The Unwelcoming Society

The Unwelcoming Society

by C. A. Matthews

When my mother first got off the ship in the United States of America, I wonder… Did she feel welcomed?

It was right before the start of the second World War. Mom had lived in Brazil all of her young life. Now, her parents thrust her into a strange, new world full of different people, weather, flora and fauna. Being scolded by her mother to “speak only English,” she soon lost the ability to converse in Portuguese, remembering only snatches of songs and nursery rhymes in later years. Mom learned that she had to speak English only because now she was American, for better or worse.

Nowadays, it almost always seems to be “for the worse” whenever an immigrant attempts to enter the US. They may be desperate to escape persecution and violence in their home country, but once they arrive in the US or at its border, their fears not only aren’t relieved—they’re often magnified.

I wrote about the end of the infamous Title 42 program and the new Biden Asylum-Transit ban a couple of months ago in The New Title 42. The mainstream media’s continual emphasis on the urban myth of the US southern border becoming inundated with immigrant hordes after the pandemic ban was lifted has not happened. However, the re-traumatization of asylum-seekers seeking safety has just begun.

How welcoming is that?

From the terrorists masquerading as Customs Border Patrol agents at our borders, to the outright Jim Crow decrees from our state legislatures, it can’t get much more unwelcoming in the United States of America in the year 2023 CE. If you think I’m kidding, get a load of this:

A group of Chinese citizens who live, work, study, and raise families in Florida, as well as a real estate brokerage firm in Florida that primarily serves clients of Chinese descent, are filing a lawsuit to combat Florida’s discriminatory property law, SB 264. Signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, the legislation unfairly restricts most Chinese citizens — and most citizens of Cuba, Venezuela, Syria, Iran, Russia, and North Korea — from purchasing homes in the state. Unless the courts act, the law will take effect on July 1, 2023…

Today’s lawsuit argues that SB 264 will codify and expand housing discrimination against people of Asian descent in violation of the Constitution and the Fair Housing Act. It will also cast an undue burden of suspicion on anyone seeking to buy property whose name sounds remotely Asian, Russian, Iranian, Cuban, Venezuelan, or Syrian. 

Gov. DeSantis has argued that this law is necessary to protect Florida from the Chinese Communist Party and its activities. But this misguided rationale unfairly equates Chinese people with the actions of their government, and there is no evidence of national security harm resulting from real estate ownership by Chinese people in Florida. From Chinese Immigrants Sue Florida Over Unconstitutional, Discriminatory Law

This horrible law brings to mind the first immigration law passed in the United States, The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882:

From 1882 until 1943, most Chinese immigrants were barred from entering the United States. The Chinese Exclusion Act was the nation's first law to ban immigration by race or nationality. All Chinese people--except travelers, merchants, teachers, students, and those born in the United States--were barred from entering the country. Federal law prohibited Chinese residents, no matter how long they had legally worked in the United States, from becoming naturalized citizens… The Geary Act, passed in 1892, required Chinese aliens to carry a residence certificate with them at all times upon penalty of deportation. Immigration officials and police officers conducted spot checks in canneries, mines, and lodging houses and demanded that every Chinese person show these residence certificates. --From Digital History

We’re really come a long, long way in the good ol’ US of A, haven’t we?

Working in immigration advocacy, I am always shocked at how woefully ignorant most Americans are of how poorly we treat and have treated immigrants. Consider this sobering fact: It wasn’t until the middle of America’s involvement in World War II (1943) that Chinese-American persons—people of Chinese ancestry, born and raised in families that had lived for several generations in the US—were allowed to become naturalized citizens.

Just because your last name was Li or Chin, and it wasn’t Smith or Schmidt, you couldn’t vote even though you were born in the US, went to school all your life in the US, and raised your own family in the US. You and your children weren’t entitled to any benefits of citizenship simply because your ancestors were born far, far away, across a big, wide ocean. Funny how those “Smiths” and “Schmidts” whose ancestors also came across an ocean were able to claim US citizenship and vote without any problems, though.

