The Revolution Continues blog is news, views, opinion and other expressions of hope from a leftist point-of-view. (We are not affiliated with any candidate, political party or organization. All are welcome.)
When skies are cloudy and dark (like they are here most days in November), it’s hard imagining you’ll ever see the sun again. But then a little light starts to trickle through those thick clouds and then just a little more light and then… Suddenly the orange-red sun explodes across the horizon and bathes the bleak autumn landscape in its warm glow. You breathe a sigh of relief. All is not lost. There is hope in the world.
This past week gave Americans a glimmer of hope that perhaps all is not so dark or lost.
Everyone is talking about Zohran Mamdani winning the New York City mayoral election, so I don’t really feel like discussing his personal achievement of his win as much as the achievement of the voters of NYC. The voters’ achievement is what I find a glimmer of hope in.
How so? New Yorkers were inundated with an insane amount of propaganda—dare I call it hasbara—from Zionist donors who tried to equate a vote for Mamdani as a vote for Sharia Law and endless Islamic jihad. The videos and memes financed by the other candidates’ wealthy donors were just disgusting. Some went beyond the pale. It’s really telling that racism and Islamophobia is still very much alive and well in the US. The Civil Rights Movement of the last one hundred+ years counts for nothing to the billionaires, obviously.
But what I really found encouraging in all this distasteful mudslinging was that NYC voters didn’t fall for it. They didn’t let the smears and the name-calling dissuade them from voting for Mamdani. I praise them for seeing through the bullshit and standing up for themselves. What really gives me hope is that they were even okay with the ridiculous “He’s a Commie!” style insults hurled at Mamdani. It didn’t slow down New Yorkers from voting for him, at least not in significant numbers to cost him the election...
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Arresting the homeless for camping in public areas, "loitering" in parks, and sleeping on sidewalks is nothing new. In fact, Los Angeles recently passed a law that makes being homeless in the city illegal. Police regularly grab and pitch people's tents and belongings, and there are well over 66,000 homeless individuals in L.A. at last count.
What if we flipped this social challenge on its head? What if we didn't turn the homeless into "outlaws" but outlawed the whole tragedy of homelessness instead?
Outlaw homelessness.
How would this work? I envision a similar program such as the one implemented in Finland. If a person is found to be without a secure home--for whatever reason--we simply provide one for them. It's not like there's any shortage of housing. It's estimated there's at least 17 million empty housing units in the US. That's more than enough to house the current estimate of 11 million homeless individuals.
So, what gives? Why aren't we providing homes for folks who need them when there's no shortage of empty homes? Answer: Because capitalists like landlords and international real estate holding firms don't want to fill those empty homes. It's better in their opinion to make everyone believe there's a shortage of housing so the capitalists can charge higher rent prices and drive up sale prices when they do decide to sell off some of their surplus housing stock.
Simply put, capitalists hoard things--money, houses, spaceships, yachts, etc.--so that others can't use them. The capitalists themselves aren't in need of these surplus homes since they have homes of their own in quite nice neighborhoods. They just don't want these empty homes they're hoarding to be used unless they can dictate the terms, even if these terms mean that ordinary people won't be able to afford to rent or buy these homes and even could be evicted during a pandemic.
Logically, then, the only way to effectively outlaw homelessness is to outlaw capitalism. Forever.
You're probably thinking, "It can't be done!" but I beg to differ. It can be done and it must be done for the sake of our homeless (and about to be evicted) neighbors. "How can it be done?" is the better question, and it's a tough one to answer. Why? Because for every homeless person in the US there are at least a dozen others working against any change in the status quo.
And why do Americans (some of whom aren't particularly well-to-do) wish to maintain things they way they are? Why should they support the capitalists at all? The obvious answer is that those who have a lot of wealth and power are loathed to give any of it up, and those who kiss up to the capitalists are hoping some of the "crumbs" will fall from the capitalists' table and into their laps.
But I believe there's a deeper fear beneath this heartlessness and hoarding. I believe that many capitalists (and their sycophants) are afraid that if they share any of their material wealth they will somehow be diminished in the eyes of others and thought less of. We might even make fun of the way they dress, talk, act, and well... hoard things.
In other words, capitalists are deeply afraid that no one will take care of them if and when they ever need to be taken care of, and they'll become as unwanted and uncared for as those poor souls currently camping in our cities' streets.
It's not an unreasonable fear on the capitalists' part. They realize just how much they hate their "neighbors," so they conclude that their "neighbors" are bound to reflect some of this hatred back at them. I've covered this particular irrational fear before, so I won't go into it here. You can read all about it in this piece: Why are the rich so scared of socialism?
Until we wipe out all fears that both the homeless and the capitalists have, we will continue to suffer this great divide of haves versus have nots in our society. And we will continue to see a growing number of homeless neighbors while simultaneously enjoying a growing surplus of housing units in the US.
It's insane. It's inhumane. But that's capitalism for you.
Outlaw homelessness. Today.
Here are some more videos and articles to think on:
As many as 1.2 million tenants have reported that they
were very likely to be evicted as soon as the moratorium expired on July
31. The country now faces a race against the clock to find resources
and shelter for millions of people, even as we are now facing
yet another wave of increased COVID transmissions and lockdowns.
Although Biden has said he does not have the power to extend the
original moratorium himself, Congress does have this power. If lawmakers
were to reconvene immediately and reinstate the mortatorium, countless
families could be spared from disaster. We
need bold action from Biden and Congress, and fast. Sign here to demand
that Congress stay in session until they extend the federal eviction
moratorium to protect all Americans!
Thank you,
Miranda
The Care2 Petitions Team
P.S. The eviction moratorium prevented landlords from kicking people
impacted by the COVID recession to the curb, but now it's over. Sign the petition to extend this moratorium.
***
There are more than 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. and every one should have a safe pathway to citizenship.
Immigrants
are essential to the success of America. During the pandemic, roughly
23 million immigrants -- including 5 million who are undocumented --
served as health care workers, public health and safety workers, food
system workers and farmworkers.
Some
of the undocumented are Dreamers, brought here as children. Other
immigrants are here legally due to war, political persecution or natural
disasters in their countries of origin.
A
recent Gallup poll proves that the American people overwhelmingly, by a
75% to 21% margin, support creating a pathway to citizenship.
Now we can make it happen. Senator Bernie Sanders,
Chair of the Senate Budget Committee, has included $150 billion in the
$3.5 trillion budget reconciliation proposal earmarked specifically for
implementing immigration policies, including a pathway to citizenship.
But Bernie needs our help building support to make sure it doesn’t get cut during negotiations on a final bill. It’s time to finally let the undocumented come out of the shadows with a pathway to citizenship.
Just
enter in your information and we’ll find and target your letter to your
members of Congress. We’ve provided suggested text too, but if you’d
rather write your own you can edit it and say it in your own words.
Whether
your message is short and to the point or long enough to tell your
personal story -- or one of a friend or family member -- you can be sure
your letter will be delivered immediately.
For
too long Congress has failed to take action on immigration. Isn’t it
time for Congress to deliver solutions that reflect both our shared
values and our national interests?
All
undocumented immigrants, essential workers, Dreamers, and those fleeing
disasters or political persecution should be provided a pathway to
citizenship without more delay.
Thank you for fighting for change.
-LeeAnn
LeeAnn Hall
Director, National Campaign for Transit Justice
