WALL OF TEXT: CONSUMER DEMAND

 

WALL OF TEXT: CONSUMER DEMAND. I once believed that if I refused to use the self-checkouts, companies wouldn’t replace cashiers with machines. I now know corporations don’t respond to consumer demand. They respond to profit motive. No matter what we do, they will cut jobs and replace us with machines because that’s what it takes to make more profit. We still have this mindset that companies are merely responding to whatever consumers want, so if we want cleaner air and safer products, it’s the consumer’s fault for forcing corporations to behave this way. It’s one of the main lessons I remember from Captain Planet. Over and over that series taught kids that it’s our responsibility to change our individual behavior, which will force corporations to behave better. Cleaning up the planet is the responsibility of the individual, not the corporation. But consumers never demanded Coca-Cola switch from glass bottles to plastic, or for Folgers to switch from metal coffee cans to plastic, so how is plastic pollution the responsibility of the consumer? Consumers never demanded soda companies switch from sugar to corn syrup either, but it still happened in the US, which implies things work the other way around: consumers respond to corporate demands. We have all been indoctrinated to believe that it’s up to individuals to make choices, but this has never been how change happens. The actions of an individual person only affect that one person, but the actions of a corporation affect millions. This indoctrination keeps us feeling powerless, as if there is nothing that can be done, and it is not a balanced fight. Captain Planet lied to us. So did High School. Individuals making choices are not destroying the planet and perpetuating labor abuses. We, as a society, are not the cause of any of the problems we are dealing with. Corporate interests are the cause. The sooner we realize this, the sooner we can fight for real change.