To strike is to refuse the melodrama
To strike: scioperare in Italian, “from the Latin exoperāre, from ex- + operō.”
“Ex: out, away”
“Operō: work”
Simple, in some ways. To strike is to walk away from work. But if we dig a layer deeper, some other meaning can be derived.
Looking still at the relationship between Latin and Italian, operō gives us “opera.” Synonym for opera: “melodrama.” Ex- operō. To walk away from melodrama.
Not being a linguist (just an elementary student of Italian), I don’t know how scioperare evolved to have the prefix sci- from the Latin prefix ex- in exoperāre, but I know that words with the prefix sci- are about knowing. Scienza, conscienza, ecc.
So, from scioperare we can get to the following:
To walk away from work
To know work
To walk away from melodrama
To know melodrama
I love this association between “walking away” and “knowing” that I’m getting from the evolution of the ex- to sci- prefix. We can’t fully walk away from something without first knowing it, can we? Without knowing it, we can too easily replicate it, especially when it’s as pervasive as capitalism. This is on display all over social media right now.
Take, for example, the “influencer” who profited off selling an ad to Starbucks while simultaneously claiming to “boycott” Starbucks.
And we know she’s not the only one. This is part of the melodrama of the influencer era that is far less interesting than an opera, and so much more tragic.
The point of a strike is not to go viral on TikTok talking about striking. The point of a strike is not to momentarily inconvenience oneself in response to social pressure or self-inflicted guilt. The point of a strike is to make a coordinated effort to walk away from the business as usual that maintains violence.
Now, let me be honest: my commitments to the Palestinian call for a general strike are individual commitments, when what we need is organized collective action. At the same time, my actions this week are part of an ongoing effort to walk away from capitalism in whatever ways I can manage. For me, at this time, this looks like saying “no” to work that reinforces capitalist values. It looks like severing myself from fast-fashion e-commerce monopolies like Amazon and H&M and instead buying as much as possible from independently-owned stores. It looks like investing in independent news sources instead of warmongering platforms like the New York Times. These are all individual actions and they don’t have a lot of influence in and of themselves. But what if we all refused these things, all the time?
It might seem like everything I just named is a privilege. It often (though not always) takes more time to shop at independently-owned stores. It often (though not always) costs more. And I understand the argument of “what about all the people of color who work for Amazon!?” Sure. But why do they have to work for these toxic companies to survive? What life-giving structures might we create as part of our refusal of the way things are (e.g. spaces for people to get paid for expressing their creative talents or for caring for their communities or, hey, how about universal basic income with the billions—trillions?—of dollars funding genocide and militarism!)?
I actively grapple with whether sharing all of this is part of the melodrama. Am I just another actor on the stage of this tragic opera? Maybe. But this is where I’m at, ready to be pushed and prodded toward new and more strategic ways of scioperando.
Because as much as this is not about individual actions alone, every movement is made up of the actions of individuals. Both/And. So join a union or political organization. Start organizing your neighborhood association to pressure your representatives to call for a permanent ceasefire. Gather your workmates and make a list of demands for how you expect to see your company stand on the side of humanity. Take stock of how you are enmeshed in the melodrama of capitalism and refuse it!! Walk away from the opera and toward the tangible sacrifices that honor the humanity within you and our fellow beings. We are the generation and now is the time.
With care,
Alyssa
RESOURCE SHARES
My strike commitments, as potential inspiration for yours (this week and beyond):
Make a comprehensive list of corporations I have some investment (of attention/membership/use) in. Become conscious of how I’m enmeshed with this system to become more conscious of where I can de-enmesh.
So far my list includes: Google*, Meta, Verizon, Apple, Capital One*, Airbnb*
Continue contacting my representatives about my intentions to strike and to not vote for them if they do not use their power to demand a permanent ceasefire
Avoid non-essential purchases
Ask for an invoice to be paid next week and use cash to minimize banking transactions
Maintain consciousness of my internal narratives and resist capitalism’s tendency to activate scarcity mindset, urgency, and anxiety about financial matters. Maintain perspective that I am safe, when so many are not.
* These companies are on the lists of companies and banks profiting from the genocide of Palestinian people. Here’s two resources that can help you (us!) make a switch: Black-owned banks and green/ sustainable banks
I invite you to first consider 1 or 2 sacrifices you are able and willing to make at this time in support of Palestinian (and collective) liberation. Then use the worksheet below as a series of prompts and free-write responses to the questions that resonate with you. Share with someone who can help hold you accountable to your intentions.
