Monday, May 1st, 2006

A Day Without Us


The border crossed us.

No work today. And I just want to send a big middle-finger to all the fake “we’re concerned about a backlash” pseudo-liberal apologists. You sure weren’t that concerned before.

posted by @ 1:50 pm | 4 Comments



4 Responses to “A Day Without Us”

  1. Anonymous says:
    May 1, 2006 at 3:35 pm

    And one from me, too!

    Why should they be concerned. Won’t affect them. It’s like the word “solidarity” never even crossed their mind.

  2. ronnie brown says:
    May 1, 2006 at 4:36 pm

    “The border crossed us”…which is a roundabout way of saying: “he who holds the gold, rules”.

    It is a mistaken notion for immigrants to feel as if they are indispensable to the nations economy. In this NAFTA/robber baron economy, ALL workers are expendable. Where was the “justice for janitors” (the unionized Black men and women) who were kicked to the curb to hire immigrant labor at HALF the wages and NO benefits???

    Employers love a docile, desperate labor pool; and if perchance the entire population of immigrants were eventually granted citizenship, they would naturally press for union membership, better wages, better conditions…and if that happened, guess what?

    They would be replaced BY ANOTHER DESPERATE IMPOVERISHED IMMIGRANT POPULATION!

    and thus the cycle continues…

    We’re not seeing the big picture. “Immigrants” from Haiti and the Dominican Republic are flooding the shores Jamaica, the Bahamas, Puerto Rico to escape from NAFTA-imposed poverty; “Immigrants” from Africa crossing the Sahara desert to get to Europe by way of Spain to do the same.

    This is a global phenomenon.

  3. Jeff says:
    May 1, 2006 at 5:00 pm

    the dominant liberal frame–in fact, the dominant media frame period–in this debate centers around the question of citizenship–which you and many others have i think correctly criticized here in this blog in the past.

    but i think the idea of “the border crossing us” not only reminds us of the imperialism that led to this moment–one great speaker today related guadalupe-hidalgo to the bayonet constitution in hawai’i, for instance–but it calls into question the idea of borders both in the way capital functions as well as the social movements from the bottom–for recognition, rights, unionization, etc–that resist it. yes, you are right, the issues–and such “solutions”–absolutely are global.

    i also think that you don’t always begin mass social movements from such nuanced kinds of analysis. (see: mlk in ’68, right?) you start where the people are at.

    i worked with justice for janitors in dc many years ago, and what you are discussing was a crucial point to bring blacks and latinos (dominicans, mexicans, nicaraguans, and salvadorans) together in the campaign. but it wasn’t always a line that you got a union card with. that often had to come later.

  4. ronnie brown says:
    May 1, 2006 at 8:33 pm

    If we don’t demand a more nuanced, comprehensive analysis of this immigration issue, it’s going to be sidetracked. This is not about proving ones “loyalty” to the work ethic or “worthiness” to receive the gift of American citizenship; it’s about the growing influence of Corporate capitalism perverting democracy and undermining National sovereignty (“borders”)…they have the power to determine what regions of the globe that are going to be consumers and those who are going to be low wage grunts; all in the name of spreading the gospel of “free trade”…

    the dictionary definition of Babylon…

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