[Peace-discuss] Universalism and Particularity: The Occupy Movement and Race

[C. G. ESTABROOK]

David--

You write, quite correctly, "...When have I ever NOT talked about  
class issues?"

That's why I was so surprised to see your name associated with this  
panel.

The Occupy movement is the clearest expression of explicitly class  
politics since the 1970's. (The identification of "the 1%" is parallel  
to "naming the system," in the distant days of SDS. And in those days,  
the counterattack of neoliberalism was paralleled by a liberal  
discovery of identity politics, to take the place  of demands for  
economic equality.) To my amazement, quite legitimate opposition to  
racism is being used against the Occupy movement - this panel is not  
an isolated example - in a repeat of 40 years ago.

American liberalism lost its nerve in the 1970s. It had put its hand  
to the plow - discovered class politics - and then looked back -  
discovered that the cost of real equality would be too high. (See, for  
an account of the outcome, Chris Hedges' Death of the Liberal Class.)

Walter Benn Michaels described the earlier move in his 2006 book, The  
Trouble with Diversity: How We Learned to Love Identity and Ignore  
Inequality. I'll attach a recent interview that updates the argument.

Regards, Carl



On Nov 30, 2011, at 3:56 PM, David Johnson wrote:

> What ???
>
> How is this a " diversion " ?
>
> " We all of course oppose racism, for political and personal  
> reasons. But it's a great error to use that opposition to undercut  
> the Occupy Movement. "
>
> I am hoping to strengthen the Occupy movement. Larger participation  
> of working class people of color and white workers as well.
>
> I agree totaly Carl that the race / gender issues have been used by  
> the ruling class to divert attention from issues of class.
> So how am I avoiding the issue of class ?
>
> You should know me better than that Carl.
> When have I ever NOT talked about class issues ?
>
> David J.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: C. G. ESTABROOK
> To: David Johnson
> Cc: Peace-discuss List ; sf-core
> Sent: Wednesday, November 30, 2011 2:53 PM
> Subject: Universalism and Particularity: The Occupy Movement and Race
>
> David--
>
> Why are you participating in this "identity-politics" diversion?
>
> Forty years ago, when it looked like issues of economics and  
> inequality might actually penetrate the limits of allowable debate  
> in American politics, liberals (and the Democrats - always a  
> business party) hastily substituted diversity for equality as their  
> announced goal.
>
> Not that diversity isn't a good thing. But the US political  
> establishment was using it to take the place of demands for economic  
> equality. (And in the meantime they launched neoliberalism, which  
> enforced economic inequality at a rapid and accelerating rate -  
> that's what the Occupy movement opposes.)
>
> In subsequent years, we heard much about the "trinity of oppression"  
> - class, race, and gender.  But class is not like the other two.  
> Conflicts of race and gender can in principle be solved by  
> reconciliation, if not easily. But conflict between exploiter and  
> exploited cannot - one or the other must be liquidated (the social  
> role, if not the physical persons).
>
> We all of course oppose racism, for political and personal reasons.  
> But it's a great error to use that opposition to undercut the Occupy  
> Movement.
>
> Regards, Carl
>
>
> Begin forwarded message:
>>
>> Message: 1
>> Date: Tue, 29 Nov 2011 18:03:20 -0600
>> From: Karen Medina <kmedina67 at gmail.com>
>> To: Peace List <peace at lists.chambana.net>
>> Subject: [Peace] Universalism and Particularity: The Occupy Movement
>> and Race / Tuesday, December 6, 2011 7-9:30 P.M. Department of  
>> African
>> American Studies 1201 West Nevada Street, Urbana, Illinois
>> Message-ID:
>> <CA+0uwiaf2p5ap5Z+RHEm0=Tc2zFEzJLCbpL9Nu=EH9FXVsrsTQ at mail.gmail.com>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8
>>
>> Universalism and Particularity: The Occupy Movement and Race
>> Over the last 90 days the Occupy Movement has focused attention on  
>> the
>> capitalist class? 40 year
>> devastation of the working and middle classes. In the 1960s,  
>> corporate
>> executives made 26 times workers,
>> by 1980 it rose to 32 times; and in 2009 it was 263 times. Led by
>> young largely white college graduates
>> Occupy is part of a worldwide movement that is challenging global
>> class disparities. Yet, as inspiring as the
>> Occupy movement has been, like previous U.S. radical movements it
>> seems mired on the rocky shores of
>> race. Is the Occupy movement doomed to repeat the errors of the past?
>> Can it move beyond seemingly
>> universal ?colorblind? reformist proposals and engage the
>> particularities of racialized oppression and chart
>> a genuine struggle for a multiracial democracy?
>> Tuesday, December 6, 2011
>> 7-9:30 P.M.
>> Department of African American Studies
>> 1201 West Nevada Street, Urbana, Illinois
>>
>> Chair: Helen Neville, Departments of African American Studies &
>> Educational Policy Studies
>> Panelists: * Abdul Alkalimat, African American Studies and Graduate
>> Program in Library and Information Sciences
>> * Gene Vanderport, CU Socialist Forum and Illinois Educational  
>> Association
>> * Jermaine Light, Socialist Forum
>> * David Johnson, Labor Notes and Vice President of the United  
>> Electrical Workers
>>
>
>

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