Social movements are crushed by capitalism

Only socialist principles will bring the radical change the world needs.

January 2nd: quite possibly my least productive day of the year. Still not properly caught up on sleep, still haven’t quite managed to remove the final traces of toxins from my system, and the enduring headache makes my mental capacity fit only for mindless scrolling. Corporations know our vulnerability peaks at this time of year, so my tired eyes are immediately hit by a wall of products in the ‘new year, new me’ starter pack; workout clothes in ostentatiously bright shades of happiness, those weird ionic water bottles that make your tap water that little bit more cleansing and revitalising, and of course a positive mantra journal to write about your newly transformed self. Slowly but surely, each advertisement coaxes you into making a purchase, eating up the Christmas money from your nan within a couple clicks - but it’s worth it, because you’ll use it all the time, right? It’s part of the new you.

I don’t mean to sound too cutting and sarcastic - I love new stationery and tupperware as much as the next person - but I can’t help but be reminded every time I see them that these adverts, offers, and products come from a bad place. It has been reported that 1 in 4 members of the public have experienced mental health issues, and the lack of funding and resources for mental health care has been subject to much scrutiny in recent years. This has led to much-needed discussion about mental health, helping to end stigma around the topic and encouraging people to seek help where it is needed. However, it has also attracted the corporate vultures, cleaning every last scrap of marketable meat off its bones and banking the profit.

Hoping to seek inspiration to rouse me out of my government-fuelled misery, I too browsed many an article about living well for 2019. But very quickly I became even more disheartened. A British Vogue article on how to “incorporate” wellness into your life in the new year (as though mental stability is something you “incorporate” into your outfit or a conversation at a leisurely lunch) told me I could seek happiness in kombucha drinks that cost over £4 for a 330ml bottle, or in a two hour “soul retrieval” session worth nearly £400 at the Mandrake Hotel. Back on the journals front, Hope House Press currently have a “Progress Not Perfection” diary retailing at £48. ‘Wellness’ has become the new black, and a very expensive shade of it too.

But it was only a matter of time before a price tag was put on mental health, as feminism, anti-racism, and LGBTQI campaigns have been spun into tools for commercial gain. Under neoliberalism - the individualistic, free market ideology popularised by Thatcher and Reagan in the 1980s - the world was seen through atomistic eyes. As such, in a society where there was no such thing as society (see what I did there), all social causes were watered down to concern your own wants and needs, deradicalising the sentiment behind them. Now weakened, social movements could be put out to the market and halted in their progress. This was clearly illustrated by Topshop’s recent decision to pull the promotional stand for the essay collection Feminists Don’t Wear Pink and Other Lies from their Oxford Street Store, as they felt it didn’t fit with their “creative standpoint”. The rest of the year they were more than happy to profit off relatively empty “future female” T-shirts, but any actual articulate expression of feminist ideas was a bit too scary and threatening to their corporate empire. This is a textbook example of the profit-fuelled, patriarchal, capitalist system preventing progress.

The other problem with the individualistic, consumer mentality is that it divides movements. Under the capitalist system there are many different forms of oppression, making experiences of the system different for different people. All women are adversely affected by sexism, but economically disadvantaged women lack the superior education and opportunities that come with wealth that might help women from affluent backgrounds to enter male-dominated spaces. Likewise, a white, queer individual will be in a stronger position in society than a queer person of colour. However, the farcical principle of equality of opportunity promoted by neoliberals argues that society works based on merit, and furthermore, that individuals are responsible for improving their own situation. This is why when you look at the gender pay gap, the difference is even starker between men and women of colour than white women, and why universities with a disproportionate number of privately-educated students often also accept a shockingly low number of non-white students. The capitalist system has always been rigged in favour of the white, straight, upper-class, cisgender men who set it up all those centuries ago; simply buying slogan tees and repeating “Britain is a meritocracy” will not somehow, as if by magic, ‘level the playing field’ and it is frankly ridiculous to suggest that it has.

So we need to cut out the capitalist crap and work on socialist principles. Common humanity will encourage people to see the similarities and shared injustices they possess with one another. This will create a united front, strengthening social movements with intersectionality that makes them a force to rival mass corporations. Strong public services that deliver effective healthcare and education, founded on core values of social justice and equality, will ensure the playing field is actually levelled this time, and all of society will prosper as a result.

Now, if you want to drink kombucha or wear a future female T-shirt, by all means don’t let me stop you - I too love a good social justice slogan. But until we dismantle the capitalist, racist patriarchy that solidifies societal barriers and diminishes radical ideologies to this season’s accessory, the slogan will be firmly confined to the fashion industry. As Audré Lorde said, “the master’s tools will never dismantle the master’s house”, and the strongest alternative set we can use lies within socialist principles.

#socialism #leftwing #anticapitalism #capitalism #freemarket #neoliberalism