think what really stuck out to me the most 184 00:09:34,920 --> 00:09:40,080 Speaker 1: during this time period was just the the welcoming atmosphere, 185 00:09:40,320 --> 00:09:43,360 Speaker 1: the sense of potential that the camp um and the 186 00:09:43,400 --> 00:09:47,760 Speaker 1: activities based around the camp held, the openness of people, 187 00:09:48,120 --> 00:09:52,199 Speaker 1: and really the wide range of individuals who were participating 188 00:09:52,240 --> 00:09:55,560 Speaker 1: in collectives who were participating, which certainly, of course led 189 00:09:55,600 --> 00:09:58,840 Speaker 1: to differences of opinions at times that made that created 190 00:09:58,880 --> 00:10:02,319 Speaker 1: some dynamics that were a struggle to work through and navigate, 191 00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:05,600 Speaker 1: but at the same time really added to a sense 192 00:10:05,679 --> 00:10:08,480 Speaker 1: of a space that went beyond a single project, that 193 00:10:08,559 --> 00:10:12,320 Speaker 1: went beyond a single vision, but that was horizontal, communal, 194 00:10:12,440 --> 00:10:15,480 Speaker 1: and open in a way that I had never experienced 195 00:10:15,480 --> 00:10:19,600 Speaker 1: before and that I have yet to experience again. It 196 00:10:19,640 --> 00:10:22,880 Speaker 1: definitely had an organic feel to it of of sort 197 00:10:22,920 --> 00:10:26,400 Speaker 1: of people coming together, lending what skills they had, lending 198 00:10:26,440 --> 00:10:30,800 Speaker 1: what resources they had across a variety of positions um 199 00:10:31,000 --> 00:10:34,280 Speaker 1: that may be broadly categorized on the left or or 200 00:10:34,920 --> 00:10:38,960 Speaker 1: post left spectrum, a spectrum of folks with a spectrum 201 00:10:38,960 --> 00:10:43,920 Speaker 1: of capacities of needs um. I mean a large number 202 00:10:43,920 --> 00:10:47,559 Speaker 1: of unhoused neighbors who were there, who brought their own 203 00:10:47,840 --> 00:10:50,640 Speaker 1: life experiences and their own knowledge and their own skills 204 00:10:50,720 --> 00:10:53,559 Speaker 1: to bear on the project, which I think was a really, 205 00:10:53,920 --> 00:10:56,080 Speaker 1: I guess, a powerful learning opportunity for a lot of 206 00:10:56,120 --> 00:10:59,600 Speaker 1: people who hadn't really been in direct contact with unhoused 207 00:10:59,640 --> 00:11:05,000 Speaker 1: folks UM, and who were unfamiliar with really perhaps the 208 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:09,480 Speaker 1: impetus beyond Occupy Oakland and beyond Occupant, the impetus behind 209 00:11:09,520 --> 00:11:12,680 Speaker 1: Occupy Oakland, and the impetus behind Occupy Wall Street in general, 210 00:11:12,720 --> 00:11:15,120 Speaker 1: which was of course the two thousand and eight financial 211 00:11:15,160 --> 00:11:17,600 Speaker 1: crash and the Great Depression and the bailout of the 212 00:11:17,640 --> 00:11:20,320 Speaker 1: banks while people got fore clothes on their homes, especially 213 00:11:20,320 --> 00:11:23,520 Speaker 1: people of color and black folks, which which hit particularly 214 00:11:23,559 --> 00:11:26,080 Speaker 1: hard in England. And so we see all these dynamics 215 00:11:26,120 --> 00:11:28,640 Speaker 1: coming together and trying to work themselves out organically without 216 00:11:28,640 --> 00:11:32,720 Speaker 1: being mediated by any one organization or any particular ideology. 217 00:11:32,840 --> 00:11:37,559 Speaker 1: And it was a powerful, confusing, messy, lively beautiful experience. 218 00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:40,720 Speaker 1: How to categorize the general assembly is a is a 219 00:11:40,760 --> 00:11:44,520 Speaker 1: great question, I think for me, how I interpreted it 220 00:11:44,600 --> 00:11:49,520 Speaker 1: is it added a structural framework for how to navigate 221 00:11:49,679 --> 00:11:52,560 Speaker 1: issues that would arise within the camp within the sort 222 00:11:52,559 --> 00:11:54,960 Speaker 1: of occupation, for lack of a better word, of Oscar 223 00:11:55,000 --> 00:11:58,560 Speaker 1: grand Plaza, facilitating the day to day functionings of things. 224 00:11:58,760 --> 00:12:01,680 Speaker 1: In a lot of it was a decision making body. 225 00:12:02,200 --> 00:12:05,480 Speaker 1: I wouldn't call it a government as such, because it 226 00:12:05,600 --> 00:12:10,160 Speaker 1: tried to run on consensus or modified consensus, and anyone 227 00:12:10,280 --> 00:12:13,319 Speaker 1: was free to bring proposals to the General Assembly that 228 00:12:13,400 --> 00:12:16,400 Speaker 1: were free to bring their ideas for and promote their 229 00:12:16,400 --> 00:12:19,480 Speaker 1: events and promote their actions and activities. A lot of 230 00:12:19,520 --> 00:12:22,160 Speaker 1: decisions were also being made by people who just showed 231 00:12:22,200 --> 00:12:25,240 Speaker 1: up to do the work without necessarily consulting the General Assembly, 232 00:12:25,480 --> 00:12:28,720 Speaker 1: So you almost had different tiers of activity and different 233 00:12:28,720 --> 00:12:32,000 Speaker 1: tiers of organization occurring in the same space. That seemed, 234 00:12:32,120 --> 00:12:34,680 Speaker 1: again I go back to this word, that seemed to 235 00:12:34,760 --> 00:12:38,200 Speaker 1: organically work itself out most of the time, and within 236 00:12:38,240 --> 00:12:41,080 Speaker 1: the General Assembly that was the more formal structure where 237 00:12:41,080 --> 00:12:47,319 Speaker 1: people came together at times nightly to discuss issues facing 238 00:12:47,360 --> 00:12:51,199 Speaker 1: the camp, to discuss issues with in terms of um 239 00:12:51,240 --> 00:12:53,960 Speaker 1: dealing with the police and the city government and eventually 240 00:12:53,960 --> 00:12:56,040 Speaker 1: the state and federal government as they showed up to 241 00:12:56,120 --> 00:12:58,480 Speaker 1: determine how to respond to various acts of aggression and 242 00:12:58,520 --> 00:13:01,040 Speaker 1: attacks on the camp and attacks on the space, to 243 00:13:01,080 --> 00:13:02,960 Speaker 1: figure out how to better run the space. Even to 244 00:13:02,960 --> 00:13:05,280 Speaker 1: figure out how to better run the General Assembly itself 245 00:13:05,400 --> 00:13:09,160 Speaker 1: was a big question within the General Assembly, and these 246 00:13:09,240 --> 00:13:13,079 Speaker 1: were general assemblies that anyone could participate and you didn't 247 00:13:13,120 --> 00:13:17,680 Speaker 1: have to show qualifications or necessarily be living in the space. 