OWS & the Leadership Question
By Eugene Goodheart
I have not participated in OWS. I view it from the outside as reflected or refracted through the media. Friends and family who have gone down to Zuccotti Park speak of the experience with enthusiasm. Anyone who believes that there is a gross disparity of wealth between the super haves and the have-nots must be grateful to the movement for having changed the political narrative from an obsession with debt and deficit to one of gross economic inequality. OWS is both a reaction against the unprincipled behavior of those who have power in our political system and the system itself. It attacks Wall Street greed and the support that it receives from government. Americans of all persuasions know that we have an unacceptably high unemployment rate, but what many do not know or did not know until recently is how great the disparity in wealth is between the 1% and the 99%. In random interviews of pedestrians on the streets of New York conducted before OWS came into existence, an NPR reporter, Paul Solmon, elicited responses that reflected a generally held mistaken view that economic inequality in the country resembled that of the Scandinavian countries. OWS has delivered a powerful message that inequality more closely resembles the disparities in developing nations. Whether or not Obama was inspired or pressured by the presence of OWS, he has become more forceful and aggressive in making the case for economic fairness since the movement appeared on the scene.
There is an urgent need to support Obama in his efforts, and here is where OWS has fallen short. In its profound disillusionment with the political system it has lumped together both major parties and their leadership, including Obama. The anarchist anthropologist, David Graeber, credited with providing philosophical inspiration for OWS, believes that Obama has simply bought into the Republican agenda and does not deserve support. Obama has already been heckled by a group of occupiers while giving a speech. In an interview, a young articulate participant in OWS spoke of his indifference toward the upcoming election. It didn’t matter whether the next president would be Romney or Obama. Neither in his view deserved support. He was unmoved by Todd Gitlin, a survivor of the 1960s, once president of SDS, who reminded him about the role of Nader in the Bush-Gore election. He was envisaging the possibility of the creation of new worker’s party in the future. Though he made it clear that he was speaking for himself, his sentiments are clearly shared by other OWS occupiers. Obama in 2008 received major support from the young. Their counterparts in 2012, many of whom are 99% occupiers seem to be devoting their energy elsewhere.
If the aim of the occupiers is profound structural change, why should they be concerned with who wins or loses an election? Given the perceived corruption of the system, it makes little difference to them, who triumphs in the coming election. But the election of a president does make a difference. Working for structural change need not preclude active support for practical, incremental solutions to problems. Stimulating the economy to create jobs, revising the tax code to increase revenue, reducing deficits and debt are the immediate and urgent economic problems of the moment and they need to be addressed politically. One would think that such legislation could give the OWS protestors some of what they want: another government stimulus package, genuine regulation of the predatory financial sector, higher taxes on the wealthy, greater subsidies for higher education etc.—in other words, legislation already enacted, under threat and requiring improvement. Given the deplorable parade of Republican candidates, presidential and congressional, should there be any doubt in the eyes of the occupiers where their own interests lie?
In disclaiming a representative role, the occupier in the interview was dramatizing an essential feature of the movement, its principled leaderlessness. David Graeber views it as a movement devoted to radical social and political change. His vision is of a leaderless horizontal democracy in which all participants have a voice and decisions are arrived at by consensus. That vision has been realized in general assemblies in which participants in all their diversity of views are equally free to express themselves. Its aim is to achieve uncoerced consensus. OWS views its strength in the diversity of its views and claims, so that it cannot be captured or defeated by a single issue. The other side of diversity is diffuseness and a lack of focus, which may make it easier for those opposed or indifferent to the movement to give it a not so benign neglect. A political system cannot be expected to function effectively on the basis of consensus exclusively, unless of course the consensus is coerced. As for the ambition to create a new political party, it is hard to see how the anti-hierarchical system Graeber and the occupiers envisage would allow for political parties, since the very existence of parties would be inimical to the ideal of consensus. The question is whether a leaderless movement can get beyond protest to formulate a realistic program for change and influence its enactment. Right now it acts as if there are unspecified ways of making necessary change. (It is something of an irony that the left embraces a leaderless OWS, while complaining about Obama’s lack of forceful leadership.)
The choices for political action are the following: 1) work within the system to make it as fair as possible 2) create a new system 3) protest against the system in place without offering realistic positive alternatives. As for now, OWS, to the extent that one can generalize about a heterogeneous movement, has for the most part opted for 3 and dreams of 2. I believe its most promising future lies with 1, that is, making connection with those in the prevailing system such as Elizabeth Warren and, yes, Barack Obama who have already demonstrated their capacity for enacting positive changes and promise more in the future. In order to do so leadership is required as it has been in earlier popular movements such as the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s. Its success in achieving major legislation was in great part due to the relationship Martin Luther King formed with President Johnson. Unlike the Tea Party, its counterpart on the Right, OWS has at least until now made no effort to connect with the political party closest to it or with the institutions that are empowered by our Constitution to enact and execute legislation.
