This week we were joined by Les Leopold, co-founder and Executive Director of the Labor Institute. Les, who is the author of several books on the financialization of the US Economy, including Runaway Inequality: An Activist’s Guide to Economic Justice, spoke to the role the ultra-rich, hedge funds and other financial institutions have played in exacerbating COVID-19’s impact, specifically on communities of color and poor communities. He covered the economic mechanisms these institutions use to extract wealth from our medical infrastructure, resulting in the severe lack of preparedness for public health disasters we are currently experiencing, and extreme inequalities in access to safe jobs, preventative care, and adequate treatment.
Les emphasized organizing across silos, talking to people in our workplaces who we don’t agree with about our shared interest in fixing these inequities, and building a mass, popular movement for economic justice.
If you are interested in workshops based on Les’ materials, campaigning around economic policies, like public banking, that can reduce runaway inequality, or in organizing campaigns that break down issue silos in your community, please reach out to WEC’s Public Need Program organizer Brandon Castro @ [email protected].
Please join us next Tuesday, December 15 @ 10am for Saving lives, Protecting Workers COVID update, The State of the State: COVID-19 Q and A with the Governor’s Office, DOL, and DOH. Register here.