248 00:13:17,800 --> 00:13:21,000 Speaker 1: Anyone was free except for the police and politicians, to 249 00:13:21,120 --> 00:13:24,000 Speaker 1: come and speak to the General Assembly. I remember one 250 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:27,199 Speaker 1: time Gene Klon, then mayor of Oakland, wanted to come 251 00:13:27,240 --> 00:13:29,120 Speaker 1: and speak to the General Assembly, and she was told 252 00:13:29,200 --> 00:13:31,320 Speaker 1: she could, but she had to wait her turn, and 253 00:13:31,360 --> 00:13:33,600 Speaker 1: so she decided to leave because she didn't want to wait. 254 00:13:33,600 --> 00:13:35,320 Speaker 1: She didn't feel like she had to wait. It was 255 00:13:35,760 --> 00:13:38,280 Speaker 1: really a space of encounter for people to bring up 256 00:13:38,360 --> 00:13:40,719 Speaker 1: different aspects that there were concerning them, that they were 257 00:13:40,720 --> 00:13:43,120 Speaker 1: working on, that they wanted to see flourish in the space. 258 00:13:43,280 --> 00:13:46,719 Speaker 1: The biggest general assembly was happened around when to move 259 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:49,280 Speaker 1: forward with the general strike, but there were also general 260 00:13:49,320 --> 00:13:52,800 Speaker 1: assemblies on on things like issues around smoking and people's 261 00:13:52,840 --> 00:13:55,480 Speaker 1: health and well being in the space, issues around cleanliness, 262 00:13:55,520 --> 00:13:58,320 Speaker 1: issues around safety, how to interact with the police, how 263 00:13:58,360 --> 00:14:01,120 Speaker 1: to interact with the government, do we put forward demands? 264 00:14:01,600 --> 00:14:04,000 Speaker 1: What should the name of it be? Is occupied Oakland 265 00:14:04,000 --> 00:14:06,319 Speaker 1: the problematic name? Should we change it to occupied to 266 00:14:06,400 --> 00:14:09,559 Speaker 1: colonize Oakland? These were all sorts of issues that were 267 00:14:09,559 --> 00:14:11,760 Speaker 1: brought forward to the General Assembly, along with like how 268 00:14:11,760 --> 00:14:14,240 Speaker 1: do we meet the material needs of the space, and 269 00:14:14,320 --> 00:14:17,040 Speaker 1: how do we handle the supplies that are being brought 270 00:14:17,080 --> 00:14:20,080 Speaker 1: in and make sure that they're equally equitably distributed. Who 271 00:14:20,080 --> 00:14:22,960 Speaker 1: can do what for whom within the space. How do 272 00:14:23,000 --> 00:14:25,560 Speaker 1: people's skills get the most use out of them. It 273 00:14:25,680 --> 00:14:29,760 Speaker 1: was a very much a lively atmosphere. It felt like, 274 00:14:30,040 --> 00:14:33,040 Speaker 1: I don't know, I I know the word democracy is contentious. 275 00:14:33,040 --> 00:14:35,960 Speaker 1: It felt like a directly democratic process um. But there 276 00:14:35,960 --> 00:14:39,040 Speaker 1: were also you know, it's important to recognize that there 277 00:14:39,040 --> 00:14:41,440 Speaker 1: were some people who were more skilled and more familiar 278 00:14:41,480 --> 00:14:45,440 Speaker 1: with how consensus works, who are more familiar with the 279 00:14:45,480 --> 00:14:49,440 Speaker 1: process that was behind the running of the General Assembly, 280 00:14:49,480 --> 00:14:52,080 Speaker 1: which which has its roots and anarchist practice and anarchist 281 00:14:52,160 --> 00:14:55,720 Speaker 1: forms of decision making, and so those folks definitely had 282 00:14:55,720 --> 00:14:58,320 Speaker 1: a hand up when it came to making decisions, when 283 00:14:58,320 --> 00:15:01,400 Speaker 1: it came to presenting proposals, when it came to even 284 00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:04,960 Speaker 1: administering and running the General Assembly itself, those tasks often 285 00:15:05,200 --> 00:15:07,880 Speaker 1: fell into the lapse of anarchists, who I think did 286 00:15:07,880 --> 00:15:11,080 Speaker 1: a good job of making sure that these general assemblies 287 00:15:11,160 --> 00:15:13,880 Speaker 1: ran smoothly and that they were inclusive and open to 288 00:15:13,920 --> 00:15:16,800 Speaker 1: all who wanted to participate, and people could bring their 289 00:15:16,840 --> 00:15:19,800 Speaker 1: ideas and sometimes they got approved, sometimes they got rejected. 290 00:15:20,080 --> 00:15:22,640 Speaker 1: Even if they got rejected, some some folks decided they 291 00:15:22,680 --> 00:15:26,040 Speaker 1: would implement them anyways, and and that also worked out 292 00:15:26,440 --> 00:15:29,880 Speaker 1: as well as sometimes creating conflicts. The city grew increasingly 293 00:15:29,920 --> 00:15:33,800 Speaker 1: frustrated with the encampment as they were, they found themselves 294 00:15:33,880 --> 00:15:37,000 Speaker 1: unable to make any progress in trying to recuperate, in 295 00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:40,840 Speaker 1: trying to gain favor sort of make the encampment their 296 00:15:40,880 --> 00:15:43,880 Speaker 1: own and extension of the electoral body right of the 297 00:15:43,920 --> 00:15:48,480 Speaker 1: electoral body politic. Ultimately, that's what moved Kwon, the supposedly 298 00:15:48,520 --> 00:15:51,240 Speaker 1: progressive mayor more to the side of the police way 299 00:15:51,240 --> 00:15:54,000 Speaker 1: of seeing things as force was the only option to 300 00:15:54,040 --> 00:15:57,000 Speaker 1: deal with these people who are you know, being unrealistic, 301 00:15:57,000 --> 00:16:00,440 Speaker 1: were being naive, who are being entrenched in and transigent, 302 00:16:00,600 --> 00:16:02,960 Speaker 1: and you know, at the same time, the police, along 303 00:16:02,960 --> 00:16:05,440 Speaker 1: with the city eventually started building up this narrative of 304 00:16:05,480 --> 00:16:08,120 Speaker 1: the camp as a violent and unsafe space where people 305 00:16:08,120 --> 00:16:11,000 Speaker 1: were being harmed in a variety of ways, and it 306 00:16:11,080 --> 00:16:14,360 Speaker 1: was necessary for for public safety's sake to move against 307 00:16:14,400 --> 00:16:18,120 Speaker 1: the encampment. I was there the night the encampment was evicted. 308 00:16:18,160 --> 00:16:22,400 Speaker 1: I think it was October or early morning October twenty five, 309 00:16:22,480 --> 00:16:24,960 Speaker 1: around three am in the morning, three thirty four am, 310 00:16:25,200 --> 00:16:27,360 Speaker 1: and I was actually arrested. I was one of I 311 00:16:27,400 --> 00:16:31,800 Speaker 1: believe eighty eight plus people were arrested. UM. During the 312 00:16:31,800 --> 00:16:35,040 Speaker 1: process of the camps eviction UM, the police came in force. 313 00:16:35,480 --> 00:16:39,240 Speaker 1: They massed up outside of Oracle Arena and the A Stadium. 314 00:16:39,280 --> 00:16:41,680 Speaker 1: It was a massive operation that came in from all sides. 