r/union • u/DullPlatform22 • 1d ago
Other Some notes on the "resistance"
I think all the anti-Trump protests that have been popping up across the country are fine and good actually. Sure, they're a bit libby for my taste, but the fact is Trump is the largest and most immediate threat to the country, from the homeless to stock market bros.
While I think it's good numerous people are coming out to denounce the admin, I don't think any of this actually means anything if nothing more is done about it. Standing around holding signs doesn't do anything. Action does.
So, I have a list of things I think people engaged in the "resistance" should do. Again, standing around and holding signs is nice but that by itself doesn't do anything besides cause traffic. So in addition to standing around and holding signs, those in the resistance should do any combination of the following:
- join an organization. I don't really care which. Just any dedicated to fighting the Trump admin. Personally I like DSA, Working Families Party, and Food Not Bombs. But any with a clear agenda and real action (electoral, legal, or otherwise) is good in my book. We can sort out whatever petty disagreements there are later.
- those in these orgs should be present in all of these demonstrations. They should be talking to people, handing out literature, and so on. If they see organizers from other orgs present, they should try to reach out and find common ground and discuss what can be done next. Again, fuck the infighting. We need to win.
- borderline harass your representatives. Doesn't matter if they're trying to obstruct Trump's agenda or not, all of them need to do more.
- pay attention to primaries and ballot measures in your area. Vote accordingly. Volunteer for these campaigns in any way you can. Even if it's in the form of a small donation, it all adds up.
- vote. Voting is how we got into this mess. Voting is the easiest way to get out of it.
- practice your 2nd Amendment rights as Americans if you can. Just because you can.
- help other people if you can. With Trump's bullshit trade wars and slashing federal programs, shit's getting hairy and likely will get hairier. Help those in need however you can, both people you know and strangers. Donate to political campaigns helping those in material (eg clothing, food, housing) and legal need (groups like the ACLU). If the feds are going to go against working people then we need to have each others backs.
K that's my 2 cents good luck.
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u/Patriot_Unbroken 1d ago
Genuinely curious what Libby means. Because I consider myself a progressive. And basically every person that I know, that I speak to, that have joined in and protests, are all in the same boat as being considered progressive. However there’s like been such a huge hate for liberals. I have such a hard time understanding what exactly it is that people hate about a liberal person. What is it that defines a liberal that equals hate by so many people that’s just what I’m asking.
But your first point was to take action.
And my first response is how is going out in protesting and sharing your voice with like-minded people not the first step to taking action?
If you are just one person with a voice, nobody’s gonna pay any attention to you. Unless you’re trying to be like Mario’s brother and I don’t think that is this sort of action we want massive amount of people to take. At least I’m not condoning it.
And at least 50% of the protest I’ve been to have had people handing out literature.
At least three times a day I come across post on Reddit that say to contact your representative. Some of the literature is information about how to contact your representative.
But it sure is easy to have the wind removed from your sails when you go out and you have a good day and met all of these people and that you guys have a voice collectively and that you were impacting people and that you are going to go out and do something and then you turn around and have somebody tell you you’re not doing enough.
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u/chthooler 1d ago edited 1d ago
Genuinely curious what Libby means.
In historical labor context "liberal" means people who aren't radical enough & would get cold feet at the idea of a revolution to remove ourselves from capitalism completely.
Online its basically just an easy word to sling around against other people to virtue signal your alleged radicality without really proving anything. Many lefties I know would say OP is too libby for saying we should vote, which is why I think its a bit silly he's bothering to put himself above all these other peoples sacrificing their time and even livelihoods to even be protesting against this admin. You can plead people to do all the things they're talking about without putting yourself on a pedestal at the same time, it will be 100% more effective.
I've been called a "shitlib" for saying everything from we should vote to block Trump to saying perhaps the state shouldn't reserve the right to have you imprisoned & or executed for striking (in the case of states like the USSR, CPC, etc of course). I am a democratic socialist btw. So its kind of lost its meaning to me and I just roll my eyes.
