The Opportunities Of A Worldwide Protest Season
Many nations are presently rocked with protests, as have many others. In spite of radical elements, these movements can generate great positive change, and must prevail.
Hello, friends,
Last week, while I was sick, we did a broad-spectrum update on a number of topics. In one of those updates, I talked about French protests fighting against President Emmanuel Macron’s unilateral change to the national retirement age (from 62 to 64).
Today, I want to dive deeper, given that a number of nations in the world are currently under the weight of these kinds of movements. After all, it’s these kinds of movements which shape social change and protect Progressive advancements when executed properly. I mean, Stonewall was an uprising - a riot, even! - and look where it got us.
Let’s Go Through The List - Starting With France.
Let’s continue on with the French. No strangers to street-level action, the French people are irate over their President raising the retirement age without so much as a parliamentary vote. It’s been a week, and let’s check in on some of the latest video out of France. Okay, so that’s not too awful, is it? Dumping a bunch of garbage in front of government buildings? Well, the firefighters have joined the protestors at a time when fires are kind of a thing that are happening in France - Sometimes to government buildings.
While I am a pacifist and generally do not believe in violence except as a matter of self-defense, it’s clear that the French people are ready to make life very uncomfortable - sometimes personally! - for those who would profit from them spending two more years working. They are adamantly committed to a 62-year retirement structure. And, to think, you have to be 67 to get full benefits in the U.S.. It’s impossible to look at this situation and not acknowledge that the French are simply more willing to fight for a better life than we are, at least in this area.
Of course, there are extreme right-wingers the world over ready to blame this on “wokeness.” No, I am not kidding. That underscores the risk that the far right in France, which has been tantalizingly close to power for some time, might co-opt this struggle and use it to swoop into power with the classic “simple solutions to complex problems” efforts.
In short: This is an example of a country’s people fighting back against a singular, harmful decision, but in such a way that the clarion moral good (“less years spent working” = “more years of life to oneself in old age”) is in danger of being overtaken by a toxic, regressive force.
How About Protests Elsewhere In The World? And Maybe Even At Home?
While not as flamboyant (pun intended), Britain just recently experienced a bit of a wake-up call to the power of its own people to work. Thousands of schools in the U.K. were closed, in full or in part, back at the start of February 2023 during a “Day Of Disruption” to demand better pay. Tens of thousands of junior doctors, among others, walked off the job over possible cuts to their National Health Services. This situation is still in flux, with many possible outcomes, but one thing is clear: Britons are going to fight for their healthcare and education in ways that we simply have not, as of yet.
Next on our list of countries facing protest movements: Israel. Israel is currently in the grip of months of protest over its new government’s plans to make changes to their legal system. Basically, newly re-elected Prime MInister Benjamin Netanyahu and his political party want to change laws regarding - surprise! - how Prime Minsters can be held accountable to the law. Remember, Netanyahu is under indictment for numerous crimes. Consider how ex-President Donald Trump was implicated in many crimes, but protected by Department Of Justice memos shielding him from being charged. Israel is (or, was?) better than us in that respect, and its people are fighting to remain better than us, tooth-and-nail, when maybe we should be fighting for ourselves.
Ahhh, but what have I been saying? There are those who are fighting in the United States. Every day, we have tiny protests that hardly make the corporate-owned news because, well, let’s face it, that might be inconvenient! Here’s an example of a larger one: Numerous LA schools were shut down because of a teacher strike just this week. Even in my area, just recently, Starbucks workers protested for better working conditions. The fight is happening. It’s even happening in State legislatures, such as where Nebraska Sen Machaela Cavanaugh is fighting to keep a bill aimed against Trans people at bay.
Thus-far, I’ve focused this article on “Western” countries, but the “West” does not deserve the only attention in the world.
One other country I must give credit to is Iran. Not it’s government, of course! That’d be madness! But rather the millions of brave protestors who have been fighting their government on women’s rights for months. They’re still going, even if they are slowing down. These people are brave as hell because unlike most “Western” governments, Iran’s is known for being exceptionally abusive.
Lastly, even South Korea is getting in on the act, with the Candlelight Movement For Transition To Victory hosting demonstrations. They’ve been fending off an attempt by the government to increase the standard working week to - no, I am not making this up - sixty-nine hours. They appear to have been rather successful, but that doesn’t mean they are done demanding concessions.
Protests Are Good.
These popular movements all have some kind of demand to maintain or even improve the conditions that people are living under. Whether it be a lower retirement age in France, healthcare spending in the U.K, governments bound by the law in Israel, education funding in the U.S., women’s rights in Iran, or work-week limitations in Korea, these movements are all designed to force the authorities in question - in these cases, governments - to respond to a popular demand.
The important thing to note is that these are demands that expand upon personal freedom and increase personal resources. They are not designed to withhold rights from any specific group, nor to establish rewards for a specific group. They are about equality, but also a better equality than already is being proposed to them.
While I certainly don’t believe burning buildings down is a good idea, far be it from me to tell someone who was just told, “You have to spend two more years of your life in the rat-race to retire,” without any vote being held by their elected leadership, that they don’t have the right to be furious.
I hope that these movements will demonstrate the power that the people have, and that the mal-aligned authorities will acknowledge that power and concede to the demands being made to reverse course and protect the social safety network as well as peoples’ rights.
Thank you for reading The Progressive Cafe. If this article has helped you, please consider signing up for our mailing list. This article is by Jesse Pohlman, a sci-fi/fantasy author from Long Island, New York, whose website you can check out here.