Wonder what the big difference is between these two groups, persons of European ancestry and those of Asian ancestry? Hmm... Do you think it has anything to do with their skin color perhaps?

And you think the Chinese had (and still have) it bad? When did American Indians become US citizens? Their ancestors have dwelt on the North American continent for tens of thousands of years, but most who live within the boundaries of the USA were not able to call themselves American citizens until… No, not 1776 or 1865, but 1924. It actually took until the second decade of the twentieth century for Native Americans to be considered “American.” 

Now, convince me just how “welcoming” American society is if it can't even acknowledge the original inhabitants of this continent or keep any of the treaties it made with their leaders. I'll wait.

The US is so “welcoming” that we don't even believe that having enough food to eat is a human right. Imagine that! We voted against that proposal in the United Nations, of all places. That attitude certainly goes a long way in explaining our homeless and hunger problems, doesn't it? It's not that Americans can't feed and house our own people, it's that we don't want to.

But it isn’t always about race and ethnicity in the US when it comes to being unwelcoming. Senator Rick Scott (another Floridian) this past week has decided that those who are professed “socialists” aren’t welcome in his state. This announcement has really put a crimp in my vacation plans. I wanted to go south and visit my aunt, uncle and cousins in Florida, along with my sister and brother-in-law who recently retired there. Senator Scott says he doesn’t want any of my no-good socialist money in his state. It’s not good enough for the likes of Florida, like Chinese people’s money isn't, or Cubans’, or Venezuelans’, Syrians’, Iranians’, Russians’, and North Koreans’ money.

If you are trans or non-binary, you’re not wanted in the Sunshine State, either. It’s almost as if your gender identification is seen as a contagious disease. Give Florida its due—they’re racist, fascistic, and terrified of people who don’t meet their expectations of what a boy or a girl is supposed to be like. You could call it “Equal Opportunity Bigotry.”

I know it’s not only the state of Florida that has passed these prejudiced decrees recently, but it is the perfect example of evil in action. Florida is full of hateful opportunists who are riding a wave of terror of “otherness” and hoping to make a profit while doing so. Look at what color Florida is on this map and what it stands for:

It's nothing to be proud of, in my opinion. I wouldn't be planning a vacation to Disney World or Universal Studios, in other words, unless you're a raving homophobic/transphobic, anti-Asian, anti-socialist. Then, by all means, go right ahead! (Just don't bother to return home. We can isolate all you bigots in Florida with a simple “border wall” at the top of the peninsula. We don't want your kind of “immigrant” in our states.)

A year ago, it was all “Hate the Russians! Love Zelensky! Who needs to spend billions on universal health care when America can spend it on the military-industrial complex and make our Congress members with insider stock trading deals richer!” And soon it will be, “Stop eating Chinese food and hate the Chinese! We’re at war with China over… over...”  

Gee, I forget! Why is the US mad at China? Is it because the have decent reserves of lithium? Silicon chip manufacturing? Or because they’ve been trying to bring about a diplomatic end to the conflict in Ukraine, saving lives and ending the madness in the process?  

It doesn’t take much to start a hate campaign against another country or ethnic or racial or political or gender group in the US. I sure wish our so-called “leaders” could do something to stop all this hate-mongering and sit down like rational adults and work out their differences with others in the best interest of every living thing on the planet before a nuclear war breaks out. (And no, corporations aren’t people, so they don’t count as “living things.”)

You could say that I’m just more than a little tired of the United States leading the way in all this worldwide nastiness; aren’t you?

The initials “US” are very appropriate. The initials “US” can also stand for the “Unwelcoming Society.” It's what we've become—or perhaps we've always been this way? It's time we stopped and took steps to reverse this horrid trend, don't you think?