315 00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:44,880 Speaker 1: People upon hearing word that the camp was going to 316 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:50,040 Speaker 1: be evicted, UM set up barricades. They laced the entire 317 00:16:50,080 --> 00:16:53,800 Speaker 1: area with string, trying to impede the possibility of the 318 00:16:53,800 --> 00:16:56,800 Speaker 1: police getting injured. Quickly, there were battles with the police 319 00:16:56,920 --> 00:16:59,440 Speaker 1: as they tried to make their way into the encampment, 320 00:16:59,440 --> 00:17:02,280 Speaker 1: and eventually UM they came in from all sides and 321 00:17:02,520 --> 00:17:05,359 Speaker 1: until they took over the encampment and encircled the people 322 00:17:05,359 --> 00:17:07,920 Speaker 1: who remained in the camp. I was in jail when 323 00:17:08,560 --> 00:17:12,760 Speaker 1: Scott Olsen was shot. But I do recall the prison 324 00:17:12,760 --> 00:17:16,920 Speaker 1: guards or the Almeda County sheriffs who were making these 325 00:17:16,920 --> 00:17:19,840 Speaker 1: comments as we were being released finally after about twenty 326 00:17:19,840 --> 00:17:22,120 Speaker 1: four plus hours of being held, saying things like, oh, 327 00:17:22,160 --> 00:17:24,680 Speaker 1: go have fun rioting and that sort of thing. And 328 00:17:24,680 --> 00:17:26,280 Speaker 1: and we get out there and then hear about all 329 00:17:26,320 --> 00:17:28,320 Speaker 1: the events that had happened over the course of the 330 00:17:28,400 --> 00:17:30,240 Speaker 1: day that we had been locked up, of these people, 331 00:17:30,720 --> 00:17:33,359 Speaker 1: of folks in the thousands, just like you said, coming 332 00:17:33,400 --> 00:17:35,719 Speaker 1: out to try and retake the space of running battles 333 00:17:35,720 --> 00:17:37,959 Speaker 1: in the streets. I have so many friends and comrades 334 00:17:38,000 --> 00:17:40,160 Speaker 1: who were telling stories about getting tear gas, of getting 335 00:17:40,160 --> 00:17:43,800 Speaker 1: shot at with pepper balls, of Scott Wilson's devastating injury, 336 00:17:43,840 --> 00:17:46,439 Speaker 1: of getting shot in the head. It was violence that 337 00:17:46,440 --> 00:17:49,199 Speaker 1: occurred outside the normal narrative of violence deployed by the 338 00:17:49,240 --> 00:17:52,560 Speaker 1: police in Oakland, right, and so it made it exceptional, 339 00:17:52,680 --> 00:17:55,480 Speaker 1: even though much more brutal violence occurs daily by the 340 00:17:55,480 --> 00:17:58,800 Speaker 1: police in Oakland against primary the black black population in 341 00:17:58,840 --> 00:18:02,359 Speaker 1: Oakland and of people of color um. But we see 342 00:18:03,240 --> 00:18:06,280 Speaker 1: a huge upswelling of outrage at the rate of the 343 00:18:06,359 --> 00:18:10,639 Speaker 1: camp Um outrage at the injury against Scott Wilson, and 344 00:18:11,119 --> 00:18:15,480 Speaker 1: this ultimately the attempt to use force to quash a 345 00:18:15,560 --> 00:18:19,720 Speaker 1: movement tremendously backfired against both the police and the city 346 00:18:19,720 --> 00:18:22,280 Speaker 1: government in terms in terms of it building up even 347 00:18:22,320 --> 00:18:25,920 Speaker 1: more support for Occupy Oakland and its efforts. I recall 348 00:18:26,359 --> 00:18:30,000 Speaker 1: going to the General Assembly when the general strike was 349 00:18:30,040 --> 00:18:32,560 Speaker 1: decided to be moved forward, when the proposal was made 350 00:18:32,600 --> 00:18:35,000 Speaker 1: to have a general strike in a week, which was 351 00:18:35,119 --> 00:18:39,719 Speaker 1: just seemed like a completely impossible notion and completely impractical, 352 00:18:40,160 --> 00:18:43,520 Speaker 1: but also within the realm of the possible at the 353 00:18:43,560 --> 00:18:46,480 Speaker 1: same time, because what had been going on, especially the 354 00:18:46,600 --> 00:18:49,800 Speaker 1: response to people in terms of fighting against the police, 355 00:18:49,800 --> 00:18:53,159 Speaker 1: in terms of taking back Nancamin, of basically winning against 356 00:18:53,160 --> 00:18:57,000 Speaker 1: the government, winning against the police forces, reclaiming the space, 357 00:18:57,440 --> 00:19:01,080 Speaker 1: um taking injuries, supporting one another through the process, it 358 00:19:01,119 --> 00:19:03,440 Speaker 1: seems possible that we could pull up a general strike 359 00:19:03,480 --> 00:19:06,119 Speaker 1: within a week. When it came around, it was clear 360 00:19:06,200 --> 00:19:09,159 Speaker 1: that the word had been spread, that that energy that 361 00:19:09,320 --> 00:19:11,840 Speaker 1: brought on that impulse to move forward with the general 362 00:19:11,880 --> 00:19:14,480 Speaker 1: strike was still there a week later, and I would 363 00:19:14,520 --> 00:19:17,560 Speaker 1: say that that day itself was a tremendous success. We 364 00:19:17,600 --> 00:19:20,480 Speaker 1: had a hundred thousand people marching on the Port of Oakland, 365 00:19:20,680 --> 00:19:23,560 Speaker 1: shutting it down. We had a day's worth of activities, 366 00:19:23,800 --> 00:19:26,679 Speaker 1: everything that encapsulated Occupy Oakland. I feel like I found 367 00:19:26,680 --> 00:19:31,040 Speaker 1: a home UM in particular on that day on November two. Again, 368 00:19:31,080 --> 00:19:34,440 Speaker 1: we've been listening to Scott Campbell. Next we'll hear from Tovah, 369 00:19:34,480 --> 00:19:38,040 Speaker 1: who was involved in the Labor Solidarity Committee of Occupy Oakland, 370 00:19:38,560 --> 00:19:41,560 Speaker 1: which worked to bring in labor unions into the organizing 371 00:19:41,720 --> 00:19:44,840 Speaker 1: of the general strike. There were just masses of people 372 00:19:44,920 --> 00:19:49,000 Speaker 1: down there at Oscar Grant Plaza. Some of them were 373 00:19:49,040 --> 00:19:55,280 Speaker 1: working on maintaining or re re establishing the different services 374 00:19:55,320 --> 00:19:57,600 Speaker 1: that they had set up. I had been involved in 375 00:19:58,040 --> 00:20:02,480 Speaker 1: labor struggles the past, back in Detroit when I was 376 00:20:02,520 --> 00:20:05,880 Speaker 1: in the U a w. So UM volunteered to work 377 00:20:05,920 --> 00:20:11,840 Speaker 1: on the Labor Solidary Committee to do the outreach to 378 00:20:12,000 --> 00:20:17,080 Speaker 1: get support and participation of various unions, teamsters where it 379 00:20:17,200 --> 00:20:20,359 Speaker 1: played a very big role in in support UM for 380 00:20:20,440 --> 00:20:23,720 Speaker 1: that general strike as well. And that I think it's 381 00:20:23,760 --> 00:20:27,040 Speaker 1: the o e A, the Oakland Education Association as a 382 00:20:27,080 --> 00:20:30,399 Speaker 1: teachers union, and they were very much involved, and so 383 00:20:30,600 --> 00:20:34,119 Speaker 1: was the s c IU, particularly the SCIU, the City 384 00:20:34,160 --> 00:20:37,240 Speaker 1: Workers so the city workers were down there every day 385 00:20:37,280 --> 00:20:40,840 Speaker 1: and saw what was going on. UM, and we're you know, 386 00:20:41,040 --> 00:20:43,959 Speaker 1: very much involved and affected by it. You know, the 387 00:20:44,000 --> 00:20:47,840 Speaker 1: teachers Union had, like you said, been involved with in 388 00:20:48,000 --> 00:20:53,320 Speaker 1: support work before all the attacks by the police happened. UH, 389 00:20:53,480 --> 00:20:57,359 Speaker 1: there was a lot of involvement beforehand as well. UM 390 00:20:57,400 --> 00:21:01,600 Speaker 1: one or two Teamsters locals that were you know, supporting officially. 