Surviving Capitalism (Not) : Philanthropy is the enemy of justice

We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Philanthropy is the enemy of justice

Click here to access article by Robert Newman from The Guardian.

The world's poor are not begging for charity from the rich – they're asking for justice and fairness

But, of course, there is no mention in this liberal publication that just maybe the capitalist system is unjust, a system which favors the few who manage to attain "ownership" over large parts of an economy against the interests of the vast majority who through their physical and mental labor create real wealth. That would be blasphemy in the religion of capitalism which this publication supports! Thus, they choose to frame the issue as being only a matter of morality which easily descends into statements about the low quality of human nature.

Such framing of issues is the purpose of liberal publications. They serve to constrain issues within limits that are acceptable to capitalists, and to divert attention away from the inherent flaws in the system.