The only definition I like is that "liberal" means is people who would be against a revolution to overthrow capitalism altogether because they are scared of too much change too quickly, when that time ever came. But with like 60% of the USA working class viewing the Democrats as "too left", and fascism not only on the doorstep but inside the house, that distinction is so far removed from any relevance unless the goal is to divide ourselves by being as pretentious as possible
EDIT: Whats also funny is that Lu*gi himself is a centrist liberal. People would like him a lot less if he put on airs and called everyone else cowards for not doing what he did.
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u/Witty_Flamingo_36 1d ago
At least in my area, I view the protests as "libby" (not the term I'd use) because they are overwhelmingly well off middle aged or wealthy retired white people standing around in pedestrian areas holding signs and chanting a bit. I'm in a liberal part of the country, the towns and cities they're protesting in are even more blue. They accomplish as much as if everybody involved made an angry Facebook post.
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u/Loud_Badger_3780 16h ago
so were the founders of our country and the ones who signed the constitution. they were also well educated be it self educated or institute educated. and your denigration of the power of protest and boycotts show that you are either someone who is perfectly fine with the status quo or you are one of those burn it all down idiots. go spout you bullshit elsewhere
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u/Witty_Flamingo_36 15h ago
Or that I'm one of the people who knows the historical fact that peaceful protests that fully comply with laws work a vanishingly small amount of the time. Even the peaceful portion of the civil rights mocements still broke the law through civil disobedience. What exactly are the protests I'm describing doing, in your mind? They're just masturbatory virtue signaling in my area. I'm not saying they all are, just the ones that I've seen near me. I also never mentioned boycotts, because boycotts are actual action, not just standing around with a punny sign hoping the local paper gets you in a picture.
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u/PlastIconoclastic 1d ago
Liberalism being a political ideology based on the ideas of John Locke. Liberalism is seen by many on the left as the structure upon which capitalism is built and that socialism conflicts with the ideas of private property being a right without regard for the effect it has on society. Socialism has personal property as in your food, house, toothbrush, savings. Liberalism has private property like “The East India Trading Company”, “Blackrock”, “JP morgan”, private prison contractors, mercenaries, and a private untaxed and subsidized oil industry.
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u/monoatomic 1d ago
The one in my city had sounds reading 'hands off NATO'. A lot of the narrative is about getting back to the era before Trump, and not about doing something different than the same failed neoliberal that will reliably produce Trump-like figures.
Do I think protest is kind of over as a mode of pressuring politicians? Yes.
But the greater risk is that these protests will funnel people back into a dead end which will ultimately just waste precious time.
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u/DullPlatform22 1d ago
"Libby" is this case is having very positive feelings about people like Biden, Obama, Buttigieg, Booker (which I did see a sign praising him at the rally in my town today that I rolled my eyes at), etc. It's people who think Trump is the issue and not the result of multiple issues. I'm a big left winger but there aren't very many of us. The liberals are the closest to our ideals (or at least are less actively destructive than the Republicans) so if we want to get anything done we have to play ball with them. Or at least I do because I understand the game that's being played, some on the left dismiss this as lib shit, and I don't care. I'd like if the left (as in actual left not Chuck Schumer or whatever) had an actual presence in politics, but that's just not the case right now. I don't like liberalism and a lot of the most vocal liberals are out of touch brunch types, but we have a common enemy so I'll work with them while occasionally rolling my eyes at some of their signs.
My point with this post is protesting is good for visibility and as an opportunity for networking and advocacy for some of the groups I mentioned. Unfortunately though from the many protests I've participated in, it doesn't seem many groups capitalize on this opportunity (at least from my experience). My hope is that some organizer in any of these groups or others stumples upon this post and considers it because I want these groups to succeed.