 

Related Articles and Articles of Interest

Digital History: The Chinese Exclusion Act https://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3291

Chinese Immigrants Sue Florida Over Unconstitutional, Discriminatory Law https://popularresistance.org/chinese-immigrants-sue-florida-over-unconstitutional-and-discriminatory-law/

ICE, Homeland Security Accused Of Targeting Outspoken Migrant Worker For Deportation https://scheerpost.com/2023/05/27/ice-homeland-security-accused-of-targeting-outspoken-migrant-worker-for-deportation/

Afghan families traverse most of Latin America to seek asylum at the US border https://theworld.org/stories/2023-05-17/afghan-families-traverse-most-latin-america-seek-asylum-us-border

Why are these Afghan refugees still stuck in limbo? https://responsiblestatecraft.org/2023/05/24/two-years-after-us-withdrawal-afghan-refugees-still-stuck-in-limbo/ 

Dozens of GoFundMe Users Seek Funds to Flee States Passing Transphobic Laws  https://scheerpost.com/2023/05/31/dozens-of-gofundme-users-seek-funds-to-flee-states-passing-transphobic-laws/ 

Target Accused of “Selling Out the LGBTQ+ Community to Extremists”  https://scheerpost.com/2023/05/27/target-accused-of-selling-out-the-lgbtq-community-to-extremists-after-pulling-pride-merchandise/

 

Many transgender health bills came from a handful of far-right interest groups https://apnews.com/article/transgender-health-model-legislation-5cc4a7cb4ab69150f670d06fd0f361ab

About Quislings
https://popularresistance.org/about-quislings/

East Palestine, 100 Days Later
https://scheerpost.com/2023/05/25/east-palestine-100-days-later/

US Troops To Train Peruvian Armed Forces, Proves US Behind Coup  https://popularresistance.org/us-troops-to-train-peruvian-armed-forces-proves-us-behind-coup/

$1.1 Trillion Was Spent On Militarism And War Last Year
https://popularresistance.org/new-report-1-1-trillion-or-62-of-the-federal-discretionary-budget-was-spent-on-militarism-and-war-last-year/

 

Washington-Insider Jeffrey Sachs on US Provoking Ukraine War | SYSTEM UPDATE https://youtu.be/kU7UzrJeX6E

Ukraine: Why Negotiations Are the Only Rational Option in the Face of Climate https://scheerpost.com/2023/05/25/ukraine-why-negotiations-are-the-only-rational-option-in-the-face-of-climate-chaos-and-nuclear-dangers/

 

Yes, Those Bioweapons Labs in Ukraine are a Real Thing

https://joebrunoli.substack.com/p/yes-those-bioweapons-labs-in-ukraine-are-a-real-thing-fad3785f3818

Media's Complete U-Turn After Russia Wins Bakhmut
https://youtu.be/O3kr4ZZl5FA

Fossil Fuel Companies Owe $5.4 Trillion In Reparations, Study Says
https://popularresistance.org/fossil-fuel-companies-owe-5-4-trillion-in-reparations-study-says/

10 Years After Snowden: Some Things Are Better, Some We’re Still Fighting For https://scheerpost.com/2023/05/23/10-years-after-snowden-some-things-are-better-some-were-still-fighting-for/

The Democratic Party’s Crucifixion of Matt Taibbi https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/the-democratic-partys-crucifixion

Manufactured crisis over US debt ceiling sets stage for bipartisan assault on Social Security and Medicare https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/05/25/pers-m25.html 

Kissinger vs. ‘The Most Dangerous Man in America’ https://scheerpost.com/2023/05/28/kissinger-vs-the-most-dangerous-man-in-america/

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What Do These Stories Have In Common?

 

What Do These Stories Have In Common?

We have a guest blogger this week, but before we get to their article, here’s a story that popped up in the news that I felt is very important. The mainstream media barely gave it any notice, which is telling in itself. It shows just how hard American propagandists in both the public and private sectors are working to keep the public in the dark. This news story has something vital in common with our guest’s submission. Can you find the common thread between these two stories?

