Thanks, Jamie. Oh my gosh, I just finished reading Setenta millas en el infierno, the Spanish translation of Caitlin Dickerson’s article on the Darien Gap. It’s utterly devastating, heartbreaking and soul-crushing. I’ve heard about it every time I visit family in Colombia, how it’s become a grim source of revenue for ex-guerrillas and ex-paramilitary groups.
Last year, a Venezuelan woman I know asked me for financial help to take that same route. She made it but not without enduring unimaginable hardships. She’s now working the midnight shift at a McDonald’s in New Jersey. She shared firsthand the harrowing stories of sexual abuse women face along the way.
It’s hard to hold on to optimism in the face of such relentless suffering, and that’s one of the reasons I keep turning to your newsletter, Jamie—to find some glimmer of direction or a path of action that feels meaningful. Thanks again for this space.
The persistent challenge within capitalist systems is their reliance on suppressing class consciousness to prevent class struggle, which would disrupt the economic power imbalances that allow the upper classes to extract wealth from the lower classes. Racism was a strategically ingenious concept developed to achieve this suppression. It exploits the visible distinction among human races and then socially and culturally enforces those differences for the cause of maintaining dominance over others. It diverted attention from class issues, facilitating societal acceptance of inequality and maintaining the status quo.
In my 68 years, I have found it is damned hard to save the world. But what you can do is influence an acquaintance, help a neighbor, and try to make a community better, without expectation of anything in return. Try that and maybe you will start seeing positive change. If not, at least you've tried. Jamie, I appreciate your efforts to influence where you can!
I love your newsletter! Thanks for creating it. Just finished reading Left is not woke by Susan Neiman and found many interesting connections to these ideas, I totally recommend her. So important to have open-minded/open-hearted discussions while promoting unbiased and well informed perspectives.
Just a tiny little thing I wanted to point out, it really is minor but I couldn't help myself: the country's name is Colombia, not Columbia. You have readers down here as well :)
Sending my best regards from Cartagena de Indias (not all too far from the Darien Gap).
ah..so sorry for the typo! And if you haven't, do check out Wade Davis's Magdalena (all about the river in your country) and his One River. Both are love letters to your amazing country
Its all about elitism. Its all smoke and mirrors and slight of hand to widen the gap further, and control the population.
However, theres a solid argument that the poorest Americans have their best quality of life ever.
I fear the day that something unforseen happens, people wind up standing in bread lines, finally realize how little they have, and organize.
If I could change anything, we would repeal citizens united, and we would create proactive social programs to prevent child abuse. It would save more money in prison and social programs than it would take to fund.
Great article, very informative and an important reminder of the real historical divide-and-conquer “reasoning” for attacking the Other who has different skin color.
I do have one question, though. I heard recently that these HB1 Visas are much more commonly given to lower, blue-collar than to their hi-tech, white collar counterparts. And thus it’s weaponized both into a useful economic tool against hiring more expensive, legal, usually white people who grew up in America. and a clearly racist, discriminatory practice
Thanks, Jamie. Oh my gosh, I just finished reading Setenta millas en el infierno, the Spanish translation of Caitlin Dickerson’s article on the Darien Gap. It’s utterly devastating, heartbreaking and soul-crushing. I’ve heard about it every time I visit family in Colombia, how it’s become a grim source of revenue for ex-guerrillas and ex-paramilitary groups.
Last year, a Venezuelan woman I know asked me for financial help to take that same route. She made it but not without enduring unimaginable hardships. She’s now working the midnight shift at a McDonald’s in New Jersey. She shared firsthand the harrowing stories of sexual abuse women face along the way.
It’s hard to hold on to optimism in the face of such relentless suffering, and that’s one of the reasons I keep turning to your newsletter, Jamie—to find some glimmer of direction or a path of action that feels meaningful. Thanks again for this space.
The persistent challenge within capitalist systems is their reliance on suppressing class consciousness to prevent class struggle, which would disrupt the economic power imbalances that allow the upper classes to extract wealth from the lower classes. Racism was a strategically ingenious concept developed to achieve this suppression. It exploits the visible distinction among human races and then socially and culturally enforces those differences for the cause of maintaining dominance over others. It diverted attention from class issues, facilitating societal acceptance of inequality and maintaining the status quo.
In my 68 years, I have found it is damned hard to save the world. But what you can do is influence an acquaintance, help a neighbor, and try to make a community better, without expectation of anything in return. Try that and maybe you will start seeing positive change. If not, at least you've tried. Jamie, I appreciate your efforts to influence where you can!
I love your newsletter! Thanks for creating it. Just finished reading Left is not woke by Susan Neiman and found many interesting connections to these ideas, I totally recommend her. So important to have open-minded/open-hearted discussions while promoting unbiased and well informed perspectives.
Just a tiny little thing I wanted to point out, it really is minor but I couldn't help myself: the country's name is Colombia, not Columbia. You have readers down here as well :)
Sending my best regards from Cartagena de Indias (not all too far from the Darien Gap).
ah..so sorry for the typo! And if you haven't, do check out Wade Davis's Magdalena (all about the river in your country) and his One River. Both are love letters to your amazing country
Amazing suggestion! Wade Davis is great! Thanks!
Just excellent. Thank you for continuing to educate, inform, and promote valuable and necessary discernment.
Its all about elitism. Its all smoke and mirrors and slight of hand to widen the gap further, and control the population.
However, theres a solid argument that the poorest Americans have their best quality of life ever.
I fear the day that something unforseen happens, people wind up standing in bread lines, finally realize how little they have, and organize.
If I could change anything, we would repeal citizens united, and we would create proactive social programs to prevent child abuse. It would save more money in prison and social programs than it would take to fund.
Great article, very informative and an important reminder of the real historical divide-and-conquer “reasoning” for attacking the Other who has different skin color.
I do have one question, though. I heard recently that these HB1 Visas are much more commonly given to lower, blue-collar than to their hi-tech, white collar counterparts. And thus it’s weaponized both into a useful economic tool against hiring more expensive, legal, usually white people who grew up in America. and a clearly racist, discriminatory practice