391 00:21:01,880 --> 00:21:05,600 Speaker 1: They you know, it wasn't just their rank and file members, 392 00:21:05,640 --> 00:21:08,199 Speaker 1: which had been great also, but you know, the we 393 00:21:08,240 --> 00:21:11,439 Speaker 1: had support from one or two Teamsters locals, and the 394 00:21:11,520 --> 00:21:17,040 Speaker 1: i LW is primarily Local ten. The longshoreman whole proposal 395 00:21:17,240 --> 00:21:21,240 Speaker 1: was to march down to the port UH and shut 396 00:21:21,280 --> 00:21:24,960 Speaker 1: down the Port of Oakland. We had people involved from 397 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:29,480 Speaker 1: my LW. You although, I'm pretty sure that the i 398 00:21:29,640 --> 00:21:33,959 Speaker 1: LW Local ten officially was not involved in calling for 399 00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:38,280 Speaker 1: that strike, but there were members who were involved in 400 00:21:38,560 --> 00:21:43,560 Speaker 1: the i LW organization who were definitely involved in helping 401 00:21:43,640 --> 00:21:47,480 Speaker 1: to plan it and organize it as well. The Teamsters 402 00:21:47,520 --> 00:21:52,520 Speaker 1: added some logistical support in terms of trucking and supplies 403 00:21:52,600 --> 00:21:55,320 Speaker 1: and things like that. I think that the o e A. 404 00:21:55,440 --> 00:22:00,560 Speaker 1: The teachers also, in addition to participation, donated applies and 405 00:22:00,640 --> 00:22:03,320 Speaker 1: things like that, So there was a lot of donations 406 00:22:03,840 --> 00:22:07,760 Speaker 1: from the locals as well. We've been listening to TOVA 407 00:22:07,960 --> 00:22:11,439 Speaker 1: from the Occupy Oakland Labor Solidarity Committee. We're now going 408 00:22:11,480 --> 00:22:21,640 Speaker 1: to take a short break and be right back. As 409 00:22:21,680 --> 00:22:25,360 Speaker 1: the Oakland Commune and the Occupy movement faded into history, 410 00:22:25,760 --> 00:22:28,880 Speaker 1: it helped inspire and inform a new generation of activists. 411 00:22:29,359 --> 00:22:34,200 Speaker 1: As under Obama, we saw continued explosions on Ferguson, Baltimore, Minneapolis, 412 00:22:34,320 --> 00:22:37,800 Speaker 1: and later at Standing Rock. By the time that Trump 413 00:22:37,880 --> 00:22:42,120 Speaker 1: took office, autonomous resistance movements were bubbling beneath every surface, 414 00:22:42,760 --> 00:22:46,359 Speaker 1: as airports were shut down against the Muslim band, riots 415 00:22:46,400 --> 00:22:49,560 Speaker 1: broke out against the ault right, and thousands of teachers 416 00:22:49,560 --> 00:22:54,320 Speaker 1: started striking across Appalachia. Donny Red, Ben Dennis and omage 417 00:22:54,400 --> 00:22:58,720 Speaker 1: of the so called Redneck War of when striking coal 418 00:22:58,760 --> 00:23:01,760 Speaker 1: miners engage and grow a warfare with government troops and 419 00:23:01,800 --> 00:23:06,080 Speaker 1: the air Force dropped actual bombs on strikers. With the 420 00:23:06,160 --> 00:23:10,840 Speaker 1: current uptick and strikes under Biden continuing into and the 421 00:23:10,920 --> 00:23:15,240 Speaker 1: economic conditions of porn working people continuing to worsen, we 422 00:23:15,280 --> 00:23:19,040 Speaker 1: asked labor reporter and author a fight like hell Kim Kelly, 423 00:23:19,280 --> 00:23:22,520 Speaker 1: just what are the possibilities of mass strike action in 424 00:23:22,560 --> 00:23:25,320 Speaker 1: the coming year. You know, I think we're in this 425 00:23:25,480 --> 00:23:31,160 Speaker 1: really interesting moment where labor and workers and unions in 426 00:23:31,200 --> 00:23:34,119 Speaker 1: general are getting a lot more attention than we're used to, 427 00:23:34,400 --> 00:23:36,320 Speaker 1: and a lot of that attention is positive, and we 428 00:23:36,400 --> 00:23:38,040 Speaker 1: have a lot of these big wins that we get 429 00:23:38,080 --> 00:23:41,480 Speaker 1: to celebrate. We get to celebrate, you know, the workers 430 00:23:41,520 --> 00:23:45,119 Speaker 1: at Staten Island Amazon go on toe to toe of 431 00:23:45,200 --> 00:23:47,679 Speaker 1: Jeff Bezos and the union election winning. We get to 432 00:23:47,720 --> 00:23:54,320 Speaker 1: celebrate this ongoing wave of unionization efforts at Starbucks across 433 00:23:54,359 --> 00:23:57,280 Speaker 1: the country, hundreds of Starbucks and unionized. We get to 434 00:23:57,320 --> 00:24:01,000 Speaker 1: celebrate a lot of big wins. And there are also 435 00:24:01,359 --> 00:24:03,600 Speaker 1: a lot of struggles that have been kind of set 436 00:24:03,640 --> 00:24:06,000 Speaker 1: to this side, or not gotten as much attention as 437 00:24:06,000 --> 00:24:08,960 Speaker 1: they deserve, or kind of written off. I think that's 438 00:24:09,000 --> 00:24:11,960 Speaker 1: always the dichotomy of the labor movement in general, right 439 00:24:11,960 --> 00:24:15,119 Speaker 1: because it's so big, almost everyone is a part of it, 440 00:24:15,160 --> 00:24:17,320 Speaker 1: whether or not they like to think of themselves that way. 441 00:24:17,880 --> 00:24:20,240 Speaker 1: You know, I've been covering this coal minor strike in 442 00:24:20,280 --> 00:24:25,159 Speaker 1: Alabama since April one. They're still out there. They have 443 00:24:25,240 --> 00:24:29,119 Speaker 1: not gotten very much attention. They're kind of stuck in 444 00:24:29,160 --> 00:24:31,480 Speaker 1: a stalemate at the bargaining table because the bosses want 445 00:24:31,480 --> 00:24:34,879 Speaker 1: to starve them out. And this is Alabama, where workers 446 00:24:35,119 --> 00:24:37,600 Speaker 1: in or outside the prison walls do not have very 447 00:24:37,600 --> 00:24:40,680 Speaker 1: many rights, do not have any politicians on their side. 448 00:24:40,840 --> 00:24:43,640 Speaker 1: They're struggling and they're still out there. And that's kind 449 00:24:43,640 --> 00:24:48,880 Speaker 1: of the flip side of these big, energetic, inspiring moments 450 00:24:48,920 --> 00:24:51,800 Speaker 1: in labor right where we have these winds, and we 451 00:24:51,880 --> 00:24:54,359 Speaker 1: also have folks that are being left a slog or 452 00:24:54,440 --> 00:24:57,000 Speaker 1: being ignored entirely, like the folks that we're going to 453 00:24:57,080 --> 00:25:00,680 Speaker 1: see very soon in Pennsylvania who are going be launching 454 00:25:00,840 --> 00:25:04,320 Speaker 1: a strike and sound the Department of Corrections. I hope 455 00:25:04,320 --> 00:25:06,359 Speaker 1: that gets a lot of attention. I mean, we saw 456 00:25:06,400 --> 00:25:09,520 Speaker 1: a similar effort by a carcerated workers in Alabama a 457 00:25:09,600 --> 00:25:11,960 Speaker 1: couple of months ago, and that got a lot of attention. 