First off, here is what Eric Zuesse writing for The Duran Newsletter had to say:

Annually, each year, since 2005, the U.S. Government has been one of only from 1 to 3 Governments to vote in the U.N. General Assembly against an annual statement by the General Assembly against racism and other forms of bigotry — an annual Resolution condemning it, and expressing a commitment to doing everything possible to reduce bigoted acts. For the first time ever, on November 4th, America was joined not only by one or two voting against it, but 55 nations, and almost all gave as reasons that Russia was for it and has invaded Ukraine. Ukraine is the only country that has almost always been joining America in opposing such resolutions...

 This year’s Resolution particularly offended America and its allies because “Nazism” is mentioned and condemned specifically in it.

No specific nation is ever mentioned in such resolutions.

The author of this article explains how the United Nations is notorious for making it difficult to near impossible to find the results of their resolution votes online. A week after a vote, and the information just mysteriously disappears. (I can attest to that fact. The UN website tells you you're not allow to access the information anymore.) After much searching and following of screenshots, here is the outcome of the vote on the resolution to combat the glorification of Nazism:

Item 66(a) draft resolution A/C.3/77/L.5

Combating glorification of Nazism, Neo-Nazism, and …

DATE: 4 November 2022

 IN FAVOR (105): Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cote d’Ivoire, Cuba, Dem. PR [N.] Korea, Djirbouti, El Salvador, Equatorial Gunea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Jamaica, Jordan,Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lao PDR, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Rwanda, St. Kitts, St. Vincent, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, Solomon Islands, S. Africa, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Surinam, Syria, Tajikistan, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Trinidad, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, UAR, United Rep. Tanza, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

AGAINST (52): Albania, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kiribati, Latvia, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, N. Macedonia, Norway, Papua, Poland, Portugal, Rep. Moldova, Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Ukraine, UK, U.S.

ABSTAIN (15): Antigua, Congo, Dominican Rep., Ecuador, Egypt, Mexico, Myanmar, Palau, Panama, Rep. of Korea, Samoa, Serbia, Switzerland, Tonga, Turkiye

ABSENT: Afghanistan, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Comoros, D.R. Congo, Dominica, Eswatini, Gambia, Grenada, Iran, Morocco, St. Lucia, Sao Tome, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, S. Sudan, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Venezuela

Data from US and Allies Vote For Nazism at UN https://theduran.com/u-s-and-allies-vote-for-nazism-at-u-n/

Ukrainian stamps glorifying Nazis

Why does the US continue to vote against combating the glorification of Nazism year after year? To blame not voting affirmative on this resolution on the proxy war the US and NATO started in Ukraine seems a rather weak excuse. It's common knowledge that Ukrainians have made a national hero out of Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera and that their very own militia unit, the Azov Battalion, has S.S. symbology as their logo. 

And why didn't the US vote for this resolution when it was first introduced seventeen years ago? Could it be the US has been pro-Nazi all along, and this fact didn't become blatantly apparent until 2022? 

Related Articles:

US and Ukraine Only Two Countries to Vote Against UN Resolution Condemning Nazism (December 2021) https://countercurrents.org/2021/12/u-s-and-ukraine-only-two-countries-vote-against-un-resolution-condemning-nazism/

Why Does the US Government Support Nazis All Around The World

https://countercurrents.org/2022/11/why-does-the-u-s-government-support-nazis-all-around-the-world/

Over 50 Countries Vote Against Russia’s Anti-Nazism Resolution at United Nations  https://orinocotribune.com/over-50-countries-vote-against-russias-anti-nazism-resolution-at-united-nations/

50 Nations Just Defended Nazism at the UN (Video, story starts about 5 minutes in) https://rumble.com/v1t02sk-50-nations-just-defended-nazism-at-the-u.n..html

 

The following article demonstrates that American activists have fought against racism, sexism, fascism, and elitism from our country's very beginnings. The United States' negative vote on the recent United Nations' resolution on combating the glorification of Nazism is an indication that American activists must continue to fight these evils today.

Inspirational Stories Of Black Activists

by Robin Nicole Hamilton

Motivation is a state of mind that helps you achieve your goals and plays an important part in achieving success. It is a feeling or emotion that you get when you want to do something bigger. It keeps you going until you reach your goal.

