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unhinged
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'in a plant closing struggle the movement may grow weaker rather than stronger as time goes on. when the closings in youngstown were first announced there were, in each instance, angry mass meetings at which young persons especially talked about chaining themselves to machines, or blowing things up. and in each instance there were fairly militant actions in the first days or weeks after the announcement...
the evidence suggests that, in the case of brier hill, the leadership waited too long. an impending shutdown prompts each affected person to think about his or her personal survival. try as one may to postpone the discussion of 'benefits,' and to concentrate on collective struggle against the shutdown itself, this requires an effort of will, endlessly repeated, against the fear which leads a person to ask, what will happen to me? as time goes on, collective outrage dims and personal survival takes over. the failure to produce a quick change in the company's decision leads to a mood of resignation and a focus on looking after oneself. the rhetoric of struggle is replaced by a rhetoric of benefits. since each union member is slightly differently situated with respect to the benefits available, the pain of the plant closing becomes privatized.' - staughton lynd
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180924
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