OWS and its offshoots are in an early stage, so it may be premature to expect what their maturing may achieve. There is, however, already evidence that the leaderless model may persist. In its organization it resembles somewhat the counter-culture of the 1960’s concerned above all with establishing enclaves of democratic community in which all views, no matter how diverse and opposed are respected, with the utopian goal of arriving at consensus. The counter-culture of the late 1960s was essentially a social and cultural movement. It had an adversarial political dimension in its anti-war stance and in creating the ground for the struggle for civil rights for African Americans. It made an enormous contribution in reshaping the social and cultural life of the nation, changing, as it did, the manners, morals and education of a generation for good or ill. It did not however change the political and economic structure of the country. If OWS and its allies throughout the country resemble the sixties counter culture in their political disposition (disaffection from “business as usual” politics), they confront a situation that demands political solutions. In its extravagant display of epater le bourgeois (its sexuality and drug taking), the counter culture of the 1960s became the target of liberals as well as conservatives. (“Liberalism” became a pejorative in counter cultural circles.) OWS has thus far avoided the opprobrium even of some conservatives who view gross inequality as a problem. Whatever reservations one may have about its political wisdom, it commands respect for its seriousness and sobriety and for what it has achieved in dramatizing the problem of gross inequality.
In a recent OP-ED in the NY Times (Dec. 16) “Worker-Owners of America, Unite,” the historian Gar Alperowitz may in effect be representing a vision of society that OWS would endorse. He speaks of local cooperatives as an alternative to capitalism and bureaucratic socialism that seems to be emerging in the United States. “Some 130 million Americans…now participate in the ownership of co-op businesses and credit unions. More than 13 million Americans have become worker-owners of more than 11,000 employee-owned companies, six million more than belong to private sector unions.” He cautions his readers: “it’s easy to overestimate the possibilities of a new system” when compared to “the power of Wall Street Banks and the other giants of the American economy.” The local cooperative, the kibbutz and the worker’s council are appealing and valuable institutions, but they have never proven to be adequate to the requirements of a national, let alone global economy. These institutions do not obviate the need for a central government that has the capacity to both stimulate and regulate the economy. There is no reason why effective government from the center cannot coexist with local cooperatives.
OWS can follow the path of increasing alienation from the levers of power or enter into a dialogue with those in power closest to its interests. There are serious structural flaws in our political system such as the 2/3rd’s rule in the Senate that can block virtually all legislation. But our constitution has built into it the openness to amendment (perhaps too difficult to achieve, given the conditions for enacting amendments) as well as accommodation to conflict in allowing for parties. It is not our political structure but human agency in the form of cultural biases and special interests that is mainly responsible for the egregious power of money in distorting the political system. Since our system calls for the existence of rival parties, each one with the possibility of assuming power, the ideal assumption is that each party has something of value to contribute to the political system. When party members speak and act as if the existence of the other party has nothing to offer, they betray the system, which depends on the give and take of compromise. Certainly, this is the case with the current Republican party, which cannot even abide the enactment of Democratic sponsored legislation such as the healthcare reform act, contemptuously characterized as Obamacare, that had its inspiration in an earlier incarnation of the Republican Party. Notwithstanding the incendiary Republican rhetoric charging the Democrats with having enacted socialist legislation, the healthcare reform act is in fact an example of constructive compromise (the Democrats' adopting a proposal originated by moderate Republicans in the past). The same is true for “the grand bargain” of spending cuts and tax increases to reduce deficits and debt proposed by Obama (deficit and debt reduction a main concern of Republicans and tax increases of the wealthy a Democratic concern). The promise of our current system worth preserving, though betrayed in practice, is of the parties articulating differing views that can be combined for the common good when they do not absolutely contradict each other. When these views are irreconcilable, they offer alternative possibilities for governance. Like other constructive populist movements before it (think the Civil Rights movement), OWS has an opportunity to improve the functioning of the political system for the common good. Seizing the opportunity requires leadership.
