General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: To the older folks at DU from a 20-year-old, about protests, confusion, and love for one another [View all]bvar22
(39,909 posts)you are fighting the same battle that our (great) grandfathers and great Uncles fought and shed blood for back in the late 20s and 30s....and MLK fought in the 60s.....the fight for economic justice.
This is a "movement" you have joined.
My generation did not do a good job protecting our grandparent's hard won rights.
The 80s generation did even worse.
The point I'm trying to make is that you have relatives. Fighting for Economic Justice is not a new thing.
It ebbs & flows, strong & weak....disappears and reappears with a different name,
but all the SAME movement.
OWS is directly related to the the Mine Strikers and Union Organizers of the early 1900s...
you are too.
Look to them for your strength and history of raw courage.
They are your family.
You will have to do your reading/ research outside the classroom,
because the War for Labor Rights has been "redacted" from our text books and classrooms.
We were lucky in the 60s. FDR gave us a list of goals:
FDR Economic Bill of Rights
Among these are:
*The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the nation;
*The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;
*The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;
*The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;
*The right of every family to a decent home;
*The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;
*The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;
*The right to a good education.
All of these rights spell security. And after this war is won we must be prepared to move forward, in the implementation of these rights, to new goals of human happiness and well-being.
[font size=3]America's own rightful place in the world depends in large part upon how fully these and similar rights have been carried into practice for all our citizens.[/font]
Please note that the above are stipulated as Basic Human RIGHTS to be protected by our government,
and NOT as COMMODITIES to be SOLD to Americans by For Profit Corporations.
There was a time in my memory that when we voted FOR The Democrat,
we voted for the above values.
Sadly, this is no longer true.
I'm too old and arthritic to join you in the streets, or wherever you take the fight,
but I will be with you, along with the Miners, Workers, and Strikers from History who demanded Economic Justice,
and GOT IT for a while.... until we let it slip away.
Good Luck to you and your generation.
I was very proud of OWS and its many accomplishments,
and I feel the same pride when I read OPs like yours.