458 00:25:12,320 --> 00:25:14,679 Speaker 1: And I'm really hoping that this kind of renewed interest 459 00:25:14,720 --> 00:25:18,680 Speaker 1: in labor and workers rights and then discussing even topics 460 00:25:18,680 --> 00:25:23,280 Speaker 1: like prison slavery, in topics like forced labor, incarcerated work, 461 00:25:23,400 --> 00:25:26,120 Speaker 1: and different types of work. I really hope that benefits 462 00:25:26,119 --> 00:25:31,240 Speaker 1: these workers as they embark on their action but we'll see, 463 00:25:31,480 --> 00:25:34,600 Speaker 1: you know, like I am very interested to see perhaps 464 00:25:34,600 --> 00:25:37,920 Speaker 1: the limits of this public support for labor actions. Is 465 00:25:37,960 --> 00:25:40,800 Speaker 1: it easier to support a barista than it is to 466 00:25:40,840 --> 00:25:43,720 Speaker 1: support a coal miner and acarcerated worker. There's all these 467 00:25:43,760 --> 00:25:48,760 Speaker 1: different pieces that go into this moment. And I love 468 00:25:48,800 --> 00:25:52,200 Speaker 1: being possy. I love seeing workers win and workers organized 469 00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:56,439 Speaker 1: and strike and protest, and I also like keeping an 470 00:25:56,440 --> 00:25:59,000 Speaker 1: eye out for the folks who aren't getting as much attention, 471 00:25:59,480 --> 00:26:01,760 Speaker 1: are getting much support and thinking about why that is. 472 00:26:02,200 --> 00:26:04,680 Speaker 1: So it's kind of a long, rambly answer to say, 473 00:26:04,840 --> 00:26:08,880 Speaker 1: I am cautiously optimistic, and I really hope that all 474 00:26:08,880 --> 00:26:13,159 Speaker 1: of the people who have thankfully and you know, I'm 475 00:26:13,200 --> 00:26:15,760 Speaker 1: glad they're here, who have showed up in the past year, 476 00:26:15,800 --> 00:26:19,960 Speaker 1: in the media, the political class, whoever, regular regular people 477 00:26:20,040 --> 00:26:22,600 Speaker 1: who have been paying attention to these these worker actions. 478 00:26:22,960 --> 00:26:25,320 Speaker 1: I hope they keep that energy for this year, because 479 00:26:25,320 --> 00:26:28,840 Speaker 1: we're going to need it, you know. Started we we've 480 00:26:28,840 --> 00:26:32,480 Speaker 1: had a pretty good We're in a decent spot, and 481 00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:35,440 Speaker 1: I really don't want to see a squander that. See. 482 00:26:35,480 --> 00:26:38,240 Speaker 1: I think this moment with the railroad workers, I think 483 00:26:38,560 --> 00:26:41,359 Speaker 1: that is something that's going to continue to resonate and 484 00:26:41,400 --> 00:26:44,239 Speaker 1: reverberate out, And I think that's going to have an 485 00:26:44,280 --> 00:26:47,800 Speaker 1: impact the next time the Democratic Party says, hey, where 486 00:26:47,800 --> 00:26:50,439 Speaker 1: the Workers Party like, you need to come vote for 487 00:26:50,520 --> 00:26:52,399 Speaker 1: us and keep us in power because well, we're the 488 00:26:52,440 --> 00:26:57,120 Speaker 1: only ones who will protect you. Well will you did you? 489 00:26:57,280 --> 00:26:59,080 Speaker 1: Were you there for us when we needed you or 490 00:26:59,080 --> 00:27:03,480 Speaker 1: when we needed your help? No? You know, it just 491 00:27:03,560 --> 00:27:08,639 Speaker 1: makes one wonder how much of the pro union uh 492 00:27:09,119 --> 00:27:13,360 Speaker 1: sloganeering that that this administration loves to do, how much 493 00:27:13,359 --> 00:27:16,320 Speaker 1: of it is pure public relations, how much of it 494 00:27:16,400 --> 00:27:21,120 Speaker 1: is actually attached to whatever personal beliefs that Biden has, 495 00:27:21,920 --> 00:27:25,439 Speaker 1: or if they just think it's politically expedient to, you know, 496 00:27:25,600 --> 00:27:28,320 Speaker 1: act as though we're the we're pro union, we're pro worker. 497 00:27:28,359 --> 00:27:30,239 Speaker 1: We're not going to pass any laws, we're not going 498 00:27:30,280 --> 00:27:33,960 Speaker 1: to investigate any worker death at Amazon facilities are helped elsewhere, 499 00:27:34,240 --> 00:27:35,800 Speaker 1: we're not going to use our power to help you. 500 00:27:35,960 --> 00:27:41,800 Speaker 1: But we're not Republicans, So you know, it's um. I 501 00:27:41,800 --> 00:27:45,080 Speaker 1: think it's going to be interesting to see how much 502 00:27:45,600 --> 00:27:48,479 Speaker 1: the railroad strike impacts people, because I think that the 503 00:27:48,520 --> 00:27:53,679 Speaker 1: political calculus that the Biden administration did in choosing to 504 00:27:53,760 --> 00:27:58,160 Speaker 1: crush the strike inside with the railroad bosses. I guess 505 00:27:58,200 --> 00:27:59,879 Speaker 1: they figured, oh, well, it's not that big of a 506 00:28:00,000 --> 00:28:01,880 Speaker 1: you know, maybe not that many people are paying attention. 507 00:28:01,880 --> 00:28:04,200 Speaker 1: We've got to make sure people get their Christmas presents 508 00:28:04,200 --> 00:28:06,960 Speaker 1: on time. But a lot of folks were watching that. 509 00:28:07,240 --> 00:28:10,560 Speaker 1: A lot of regular workers were watching that and thinking, oh, so, 510 00:28:11,040 --> 00:28:13,119 Speaker 1: if we were in that position at my job, the 511 00:28:13,160 --> 00:28:16,240 Speaker 1: government would help us either. I think, you know, a 512 00:28:16,240 --> 00:28:18,879 Speaker 1: lot of the chatter I saw from railroad workers, from 513 00:28:18,920 --> 00:28:22,959 Speaker 1: other workers, just from people in general, it is like, oh, so, okay, 514 00:28:23,000 --> 00:28:25,760 Speaker 1: this was the big moment where Biden could have proved 515 00:28:26,440 --> 00:28:29,240 Speaker 1: he cared about us, and instead he threw us under 516 00:28:29,240 --> 00:28:31,920 Speaker 1: the bus, straight onto the railroad tracks. And I don't 517 00:28:31,960 --> 00:28:35,320 Speaker 1: think that's a surprise to people that are sort of 518 00:28:35,840 --> 00:28:38,360 Speaker 1: paying more close attention to the way the state operates. 519 00:28:38,560 --> 00:28:41,120 Speaker 1: But I think it was maybe a revelatory moment for 520 00:28:41,120 --> 00:28:43,920 Speaker 1: folks who just sort of assumed, okay, like there's at 521 00:28:43,960 --> 00:28:46,440 Speaker 1: least a little bit of benevolence at least, you know, 522 00:28:46,440 --> 00:28:48,400 Speaker 1: the Democrats are in power. This guy says, it alls 523 00:28:48,560 --> 00:28:51,320 Speaker 1: unions that should help us out a little bit. But 524 00:28:51,440 --> 00:28:53,480 Speaker 1: seeing what happened there, I think it's going to be 525 00:28:53,560 --> 00:28:56,040 Speaker 1: a profoundly disillusioning moment for a lot of people that 526 00:28:56,080 --> 00:28:57,920 Speaker 1: maybe had a little bit more faith in the state 527 00:28:58,520 --> 00:29:01,080 Speaker 1: or at least assumed it was sort of looking out 528 00:29:01,120 --> 00:29:03,560 Speaker 1: for us. And I think that's gonna have an impact 529 00:29:03,680 --> 00:29:07,000 Speaker 1: when you know, the Democratic Party comes back knocking on 530 00:29:07,040 --> 00:29:10,360 Speaker 1: our doors and mostly asking for a vote in our support, 531 00:29:10,640 --> 00:29:14,040 Speaker 1: because I mean, you, we had a classic which side 532 00:29:14,080 --> 00:29:16,800 Speaker 1: are you on moment and we saw which way they 533 00:29:16,880 --> 00:29:21,080 Speaker 1: chose to go. We're gonna see more prolonged strikes, We're 