Multitasking the Class War

Can the goals of class war and identity politics be mingled into a common political movement that speaks to the majority of people?

It now seems long ago since we've heard the chants, "No War but the Class War", yelled loudly from Occupy Wall Street activists, in New York city, throughout the United States, Canada, and around the world.  It was an inspirational time, when many believed achieving critical mass to influence radical change might finally be on the horizon. The movement was focused, on wealth inequality, the effects of hypercapitalism, and opposing globalization.

Like every social movement before Occupy, over time, attendance dwindled. Remaining participants erratically bounced from one issue to the next - protesting school tuition one week, and aboriginal issues the next. It's a rational assumption to believe solidarity given to various social identity groups might reignite a dying Occupy Movement, and help bring greater solidarity to the class war.  

It wasn't long after many "occupiers" recognized the emergence of what some call the "Oppression Olympics", where the value of your contribution, or the importance of issues, are appraised based on social identity and level of vulnerability. "The most vulnerable should have the loudest voice", became a common talking point within leftist activist circles. On the surface, this ideology is commendable and without insensitivity. Beneath, hidden tensions formed. Inclusive groups became exclusive. Tolerance was replaced with intolerance. And free speech was no more. The Left were quickly becoming the demons they claimed to oppose. 

"They only call it class warfare when we fight back"

We live our lives in a convergence, where class and identity cross. “Identity” are distinct social categories,  involving race, gender, religion, sexuality, disabilities, or similar factors. “Class” involves economic factors, including wealth, education, elitism and income inequality. For many people, identity has become what defines their relationships with the state and society. and when identity serves as the basis for one’s political beliefs, it manifests into division, rather than promoting working-class solidarity.

In the book “Mistaken Identity,” writer Asad Haider argues that contemporary identity politics is a “neutralization of movements against racial oppression” rather than a progression of the grassroots struggle against racism.

“The framework of identity reduces politics to who you are as an individual and gaining recognition as an individual, rather than your membership in a collectivity and the collective struggle against an oppressive social structure,” Haider writes. “As a result, identity politics paradoxically ends up reinforcing the very norms it set out to criticize.” 

The inevitable outcome of identity politics is that everyone ends up in a class of one. And that is a vulnerable class to be in.

In recent years politicians across the spectrum recognized the value of identity politics, and how to weaponized it for electoral success. Improved targeting of voters in specific social groups is an obvious benefit. Often the Left will use identity politics simply to virtue signal their moral self-righteousness, while attempting to demonize the opposition. Mainstream media quickly jumped on the bandwagon, creating daily doses of outrage for their audience - effectively replacing quality investigative journalism with emotionally triggering click-bait. 

Trump was elected president by weaponizing his flavor of identity politics. He also used nationalism and populism, which resonated with many working-class Americans who felt abandoned by the left. However, the tipping point was the arrogance of the Democratic Party during 2016 election. They stole the primary from Bernie Sanders, treated Trump like a worthless underdog, and his supporters like a "basket of deplorables", as Hillary Clinton so elegantly stated. 

It should have been obvious to any campaign manager this was not a recipe for success. There have been numerous surveys taken about why people often root for the underdog, and most of them show that more than two-thirds of the people vote for the underdog. People root for the underdog because of a phenomenon known as schadenfreude - "where rather than feeling sympathy towards someone's misfortune, schadenfreude evokes joyful feelings that take pleasure from watching someone fail."  Many voters wanted Hillary and the Democratic Party to fail. 

Politics in America hasn't been so dramatically polarized since the late 1800's Civil War - evidence to the divisiveness of contemporary identity politics.  Many argue the tensions between identity and class may be irreconcilable, and Influences including globalization, reduced economic opportunities and deepening inequality will further intensify the crisis. The Left has no choice: If it wants to win back the confidence of the laboring classes, which have felt abandoned and alienated these past few years, it must put the working class back in the forefront of its goals. 

Multitasking identity politics, the class conflict, and the "climate emergency", is unlikely to be a winning platform for the Left in upcoming elections. Only a united working class can provide the critical mass necessary to confront the establishment and tackle the most important issues of our time.