This past weekend, Pace University in New York City hosted Left Forum, a massive meeting ground for academics and activists working toward systemic progressive change. While events like these can attract a segment of folks whose open-mindedness to pragmatic strategic thinking is somewhat limited, A New Way Forward was able to generate a lot of enthusiasm. Activists and intellectuals alike were excited about the “break up with your bank” concept—as we already know, there is great potential to tap into popular support for this idea.
The beauty of the move your money campaign lies in both its ideologically broad appeal and its ability to empower individuals in a real way. Proponents at both ends of our political spectrum strive to claim the virtues of responsibility and accountability as their own. These are the main principles animating the movement for financial reform. Only someone heavily invested in the perpetuation of a demonstrably corrupt, wealth-destroying regime could honestly oppose our goals.
Amid the diversity of voices at Left Forum—some espousing incrementalist reform, others radical structural change—one clear message stood out above the rest: a movement will not go anywhere without concrete steps for individuals to act upon. The plan to break up the banks offers this kind of direct path for people to use their own personal power. Participation in strong collective actions like this is instrumental in reigniting the sense of civic agency that has long been slipping away from the members of our republic. Inertia gained here can go a long way in combating the alienation so many of us internalize in this climate of broken politics.
There has been a declining faith in the country’s institutions. Chief among them, as a prior post on this blog highlights, is our federal government. We need to remind ourselves that institutions exist to serve people, not the other way around. The public trust has been broken, and it is up to us to hold the perpetrators accountable. There are only so many responses a sane person can have to the dizzying display of the financial system’s hubris and the government’s ensuing callousness. Some do nothing, joining a dispirited majority; some would rather argue over the best way to bring about the destruction of the entire financial system than work on innovative ways to make the current system more accountable; and others, particularly elected representatives who refuse to take bold action, seek to diminish the crisis and maintain the status quo. The only satisfying option, the only way to reassert control of a nation spinning out of control, is direct, concerted action.
A movement is growing. ANWF and like-minded groups are the vanguards of a decentralized effort to restore accountability and sanity to the political and economic forces that dominate our social structure. Striking directly at the institutions that have created such devastating harm while remaining unmoved by the consequences of their actions is our privilege and duty.
For those interested in further efforts to combat the insidious nexus of concentrated corporate wealth and our political system, I encourage you to learn about and join the Bull Moose Movement.
Archein