534 00:29:21,080 --> 00:29:23,040 Speaker 1: going to see more unfair labor practices, are going to 535 00:29:23,120 --> 00:29:26,200 Speaker 1: see more organizing. I think that it is impossible to 536 00:29:26,320 --> 00:29:30,080 Speaker 1: put this lightning back into a bottle. Right Like, activity 537 00:29:30,120 --> 00:29:33,720 Speaker 1: and interest in unions and organizing is, if not skyrocketing, 538 00:29:33,800 --> 00:29:36,000 Speaker 1: it's had a really nice little bump over the past 539 00:29:36,040 --> 00:29:40,280 Speaker 1: few years, a noticeable improvement and a noticeable amount of 540 00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:44,560 Speaker 1: new worker workplaces being organized and going on strike and 541 00:29:44,600 --> 00:29:47,320 Speaker 1: fighting for their rights. Like, I don't think that's going away. 542 00:29:47,760 --> 00:29:51,800 Speaker 1: And two of the aspects of this, this entire scenario 543 00:29:51,880 --> 00:29:55,520 Speaker 1: that really interests me. First, the fact that we're seeing 544 00:29:55,560 --> 00:29:58,880 Speaker 1: so many workers who some my categories as quote unquote 545 00:29:58,880 --> 00:30:02,320 Speaker 1: white collar whatever, folks who work in nonprofits or at 546 00:30:02,360 --> 00:30:06,120 Speaker 1: book publishers, or journalism, other types of media, kind of 547 00:30:06,160 --> 00:30:08,960 Speaker 1: all of these other types of jobs that don't fit 548 00:30:08,960 --> 00:30:13,880 Speaker 1: into that traditional manufacturing or extractive focused of many more 549 00:30:13,920 --> 00:30:16,920 Speaker 1: manual labor oriented jobs that I think a lot of 550 00:30:16,920 --> 00:30:19,800 Speaker 1: people associate with the labor movement. They've been going on 551 00:30:19,880 --> 00:30:22,320 Speaker 1: strike and they've been making big waves, whether it's the 552 00:30:22,360 --> 00:30:25,120 Speaker 1: forty eight thousand grad student workers at the University of 553 00:30:25,120 --> 00:30:30,480 Speaker 1: California or hardpwerk HarperCollins Publishing workers currently still on strike 554 00:30:30,520 --> 00:30:32,640 Speaker 1: in New York City. I think there's been kind of 555 00:30:32,640 --> 00:30:35,560 Speaker 1: the shift and understanding of oh, Okay, you don't need 556 00:30:35,600 --> 00:30:37,960 Speaker 1: to be a certain type of worker or certain type 557 00:30:37,960 --> 00:30:40,480 Speaker 1: of person, or come from a specific background in order 558 00:30:40,800 --> 00:30:43,920 Speaker 1: to organize to join a union. Unions aren't just for 559 00:30:44,480 --> 00:30:46,480 Speaker 1: the classic white guy in a hard hat trope like 560 00:30:46,560 --> 00:30:49,760 Speaker 1: my dad, right Like, they're accessible to so many more 561 00:30:49,800 --> 00:30:52,360 Speaker 1: of us than perhaps we thought, and I think that's 562 00:30:52,400 --> 00:30:56,400 Speaker 1: going to be big because work has shifted. Work looks 563 00:30:56,400 --> 00:30:58,360 Speaker 1: different than it did thirty years ago. There's a lot 564 00:30:58,400 --> 00:31:00,720 Speaker 1: of different ways to be exploited, and we know the 565 00:31:00,720 --> 00:31:04,760 Speaker 1: employers have definitely looked into each and everyone and taken notes. 566 00:31:05,520 --> 00:31:08,120 Speaker 1: So we have that happening. I think that's gonna continue 567 00:31:08,120 --> 00:31:13,280 Speaker 1: propelling the energy behind this movement. And secondly, I'm really 568 00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:17,480 Speaker 1: intrigued by the rise, and that's as it's a smaller phenomenon, 569 00:31:17,560 --> 00:31:20,440 Speaker 1: but it is very much happening, and it is kind 570 00:31:20,440 --> 00:31:24,920 Speaker 1: of increasing slowly the exist this existence of independent unions, 571 00:31:25,760 --> 00:31:28,560 Speaker 1: because we saw, of course the Amazon Labor Union. They're 572 00:31:28,600 --> 00:31:31,000 Speaker 1: the big ones, They've gotten tons of attention, deservedly so, 573 00:31:31,600 --> 00:31:35,440 Speaker 1: but there are also efforts Trader Joe's Trade Joe's United 574 00:31:35,480 --> 00:31:39,200 Speaker 1: as an independent union. Chipotle workers formed an independent union. 575 00:31:39,440 --> 00:31:43,080 Speaker 1: There was an effort here in Philadelphia to form a 576 00:31:43,120 --> 00:31:46,960 Speaker 1: Home Depot workers independent union, and that one wasn't successful, 577 00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:50,040 Speaker 1: but I'm certain that that organizer has not given up, 578 00:31:50,040 --> 00:31:52,680 Speaker 1: but they're still gonna keep working on that. Like and 579 00:31:52,720 --> 00:31:56,480 Speaker 1: I think seeing these independent unions which are not affiliated 580 00:31:56,520 --> 00:31:58,720 Speaker 1: with other internationals, are not part of the afl CE. 581 00:31:58,840 --> 00:32:02,480 Speaker 1: Oh there literally just d I y you know. Thence 582 00:32:03,040 --> 00:32:06,400 Speaker 1: the fact that we're seeing this happen. I think it 583 00:32:06,520 --> 00:32:10,240 Speaker 1: just shows the cracks in the current labor movement as 584 00:32:10,320 --> 00:32:15,560 Speaker 1: it stands, and especially in the way that power is concentrated, 585 00:32:15,560 --> 00:32:18,560 Speaker 1: in the way that resources are organized, in the way 586 00:32:18,600 --> 00:32:24,440 Speaker 1: that the movements. Priorities in terms of public statements and 587 00:32:24,480 --> 00:32:28,360 Speaker 1: political power are kind of dictated by folks who tend 588 00:32:28,400 --> 00:32:30,720 Speaker 1: to be more conservative. And I mean that in like 589 00:32:30,760 --> 00:32:34,760 Speaker 1: a Democrat way and not like you know, Republican chaos, 590 00:32:34,880 --> 00:32:36,960 Speaker 1: but just more conservative compared to a lot of the 591 00:32:37,040 --> 00:32:40,479 Speaker 1: rank and file. Like we see with the railroad workers 592 00:32:40,520 --> 00:32:44,520 Speaker 1: that rejected rejected that deal that so many of their 593 00:32:44,600 --> 00:32:47,560 Speaker 1: leaders agreed on. You know, I think there's more radicalism 594 00:32:47,600 --> 00:32:50,560 Speaker 1: brewing in the rank and file and more militancy that 595 00:32:50,840 --> 00:32:53,640 Speaker 1: and it's it's manifesting in different ways. It's manifesting and 596 00:32:53,680 --> 00:32:57,760 Speaker 1: wildcatch strikes or an independent unions, or in organizing outside 597 00:32:57,880 --> 00:33:00,520 Speaker 1: of the traditional organized labor structure and gender like what 598 00:33:00,600 --> 00:33:03,360 Speaker 1: sex workers and incarcerated workers are doing and have been doing. 