The fact that he doesn't stick to sports (and has an intelligent, progressive point of view) is one reason why I'm happy to support Craig Calcaterra's "Cup Of Coffee" newsletter:
Labor Day
Have you seen the special jerseys and caps Major League Baseball has rolled out for today’s Labor Day games? The ones — like the traditional Mother's Day, Father's Day, Memorial Day, and Fourth of July uniforms — that you can buy at the team store, the proceeds of which will go to help displaced and disabled workers?
Hahaha, of course you didn't, because such uniforms don't exist. Labor Day is the only in-season national holiday that gets no commemoration from Major League Baseball whatsoever. We don't even get a statement from the Commissioner honoring labor, organized or otherwise, despite the fact that the past half century of baseball history is inexplicably tied up with organized labor. And despite the fact that the league itself employs thousands of people, many of whom, like grounds crew and clubhouse staff, still have to work today even if we don't have fans in the stands. Some of those workers have to come in early, as five of the day's eleven contests are day games, which is unusual for a Monday. Which shows that it's not that Major League Baseball doesn't know it's Labor Day. They're perfectly aware of how it lends itself to getting more people to watch games. They just don't think it's worth commemorating much beyond that.
This is not limited to Major League Baseball, of course. It's a reflection of where we are as a society. The obliteration and demonization of the labor movement is one of the most successful political operations of the past 40 years. Organized labor makes up a smaller portion of the workforce than it ever has. Even a great many of the people who do the working in this country have bought in to the notion — propagated by those who profit from labor — that unions are tools of the communists and giving any lip service to the rights of workers is a suspect and even un-American pursuit. Good, secure jobs with good pay and benefits have come to be seen as rare luxuries for which it is rude to ask, let alone expect. What's worse: many workers themselves have adopted the language of the rich and powerful in this regard, having been convinced that their need to hustle harder than they used to in order to make less in real dollars than they used to is somehow a good thing.
I'm not sure what to do about that, but even if the devaluation of labor is bound to continue, there is no reason why baseball cannot at least commemorate and acknowledge a national holiday devoted to laborers the way in which they acknowledge other holidays. Especially given that workers have died for our country. The roads, bridges, buildings, and mines, and services which have made this country what it is were paid for in part with workers' lives and continue to be. Labor built this country. The labor movement has saved lives that would have been lost and has elevated the standard of living of families. But baseball has no plans to mark the occasion apart from scheduling some extra day games.
Maybe a special cap or jersey isn't a big deal and maybe such symbolic gestures wouldn't make a difference. But our values are revealed in both our substantive and our symbolic gestures. And it's regrettable that the quintessentially American institution of baseball can't find time to give even a nod to the men and women who form the figurative foundation of American society and built the literal foundation of America itself.
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As noted above, Labor Day ain't just about a day off and some cookouts. It's about honoring the working class, their struggle against the bastards who would keep them down, and the work necessary to make their lot a better one. If you're interested in reading stuff about that history and that struggle, Haymarket Books has you covered. Go check out their Class War Reading List. And no, this is not a sponsored link or an affiliate link of any kind. They feature the work of writers whose work I believe in and who I'd simply like more people to read.
Thank you for this. And thank you Craig Calcaterra!
ReplyDeleteThe roads, bridges, buildings, and mines, and services which have made this country what it is were paid for in part with workers' lives and continue to be. Labor built this country. The labor movement has saved lives that would have been lost and has elevated the standard of living of families.
ReplyDeleteAnd PS the decline of the labour movement and the imminent collapse of the American middle class are not coincidental. Unions made the middle class possible.