As we approach the 2024 election in the U.S., there exists an overwhelming sense of unease and weariness that permeates American attitudes. Americans have seen all of what both the Democrats and Republicans can offer and it is falling very short of what is needed for most. The January 6th U.S. Capitol riots still loom high in the national consciousness as a distinct possibility for the new normal as the presidential election draws nearer. Joe Biden is running his incumbent election with one of the lowest approval ratings (41% support) in recent history, only beaten by his Republican counterpart Donald Trump.
Through its overwhelming support for Israel’s ethnic cleansing of Gaza or maintaining a lukewarm ceasefire approach in the best of times, the supposed “progressive elements” of the Democratic party have been shown to be farcical. The growing divide between the politicians and the American people is revealed for all to see with the mass demonstrations across American cities against U.S. imperialism which has also been reflected in the polls. In one poll, the majority of American participants (both Democrats and Republicans) called for a ceasefire while only 4% of lawmakers agreed.
This is all a symptom of the looming crisis of American capitalism which is clawing back all the gains that workers have fought for in previous decades. With inflation ravaging people’s wages, mega corporations constantly introducing mass layoffs – like those seen in United Parcel Service (UPS) and the tech world, where an eye-watering 260,000 jobs were cut in 2023 alone – people are mobilizing for meaningful change, reflected in the waves of strikes and unionization efforts from UAW, Hollywood writers and actors, and the Teamsters. Additionally, in a recent poll, 78% of the country’s parents feel that their children will be less financially secure than their own generation.
What do we do? We need a working-class alternative that is class-independent. This could have been achieved if Bernie Sanders (the senior U.S. senator) had broken from the democrats and run on a third working class party platform, but this never came to be. Looking at the history of Canada, the New Democratic Party (NDP) was born out of the class struggles of the 1930s and brought together Unions from the Canadian Labor Congress and socialists together for a working-class alternative.
This could also happen in the U.S. if we brought the unions together for a third party that was supported and funded by the unions. Someone like Shawn Fain, who is already widely supported by the working class in the U.S. could easily fill this vacuum and if not immediately elected this election cycle, would at least have started the process of creating a workers’ party for the next election cycle, when Trump or Biden become even more unpopular. This would give an actual option to the working class who have not had any substantial representation in political office since the 1930s and have continued to miss out on the substantial value they’ve generated since the 2008 housing crisis.
If we want a new solution in politics, we’re going to own it and break entirely from the two-party death spiral of the Democrats and Republicans. Vote blue no matter who is a spit in the face of the youth and workers who have had to endure greater privatization and wage cuts for the last decade. We need to spring onto the stage of history with our own working-class methods of solidarity and workers’ democracy. We need to break decisively with the political system of the employers to solve this polycrisis with our own workers’ democracy instead of just wringing our hands and doing performative online activism.
Edited by Amira Berdouk
I am a fourth year political science major interested in journalism and creative writing. I am also very interested in the labour movement and I try to write from the perspective of the labour movement and specifically what are the next steps to further the scope of the movement. I analyze current events and show how we can intervene in them to bring about a fairer society.