CREATIVE AND CULTURAL WORKERS OR WRECKERS?
By Mphutlane wa Bofelo (via Facebook)
No workers in any sector anywhere in the world who take themselves seriously would heavily rely on the resources, processes and structures of government – which is both an employer and a legislator\ regulator (and arbiter) of the relations and conditions of employment – in organizing themselves to address issues related to the conditions of employment and their living conditions.
However, in South Africa (Azania), creative workers and cultural workers see no problem in having the government play a central role in facilitating a federation ostensibly aimed at addressing their needs, challenges and issues; and some of them see no contradiction in cultural activists publicly endorsing and campaigning for political parties and\or being the faces of particular political and corporate campaigns.
What mainly account for this is a lack of working-class consciousness, particularly the elitist, petit-bourgeosie proclivities and bourgeoisie aspirations of the people who involved in the knowledge industry and in creative and cultural work.
The desire of the knowledge, creative and cultural workers to differentiate themselves from the urban proletariat and landless peasants who eke for a living in sectors such as mining, industrial, manufacturing, agriculture, clothing, cleaning, security and domestic work makes them vulnerable to cooption by capital and the state.
The reality is that most of the cultural workers and creative workers are aspirant corporate elites and phony social elites; and some of them fancy themselves as or aspire to be the political elites, either working as bureaucrats ( directors, CEOS, publicists etc) in state institutions or as political officials ( MEC’s and ministers, etc) or as ambassadors of international campaign that is pushed by the organizations that are part of the regimes and regiments of capitalist globalization and new imperialism such as the United Nations and all its caboodles.
You can notice this even the language that the people use.
If they are going to meet the person\company\department that they will be working for, for a day or so (yes, performing at an event means you are working for that organization on that day, they have employed you), they say “I have a meeting with a client”.
When they are going to be doing some work they say “I have an engagement” instead of I have a work or i’m going to work.
In short, we try so hard not be misconstrued as part of the "ordinary workers."
Our engagement with government is not to challenge the broad policy framework that facilitates super-exploitation in the industry in which we are employed or in which we eke a living and in all the other industries, but to beg for job opportunities in government. We bark so that mister government and big capital can shut our mouths with some chunk of meat.
‘Give us the gigs we will sing your praises”
“Help us to start a sweetheart union of creative and cultural workers because if you don’t the radicals might seize the moment and start a fighting movement of creative and cultural workers”
“ Give us the supper we will sing and move our hips for your eyes only”
This lack of working-class consciousness and genuine worker-solidarity make it easy for big capital and the state to screw us one by one. on campus for an example, when the cleaning and security staff etc are fighting for some cause, the academic and administrative staff see no evil, hear no evil and say no evil and the same applies to the students, and our singers, painters and poets are busy mating the bees and daffodils to care a hoot about what’s going on. And then the management starts to screw the students and the rest are silent, and then it goes for the academic staff and so on and so forth.
Workers of the World, Wake up!!!!!!
No workers in any sector anywhere in the world who take themselves seriously would heavily rely on the resources, processes and structures of government – which is both an employer and a legislator\ regulator (and arbiter) of the relations and conditions of employment – in organizing themselves to address issues related to the conditions of employment and their living conditions.
However, in South Africa (Azania), creative workers and cultural workers see no problem in having the government play a central role in facilitating a federation ostensibly aimed at addressing their needs, challenges and issues; and some of them see no contradiction in cultural activists publicly endorsing and campaigning for political parties and\or being the faces of particular political and corporate campaigns.
What mainly account for this is a lack of working-class consciousness, particularly the elitist, petit-bourgeosie proclivities and bourgeoisie aspirations of the people who involved in the knowledge industry and in creative and cultural work.
The desire of the knowledge, creative and cultural workers to differentiate themselves from the urban proletariat and landless peasants who eke for a living in sectors such as mining, industrial, manufacturing, agriculture, clothing, cleaning, security and domestic work makes them vulnerable to cooption by capital and the state.
The reality is that most of the cultural workers and creative workers are aspirant corporate elites and phony social elites; and some of them fancy themselves as or aspire to be the political elites, either working as bureaucrats ( directors, CEOS, publicists etc) in state institutions or as political officials ( MEC’s and ministers, etc) or as ambassadors of international campaign that is pushed by the organizations that are part of the regimes and regiments of capitalist globalization and new imperialism such as the United Nations and all its caboodles.
You can notice this even the language that the people use.
If they are going to meet the person\company\department that they will be working for, for a day or so (yes, performing at an event means you are working for that organization on that day, they have employed you), they say “I have a meeting with a client”.
When they are going to be doing some work they say “I have an engagement” instead of I have a work or i’m going to work.
In short, we try so hard not be misconstrued as part of the "ordinary workers."
Our engagement with government is not to challenge the broad policy framework that facilitates super-exploitation in the industry in which we are employed or in which we eke a living and in all the other industries, but to beg for job opportunities in government. We bark so that mister government and big capital can shut our mouths with some chunk of meat.
‘Give us the gigs we will sing your praises”
“Help us to start a sweetheart union of creative and cultural workers because if you don’t the radicals might seize the moment and start a fighting movement of creative and cultural workers”
“ Give us the supper we will sing and move our hips for your eyes only”
This lack of working-class consciousness and genuine worker-solidarity make it easy for big capital and the state to screw us one by one. on campus for an example, when the cleaning and security staff etc are fighting for some cause, the academic and administrative staff see no evil, hear no evil and say no evil and the same applies to the students, and our singers, painters and poets are busy mating the bees and daffodils to care a hoot about what’s going on. And then the management starts to screw the students and the rest are silent, and then it goes for the academic staff and so on and so forth.
Workers of the World, Wake up!!!!!!
"You can notice this even the language that the people use."...Quite!....Using language such as "a lack of working-class consciousness, particularly the elitist, petit-bourgeosie proclivities and bourgeoisie aspirations of the people" significantly reduces the number of people who will identify with you
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