The American Playbook: Boycotts, Strikes and a Tea Party (No, The Other One)

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We’ve been doing it for years. Using our wallets to make a point. Back a principle, by telling others this person, place, or business is unfair, please don’t support them until they change.

• The Montgomery (AL) Bus Boycott that lasted 13 months. Remember Rosa Parks?

• The Boycott of British Goods in the 18^th Century. Remember the Boston Tea Party?

Billionaires have been in the news recently for their support of the current administration. For funding the Inaugural Party. Angling for another tax cut to get their tax rate even lower – is it even possible to go below zero?

Looking for ways to cut programs, entitlements, maybe even Social Security and Medicare.

Why? If corporations pay less tax, the shortfall has to be made up from somewhere.

But billionaires become billionaires through business—through stocks, revenue, and millions of Americans buying their products or using their services to deliver them the next day.

Sure, it’s convenient. Sure, in many cases it’s the only place left where you can buy it, but there’s nothing more disturbing, more irritating to a billionaire than to interfere with their quest for more. To have their flow of revenue messed with. To see the number of new cars leaving the lots going down.

It’s their game, their overriding desire. It’s what makes them who they are.

But it takes us, all of us, every day to make them a billionaire. Because without our clicks, our credit cards, our desire to have the paper towels delivered tomorrow morning because there’s a mess at the kitty little box, their income goes down. The shareholders get squeezed. And that leads to change.

We have billionaires in our White House. In our business and medical records and our sense of privacy. Why?

Because they know better?

But we didn’t elect them.

Yelling at a fire doesn’t get it to stop. Only denying it fuel will do that.

The people we elected to Congress need to back our play and support our rights and our future. And not the billionaires who support their endless need for the campaign funds they’ve become addicted to.

So yeah, write to them. Call them. Every day if needed. Get them to act. To do their jobs.

But they need our support too – absolutely. There are many good people in Congress trying their best to keep our democracy intact.

But is it enough?

Why should we even consider a boycott or a strike? Because they can be effective.

Imagine a restaurant refusing to serve a certain group of people (it’s happened) and someone called a boycott. After one day or one month with too few showing up for breakfast or lunch, do you think they might change their minds?

They have in the past.

Imagine no one shopping online and using a service and just getting in their cars and going to a brick-and-mortar instead and doing this for a week or a month. How much impact would that have on revenue? What they do and who they support? If more than 10 people, do it?

It’s not easy. It’s inconvenient. It’s scary at times. But it can be very effective in getting those who are doing what they have no right to do, to stop a moment and see the source of their perceived power being turned off.

It can be effective if it’s done and carried on long enough to make a difference.

This is a reminder that these actions are in America’s Playbook and have been for over two centuries. They’re still effective when used properly.

Do you think, maybe it’s time?