Through a lens of history Campaign 2012 presents a familiar tale of struggle between citizens and big business. The names have changed, but the storyline hasn’t. Campaign 2012 is an urgent fight by regular Americans to protect their freedom to live well. Here in Massachusetts, the fight centers around the race for Senate, Elizabeth Warren vs Scott Brown.
About a century ago a Tennessee woman named Florence Reece penned a song about her family’s struggle with the local mining concern. Florence’s husband was a union organizer, and he and his family were being terrorized by the local Sheriff who was on the company’s payroll. In her song, Florence asked her fellow citizens;
Which side are you on? Which side are you on?
It was a time when corporate America ran amok. Robber barons trampled workers in their race to have everything for themselves. Empires were built by a few while families like Florence’s went hungry. After The Great Depression, and wars, the barons were quieted. A new strong, middle class grew.
Today, modern-day barons hope to take us back to that 20th Century heydey. Now, it’s the Tea Party’s organization, Rupert Murdoch’s propaganda and the Koch Brothers’ money that are trying to tear down progress. Their results so far? Voter suppression. Citizens United. Weakened unions. A war on women. And an ominous beat: get rid of Medicare; end Social Security; abolish the minimum wage; and even weaken child labor laws.
Oh workers can you stand it? Oh tell me how you can.
Senator Scott Brown has a great smile and seems like everyone’s pal. Like George W. Bush, he’s certainly an effective candidate for the new 21st Century right wing. In reality, Brown is a Trojan Horse quietly placed in the living rooms of Massachusetts families by the robber barons of 2012. Don’t fall for the ruse. He’s not your friend. He’s not here to help you.
Scott Brown’s voting record in the Senate is appalling. He has repeatedly voted against middle-class tax cuts to protect tax shelters for the rich. On helping women workers fight for fair pay, he’s voted no. He’s voted to block assistance for unemployed workers again and again. He’s voted to make college more expensive. Brown is first in line to take away affordable health care from Massachusetts families. Brown knows this isn’t popular which is why he supports unlimited, anonymous corporate campaign spending and restrictions on voter registration programs for poor people in Massachusetts. All this, done with a friendly smile.
Don’t listen to their lies. Us poor folks haven’t got a chance unless we organize.
Elizabeth Warren is running a campaign to keep Massachusetts and America moving in the right direction—forward. For Warren, and for the Democratic Party, freedom means something very powerful. Freedom means being able to achieve your dreams, whatever they might be. For many, it might simply mean being able to get a good job. For all, freedom means having a fair shot at success, and a level playing field. This is everything Elizabeth Warren stands for, and this is what we need now in the US Senate to keep our economy and our nation moving forward.
To get there, Democrats must organize and work together. For our numbers can do far more than the millions of dollars we’re up against. The light of each and every one of us, brought together for one cause, can continue to be a beacon of hope that says to the rest of the world that freedom and democracy still prevail here.
This article also published on Attleboro Democracy Magazine
