the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
Dec 11, 2017
Women have rightfully been speaking up about powerful men and their sexual misconduct. The latest wave has hit national politics. In three days in December, three members of the U.S. Congress resigned.
Facing allegations from several former staffers, Representative John Conyers Jr., Democrat from Michigan, retired. Accused of harassment by several women, Senator Al Franken, Democrat of Minnesota, resigned. Upon revelation that he had asked two female staffers to bear a child for him, Representative Trent Franks, Republican of Arizona, resigned.
According to the Washington Post, three members of Congress all resigning in the same week hasn’t happened since 1861–right before the Civil War!
This wave of forced resignations is a further sign of changes churning this society. But this change is problematic for both Democrats and Republicans, because they have participated in and/or tolerated this kind of behavior for decades and more, so now they are scrambling to get ahead of the problem.
The two parties are different, each appealing to a different base. Each seeks its own ways to divert its own voters back into support for the party in time for the 2018 elections.
The Democratic Party has decided to display “zero tolerance” for sexual misconduct–once a scandal erupts. They want to show that they are not like the Republican Party, a party that supports Roy Moore and Donald Trump, both of whom have been accused of sexual assaults.
The Republican Party has also forced a few to resign. But at the same time, they will keep a few who can win an election–and in the case of Moore, to appeal to evangelicals by flat-out saying that a child molester is better than a “baby killer” who supports abortion!
Both political parties are jumping out to control and contain women’s anger. Their message to women? Focus on an election almost a year away from now.
Elections won’t stop the misogyny and racism that this system thrives on. Nor will any government or political party that supports capitalism.