this post was submitted on 23 Aug 2023
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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

"Experience demonstrates that there may be a slavery of wages only a little less galling and crushing in its effects than chattel slavery, and that this slavery of wages must go down with the other."

— Frederick Douglass

[–] [email protected] -1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

I suspect that most other actual slaves would not entirely agree with that sentiment

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Frederick Douglass the famous non-slave

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Your original stance was that it is "problematic" to equate them. Do you think it was problematic for Fredrick Douglass to equate them? If not then your original position has to change.

We don't have polling on prior chattel slave views on wage slavery, but since you're making a habit of just going with your gut, I'll do the same. I'd wager most prior chattel slaves would've been more than happy to abolish all forms of slavery (including wage slavery).

[–] [email protected] -1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Douglass died in 1895 when the standard of living was wildly lower than what it is today, its not an equivalent comparison

[–] [email protected] 0 points 1 year ago (1 children)

“Gee, I know I said all that about wage slavery, but who could have predicted iPhones and corn syrup. This is great!”

Read the shit you’re making claims about.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 1 year ago

Why don't you do the same? Your original quote is 137 years old. It is in fact problematic to equate the economic landscape of 2023 to that of 1886. In that quote Douglass is specifically criticizing the treatment of freed slaves, not capitalism in general. (If you want to convince people capitalism is bad, you need to make valid criticisms, not twist old quotes to suit your narrative)