A wealth tax would, of course, be the most generous & compassionate way to deal with these parasites, whose combined wealth is now far higher. In fact, the 400 richest, together, have $6.6 trillion, while the top 20 combined have $3 trillion. And that wealth does not come through their innovation & hard work. No, it comes from brutal exploitation (paying their workers a fraction of the value of their labor), tax evasion, subsidies & government handouts, resource plunder, & environmental destruction. And when I call a wealth tax generous & compassionate, I'm not being bombastic. Consider that 2 million people die each year from work-related injuries. And just 4 of the wonderful products these billionaires sell us (tobacco, alcohol, processed foods, fossil fuels) are linked to 1 out of every 3 deaths worldwide, or 19 million deaths each year.

Forbes

The Richest Americans Are Worth A Record $6.6 Trillion

Inside Forbes’ ranking of the richest billionaires in the United States.

WHO/ILO: Almost 2 million people die from work-related causes each year

According to the WHO/ILO Joint Estimates of the Work-related Burden of Disease and Injury, 2000-2016: Global Monitoring Report, the majority of wor...

The University of Sydney

How corporations harm your health through everyday products - a history

We think we control our health but corporations selling forever chemicals, fossil fuels and ultra-processed foods have a much greater role, writes ...

#workingclass #workplacesafety #capitalism #pollution #billionaires #greed #wealthtax

Today in Labor History September 18, 1988: The 8888 Uprising in Myanmar ended. Students started the protests in Yangon. As the protests spread, hundreds of thousands of monks, children, university students, housewives, doctors and common people joined the movement to overthrow the military dictatorship. Up to 10,000 people were slaughtered over the 6-month protest movement. #workingclass #LaborHistory #burma #myanmar #uprising #protest #demonstrations #students #dictatorship #massacre #civilians

Today in Labor History September 18, 1945: Russian anarchist Volin died of tuberculosis in Paris. He participated in both the Russian and Ukrainian Revolutions before the Bolsheviks forced him into exile. He also participated in the protests that culminated in Bloody Sunday (1905). During the ensuing strikes he led the creation of the first St. Petersburg Soviet. He criticized the October Revolution for bringing the Bolsheviks to power and then left for Ukraine, where he became an important figure and, eventually, Chairman of the Military Revolutionary Council, of the anarchist Makhnovshchina, a large enclave in Ukraine, lasting about 4 years, organized under anarcho-communist principles. #workingclass #LaborHistory #anarchism #russia #ukraine #makhnovia #bolshevik #soviet #Revolution #volin #nestermakhno

Today in Labor History September 18, 1931: The Korean People's Association in Manchuria was dissolved by the Japanese, after they invaded and established a dictatorship over the anarchist autonomous zone. Two million Korean migrants lived in the autonomous zone, after having fled Korea in the wake of the Donghak Peasant Revolution of 1894 and subsequent Japanese invasion, in which hundreds of thousands died. The anarchist autonomous zone they created in Manchuria, in 1929, was built upon the principles of stateless communism and mutual aid to support the numerous refugees with food, shelter and self-defense. They were repeatedly attacked by both Japanese imperialists and Korean communists. #workingclass #LaborHistory #korea #anarchism #imperialism #japan #communism #mutualaid #dictatorship #Revolution

Today in Labor History September 18, 1919: Frederick Douglass “Fritz” Pollard became the first African American to play professional football for a major team, the Akron Pros. This was nearly 30 years before Jackie Robinson broke the color line in Major League Baseball. In 1921, he became the first African-American head coach in the NFL, over 50 years before Frank Robinson became the fist black head coach of a MLB team. #workingclass #LaborHistory #nfl #football #racism #fritzpollard #BlackMastadon

Solidarity is Punk! It’s also necessary for our campaigns to succeed. Consider, for example, how many unions today are struggling with whether to address “political” issues (like genocide, or the safety and free speech rights of Palestinian or trans colleagues), or to stick purely to less controversial “contractual” issues. Many are arguing that their union or organization must remain “neutral” on political issues so as to avoid alienating members who disagree with, or who are uncomfortable with, those views. Of course, remaining “neutral” often means that the status quo, no matter how odious, is allowed to persist unquestioned. And that status quo may make other members of the organization feel unsupported, or unsafe. Or worse. It might literally make their existence unsafe. In other words, the issue for organizers and activists becomes a question of whether to support the most marginalized people in the organization versus throwing the most marginalized under the bus just so that some of the more privileged members feel less uncomfortable. But it’s not really an “either/or” situation. With effective relational organizing, activists can often facilitate members’ evolution in beliefs and willingness to take action. It’s a long, slow process that requires getting to know members, listening to their grievances, fears, desires, and demonstrating that you’re really hearing them, understanding them, and that when things get tough, you have their backs. It may require numerous meetings, but eventually you can build up enough trust that you can start questioning some of their ideas (sometimes even really right wing ideas), encouraging them to hear alternative viewpoints, to identify common goals and ideals shared by everyone in the group, help them to step outside of their comfort zone to take risks, like direct action, civil disobedience, and supporting their more marginalized comrades and colleagues.

Today in Labor History September 17, 1901: A local paper finally reported on the forced eviction and deportation of twenty-five Italian anarchists and their families by armed vigilantes in Guffey Hollow, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on September 15, 1901. Then men were coal miners and the attack came in the wake of the assassination of President McKinnley, by the anarchist Leon Czogosz. A few days prior, local papers reported that over 200 anarchists had met to “celebrate” the death of McKinley, fanning the flames of right-wing nationalists, inspiring tit for tat violence, much like Trump and his followers are doing today. #workingclass #LaborHistory #anarchism #italian #racism #immigrant #vigilantes

Today in Labor History September 17, 1849: American abolitionist Harriet Tubman escaped from slavery. During her lifetime, she made 17 rescue missions via the Underground Railing, which she helped create, freeing 70 enslaved people. She helped John Brown plan his 1859 raid on Harper’s Ferry. During the Civil War, she served as a spy for the Union Army and helped plan the raid on Combahee Ferry, which liberated over 700 enslaved people. In her later life, she was an activist in the women’s suffrage movement. #workingclass #LaborHistory #harriettubman #johnbrown #slavery #abolition #undergroundrailroad #civilwar #feminism