Black freedom fighters are a source of inspiration. These real-life heroes have always served their people. Freedom fighters like Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and Harriet Tubman are always remembered and admired, especially by young people who aspire to be like them one day. Let's remember that they fought hard and did not give up until they achieved what they wanted. They made sacrifices and were hurt, but they did not give up because they believed in themselves and their mission.

Black Activists: A True Source of Motivation

The history of black freedom fighters, Martin Luther King Jr. Malcolm X, and others have inspired many to fight for their rights. These activists have shown us that we can achieve anything if we are willing to fight for it.

There have been many other black freedom fighters and activists who have fought for our rights all over the world, but few know about them or even take the time to remember their names and what they did for us. However, their stories should be heard so that we will know that it is possible to change the world.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. was a man who dared to dream big to achieve his dreams. He became one of the most cogent civil rights leaders in US history. He was a minister who fought for civil rights for Americans, both blacks and whites. He led a peaceful movement to end injustice and inequality in the USA, especially for people of color. On April 4, 1968, he was murdered by a white extremist, James Earl Ray, while standing on the patio of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. 

Malcolm X

Malcolm X is another great example of a black activist who achieved greatness despite being on the wrong side of society at one point in time. He was a Muslim convert who became an influential leader in the Nation of Islam movement. He spoke out against racism and segregation.

Malcolm was imprisoned for fifteen years for his involvement in a black separatist organization. After being released from prison, he continued his activism with Malcolm X's Organization (MEO) which promoted black pride, self-defense, and economic empowerment through various means like education and employment opportunities. He went through the ups and downs of life and never gave up on his mission despite the obstacles and hardships. Several iconic films and books cover his life journey. In 1965, soon after Malcolm’s death, his biography was published by Alex Haley. (Learn more about Alex Haley's The Autobiography of Malcolm X.)

Fannie Lou Hamer

Fannie Lou Hamer was an American civil rights activist who fought against racial segregation. Fannie participated in civil rights activism from 1962-1973. She became a key figure in many organizations fighting for change. (Watch this film on the legacy of Fannie Lou Hamer).

One of these organizations was the Freedom Democratic Party (FDP), which was founded by her husband, James Hamer. The FDP was formed to give black voters more power over their own lives and communities by organizing around issues like voting rights and school desegregation. Fannie and James obtained success when the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA) was passed.

While working on behalf of the FDP, Fannie also focused on other issues such as farm labor unions and sanitation workers' rights. She helped organize boycotts against employers who did not pay their workers fairly or provide benefits such as health insurance or pensions. Even the limitations of being a woman of color in the mid-20th century did not scare her from dreaming big or pursuing her goals.

Mary Church Terrell

Mary Church Terrell was a civil rights leader who fought for better treatment for women of color in America. She was the first African-American female to complete a college degree and manage the school board of a major city. She was one of the founders of the National Association Of Colored Women. (Click here to see the Mary Church Terrell documentary.)

Mary fought for the rights of women of color in colleges and workplaces. What she achieved in the late 19th and early 20th centuries is a source of great inspiration for many black women. 

Black Lives Matter (BLM)

BLM is a present-day movement for blacks' and other minorities' rights. This decentralized movement fights against racially motivated violence, discrimination, and police brutality against people of color and minorities. This movement is growing stronger every day because it gives hope to those who have been oppressed by whites.

Similarly, the fight for freedom and equal rights continues and inspires people to become a part of such organizations and follow those individuals who stand for their people. These legends from the history of black activism motivate us to think big and inspire us to achieve our goals.

In conclusion, these people are proof that anyone can achieve success if they have enough drive and perseverance!

