This article originally appeared in COPAC’s Newletter No. 8 which is available for download here.

 

By Leah Hunt-Hendrix

 

For many who participated in Occupy Wall Street, the uprisings that took place in 2011 were part of a long tradition of using occupations to assert popular or worker control. During the economic crisis in Argentina, for example, workers took over factories, repeating a chant that had been proclaimed even earlier by Brazilian peasants who claimed their right to the land: “Occupy! Resist! Produce!” For many of us, Occupy was one moment in a history of struggle against privatization, deregulation, and the consolidation of ruling class power. And despite the fact that the fierce but fleeting flame of Occupy has become an ember, that struggle continues.

In the United States, much of the passion and energy that burst forth during 2011 has found expression in what is being called the “new economy movement.” This emerging movement is not primarily characterized by street protests and cries for change, but is composed of a very patient, determined, long-term vision of economic democracy. The belief is that political democracy is incomplete without shared and accountable control over the economy.

 

 

In some cases, this has taken the form of an emphasis on the structure of finance and corporation. The Working World (TWW), for example, is a fund that provides start-up capital for worker cooperatives, using an innovative model of finance that ensures a fair partnership between the lender  and borrower. In 2012, when Occupy was declining, TWW partnered with the workers of a Chicago factory previously known as Republic Windows and Doors, who had occupied their workplace several years prior. Together, they bought the factory at auction prices and have now converted it entirely to democratic control.

TWW’s model of finance does not week to maximize profits but instead makes finance subordinate to those who are attempting attempting to build up the real economy to meet the needs of communities. Ultimately, the idea is about finding ways to distribute wealth and power, not simply through redistribution after capital has been accumulated, but by redistributing ownership.

Organizations like The Working World are beginning to find each other and build together towards a shared vision. This past month, the New Economy Coalition, which is an umbrella organization for groups with a similar orientation, had its first convention to explore possibilities for a common platform. Progress is being made, but this movement faces two key challenges. First, it must correctly identify the dynamic between the economic and the political, between building alternatives outside of the political process and using the political process to achieve greater impact and scale. And second, it will be crucial to understand that activism for economic justice in the US cannot be achieved without taking into account the role of the US in the world and ongoing imperialistic practices. A truly just economy will have to be global.