As I watched this video it kept going through my head that the residents in a community are driving the forces of the state out of it. It's some scene. The media is trying to portray these events in London and now throughout Britain as "copy cat" groups or simply criminals. But just like the events surrounding the beating of Rodney King, it was not the beating that caused the uprising, it was simply the spark that set it off or the straw that broke the donkey's back as they say. The conditions in LA with regarding to employment (exacerbated by the collapse of the aerospace industry) infant mortality etc. was that of a third world nations. This, coupled with the corrupt, racist and occupying force of the police is what led to it. And in Britain, $130 billion in public spending cuts which will hit high unemployment areas even worse are at the root of these developments there, as is police brutality in black communities. Also, as pointed out in an earlier posting, with mass demos in Israel with chants of Jews and Arabs refuse to be enemies sure shows we are living in interesting times. (more below the video)
I was talking to a friend yesterday about the situation here in the US. In California, they have shut many of the state parks as they have savaged wages and jobs. So not only are they making it impossible for people to consider any serious vacation, they are blocking the only cheaper means of getting away left, the campgrounds in our wonderful state parks.
As I watched the cops retreat in the video I thought of what might happen here. We will not be left out of these global responses to the crisis of capitalism. Another 7 million foreclosures are needed to bring the housing market back to some sense of normality. The Dow fell 600 points again today, two million are in prison and we have the largest private sector strike in years. Had the scene above occurred here, it's a good chance the police would have opened fire, cops can generally kill people here, especially black folks and get away with it scot free. When the events happening in Britain, Greece, Chile, Egypt, Israel etc. eventually occur here it will be some scene; we are all armed to the teeth.
Movements do not come ready made and there will obviously be what are referred to as "criminal" elements to such anger being released at the crisis people face in their lives. But anger directed at consumerism as your ability to consume even the basic necessities is a political act even if it is not organized. And there is much more of a political bent to this than the capitalist media reveals. As one youth put it with regards to looting, "They get stuff for free and now we're taking ours." One friend on Facebook said quite rightly that the Labor movement that might find the methods they see to be crude and unproductive and that the youth should respond in a more conscious organized way would do well to offer them an alternative.
No comments:
Post a Comment