Billionaire Philanthropy Is a Scam
Jeff Bezos’ pledge to donate his vast fortune to charity is a reputation-laundering exercise – and a reminder that billionaires will never fix the problems that create them.
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Jamie Medwell works as an editor in trade union comms. He writes about housing, labour, and the Left.
Jeff Bezos’ pledge to donate his vast fortune to charity is a reputation-laundering exercise – and a reminder that billionaires will never fix the problems that create them.
David Cameron’s Tories pushed charity and volunteering to plug the gaps left by their vicious austerity assault. With a resurgence of cuts, we might see the same rhetoric reheated – the problem is that no-one has anything left to give.
In the midst of the 1970s economic crisis, workers in Lucas Aerospace came up with a radical alternative to mass redundancies – taking production into their own hands and organising it for the common good.
At workplaces like Amazon, algorithms have become the worst kind of boss – one who watches you constantly, makes impossible demands and then sacks you without explanation.
Housing in Britain has already been in crisis for years – but while wages stagnate, rents outside London are now rising at their fastest rate since the financial crash.
After being told four out of nine workers were being made redundant – two with minimal notice – staff at Bristol’s Assembly Bakery are striking for better treatment.
With 445,000 tenants in arrears, it’s clear the landlord class is out of control. But rent controls can rein in their exploitation – and the movement backing the measure is growing.
A century ago, socialists demanded that housing should serve public need rather than private profit – that aspiration remains as relevant today, but it can only be realised under one condition: abolishing landlords.