I believe in unions. I really do. Which is good, since I also belong to a union. And while the Writers Guild of America strike is not my union or my fight, I feel unbelievably invested in its outcome. All this week I’ve read the coverage obsessively. Maybe it’s because it involves writers, and that happens to be an occupational hazard of mine. Or maybe it’s because it involves the people who make the shows and movies I watch/enjoy/ marvel at every single day. Or maybe it’s because I’ve sat in on contract negotiations and know the kind of money-grubbing, mind-boggling, flat-out-evil crap that companies will put on the table.
But I think I feel most invested because it’s an example of solidarity at work. A union’s sole power is the strength of its support. Strength in numbers isn’t just a saying, it’s a fact. So I’ve been greatly heartened and down-right moved by the solidarity I’ve seen so far on the lines. Writers, actors, showrunners -- they’ve all turned out. They’ve all carried signs, brought food and generally rabble roused. I get a sense that there is an organic groundswell of support in the creative community. This may not be an actors issue or a directors issue or showrunners issue per se, but they all believe that to be unfair to one segment of the creative process is to be unfair to the entire creative process. And they know what is at stake is the future of the industry and the future of who its future profits will go to. Isn’t it better to share success fairly? (And when I say fair, I mean fair; the writers only want a bump from about 4 cents to 8 cents on DVDs and from 0 cents to any cents, period, on internet downloads.) Who would you rather a piece of the profits go to? The people who come up with the ideas in the first place or the people in the nice suits with the big offices? It’s a no-brainer in my book.
And while some may argue that it’s easy (and, dare I say, hip) to be all rah-rah now, I would argue that now – more than ever – is the time to get all Norma Rae. The stronger the solidarity now, the more quickly all production grinds to a halt. The more quickly all production grinds to a haul, the more quickly the people in the posh offices feel the pinch. The more quickly the people in the posh offices feel the pinch, the more quickly this thing gets resolved. For the suits, it’s all about the bottom line and the sooner the strike touches it, the better. This does not discount, in any way, the very real financial and professional suffering this strike will have on countless other worker bees in the entertainment industry (the grips, the assistants, the makeup artists, the caterers, etc. etc. etc.) But it’s a question of long-term thinking versus short-term survival. Once a company feels it can ride rough-shod over one segment of its workforce, how long do you think it will take for it to come after the rest? Yes, strikes suck. But if everyone shows a united front now, it will hopefully make it a much less painful process. It’s like ripping off a bandage – either way, it’s going to hurt like hell. But do you do it fast and all at once or slow and piecemeal?
So with that, this week’s crush is all the amazing writers, actors, actresses, directors, showrunners and the like who have put on red shirts, picked up placards, chanted slogans and pounded the pavement for writers everywhere. While I can’t post all their pictures, I can thank them all from the bottom of my heart. As a writer, a union supporter and a entertainment junkie, this outpouring of support has inspired me and reminded me that even in a town as cynical as L.A., our better angels can still win out if we work together. Thanks for helping to restore my faith in the power and the purpose of unions. Solidarity, scribes. Happy weekend, all.
p.s. For further inspiration read strike blog United Hollywood and for further reporting read Deadline Hollywood Daily. Fans can chime in at Fans4Writers or sign the WGA Online Petition. And in case you’re still fuzzy on the issues, this is why they’re fighting:
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