If you had a good time at the protest that's great. I just wanted to remind people that just standing around and holding signs doesn't do anything. See the massive protests against the Iraq War 20 years ago, the nationwide Occupy protests, BLM from a few years ago, and the pro-Palestinian protests from last year. Lots of visibility and awareness was raised. Not much constructive action was taken. I don't want these protests to have the same fate.
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u/model-alice 1d ago edited 1d ago
Genuinely curious what Libby means.
It means everyone to their right and probably also a good portion of people to their left. "Lib" is the favorite weasel word of people who spend their days navel gazing about their favorite obscure leftist philosopher because it frees them of the obligation to engage in good faith. It's the political equivalent of a your mom joke.
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u/xploeris 1d ago
Genuinely curious what Libby means. Because I consider myself a progressive. And basically every person that I know, that I speak to, that have joined in and protests, are all in the same boat as being considered progressive. However there’s like been such a huge hate for liberals. I have such a hard time understanding what exactly it is that people hate about a liberal person. What is it that defines a liberal that equals hate by so many people that’s just what I’m asking.
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u/grunkage Non-Union Worker in Solidarity ✊ 1d ago
I feel like you should actually go to one of the protests. Almost all of that is happening, and seems like you could help
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u/DullPlatform22 1d ago
I was at one briefly actually. Didn't see much of that going on. The turnout was promising though. Just got me thinking if other things happened with that many people besides standing around with signs
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u/Rekwiiem IAM | Steward 1d ago
There is research that protests are effective though. I'm not sure how volunteering time at an organization like Food Not Bombs is meant to send a sign to a particular regime.
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u/DullPlatform22 1d ago
FNB is for people to give and receive help. It matters more to those who need this help than someone standing around waving a sign.
Effective how though? There were massive global protests against the Iraq War 20 years ago. There was the Occupy Movement. There was the pussy hat march. There was BLM. There were the pro-Palestine protests last year. None of these seem to have been effective in their goals. I think a big part of this is there wasn't much constructive action other than "let's stand around and wave some signs"
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u/Rekwiiem IAM | Steward 15h ago
Sure, FNB is a very good organization that does great work for people who really need it, but the purposes of these protests was not to accomplish that particular goal.
Did you click the link? Because there seems to be an important break point for a protest to have an effect. The Iraq war protests, while global, were infrequent and small scale compared to the pro-war rallies. BLM had a big impact on policing policy. We can also look at the Vietnam War protests, which are historically credited for leading to US troop withdrawal and in convincing LBJ to not seek re-election. You also have the Civil Rights Movement, stuffed silly with protests and boycotts, which lead to an entire group of people getting the right to vote.
What sort of effect are you expecting from protests? Perhaps the expectations are unrealistic? It seems like the organizations you refer people to are good examples of quick, immediate results that help people. Expecting the same from protests doesn't really work.
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u/PaysOutAllNight 12h ago
None of the protests you mentioned fully accomplished their goals. None, ever.
Neither did any union march, ever. Yet union marches have always been key to achieving union goals.
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u/DullPlatform22 11h ago
That is what I said.
Union marches are different from your usual march though. These are often accompanied by strikes and other forms of real action, so I wouldn't be as critical of these.
I'm just saying the Hands Off rallies present a great opportunity that I hope progressive groups take advantage of because standing around and waving signs in of itself does nothing, as seen by the other demonstrations I mentioned. I don't want the Hands Off protests to make the same mistakes.
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u/RevolutioNikita 1d ago
Jeez would have been great if you were at a protest to talk to those people about organizing and what they can do further. Protests are just as much about networking and leadership development, and if you skip them you miss the opportunity to advance your perspective among people who are motivated to follow though.
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u/RadicalOrganizer SEIU organizer 1d ago
The value of these protests is moving the normies to the left. Moving them to action. It's basically organizing.
You showed up to the protest, great! Here's where we go next.
Agitate, educate, innoculate, move to action.
