I do not know how many of you are aware of this, but I am a card-carrying, dues-paying member of the Industrial Workers of the World.
It’s a broad-based International labour union, and one of the oldest unions in the world, founded in 1905, but it was nearly wiped out during the Red Scares.
A popular slogan connected with the IWW is “An injury to one is an injury to all”. It is possible that you may have even heard it before, as it is not just IWW members who proclaim it when calling for class solidarity.
However, often when I have heard it used—especially outside the IWW—it is within the context that when one group of workers is injured (physically, emotionally, financially, etc) then it undermines class power.
For example, if the workers with the local of one union accept 4 years of wage freezes in their collective agreement, it becomes easier for employers of workers represented by the same union to demand the same concession. That can then spread to workers represented by other unions.
We should stand in solidarity with striking postal workers or striking educational support workers.
But there is another aspect to this slogan that I think often gets missed: and that is how injury to marginalized workers is an injury to workers outside of that marginalized community.
Whether it’s racism, ableism, transphobia, or some other form of discrimination, when one fellow worker is targeted, we should all treat it as an attack on the working class—and push back.
If a Indigenous coworker experiences racism at work, for example, their coworkers should see that as an affront to the working class and push back against that racism.
If a disabled coworker experiences ableism at work, their coworkers should see that as an affront to the working class and push back against that ableism.
If a trans coworker experiences transphobia at work, their coworkers should see that as an affront to the working class and push back against that transphobia.
And so on.
Of course, these identities also overlap. A disabled immigrant, a queer Black worker, or a trans Indigenous person may face multiple, compounded barriers. If we ignore any one form of oppression, we risk leaving entire groups behind.
It is not even just a workplace issue, especially given that not all members of the working class are employed. Members of the working class should be calling out all racism, all ableism, all sexism, all transphobia and homophobia, all xenophobia, regardless of where it occurs.
If we refuse to defend against discrimination our fellow workers experience, then the owning class can use our inaction to divide us.
Division is a boss’s best friend. When workers are pitted against each other—by race, gender, ability, or anything else—it undermines collective power. Fighting discrimination is not just the right thing to do; it is how we win.
Discrimination—whether it is sexism, racism, homophobia, ableism, or something else—is not just a social problem. It is a class problem. And if we’re serious about solidarity, we have to fight it wherever it shows up.
