The United States is changing ways that leave many people who are afraid. What can improve the chances of balanced power among the branches of government and promoting this to multi -system democracy? The answer is the organization of workers, say, Alex Khan and Tarso Luis Ramas. If we look at the history of turns from the democratic retreat to the democratic revival, the success level is usually about 50 percent, Ramos says. Where it is actively involved, the odds increase to more than 80 percent. So, what holds the labor?
I sat down with Ramos and Khan at a working class conference in the Age of authoritarianism, which took place at the New York Labor School of New York and City Studies in New York. Ramos is a leading expert on the rights and ancient former executive directors. He now performs the duties of the Senior Advisor Future FluCth, a strategic planning group of social and economic justice leaders. Khan spent decades in the working movement as the organizer and elected the president of the large Chicago local. In 2023 he became executive director In these timesProlonged progressive magazine based in Chicago.
Laura Flanders: How would you describe the situation in which we will now find ourselves?
Tarsus Luis Ramas: Drawing on the work of the Hungarian sociologist, who was popularized by M. Hessen (Balint Magyar), when we think about three stages of authoritarian acceleration – author’s attempt, breakthrough and consolidation – we have experienced several attempts in the United States, most famous or famous on January 6. We have attempted now; We are in a breakthrough. And my assessment is that we probably have 12 to 18 months to try to stop and prevent authoritarian consolidation, the conditions under which any honest person would say that we function under authoritarian mode. We are in the middle of two upheavals. The authoritarian bloc, presented by MAI with Christian nationalists and libertarians and sectors of the business community, and Christian law, which was his largest player that galvanized around the 2025 project. This is Elon Musk and Peter Til and Mark Andresen, who not only support those, but also at the other end of the game. They are not so much interested in a strong condition, through which you can promote the policy of authoritarian and pro-business, or just enrich themselves, although they enrich themselves. They are not interested in a nation -state. They are interested in making a profit from the public sector, and they are interested in accelerating civilian management.
LF: We are talking about authoritarian consolidation, but I would also like you both responding to the election results, which at least interpreted as showing that the working class of multi -troop people for Trump’s agenda is being strengthened. They just mistaken?
Alex Khan: We have a divided country in which the partisanship reflects a set of different cultural issues. No magic bullet that will move it. It is also that changes in the political coalition, the election coalition, these things are not gigantic shifts. These are gradual changes that can be pushed through. As people who are very involved in politics every day, we are not ordinary daily people. Changes and shifts of thinking that regular daily voters, especially those who are manifested every four years in the presidential election do not feel deep. There is this competition for a piece of electorate. There’s a competition for a piece of people who came out of the electorate. There is a dispute for people who have not yet entered the electorate. That’s what we have to think about.
TLR: Trump certainly benefits from the mass base. This is probably a consolidated 40 million block in the US, which is authoritarian, suggests that the implementation of political violence is quite legal to achieve its goals. He took advantage of the global phenomenon of the legitimacy of economic and political order. Far right parties such as BJP (Bharatiya Jonatia), the Hindu Fascist Party that rules India, at the Neoliberal Party, such as Macron in France, sending this country to a political crisis in terms of the ruling coalition. There was a certain level to “throw away homeless people”, which really helped Trump during this period of time.
For the preliminary point of Alex, 40 -percent coordination and fall – this is nothing to create a lasting regime. These figures will fall from the economic destabilization that causes the Trump regime. We are just beginning to really feel the effects of pulsation of food chains and mass firing and dislocations. They are going to create huge opportunities for us to organize. They are also going to create incredible incentives for repression. Both of these things are true. There are examples such as the United Democratic Front in South Africa. There were parts of the business community that joined it, not because they were interested in racial equality because it concluded that the apartheid was bad for business. You had a freedom charter in which 50,000 organizers were confused across the country. They collected people’s ideas and they prepared a vision of how they were going to improve the lives of all in this country when the apartheid was defeated. You had a positive vision, but then you had a mass coalition that gathered people who were in many cases antagonists.
LF: So are you here at the work conference, looking for such thinking and organization?
TLR: I will tell you one of the reasons for the work conference, if we look at the history of turns from democratic retreat to democratic revival, the success level is about 50 percent. Now it’s not scary. This means there is hope. But it’s a coin throwing. Where it is actively involved, the chances rise up to 80. Without the active central participation of the workers in the organizations representing them, we do not win. Or is it a coin or we do. And so I’m interested in winning.
LF: In these times focus largely on childbirth. Is that why?
Ah: I don’t think you can have democratic socialism, not organized workers who require more and creating democracy. Trade unions – with all their shortcomings – the largest democratic organizations with which virtually anyone in this country has experience. Organizations where you choose your leaders where you make a decision on this policy where you need to work, you do not choose who is in the union. This is the one who works in this place. I was thinking about the central membership of the Kilmar Abrega Garcia union in the form of this story.
LF: Steel worker. Steel worker who was –
Ah: Yes, a leaf metal worker –
LF: Stolen.
Ah: That’s right, which was abducted in Salvador. I do not think that such an answer would be the one he was not a member of the trade unions. And so that the tradition of mutual assistance and solidarity, as much as in some places these traditions were a little worn, I think these are things that can be restored. It was so inspiring when I saw a video from the National Trade Union Bidding Association, saw that the president said, “We should return my brother back,” and you saw everyone in the room get up and encourage.
LF: We may think about where these points may be before us or even visible today. I think about the book Grace Paley, (Huge) changes in the last moment. When the explosion of Chicago teachers got into the national consciousness, it was like a surprise that does not have a place. But obviously for the people who were in Chicago, this work has been going on for many years. So, one of the questions I have, Alex is what you are looking for?
Ah: You have all these different union members who trade contracts over the next few years. Some of the interesting places will be where the employees are on the move and the organization, and where it can be synchronization with some of the existing contracts and the potential strike over the next few years. You mentioned the Chicago Teachers Union. This is a project that does not happen without a democratic movement from the bottom up in this union, creating changes, changing the leadership and putting them on a combat basis. Over the past few years we have seen a new leadership in UAW really revive this union.
LF: How will each of you stop numb?
Ah: I think when it comes to Trump, it’s already so long that it is almost starting to just feel “again. It’s again.”
