Die Neue Zeit
5th January 2012, 02:51
From Binh's article linked to in the other thread:
http://www.revleft.com/vb/occupy-and-tasks-t166191/index.html
The socialist left has generally limited its participation in Occupy to a handful of working groups, usually those engaged in what Ross Wolfe of Platypus correctly described as mental labour — demands, labour outreach, direct action — and shied away from the physical labour or “grunt work” done by security, comfort, medical and food/kitchen. This is problematic because it cedes the majority of working groups to the influence of other political forces (anarchists and liberals), inadvertently creating “Red ghettos”.
Prioritising groups devoted to mental as opposed to manual labour is predicated on the false notion that running a kitchen or securing tents to sustain occupiers is less political or less important than talking about demands or ideological issues. When Genora Dollinger led the Flint sit-down strike in 1936, feeding strikers hot food was just as crucial to beating General Motors as picket lines were. Without one the other was impossible. The example of post-eviction OWS bears this out as well. At this stage of the uprising’s development, mass mobilisations and political discussions have no launching point or organising centre without a physical occupation, and the physical occupation of a space requires a lot of “grunt work”.
The socialist left must be involved with all of Occupy’s aspects and develop a reputation for being the most committed, most serious, most effective fighters. Only on that basis will we be able to effectively influence people and steer the uprising’s course.
Binh, having explicitly expressed her being informed by the merger formula between socialism and the worker movement from before the Second International, wrote succinctly about what I highlighted above. For the purposes of this thread I'll call this Alternative Proto-Culture, derived from Vernon Lidtke's Alternative Culture book on the pre-war German Social Democracy's immense institution-based organization.
The part about "grunt work done by security" links quite well to the contrast between some Occupy protests:
http://www.revleft.com/vb/demands-state-power-t165523/index.html
Some places attracted a drugs and alcohol culture (and the resulting hippie stereotypes created by the media). Others, such as London, required "grunt work done by security" to ban drugs and alcohol.
"Grunt work done by [...] medical" comes quite in handy for situations of police brutality.
http://www.revleft.com/vb/occupy-and-tasks-t166191/index.html
The socialist left has generally limited its participation in Occupy to a handful of working groups, usually those engaged in what Ross Wolfe of Platypus correctly described as mental labour — demands, labour outreach, direct action — and shied away from the physical labour or “grunt work” done by security, comfort, medical and food/kitchen. This is problematic because it cedes the majority of working groups to the influence of other political forces (anarchists and liberals), inadvertently creating “Red ghettos”.
Prioritising groups devoted to mental as opposed to manual labour is predicated on the false notion that running a kitchen or securing tents to sustain occupiers is less political or less important than talking about demands or ideological issues. When Genora Dollinger led the Flint sit-down strike in 1936, feeding strikers hot food was just as crucial to beating General Motors as picket lines were. Without one the other was impossible. The example of post-eviction OWS bears this out as well. At this stage of the uprising’s development, mass mobilisations and political discussions have no launching point or organising centre without a physical occupation, and the physical occupation of a space requires a lot of “grunt work”.
The socialist left must be involved with all of Occupy’s aspects and develop a reputation for being the most committed, most serious, most effective fighters. Only on that basis will we be able to effectively influence people and steer the uprising’s course.
Binh, having explicitly expressed her being informed by the merger formula between socialism and the worker movement from before the Second International, wrote succinctly about what I highlighted above. For the purposes of this thread I'll call this Alternative Proto-Culture, derived from Vernon Lidtke's Alternative Culture book on the pre-war German Social Democracy's immense institution-based organization.
The part about "grunt work done by security" links quite well to the contrast between some Occupy protests:
http://www.revleft.com/vb/demands-state-power-t165523/index.html
Some places attracted a drugs and alcohol culture (and the resulting hippie stereotypes created by the media). Others, such as London, required "grunt work done by security" to ban drugs and alcohol.
"Grunt work done by [...] medical" comes quite in handy for situations of police brutality.