As we work for this we should also refer to what I call above the "silence of the lambs." Workers were killed in the explosion which wrecked this oil well. Workers livelihoods are destroyed in the fishing and marine industry. And of course the gulf region is being destroyed. This is an issue damaging to working class people the world over. So faced with this catastrophe where are the union leaders with their millions of members? These union leaders should be mobilizing these millions of members at every BP and corporate function, meeting, head quarters that exists. They should be organizing them to take over and control and manage the entire oil industry. They should be explaining that it is the utterly corrupt and profit addicted corporations and their criminal capitalist system which is responsible for what is going on in the gulf. In this way a new movement of mass proportions could be built which would transform this country and transform world politics.
But no. These union leaders, these lambs, sit with their mouthes open, or troop into the corporations offices and nod their heads in agreement with the corporate bosses. These lambs are almost unbelievable in their refusal to lead. The owners of the corrupt capitalist corporations must be rubbing their eyes in disbelief at the fact that the union leaders are not mobilizing their members and the working class as a whole on this issue. The union leaders are letting the corporations get away with murder.
While continuing to demand the union leaders act we have to get active and build opposition caucuses in the workplaces and unions to replace these union leaders.
Sean.
PS Let me adjust my condemnation of the union leaders as "lambs." At least lambs throw up their heels every once in a while and frolic. These union leaders do not even do that. They are paralyzed by their belief that there is no alternative to capitalism and because of this they bootlick the bosses and obey every word they say. They also of course do quite well out of capitalism with their high wages and secure jobs.
Sean.
4 comments:
i enjoy reading this politically correct account of the gulf crises.we need so much more of this truth telling in the mass media.
I'm a teacher and have been a union rep for maybe the last 10 years or so, even ran for a position in the last election losing by approximately 28 votes. There's so much going down, here in California with the unions and how they of all groups have become the cheer leaders for some of the charter schools, but this is just part and parcel with the unions working to save their own hides at the expense of the teachers, thinking perhaps that representing anyone one who pays their dues, with even a watered down contract is better than no union leaders at all.
I'm with WCCUSD in Richmond, CA and in the last election we just voted out our president after we were sold down the river by her and her team of henchman.
I agree with you Elin that even the Unions with bad leadership that we have at the moment is better than no Union. At least we have a vehicle through which to fight to a certain extent.
But we have to recognize that we are engaged in a struggle on two fronts, one against the boss, which is the easier one, and the other against the policies of the present Union hierarchy.
We have to demand they act but we also have to lead where we can and build oppositions in the Unions that are not simply based around the idea of Union democracy. We all want that. But any Union activists running in opposition to a concessionary leadership are obligated to explain what they stand for, that is, what they fight for, and how they are going to win it. They have to explain what they are going to do that is different from the people they are opposing.
You obviously know about the situation throughout the CAL system, but there are 100,000 workers in that system; this is the power that can drive back the bosses offensive but as usual, all the Union leaderships compete with each other for the members dues money and refuse to challenge and violate anti-Union laws and contract impediments. You might be interested what we distributed with regards to the situation with the Unions at CAL and the attempts to dismantle and raid the CUE members. The employers are having a field day over it. You can read it here:
http://www.clnews.org/forums/showthread.php?t=22526
I couldn't agree with you more on this statement: "we are engaged in a struggle on two fronts, one against the boss, which is the easier one, and the other against the policies of the present Union hierarchy".
I'd say there are basically three groups of teachers currently. The smallest (the one I count myself in) are the activists who have been community activists in their own neighborhoods for years.
Next are the newly on board activists, who have woken up to the realities of what is happening, and how the unions have been siding with the administration, and we are losing ground.
Thirdly, there are still very many who are like sheep and still wanting to see themselves as different than your average union worker...they want to see themselves as professionals, above having to have a union.
These teachers are blind to the realities of what is happening, and yet they form the largest group in a teacher's union. They need to wake up as the middle group have begun to do.
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