. . .
Also, as progressives, shouldn't our focus also be on the negative effects
of the Chinese government on its workers rather than solely on the negative
effect of the US trade deficit with China on US workers? . . .
I'm told something on the Chinese worker front is
in the works. If you said it should have come
sooner (or first), I wouldn't disagree.
There is a big lit as to the failure of export-led
development, or what some people call imperialism
(or a variety thereof). Those who reject a
call for international labor standards ought
to consult it, or reflect on it.
In the 19th century, U.S. nativism had an obvious
racial context. Given the diversity of the U.S.
today, including the working class and organized
labor, "nativism" acquires a rather different
coloration, I would say.
Increasingly, nativism is simply a term that
reflects jaundice towards straight-forward
defense of workers in the U.S., whatever
their national origin or race. sometimes
it comes from the right, sometimes from
the left. This leads to confusion from
some quarters, present company excepted,
as to a nonexistent contradiction between
the recent immigration policy change and the
campaign of WTO/China exclusion.
mbs
