Surviving Capitalism (Not) : Hiding in plain sight: the history of the War on Drugs

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

Friday, August 14, 2015

Hiding in plain sight: the history of the War on Drugs

Click here to access article by Paul Bermanzohn posted on Reflections on a Revolution.

I've seen evidence this morning that people are moving from the ideological position of reforming capitalism and class rule to one that recognizes the imperative of revolution, the complete end of class rule under a capitalist system (for another example, see this). This new consciousness is illustrated in this edited transcript of a speech in which the author recognizes the need to recover our history as a first step toward a revolutionary consciousness. In his speech, especially the unedited transcript from his website, Bermanzohn provides a sketch of the highlights of the history of the 1960s which our masters are trying so hard to erase.

Part of developing a new revolutionary movement is reclaiming our history. The masters keep us enslaved by blinding us to our collective strength. The story of the ‘60’s uprisings is one rich in power and agency, the reason the rulers want to erase the ‘60’s altogether.

To build an effective revolutionary consciousness, activists must establish networks of support and organizations which have as their purpose the recovery of this history. Also, simultaneously with this effort, activists must collaborate in support of a network of communications about what is currently happening in today's world. Such a network must find a means of supporting people who have reporting skills as well as a revolutionary consciousness. As I daily review many articles written by devoted activists, I see them almost begging for financial support in order to continue their work. We simply must support them in any way we can.

Yes, "Black Lives Matter!" But, then, all lives matter in a revolutionary movement regardless of where one lives on this planet or one's skin color. The old revolutionary slogan, "Workers of the World Unite, you have nothing to lose but your chains" can now be updated to "Save the Humans!" This is the stark reality that we are all facing: survival in today's world which is threatened by never-ending wars, immigrants fleeing from their wars, a likely future nuclear conflagration between gangs of capitalists, and a climate that is under the imminent threat of destabilization caused by capitalism's growth imperative in a finite planet.