---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Great Transition Network <[email protected]> Date: Fri, Aug 31, 2018 at 6:27 PM Subject: The Precariat: Today's Transformative Class? (GTN Discussion) To: <[email protected]>
>From Paul Raskin <[email protected]> ------------------------------------------------------- Dear GTN, In 2018, our discussions have been focusing on key oppositional streams for building a systemic global movement: vivir bien, human rights, feminism, peace, and much more to come.* Now, the spotlight turns to the working class, a change agent long central to social and economic justice struggles. After all, the industrial proletariat, pushed to the wall by the capitalist system, spawned a mighty movement able to win vital shop-floor concessions and social welfare protections. However, the very success of such reforms, along with harsh neoliberal counterblows and massive economic changes, has muted the militancy and solidarity of the labor movement in recent decades. Is it time, then, to bid farewell to the working class as a driver of transformation? Not so fast, argues Guy Standing in his new GTI essay, “The Precariat: Today’s Transformative Class?” While rejecting anachronistic proletarian dreams, Guy examines the shifting class structure of contemporary global capitalism, and finds new bases for hope. Specifically, he believes the “precariat”—the growing army of workers leading precarious lives of insecure jobs and unpredictable futures—could crystallize into a new mass class for spearheading system change. True, some segments of the “precariat” (the word is a portmanteau of “precarious” and “proletariat”) may serve as fodder for reactionary politics, but others can lead the progressive challenge to the neoliberal order. Whatever you conclude about Guy’s controversial thesis, his essay is sure to stimulate thinking and challenge preconceptions. Please read it at www.greattransition.org/publication/precariat-transformative-class, and let the discussion begin! Comments are welcome through Sunday, SEPTEMBER 30. Over to you, Paul GTI Director * You may recall that this series kicked off at the end of 2017 with my framing paper, “How Do We Get There? The Problem of Action” ( www.greattransition.org/publication/how-do-we-get-there). The full GTN discussion of that paper is archived at www.greattransition.org/forum/gti-discussions/201-how-do-we-get-there-the-problem-of-action . ------------------------------------------------------- Hit reply to post a comment on the GT Network Read all comments (or reply) at https://greattransition.org/forum/gti-discussions/207-the-precariat-today-s-transformative-class/2732 Note: Expect a delay between posting and receiving your comment Need help? Email [email protected] -- P2P Foundation: http://p2pfoundation.net - http://blog.p2pfoundation.net Connect: http://p2pfoundation.ning.com; Discuss: http://lists.ourproject.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/p2p-foundation Updates: http://del.icio.us/mbauwens; http://friendfeed.com/mbauwens; http://twitter.com/mbauwens; http://www.facebook.com/mbauwens
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