Which Way for the Working Class?
Bob Herbert writes in his column “Two Different Worlds”:
I didn’t notice much when a terrific storm slammed into parts of New York City on Thursday evening. I was working at my computer in a quiet apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The skies darkened and it began to rain, and I could hear thunder. But that’s all. I made a cup of coffee and kept working.
While I remained oblivious, the storm took a frightening toll in the boroughs of Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island.
[...]
The movers and shakers of our society seem similarly oblivious to the terrible destruction wrought by the economic storm that has roared through America. They’ve heard some thunder, perhaps, and seen some lightning, and maybe felt a bit of the wind. But there is nothing that society’s leaders are doing — no sense of urgency in their policies or attitudes — that suggests they understand the extent of the economic devastation that has come crashing down like a plague on the poor and much of the middle class.
The American economy is on its knees and the suffering has reached historic levels. Nearly 44 million people were living in poverty last year, which is more than 14 percent of the population. That is an increase of 4 million over the previous year, the highest percentage in 15 years, and the highest number in more than a half-century of record-keeping. Millions more are teetering on the edge, poised to fall into poverty.
[...]
What is desperately needed is leadership that recognizes the depth and intensity of the economic crisis facing so many ordinary Americans. It’s time for the movers and shakers to lift the shroud of oblivion and reach out to those many millions of Americans trapped in a world of hurt.
This coming Friday, at a public session in New York titled ‘Which Way for the Working Class? Elections 2010 and Beyond’, Bob Herbert will join AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka, Working America Executive Director Karen Nussbaum, and journalist Eric Alterman in a panel moderated by The Nation Editor and Publisher Katrina vanden Heuvel.
Tags: Bob Herbert
Interesting that there is a resurgence of discussions of “class” which has been taboo (except as an accusation by business elite) for so many years.
I’m afraid that it is a little premature. There are many difficulties standing in the way of a “class-wide” solidarity for labor and the left, and a number of issues that are still being ducked.
I’m thinking particularly of the relationship between: 1) the low-wage economy and the mid-wage economy; 2) immigrants and native-born; 3) employed and un-employed; 4) North/South U.S.; 5) U.S. and the world.
The “truest” mention of class that I’ve heard recently is in the notion of an “underclass.” As diluted as this may seem to some, I believe that it is an opening to a conversation that needs to happen.
What does an “underclass” mean? Most importantly, it goes straight to the heart of the employed/unemployed, low-wage/mid-wage, immigrant/native-born discussion.
Which is the underclass- someone who cannot find employment, or someone who is working in “sub-human” conditions?
You must sign in or register to post a comment. Registration is free.