599 00:33:03,560 --> 00:33:05,800 Speaker 1: I think ultimately the bottom line is that a lot 600 00:33:05,840 --> 00:33:08,240 Speaker 1: of workers, a lot of people have realized that they 601 00:33:08,280 --> 00:33:14,360 Speaker 1: have options, and they're exercising their rights to organize and 602 00:33:14,480 --> 00:33:17,479 Speaker 1: to work collectively and to stand with their fellow workers 603 00:33:17,480 --> 00:33:21,160 Speaker 1: against the bosses and against capital in ways that you know, 604 00:33:21,240 --> 00:33:24,320 Speaker 1: perhaps I wouldn't have felt disavailable or seemed as possible 605 00:33:24,360 --> 00:33:27,680 Speaker 1: a few years ago, but now there's so many examples 606 00:33:27,680 --> 00:33:30,440 Speaker 1: of other workers doing it. Of course, have been there 607 00:33:30,440 --> 00:33:32,880 Speaker 1: throughout history too, like I read about my book, but 608 00:33:33,560 --> 00:33:36,520 Speaker 1: I think we're at this moment where people realize, Okay, 609 00:33:36,840 --> 00:33:38,880 Speaker 1: there are a lot of different ways to do this. 610 00:33:39,760 --> 00:33:42,160 Speaker 1: I have people with me, we have problems we need 611 00:33:42,200 --> 00:33:45,880 Speaker 1: to address. Let's see what works. You know, it's not 612 00:33:45,960 --> 00:33:48,080 Speaker 1: just picking up the phone and calling a union organizer, 613 00:33:48,120 --> 00:33:51,560 Speaker 1: though that works for some folks. Too, is recognizing the 614 00:33:51,640 --> 00:33:55,200 Speaker 1: problems we face in our workplace, in our experience, and 615 00:33:55,240 --> 00:33:58,240 Speaker 1: deciding together what we want to do, how we want 616 00:33:58,240 --> 00:34:01,160 Speaker 1: to go forward, and how we're going to win. Once again, 617 00:34:01,200 --> 00:34:05,760 Speaker 1: that was Kim Kelly, author of phil Hell. Over the 618 00:34:05,800 --> 00:34:09,040 Speaker 1: past two episodes, we've taken a deep dive into the 619 00:34:09,120 --> 00:34:12,279 Speaker 1: history of general strikes in the United States, looking at 620 00:34:12,320 --> 00:34:15,480 Speaker 1: everything from the mass strike of Enslave plantation workers during 621 00:34:15,520 --> 00:34:18,520 Speaker 1: the Civil War all the way up to current examples 622 00:34:18,560 --> 00:34:21,720 Speaker 1: during Occupy Oakland. I think one of the things history 623 00:34:21,760 --> 00:34:23,880 Speaker 1: has to offer us as a guide for the present 624 00:34:24,480 --> 00:34:27,399 Speaker 1: is that these upheavals are made possible not only by 625 00:34:27,440 --> 00:34:31,600 Speaker 1: people responding to material conditions, but also learning from struggle. 626 00:34:32,400 --> 00:34:35,520 Speaker 1: In the instance of the Great Upheaval, that general strike 627 00:34:35,560 --> 00:34:39,120 Speaker 1: came after a series of other smaller strikes. This fall, 628 00:34:39,280 --> 00:34:42,960 Speaker 1: thousands of prisoners across Alabama organized a general strike of 629 00:34:43,040 --> 00:34:47,640 Speaker 1: incarcerated workers, downing their tools and refusing to work their jobs, 630 00:34:47,680 --> 00:34:51,160 Speaker 1: bringing the prisons to a grinding halt. This historic strike 631 00:34:51,239 --> 00:34:53,840 Speaker 1: comes on the heels of many other prisoner led strike 632 00:34:53,880 --> 00:34:58,239 Speaker 1: actions in two thousand ten, two thousand sixteen. In two 633 00:34:58,239 --> 00:35:01,880 Speaker 1: thousand eighteen, non to mention the fact that many Alabama 634 00:35:01,880 --> 00:35:05,040 Speaker 1: prisoners saw themselves as acting in the spirit of the 635 00:35:05,040 --> 00:35:08,640 Speaker 1: Great Plantation Strike during the Civil War, as epitomized by 636 00:35:08,640 --> 00:35:11,800 Speaker 1: the strike slogan let the crops rot in the field 637 00:35:12,920 --> 00:35:15,799 Speaker 1: in my final thoughts, instead of putting our hopes in 638 00:35:15,920 --> 00:35:18,600 Speaker 1: a call for a general strike going viral, As the 639 00:35:18,640 --> 00:35:21,279 Speaker 1: saying goes, we have to walk before we can run. 640 00:35:21,520 --> 00:35:24,640 Speaker 1: So strengthening our ability to engage in collective direct action 641 00:35:24,680 --> 00:35:27,799 Speaker 1: and active refusal, as well as building our capacity for 642 00:35:27,880 --> 00:35:32,040 Speaker 1: community self defense and mobilizing against state violence and repression 643 00:35:32,480 --> 00:35:36,440 Speaker 1: and whatever form will ultimately allow us to expand and 644 00:35:36,480 --> 00:35:39,680 Speaker 1: grow our ability to do these things in the future. 645 00:35:40,360 --> 00:35:43,080 Speaker 1: A lot of times we're told that like we're powerless 646 00:35:43,080 --> 00:35:45,160 Speaker 1: and were these passive beings and creatures and we have 647 00:35:45,200 --> 00:35:47,359 Speaker 1: to wait for somebody to organize us. But every single 648 00:35:47,400 --> 00:35:48,719 Speaker 1: day we wake up in the morning and we make 649 00:35:48,800 --> 00:35:51,440 Speaker 1: capitalism happen, like we do it, like all of us, 650 00:35:51,520 --> 00:35:53,560 Speaker 1: every single one of us does it. Like this is 651 00:35:53,600 --> 00:35:56,720 Speaker 1: not like oh, like this is just something that's happening 652 00:35:56,760 --> 00:35:58,759 Speaker 1: to us, we're doing to ourselves. We're doing it to 653 00:35:58,840 --> 00:36:00,920 Speaker 1: each other. Like these little things that we can do, 654 00:36:00,960 --> 00:36:03,400 Speaker 1: like little acts of resistance. And I'm all about petty 655 00:36:03,440 --> 00:36:05,239 Speaker 1: resistance because I do realize that a lot of people 656 00:36:05,320 --> 00:36:07,759 Speaker 1: don't have time for the large resistances. So this is 657 00:36:07,800 --> 00:36:10,560 Speaker 1: for anybody who's like, yeah, I hate capitalism, but I 658 00:36:10,600 --> 00:36:12,279 Speaker 1: just don't have the breath on the space and the 659 00:36:12,320 --> 00:36:14,680 Speaker 1: time to necessarily like go out and do things. If 660 00:36:14,680 --> 00:36:16,480 Speaker 1: you can't, please do it. You can't like walk the 661 00:36:16,480 --> 00:36:18,600 Speaker 1: funk out do But if you can't, like there's still 662 00:36:18,600 --> 00:36:21,080 Speaker 1: stuff you can do. That's it for me. By you know, 663 00:36:21,200 --> 00:36:25,440 Speaker 1: what strikes me often about general strikes are two things. 664 00:36:26,280 --> 00:36:30,600 Speaker 1: First is that general strikes actually function very differently than 665 00:36:30,640 --> 00:36:34,160 Speaker 1: they do in leftist discourse. Like in leftist discourse it's 666 00:36:34,320 --> 00:36:37,680 Speaker 1: workers do general strikes. But in reality, if we really 667 00:36:37,719 --> 00:36:40,759 Speaker 1: look at general strikes, there are these moments of convergence, right, 668 00:36:40,800 --> 00:36:44,680 Speaker 1: There's these these sort of points in which distinctions break down, right, 669 00:36:44,719 --> 00:36:47,880 Speaker 1: the distinction between like organizers and everyone else, or the 670 00:36:47,920 --> 00:36:51,040 Speaker 1: distinction between workers and non workers completely break down. Right, 671 00:36:51,040 --> 00:36:53,839 Speaker 1: It's not just railroad workers don't strike in eighteen seventy seven, 672 00:36:53,920 --> 00:36:57,040 Speaker 1: is also their families, their neighbors, their whole communities on strike. 