Soundz of the South (SOS) Slam – End unemployment and poverty: end the state and capitalism
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Tuesday June 21, 2011 21:45 by Soundz of the South - SOS
The reason why millions and millions of people, especially young people, are
unemployed and live in poverty in South Africa is because of the capitalist
and state systems. Capitalism and the state lead to all sorts of problems
including unemployment, inequality and the oppression of workers, women and
people of colour.
Invite to Soundz of the South (SOS) Slam
End unemployment and poverty: end the state and capitalism
Place: Lookout Hill, Khayelitsha, Cape Town
Date: Saturday, 25th June 2011
Time: 1pm
End poverty and unemployment
The reason why millions and millions of people, especially young people, are
unemployed and live in poverty in South Africa is because of the capitalist
and state systems. Capitalism and the state lead to all sorts of problems
including unemployment, inequality and the oppression of workers, women and
people of colour.
Unemployment and poverty are part of capitalism. Anarchists always said that
while workers produce all the wealth under capitalism; through the wage
system and the law, this wealth is stolen by the ruling class - made up of
the rich and politicians. It is this theft that causes poverty. So while the
rich and politicians own almost everything, including the land and
factories, most people end up owning almost nothing and are stuck in
poverty. It is this which also forces people to sell themselves as workers
to members of the ruling class: it is the only way they can survive. This
too allows for their continued exploitation - they get only a tiny amount of
what they produce in the form of a wage; while the boss and state takes the
rest as profit and tax. In effect, under capitalism, workers and the poor
are endlessly robbed. The state is then used by the rich and politicians to
keep this unfair situation in place - it is the state that protects the rich
and politicians and if people protest against how unfair capitalism is, the
state steps in to stop them.
People also become unemployed under capitalism because the ruling class hire
the smallest number of people possible, and force them to work very hard, to
make bigger and bigger profits. This means millions of people don't have
work because bosses want to cut costs by hiring only a few workers not
everyone. This means a strange situation is found under capitalism where
most workers are over-worked; while millions of other people are unemployed.
While we need to struggle for decent jobs and against poverty today, we also
need to realise that the state and capitalism are the root causes of these
evils. As such, the struggle against unemployment and poverty needs to be
based on the goal of changing the economy from capitalism to socialism. If
unemployment and poverty is to be ended all wealth would have to be
socialised. Only when there is social property - where everything is owned
by everyone -can unemployment and poverty be ended. We also need to change
the economy to meet the needs of all - like decent housing, public
transport, food and clothes - and not make profits. Only then will all
people have work as the long hours and forced hard work that lead to
unemployment would no longer be a built-in part of the system. Only when we
produce for need will poverty be ended and the conditions that lead to the
oppression of the working class, women, and people of colour ended. To get
to this world, however, workers need to take over the factories, socialise
wealth and get rid of bosses. Only then, along with planning from below via
direct democracy, can everyone run the economy to end poverty, and only then
will be in a position to share all wealth.
To do so, however, we need to get rid of the state. The state protects the
politicians and rich; not us. It is hierarchical centralised, and
oppressive. Under all forms of states, a small group of people rules while
most people have little or no say and are punished if they are seen as
stepping out of line. States cannot end poverty, unemployment and
oppression; rather their role is to force people to accept these evils. We,
therefore, need to replace the state with direct democracy, using federated
assemblies and community councils, where everyone can be involved and have a
direct say. Only under stateless socialism - anarchism - will we end
poverty, unemployment, and only then will everyone be free.
Join us at our Slam on Saturday
Artists will be performing, there will be an open mic, and we will be
holding a discussion on how we can organise to take the fight to capitalists
and the state to win decent work, and build towards ending oppression and
injustice.
For more info about the Slam or to be part of SOS, and the fight for
freedom, contact: 073 212 1444
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