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Subject: My response to Trump's address
Date: Thu, 2 Mar 2017 23:29:06 +0000
From: Kshama Sawant <kshamasaw...@movement99.org>
Reply-To: Kshama Sawant <kshamasaw...@movement99.org>
To: l...@panix.com
My response to Trump's address
/Below is the speech I delivered in response to Trump’s first
congressional address. As I said, Trump can be defeated - but *it’s
going to take a massive escalation of the resistance. *
Myself, Movement for the 99%, and Socialist Students are building on the
tremendously successful student walkouts and demonstrations we organized
in over 16 cities and in collaboration with our sister organizations in
at least 45 countries on Trump’s inauguration to help *build the largest
protest actions across the country on May 1st, up to and including mass
strike action.*Chapters from New York City to Chicago to Seattle are
energetically stepping up to organize actions. But to build for May Day
we need to raise $25,000 to print picket signs, rent sound equipment,
produce thousands of posters and fliers, and support full time
organizers. Please donate $25, $50, or $100 today to support building
the biggest possible actions on May 1st.
<http://socialistalternative.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=2ada06753dbd70dd765e10ec1&id=4bb949c13d&e=432655cab8>/
To watch a video of the speech, go here
<http://socialistalternative.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=2ada06753dbd70dd765e10ec1&id=2dbcb1e254&e=432655cab8>.
Sisters and Brothers,
In just five weeks, Donald Trump has unleashed a series of vicious
attacks on one group of Americans after another: From his Muslim ban to
the ramping up of ICE raids; to his anti-trans executive order; to his
budget proposal to slash vital public services; and more.
The ruling class is sharply divided about Trump. Capitalist strategists
are horrified by the growing popular revolt and the damage his reckless
policies and conduct will inflict on their system. Yet much of big
business is salivating at the prospect of Trump’s corporate tax cuts and
radical deregulation.
But amongst millions of working people like us, there is a growing
unity, that we want no part of Trump’s bigoted, misogynist,
anti-immigrant, racist agenda. We’re seeing *a mood of rebellion* on a
scale not seen since the Vietnam war.
*Trump can be defeated.* The protests in this first month were a
tremendous starting point, but far more will be needed. We need to
disrupt business-as-usual through peaceful mass civil disobedience.
Shutting down airports, highways, ICE offices, and prominent businesses.
*On March 8, International Women’s Day, a “Women’s Strike” has been
called by the organizers of the January 21 marches. Let’s take this up,
and build for the largest actions possible.* May 1, or “May Day,” is
International Workers’ Day, and has long been a day of working class
action globally.
Donate $25 today to send a clear message to Trump and the Billionaires’
that you stand with immigrants by building the largest protest and
strike actions on March 8th and May 1st.
<http://socialistalternative.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=2ada06753dbd70dd765e10ec1&id=460a808967&e=432655cab8>
In 2006, immigrants brought the tradition of May Day back to the United
States. Millions marched, many went on strike, and helped force back
egregious anti-immigrant legislation. This year, facing Trump’s brutal
attacks, immigrants are again organizing en masse. Discussions are also
underway about strike and protest action in the labor movement, which is
facing unprecedented attacks, with national “right to work” laws coming
down the pike.
Working people have enormous potential power to fight Trump by *shutting
down the profits of big business*. This can be done through traditional
strikes by the majority of workers at a workplace, but also by many
non-union workers through taking the day off, calling in sick, or
through other creative means.
Bottom line: *We want the largest possible show of force on May 1st*,
while keeping in mind that some actions would be too risky for some
workers to participate in. To be successful, however, we cannot limit
our movement to purely playing defense against Trump.
*We need to also fight offensively for concrete gains* that can inspire
the broader working and middle class. We must not only oppose, for
example, the attacks on women’s rights and Planned Parenthood, but also
fight to extend reproductive care, for it to be free and accessible to
all women. For paid family leave, for affordable childcare, and for a
national $15/hour minimum wage.
I supported Bernie Sanders’ call for nationwide protests to defend the
positive aspects of Obamacare, and to demand Medicare-for-all: a
universal single-payer healthcare system. This approach offers a real
potential to undermine Trump’s own base, but the problem is this: Most
of the Democratic Party leadership completely rejects this idea, because
of their ties to the insurance industry and Big Pharma.