673 00:36:57,640 --> 00:37:01,600 Speaker 1: And this the second thing that that raises often for me, 674 00:37:01,800 --> 00:37:05,319 Speaker 1: is again this kind of long term cultural implications of 675 00:37:05,400 --> 00:37:08,080 Speaker 1: that sort of form of action. So growing up in 676 00:37:08,080 --> 00:37:10,600 Speaker 1: a place where you know, strike culture is a thing, 677 00:37:11,440 --> 00:37:14,000 Speaker 1: um still where there's still actual union density and people 678 00:37:14,000 --> 00:37:17,360 Speaker 1: do walk off the job, um, you grow up with 679 00:37:17,400 --> 00:37:20,640 Speaker 1: that as an idea, right that you don't just walk 680 00:37:20,640 --> 00:37:22,720 Speaker 1: off the job. But like the restaurant around the corner 681 00:37:22,760 --> 00:37:25,239 Speaker 1: also gives out free food, and people bring coffee down 682 00:37:25,280 --> 00:37:28,120 Speaker 1: to the picket line, and you know, workers from other 683 00:37:28,239 --> 00:37:30,680 Speaker 1: unions show up the block entrances because the judge said 684 00:37:30,719 --> 00:37:32,840 Speaker 1: you can, you know so and so on, and it 685 00:37:32,880 --> 00:37:36,720 Speaker 1: becomes this huge community initiative of autonomy and self defense. 686 00:37:37,280 --> 00:37:41,520 Speaker 1: And what that creates is a sense in which class 687 00:37:41,520 --> 00:37:46,359 Speaker 1: struggle is perpetual. Like you understand always when you grow 688 00:37:46,440 --> 00:37:47,600 Speaker 1: up in a place like that, but when you go 689 00:37:47,640 --> 00:37:49,719 Speaker 1: to work you're making somebody else money because you've been 690 00:37:49,719 --> 00:37:52,120 Speaker 1: told that your whole life right and that if you 691 00:37:52,160 --> 00:37:54,040 Speaker 1: get angry about that, that what you're supposed to do 692 00:37:54,040 --> 00:37:56,399 Speaker 1: is organize and go on strike. And that's a very 693 00:37:56,560 --> 00:38:00,239 Speaker 1: normal sort of narrative that was because we all up 694 00:38:00,239 --> 00:38:02,640 Speaker 1: in families where we were taught to do that. That 695 00:38:02,680 --> 00:38:06,480 Speaker 1: if the wealthy we're taking advantage of you, you just leave. Right. 696 00:38:07,120 --> 00:38:09,120 Speaker 1: That is not a normal thing outside of the rest 697 00:38:09,160 --> 00:38:11,920 Speaker 1: of America, right, Like people don't get brought up with that. 698 00:38:12,400 --> 00:38:14,920 Speaker 1: But I think as we're starting to see this kind 699 00:38:14,960 --> 00:38:17,360 Speaker 1: of rise of the idea of the general strike, and 700 00:38:17,360 --> 00:38:20,000 Speaker 1: we're starting to understand that is something that's not just 701 00:38:20,080 --> 00:38:22,600 Speaker 1: connected to employment, but we can start to think of 702 00:38:22,640 --> 00:38:25,960 Speaker 1: general strikes as social strikes and not just economic strikes. 703 00:38:26,160 --> 00:38:28,920 Speaker 1: We can start to understand like, even if those may 704 00:38:28,920 --> 00:38:32,399 Speaker 1: immediately not succeed, the long term impacts of those over 705 00:38:32,480 --> 00:38:35,160 Speaker 1: time really create the conditions for them to succeed later. 706 00:38:35,680 --> 00:38:39,240 Speaker 1: And if it hadn't been for that flame staying alive, 707 00:38:39,320 --> 00:38:42,560 Speaker 1: I think in parts of America, this wave of worker 708 00:38:42,600 --> 00:38:45,080 Speaker 1: action wouldn't be happening. There wouldn't be a foundation for it, 709 00:38:45,120 --> 00:38:48,160 Speaker 1: there wouldn't be a way to understand it, right, um, 710 00:38:48,239 --> 00:38:50,400 Speaker 1: And that's what's so critical about this moment is I 711 00:38:50,400 --> 00:38:53,160 Speaker 1: think in some ways we're almost reviving a thing that 712 00:38:53,239 --> 00:38:56,000 Speaker 1: my grandparents lived in the midst of just as a 713 00:38:56,080 --> 00:38:58,120 Speaker 1: very normal part of their lives. I think that's like 714 00:38:58,120 --> 00:39:00,000 Speaker 1: a really important piece about this survival. And I think 715 00:39:00,000 --> 00:39:03,200 Speaker 1: think that something that feels really important about general strikes 716 00:39:03,360 --> 00:39:06,440 Speaker 1: is the idea of like solidarity and that our liberation 717 00:39:06,640 --> 00:39:09,600 Speaker 1: is collective, you know, that it involves each other. And 718 00:39:09,640 --> 00:39:12,680 Speaker 1: I think that, Um, I feel like what happened between 719 00:39:12,680 --> 00:39:14,640 Speaker 1: like what you're saying to about you, like your grandparents 720 00:39:14,680 --> 00:39:17,879 Speaker 1: generation and now is like near liberalism in a lot 721 00:39:17,880 --> 00:39:20,520 Speaker 1: of ways, and just like this really strong promotion of 722 00:39:20,560 --> 00:39:23,399 Speaker 1: the idea of like individualism and that if you want 723 00:39:23,400 --> 00:39:25,960 Speaker 1: to make your life better you have to do it yourself, 724 00:39:26,120 --> 00:39:28,600 Speaker 1: and like it's down to you as an individual. That 725 00:39:28,680 --> 00:39:30,960 Speaker 1: I think it was pretty effective at decimating a lot 726 00:39:31,000 --> 00:39:33,759 Speaker 1: of ideas of like solidarity or the idea that I like, 727 00:39:33,880 --> 00:39:36,839 Speaker 1: freedom is with each other. Um. And I think that 728 00:39:36,840 --> 00:39:39,400 Speaker 1: that is starting to fall apart, Like people are realizing 729 00:39:39,440 --> 00:39:42,360 Speaker 1: however much they hustle or like have side hustles or whatever, 730 00:39:42,400 --> 00:39:45,560 Speaker 1: they're still fucked and just like I think that we're 731 00:39:45,560 --> 00:39:48,239 Speaker 1: seeing like a resurgence of this idea of like solidarity 732 00:39:48,880 --> 00:39:51,799 Speaker 1: and that we have to do together, that is going 733 00:39:51,880 --> 00:39:53,960 Speaker 1: to do it for us this week. Thank you so 734 00:39:54,080 --> 00:39:57,640 Speaker 1: much for tuning in. Check us out on macodon at 735 00:39:57,680 --> 00:40:00,200 Speaker 1: I g D Underscore News and be sure or to 736 00:40:00,280 --> 00:40:02,680 Speaker 1: tune in as the workers that it could Happen here 737 00:40:03,000 --> 00:40:05,600 Speaker 1: into their two day strike and return to the job. 738 00:40:06,200 --> 00:40:08,840 Speaker 1: But stay tuned. We'll be back next week for even 739 00:40:08,920 --> 00:40:16,440 Speaker 1: more episodes. Until then, It could Happen here as a 740 00:40:16,480 --> 00:40:19,319 Speaker 1: production of cool Zone Media or more podcasts from cool 741 00:40:19,400 --> 00:40:22,080 Speaker 1: Zone Media. Visit our website cool zone media dot com, 742 00:40:22,200 --> 00:40:23,920 Speaker 1: or check us out on the I Heart radio app, 743 00:40:23,960 --> 00:40:27,319 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. You can 744 00:40:27,320 --> 00:40:30,040 Speaker 1: find sources for It could Happen Here, updated monthly at 745 00:40:30,040 --> 00:40:33,320 Speaker 1: cool zone Media dot com slash sources. Thanks for listening