December 10, 2014
By Thomas Mackell
Washington, DC – We Need Your Suppport on December 16, 2014 – Boston Tea Party Anniversary. This is a planned National Day of Spending.
Please join our Pro-Democracy campaign to send the message that Americans need good jobs with living wages and a real path to health and retirement security, an equitable student loan program, pay equity for women and an intelligent dialogue on the impact of automation in the workplace that will result in effective training opportunities for those who are displaced.
Globalization, off-shoring, down-sizing and automation have driven down the number of good jobs and the American workers' wages, benefits and working conditions.
Every single day workers are in jeopardy of losing their jobs and working families' futures are threatened. State legislatures are gutting collective bargaining rights, right-wing interests are using the courts to cripple unions financially and teacher tenure is under fire.
The erosion of health care coverage and retirement income security has left so many retirees vulnerable to economic disaster. The threat to privatize Social Security and to erode the Medicare program has created a great deal of angst. Pension stripping, tax inversions by turncoat corporations, sky-rocketing student loan debt for college students and other attacks on workers has reduced them to being a mere commodity.
Most Americans have no idea just how unequal our society has become. Unfortunately, today 's political balance rests on a foundation of ignorance and confronting extreme inequality has not been an election-winning issue.
How do we fight back? Stop and think of what we could accomplish if we withheld our spending for one day. How would that effect the bottom line?
Non-caring employers, conservative multi-billionaires, right wing politicians and conservative think tanks are all determined to wipe out the middle-class and to do away with the unions that represent American workers.
The dignity of work as well as the dignity of workers is abominable.
Organized labor, religious and community leaders over the last several decades have engaged in a multitude of ways to fight those who have destroyed the American workplace and workforce. Tactics like membership mobilization, communications campaigns, coalition building with community groups and religious leaders, political action and strategic campaigning and organizing campaigns have been used to fight off the enemy. The gains have been minuscule and labor unions are moving towards extinction.
Religious and community leaders have fought diligently to help those who are in the "shadows" of society.
Yet, we attend meeting after meeting expressing our frustration to successfully accomplish our goals and objectives with only small gains towards providing a decent life for all Americans.
We are in the eleventh hour and falling behind. Therefore, I would suggest a proposal to stand up and FIGHT BACK and re-build worker power and restore dignity to the workplace.
The workers are suffering and totally perplexed about how to deal with their economic malaise and families are exceedingly hard pressed.
Elected leaders who might be pre-disposed to helping working Americans are also hard-pressed to initiate public policy that will ease the collective pain.
The best way to send a message to elected leaders, corporate leaders and others who control this Nation's vast capital is to organize a National Day of Non-Spending (NDNS).
Namely, any American who feels disenfranchised by what has transpired economically for decades should commit to withhold their spending and not buy a product or service or use a credit card for one designated day.
A review of the potential of this public outcry could include the following number of organizations that would be encouraged to take this initiative seriously. I call upon these organizations to support this campaign.
Their members alone could make a profound statement by embracing this campaign.
AFL-CIO 11.5 million members
SEIU 2.3 million members
IBT 1.4 million members
NEA 2.5 million members
PBAs & FOPs .5 million members
Carpenters .5 million members
Religious Congregations 25 million
Community Organizations 25 million
University Students 20 million
Alliance of Retired People 3 million
AARP 40 million members
TOTAL: 135.5 million Americans (Potentially)
Gallup Polling tracks daily the average dollar amount Americans report spending or charging on a daily basis, not counting the purchase of a home, motor vehicle or normal household bills. The three day rolling average is approximately $85. Even anticipating 100 million people withholding their spending would equate to $8.5 billion for the day. This could be staggering by adding family members who support their loved ones and their neighbors and by tapping into social media.
The economic impact would be overwhelmingly significant and have an affect on financial markets, corporations' profits, the Federal Reserve, the President, members of Congress, banks, credit card companies, Chambers of Commerce and the general public to name a few. We would get their attention.
This is the 21st Century answer to pitting capital against capital.
THE PEOPLE WILL HAVE SPOKEN!
If the first one day of non-spending does not accomplish a significant response to workers' concerns, then another day, the following month would be set and continue this until the unenlightened employers of workers recognize their frustrations.
It is time to restore the "American Dream" for all Americans and deal with the unpatriotic behavior of so many of those in power. We urge you to stand up and be counted.
Let's not let this moment slip through our fingers like sand passing through time.
If you will support this campaign please contact me at the following email address and indicate the number of people that you could potentially mobilize for December 16, 2014:
