A second economic blackout has been organized by the People’s Union USA, set to take place from April 18 to 20. The initiative calls on participants to refrain from spending money when possible, urging them to support local businesses if purchases are absolutely necessary.
This movement is part of a broader effort to challenge corporate power and political influence, targeting what the group sees as a system rigged to benefit the wealthy.
Newsweek reports that the People’s Union USA is organizing this event in response to what it describes as an economy designed to exploit workers and undermine the financial well-being of the general public.
The Purpose Behind the Blackout
Following a previous economic blackout on February 28 and an ongoing boycott of Walmart set to end on April 14, the group aims to challenge the corporate and political systems they claim are rigged against the American people. The People’s Union USA states :
Mega corporations have driven up prices, underpaid their workers, and outsourced jobs while raking in record profits. Banks and financial institutions have trapped generations in debt, inflating interest rates and making homeownership nearly impossible.
Politicians ‘both left and right’ have accepted corporate bribes, passed laws that serve billionaires, and ignored the needs of the people they claim to represent. The system has been designed to keep us powerless, but that ends now.
The group also strongly opposes the rollback of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, calling the abandonment of these efforts “backward, regressive, and dangerous.” They believe that DEI initiatives are vital for ensuring fairness and equality in both corporate and political spheres.
Opposition to Corporate and Political Power
The People’s Union USA is positioning this economic blackout as a direct challenge to a system they argue is designed to benefit corporations and billionaires while exploiting workers. They claim that the economic system has been manipulated to exploit workers and create growing inequality. As they put it,
have worked together to rig the system against the American people
with an
Economy designed to exploit workers.
Leadership and Future Plans
Led by John Schwarz, an activist with over 409,000 Instagram followers under the name “theonecalledjai”, the People’s Union USA is also planning future boycotts targeting General Mills from April 21 to 28 and Amazon from May 6 to 12.
While these protests aim to disrupt corporate profits, Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, has commented on the limited effectiveness of such economic boycotts. He stated,
We’ve seen economic protests like this before when changes were made to different major employers that were controversial, and this planned one is no different…
Beene further explained that,
While these blackouts are normally done with the hope of positive implications, the reality is past data indicates they lead to little financial data from most major companies.
