anti-capitalism Archives - Wear Your Voice

Let’s Not Be So Quick to Deify Angela Davis

We should be wary of deifying Angela Davis. Deification strips people (but particularly Black people, and especially Black women) of our humanity. “Why?” I’m like 99.9% sure this is what you, dear reader, thought as soon as you read this title. But,

Jun 30, 2020

Culture and Entertainment

What Jameela Jamil Could Learn From Noname’s Approach To Social Justice

Maybe Jameela Jamil should join Noname’s Book Club. She might learn a thing or two. CW: mentions of eating disorders and fatphobia “FEMINIST-IN-PROGRESS,” reads Jameela Jamil’s Twitter bio. Her cover photo features her and Lizzo, so you can tell she is Very

Dec 3, 2019

News & Politics

From Lebanon to Chile, Protesters Are Uniting Against The Ruling Class

In Chile, Iraq, and Lebanon, people have put aside their sectarian and ethnic differences to fight back against corrupt, capitalist systems of oppression. CW: mentions of police/ government brutality, mentions of sexual violence, death “Thawra! Thawra! Thawra!” As you watch videos of

Nov 4, 2019

Culture and Entertainment

You Haven’t Seen What Arlan Hamilton is Capable of Yet

“Who I work for, who I answer to is that Black woman in the back, who I need to reach with my voice.” You may have already heard of LA-based trailblazer Arlan Hamilton, the founder of boutique venture firm Backstage Capital

Apr 9, 2019

Race

The Racist History of Tipping

Problems associated with tipping are seen throughout the country.

Tipping can be a great way to earn extra income. As you may often see on social media, people tip others for providing useful information, unique content, or when they need a little extra help financially. But living completely off tips like many waiters are forced to do comes from a system that has been in the United States for over 100 years, and it's actually a really problematic practice based on its history. The roots of the tipping system are racist, and low-wage workers who rely on tips tend to be disproportionately women and people of color today. According to Saru Jayaraman, writing for University of California, Berkeley’s Labor Center, the American tipping system was used widely to keep freed slaves poor. According to Jayaraman's research, many white employers resented having to pay former slaves, and tipping was a legal way around providing actual wages. Jayaraman has written a book that further outlines what goes on in American restaurants. When the tipping system first began to take hold in the United States, it was almost exclusively used for Black people. John Speed, a journalist during this time, wrote, "Negroes take tips of course; one expects that of them — it is a token of their inferiority." This practice kept Black people poor, and provided white people with cheap labor. Aaron Ross Coleman, a New York University business and economic reporting Masters student tells Wear Your Voice, “The tipping system as constructed doesn’t benefit customers or employees. Patrons of restaurants regularly have to pay more money than advertised for their food because of gratuity. And waitresses and waiters often engage in performative and sometimes taxing emotional labor just to make a decent wage. And all of this is happening so employers don’t have to pay a living wage. If fast food restaurants and grocery stores can manage to pay the minimum wage, casual restaurants can too.”