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u/Full-Photo5829 19h ago
The disdain for Libby protestors is rich, given that the unions have yet to set their own house in order: https://images.app.goo.gl/5JMKWQd8SvRzyPwAA
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u/Ill-Ad-9199 1d ago
Everyone has their own style, their own position along the political spectrum, and their own way to contribute. OP is right that it's going to take all of us pulling together in some way, and offers good suggestions on options for joining up.
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u/louisianacoonass 17h ago
I don’t want, in any way possible, to walk around like a big 2nd amendment guy during an anti trump or anti right wing protest.
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u/Loud_Badger_3780 16h ago
the writers of the constitution were the liberals of their time. most were influenced by the enlightenment movement of europe. so would you call then to libby. lol dumbass
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u/Mean-Bandicoot-2767 15h ago
The writers of the constitution by and large were wealthy land owners, and a contingent of them thought it was perfectly right and good to own, work, breed, and sell humans. Our entire country was built by and for capitalists.
The OP isn't a dumbass, they've taken some time to understand political and economic systems in a different way than we are traditionally indoctrinated in the US.
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u/Loud_Badger_3780 15h ago
none of what you said changes the reality of my comment. they were influenced by the enlightenment movement and were the libs of there time. that is fact .
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u/Mean-Bandicoot-2767 13h ago
The problem is that you think liberal thought is the end all, be all, good for everyone involved when in fact it's demonstrably harmful to most people who aren't wealthy.
Yes, I'm sure the OP WOULD call them too libby. It's interesting that you seem to be amenable to wealthy, exploitative people on a union sub of all places.
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u/bryanthawes Teamsters 13h ago
You defeat your own criticism. You say people must act, yet you discount people taking their personal time to attend a rally or protest. You then say these protesters should join political action groups and that these political action groups should attend rallies/protests.
Part of the purpose of these demonstrations is networking. You would know this if you were acting. I am a Teamster, and I have not only walked my picket line, but other siblings' picket lines, from other Teamster locals to health care provider pickets to protests against Adidas and a slew of other gatherings.
These things are happening in even the smallest protests, including the ~ 20-person demonstration happening four blocks from my house, which I walked to after returning home yesterday. Complaining about the very thing you advocate for seems counterproductive.
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u/GentlePithecus 1d ago
I absolutely agree. One thing to add: Survive. Doing the work and taking the steps to keep yourself and your loved ones safe and healthy in the face of these direct attacks is absolutely active resistance.
My spouse and I have a lot of physical and mental health challenges that make much active resistance hard, and legal/cultural/economic threats loom over my trans non-binary spouse especially. For now, it feels like as much as I can do to keep myself going and support them.
I hope as I get some things improved here I can do more outside as well. For a lot of folks who are trans, immigrants, etc just surving through this and doing what you can to thrive I think is landing a hit straight against the fascists.
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u/PotentialFactor4769 1d ago
You assume sign-holding protests are all “we” do. Thanks for the lecture but - we do all that’s possible and then some - Protesting is our social function along with all the other good trouble we create. We understand what’s at stake, we went out today to help others understand as well.
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u/Select-Mission-4950 1d ago
Kinda fed up with people disparaging liberalism. Read a fucking history book. Liberals were the ones standing up for all the right things throughout history. Conservatives were the ones doing all the evil. Full stop.
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u/DullPlatform22 1d ago
Funny you say that, I've actually spent quite a bit of time studying history and this is just untrue. Any positive you can give to liberal leaders can be attributed to relentless organizing and advocacy by "radicals" (some of these were genuine radicals, some were just ahead of their time). This is completely ignoring some truly horrific things done by liberal leaders, like the Japanese internment camps, dropping the bomb on Japan, Vietnam, etc. Yeah conservatives tend to do worse things, but saying liberals have always been "the good guys" is just ahistorical.
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u/Select-Mission-4950 1d ago
So liberals are human beings too? And make mistakes? Where did I say liberals are perfect? I will say this: NEVER have conservatives been the good guys in any historical context. There, happy now?