BIO: Robin Nicole Hamilton is an American journalist, writer, television host, and principal at "ARoundRobin Production Company". She has worked as a broadcaster in Florida, New York, Boston, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C. Working at the intersection of media and policy, her work is guided by the principle of providing information to promote transformation. She directed four documentary films from 2015 to 2022. Her fourth film, Odessa’s Reign, profiles the life of a female gangster in 1950s Washington, D.C. The film earned Robin her fourth Emmy. Hamilton has won and been nominated for several awards for her work on the DCW50 TV (WDCW) Living Black History series. She also served as a Public Media Corps (PMC) Fellow which allowed her to promote social media tools to under-served communities. Hamilton is currently offering film and video production services to clients in Capitol Heights, Bethesda, Baltimore, Columbia, Annapolis, Rockville, Maryland, Alexandria, Fairfax, Arlington County, and Tysons, Virginia and in Washington D.C.

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Is This A Dystopian Novel?

 

Is This A Dystopian Novel?

(Or Is It Reality?)

by C.A. Matthews

 

I’m writing this on the way home from an annual science fiction convention we’ve attended for many years. My husband and I primarily speak on writing craft and publishing topics, but sometimes we’re asked to be on panel discussions dealing with the intersection between fiction and reality. How does SF (speculative fiction) show us the current situation humanity finds itself in or even our possible future?

Wise words from a famous science fiction author

I happened to land on a panel called “The Handmaid’s Tale: Fear and Social Dystopia.” (Excellent topic idea!) We were to discuss how this best-selling novel by Margaret Atwood, and the more recent streaming television series based upon it, reflects the horror of discrimination American women currently face and how it could be a prediction of even scarier things to come.

Of course, since I was on the panel, the discussion soon wandered into what I see as the novel’s true premise. The story of the abused and enslaved handmaids isn’t a dystopian tale of the near-future or an alternate future but an accurate reflection of both our current and past American society. Atwood, as a Canadian, is in an excellent position to see us as a sympathetic outsider and point out painful things that Americans have blocked from our cultural memories. There is much for us to learn from her discerning eye.  

Is the USA in reality the mythical “Gilead”? Why do we not see the red-caped young women marching in lines and “the wall,” the place where dissidents and non-believers are hung for their crimes against the state and their bodies left hanging as a warning to others? My contention is that these two things do in fact exist, albeit in slightly different forms.

When the US imprisons whistleblowers and journalists (such as Chelsea Manning, Edward Snowden, and Julian Assange) because they revealed horrific torture operations done in our name by the US military, the CIA and others at the Abu Ghraib Prison and at our very own extrajudicial detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, are we not in reality hanging these brave souls from “the wall”? Are we not using their slow deaths in prison and exile to scare other potential whistleblowers not to do likewise? Isn’t dangling their reputations in front of the mainstream media (aka “the wall”) and making false charges against them a deterrent to others emboldened to expose the immorality and corruption of the US government?

When cops murder people of color in cold blood for minor traffic violations or for simply sleeping in their own beds, is this not a kind of state execution or “the wall” that tells others to stay quiet and obey their white masters and don’t fight for their rights? When the police use teargas and rubber bullets on protesters and striking workers, isn’t this putting them on “the wall” to kill their hopes and dreams for a better future for all?

The US now spends more money on militarizing our local police departments than most countries—including Russia—spend on their actual military. No other country has 800+ military bases scattered all over the globe. The closest is China with about eight bases. The US has the largest military budget in the world, one that is more than the other top ten nations combined, and yet it has no money available for health care, education, or housing for all its citizens.

Now, which country reminds you of the fascistic/militaristic realm of Gilead—the country who recently announced that poverty had been eradicated within their borders (China) or the one that has criminalized homelessness in many municipalities (USA)? “The wall” presents injustices along with rotting corpses of those the state doesn’t want.

What about the red capes and the rapes of the handmaids/ concubines? Atwood purposefully had her handmaids wrapped in “bloody cloths” or red capes, a symbol of birth and sacrifice. These young women are the heifers and hens forced to give birth like livestock in order to provide enough laborers to support the ruling classes. Gilead’s economic system relies on slavery—but it isn’t necessarily thought of as chattel slavery by its rulers. Wage slavery works just fine in present day America and our rulers (bosses) think nothing of it, either.