From January, 2012
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.firstofthemonth.org/movabletype/mt-tb.cgi/116
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference OWS & the Leadership Question:
» webstersworld.co.uk from webstersworld.co.uk
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 13, 2013 09:49 PM
» leather sleeper sofa from leather sleeper sofa
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 14, 2012 02:04 AM
» Dwisha Nagar from Dwisha Nagar
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 11, 2012 03:24 PM
» tablet laptop from tablet laptop
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 18, 2012 05:59 AM
» Umar Kothari from Umar Kothari
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 22, 2012 04:52 PM
» fire system from fire system
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 23, 2012 12:38 PM
» how to lose fat from how to lose fat
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 23, 2012 03:04 PM
» wedding cake decorations from wedding cake decorations
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 23, 2012 05:25 PM
» computer repairs from computer repairs
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 24, 2012 01:08 AM
» tablet computers from tablet computers
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 24, 2012 10:09 AM
» outdoor lights from outdoor lights
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 24, 2012 05:31 PM
» how to mount a tv on the wall from how to mount a tv on the wall
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 24, 2012 09:30 PM
» tablet laptop from tablet laptop
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 26, 2012 03:47 PM
» tablet computer android from tablet computer android
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 26, 2012 05:16 PM
» local seo from local seo
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 27, 2012 01:57 AM
» newest rap song from newest rap song
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 27, 2012 04:22 PM
» citizen watch from citizen watch
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 27, 2012 10:10 PM
» car mat from car mat
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 29, 2012 07:48 AM
» soundtrack download from soundtrack download
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 30, 2012 03:25 AM
» buy carhartt from buy carhartt
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 30, 2012 07:34 PM
» top 40 songs from top 40 songs
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 31, 2012 01:53 PM
» music online from music online
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 6, 2012 09:20 PM
» tablet computer android from tablet computer android
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 7, 2012 02:42 AM
» 100 hip hop songs from 100 hip hop songs
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 7, 2012 04:13 AM
» unique cake stands from unique cake stands
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 7, 2012 08:15 AM
» bmi calculator from bmi calculator
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 7, 2012 08:25 PM
» samsung android tablet from samsung android tablet
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 14, 2012 01:21 AM
» windows 7 tablet pc from windows 7 tablet pc
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 14, 2012 08:57 PM
» Mergers and Acquisition from Mergers and Acquisition
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 18, 2012 08:46 AM
» Computer repair Cape Town from Computer repair Cape Town
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on December 12, 2012 09:21 PM
» how to lose 15 pounds in a month safely from how to lose 15 pounds in a month safely
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on December 20, 2012 05:55 PM
» computer repair carlsbad from computer repair carlsbad
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on December 24, 2012 12:43 PM
» Full Content from Full Content
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 1, 2013 08:46 PM
» factortg.net from factortg.net
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 2, 2013 03:26 PM
» http://www.paydayday.co.uk/ from http://www.paydayday.co.uk/
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 15, 2013 11:08 AM
» men weight loss from men weight loss
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 15, 2013 10:26 PM
» nelson homeopathic products hemorrhoid cream from nelson homeopathic products hemorrhoid cream
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 29, 2013 10:15 PM
» computer repair business from computer repair business
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 30, 2013 09:50 PM
» phentermine from phentermine
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 31, 2013 05:58 AM
» Skup samochodów wrocław from Skup samochodów wrocław
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 3, 2013 05:45 PM
» laser hemorrhoidectomy pros cons from laser hemorrhoidectomy pros cons
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 5, 2013 07:46 AM
» laptopspa.pl from laptopspa.pl
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 7, 2013 05:02 PM
» linked web page from linked web page
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 8, 2013 09:40 AM
» www.CustomizedFatLossReviews.Info from www.CustomizedFatLossReviews.Info
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 11, 2013 11:51 AM
» http://wordpress.p159867.webspaceconfig.de from http://wordpress.p159867.webspaceconfig.de
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 13, 2013 02:26 AM
» Manner Photographer London from Manner Photographer London
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 13, 2013 03:30 AM
» Going to www.chocolatehouse.pl from Going to www.chocolatehouse.pl
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 13, 2013 04:29 AM
» fotograf warszawa from fotograf warszawa
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 13, 2013 11:40 PM
» article source from article source
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 15, 2013 04:50 PM
» www.chocolatehouse.pl from www.chocolatehouse.pl
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 16, 2013 06:36 PM
» Locating The Marriage Ceremony Photographer Kent from Locating The Marriage Ceremony Photographer Kent
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 16, 2013 06:51 PM
» toniesamowite.pl/ranking - www.everythingbeary.co.uk from toniesamowite.pl/ranking - www.everythingbeary.co.uk