We just heard Donald Trump say that healthcare “is complicated,” but we
have a simple solution. Many Democratic Governors, including Governor
Inslee in Washington state, have been denouncing Trump’s attacks on the
Affordable Care Act. But why don’t these Democratic Governors
immediately move to implement single-payer systems in their own states?
California is already discussing such a plan. Our own state of
Washington, along with Oregon, could come together in this effort.
Along this “blue” West Coast we can develop a joint, single-payer
alternative to the dysfunctional private health insurance system.
*To most effectively fight the Right, we need an opposition party that
is 100% against Trump and the Billionaire Class – a party that helps
organize mass movements from below.*
The Democratic Party leadership is completely opposed to such an
approach, as we saw yet again this past weekend in the DNC chair
election.While the Democratic establishment has stood against Trump,
their opposition has been unreliable and far from sufficient.
To the extent that the Democrats have opposed Trump, it has been
grassroots pressure that has dragged them into it. This is due to their
multi-faceted links to big business, their pro-capitalist program, and
their conservative outlook.
Tens of thousands of people, primarily young people, are joining
socialist organizations like Socialist Alternative, but particularly the
Democratic Socialists of America. We need to build this emerging
socialist movement towards a new socialist party. It is very clear there
is a space for such a force of 50,000 members to develop rapidly.
Such a new left party can be a forerunner to a mass workers’ party at a
later stage.
This new left party will need to work alongside the larger number of
anti-corporate workers and youth who are still looking towards
progressive Democrats in their fight against the corporate
establishment. We need to work together.
But if Democratic Party activists do not succeed in fundamentally
transforming the Democratic Party – and I do not believe that they will
succeed in that mission – they should draw all the necessary
conclusions, and leave the Democratic Party to work to build a new mass
party.
Because, sisters and brothers, *we know that this is not only about
Trump. It is this predatory system of capitalism, in decline and in
crisis, that has given rise to Trumpism.* Oxfam recently reported that
eight people now own more wealth than half the world’s population. This
is the reality of the failed system of capitalism.
*We need fundamental change.* We need an overturning of the capitalist
oligarchy through a political, economic, and social revolution which
puts power in the hands of the overwhelming majority: The workers, the
youth, and all those marginalized by this oppressive system.
Sisters and brothers, the wealth of these eight richest billionaires –
and I just heard that Bill Gates is on his way to becoming the world’s
first trillionaire – the wealth of these eight richest people needs to
be confiscated and democratically allocated for the needs of the majority.
*Wall Street and the big fossil fuel companies represent an existential
threat*to the future of humanity and our environment. As you just heard,
Trump extolled the Dakota Access Pipeline and the Keystone XL Pipeline –
he’s boasting about it. These fossil fuel companies also must be brought
into democratic public ownership, and their resources deployed for
socially necessary production, including a massive expansion of
renewable energy.
Sisters and brothers, let’s take the energy that has been building
against Trump within the first month of his presidency to build the
largest possible action next week for the March 8 International Women’s
Day rallies throughout this nation, including here in Seattle.
And* let’s use March 8 as a springboard to build the largest possible
actions on May 1, with strike actions and every other creative idea*
that we can use, in order for workers around America, young people,
students on campuses, and more, to show that we are absolutely feeling
the urgent need to disrupt business-as-usual.
Donate $25 today to send a clear message to Trump and the Billionaires’
that you stand with immigrants by building the largest protest and
strike actions on March 8th and May 1st.
<http://socialistalternative.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=2ada06753dbd70dd765e10ec1&id=13cb893a26&e=432655cab8>
And let us tie our message for massive actions to the call for
solidarity among the 99%, based on a movement that runs on what is
needed for us to fight Trump, and not what is acceptable to the
corporate Democrats.
Let us tie our struggle, also, to the idea of socialism itself. Because
socialism is not only possible, it is necessary. *Our fight is not only
against Trump and the right wing, but for a different kind of society*
*– for a world based on equality, democracy, and environmental
sustainability*: In other words, a socialist world.
Solidarity.
Please contribute.
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