Which so-called “first world nation” has the highest maternal mortality rate? You know it—it’s the USA. The maternal mortality rate for mothers of color is even higher than it is for whites, but it’s also high for poor whites with no access to private health insurance. What other society tells its women of child bearing years that their health and safety during child birth isn’t all that important? Could it be the only so-called first world nation that doesn’t provide universal health care for its people?

And then there’s the overturn of the Roe V. Wade ruling. (Read my take on how abortion rights are used against women in A Matter of Control.) What other country allows basic human rights, such as the right to bodily autonomy, to be stolen away from its citizens at the whim of conservative judges? Yes, Trump did appoint conservative federal judges, but he didn’t appoint all of them or even the majority of them. Most federal judges currently serving have been serving for more than ten years. Arch-conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas was appointed during the Clinton Administration. Who was the senator that made sure Clarence Thomas was appointed to the Supreme Court by discrediting Anita Hill’s testimony and raking her over the coals? Senator Joseph R. Biden of Delaware is the man who made sexist, disparaging remarks to Professor Hill. You may have heard of him.

Atwood’s Gilead has one advantage the US doesn’t. It doesn’t waste time playing the silly game of what “color” or establishment political party is currently in the majority. True rulers always will get what they want at the expense of the ordinary working people’s lives. The establishment parties are mere distractions, foils as it were, and will always do as they’re told. Therefore, all third parties or alternative viewpoints must be crushed at whatever cost. The upper-classes can’t have the ordinary people thinking for themselves, can they? 

I posit that Americans have been living in Gilead since 1776. The corrupt economic system established by our “Founding Fathers” will always favor wealthy, white, land-owning (and slave owning) males. Women will always be controlled by the state through their wombs or reproductive capacity. Activists who speak up against injustices and attempt to organize the poor and working classes will always be labelled as agitators, communists, or enemies of the state. 

Los Angeles has criminalized the homeless.

Isn’t this the society Atwood envisioned in The Handmaid’s Tale? There’s no reason for Americans to lie to themselves any longer. The US is a dystopian novel. 

What can we do about it? Audience members asked the panelists if there was a way to overcome the Gilead characteristics baked into the DNA of the USA. I’m optimistic there is something we can do because folks did ask that question and assumed that they are capable of enacting changes for the better.

I think our best shot is to create genuine community and practice systems of mutual aid, such as the ones I described in my novel Where The Bodies Lie. We can grow our own food and share it with neighbors. We can create worker co-ops and organize worker-run unions to take on exploitative employers. We can work around the discriminatory distribution systems for food, health care, and shelter by fulfilling needs directly without including the predatory middle-man that capitalism seems to think is necessary for life (and that we all know isn’t).

There are many positive things we can and already do to dispel the gloom of dystopia, but we must do them together. No more of this “rugged individualism” that keeps us struggling and infighting amongst our fellow workers while the rich receive tax breaks and government subsidies for failing businesses. We need to build compassionate communities capable of feeding and taking care of each other, such as those described in the New Testament in the book of Acts. No more leaving anyone behind!

Until all women are free, all people of color are free, the homeless and the migrant and the hungry are all free, none of us will ever be free. None of us will escape Gilead. It’s an all or nothing proposition. But do we have the will to turn The Handmaid’s Tale dystopia into a Star Trek utopia? If any group can make the world into a better place, I believe it's sci-fi fans.

Let’s boldly go into that future.

Another great quote from Kurt Vonnegut.

Related Links:

Free Stores Offer an Alternative to the Exploitative Capitalist Economy https://truthout.org/articles/free-stores-offer-an-alternative-to-the-exploitative-capitalist-economy/

Catalyzing Worker Co-ops and the Solidarity Economy https://popularresistance.org/catalyzing-worker-co-ops-the-solidarity-economy/ 

US Quality of Life Now Ranks Down with Bulgaria (video) https://rumble.com/v1lor6v-us-now-ranks-with-bulgaria-as-developing-country.html

90% of the World Doesn't Back the US Now (video)  https://youtu.be/jsrOfEVcbzA