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 17, 2013 04:30 AM
» http://rospentek-clase70.com.ar/blog/index.php?blog=4 from http://rospentek-clase70.com.ar/blog/index.php?blog=4
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 27, 2013 12:33 AM
» http://www.eparking24.com.pl/ from http://www.eparking24.com.pl/
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 28, 2013 07:02 AM
» mouse click the following article from mouse click the following article
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 4, 2013 12:25 PM
» hostgator review from hostgator review
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 7, 2013 01:00 PM
» fotograf Warszawa from fotograf Warszawa
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 11, 2013 08:56 PM
» levitra from levitra
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 13, 2013 01:39 PM
» pozycjonowanie stron from pozycjonowanie stron
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 14, 2013 10:25 AM
» phentermine from phentermine
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 22, 2013 09:23 PM
» phentermine side effects from phentermine side effects
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 23, 2013 12:19 AM
» Vardenafil from Vardenafil
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 23, 2013 10:53 AM
» how to lose weight fast from how to lose weight fast
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 31, 2013 09:08 AM
» biofeedback from biofeedback
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 4, 2013 12:36 AM
» klutz from klutz
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 6, 2013 04:03 PM
» online loan from online loan
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 7, 2013 03:47 AM
» psychoterapeuta wrocław from psychoterapeuta wrocław
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 12, 2013 01:31 PM
» online loan from online loan
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 12, 2013 09:49 PM
» forum from forum
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 15, 2013 01:22 AM
» zdjęcia dowodowe warszawa from zdjęcia dowodowe warszawa
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 25, 2013 04:39 PM
» casino from casino
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 26, 2013 02:34 PM
» payday loan from payday loan
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on June 17, 2013 09:57 PM
» no deposit casino usa players from no deposit casino usa players
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on August 15, 2013 12:40 AM
» nauka angielskiego online from nauka angielskiego online
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 10, 2013 12:42 PM
» shoes com coupon from shoes com coupon
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 13, 2013 10:38 AM
» shoes com coupon from shoes com coupon
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 13, 2013 10:40 AM
» Nike Air Max 90 Billig Kaufen from Nike Air Max 90 Billig Kaufen
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 5, 2014 12:23 PM
» m88 from m88
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 9, 2014 05:14 AM
» check out this site from check out this site
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 25, 2014 11:31 PM
» 7m from 7m
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on January 31, 2014 01:24 PM
» ricerca cerco l'anima gemella from ricerca cerco l'anima gemella
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 11, 2014 04:13 PM
» homme louboutin from homme louboutin
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on February 13, 2014 01:53 PM
» League of Legends Guide from League of Legends Guide
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 7, 2014 05:24 PM
» League of Legends Guide from League of Legends Guide
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 7, 2014 05:25 PM
» bodog88 from bodog88
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 9, 2014 02:56 PM
» cheap viagra from cheap viagra
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 20, 2014 10:46 AM
» scarpe donna hogan from scarpe donna hogan
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on April 24, 2014 11:39 PM
» garcinia cambogia extract from garcinia cambogia extract
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on May 23, 2014 02:51 PM
» Reviews on Potty Training In 3 Days from Reviews on Potty Training In 3 Days
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on May 28, 2014 10:17 AM
» garcinia cambogia extract from garcinia cambogia extract
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on June 1, 2014 03:20 AM
» chiicago psychics from chiicago psychics
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on June 14, 2014 12:16 AM
» cheap nike free run from cheap nike free run
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on June 19, 2014 02:58 PM
» http://ajin2000.co.kr/?document_srl=586970 from http://ajin2000.co.kr/?document_srl=586970
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on July 11, 2014 07:39 PM
» http://www.westernpac.org/best-fake-oakleys from http://www.westernpac.org/best-fake-oakleys
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on July 12, 2014 03:10 PM
» www.mindstretchingfun.org/hamilton/cheap-michael-kors-handbags from www.mindstretchingfun.org/hamilton/cheap-michael-kors-handbags
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on July 18, 2014 04:37 AM
» Cheap Uggs For Sale from Cheap Uggs For Sale
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on October 21, 2014 01:33 AM
» darmowegryonlinestrategiczne.weebly.com from darmowegryonlinestrategiczne.weebly.com
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 10, 2014 12:57 PM
» christian louboutin sale from christian louboutin sale
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 30, 2014 12:26 AM
» christian louboutin sale from christian louboutin sale
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on November 30, 2014 12:26 AM
» louis vuitton handbags from louis vuitton handbags
[url=http://www.burberryscarfoutlet.net]burberry outlet[/url]
[url=http://www.coachfactoryoutlet70off.com]coach factory outlet 70% off[/url]
[url=http://www.burberryoutlet-online.net]burberry outlet[/url]
[url=http://www.burberryoutlet-sale.com]b... [Read More]
Tracked on January 16, 2015 04:45 AM
» http://network-turkey.org/ from http://network-turkey.org/
First of the Month [Read More]
Tracked on March 4, 2015 08:48 AM