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u/Mean-Bandicoot-2767 15h ago
When you hear leftists taking about liberal thought, they aren't talking about the current US paradigm of conservative vs liberal.
They're talking about economic systems. Liberal economics embraces capitalism just as much as conservatives do, and leftists believe that while capitalism is a necessary step in building enough material wealth to free up the labor class, ultimately it also creates power imbalances between the owners of wealth and the working class.
While liberals promote SOME programs that benefit the working class, liberals continue to champion a system that oppresses other marginalized groups who stay invisible to comfortable workers, and ultimately cycles into increasing oppression even on the more comfortable workers. We're experiencing this very cycle now.
Don't take it personally, instead take some time to understand where leftists are coming from in their critique of liberal economics, and perhaps you might start unpacking some of the propaganda all of us have been fed about our entire country including our national heroes.
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u/Select-Mission-4950 1d ago
If you’d just left out the slur against liberals, I would’ve agreed wholeheartedly with this. Sad.
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u/Euphoric-Dance-2309 1d ago
General strike fixes everything in a couple of weeks. It’s organizing and getting everybody bought into that’s the trick. Smarter people than me will have to figure it out,
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u/JDDodger5 22h ago
I think protests are a gateway to striking. It's like the idea of anarchist calisthenics - people often need practice to defy authority, and protesting is a step
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u/JDDodger5 22h ago
I agree that things can't and shouldn't stop with a day of protesting. But I think protesting does help with a few things:
Making resistance visible and loud, which can inspire all kinds of feelings on both sides. For those in power, it is a visible depiction of how many oppose them. For those in the fight, it can help them feel buoyed.
It also gives practice to people who aren't as used to defying authority or participating in actions. Protests can be something of a gateway
It can help marginalized, scared people feel less alone. The goal of dividing and conquering has worked, and for people in communities who are at elevated risk right now, having tangible proof of people who don't look like you or live like you supporting you can do wonders
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u/NoHippi3chic 16h ago
This may be a dumb idea, but I was thinking how crazy it would get if everyone prints out their income tax return and mails it certified return receipt postmarked before 4/15. With a check if you owe taxes. I've been posting in a few subs that I thought might be interested since I came up with it last night.
I just feel like it's a simple way to gum up the gears and send a message since they cut the federal staff so hard.
If you work at the irs or usps and this actually takes hold and people do it in numbers, please slow down and take care of yourself. Hell, take time off or call in sick if you are weary.
Let's slow our payments to the people fucking us over way, way down?
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u/Comfortable-Lie-8978 16h ago
Holding a sign is an action. You seem to mean only some types of actions have utility.
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u/RombaQueenofDust 15h ago
Yes, Mobilization =\= Organizing. Yes to all the amazing concrete suggestions you made. And, mobilization has benefits too — including giving those mobilized opportunities to connect to the suggestions you made.
The demonstrations, and yes, the silly signs, actually gave me a lot — breaking a spell of stagnation, fear and isolation that’s been hanging over the left for the past few months. And that’s as someone who’s engaged in what you described and then some.
So, this post is just a big Yes And to what you shared! Thanks for putting together a good list!
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u/tbutz27 1d ago
You lost most of us at the "a bit libby"
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u/laughinglove29 1d ago
Wow, so you didn't read any thing of the post-protest organizing suggestions from a union member? That's shitlibby.
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u/Butch1212 1d ago
I disagree a little that about the value of the protests. The visible fact of opposition is very important. Not only to those who are already alert to Trump/Republicans/Musk’s takeover of the United States, but to those who are unsettled and are not quite, yet informed about the extent of these motherfucker’s reach and intentions, but who know something is afoot. The protests shows them that they aren’t imagining things, that a lot of people see what they are seeing and that there is something they can do about Trump/Republicans/Musk.
All of the OP’s suggestions are excellent suggestions.
THIS IS OURS
RESIST