October 24, 2025<\/p>\n
Dear Family and Friends,<\/p>\n
In the landscape of modern capitalism, Amazon stands as a colossus whose influence reaches into nearly every societal challenge\u2014from perpetuating sexist stereotypes through discriminatory and anti-union practices to enabling military conflicts via advanced technology, all while engineering mass job displacement through automation. I reached out to Longfei Zhang, the brilliant AI researcher who provided invaluable assistance during my participation at the 2015 UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) and helped organize my arrival in Washington, D.C., for my second pilgrimage, Walk The Talk: A Quest for Equality. In deep one-on-one conversations, we explored the double-edged nature of AI and subliminal manipulation in digital platforms\u2014its potential for good and its risks when wielded without accountability. Longfei is now considering key questions I\u2019ve posed, and I look forward to sharing his insights. Together,we are exploring the pros and cons.\u00a0 This piece focuses on Amazon not as a neutral force but as a central architect of inequality, militarism, and dehumanization\u2014a web of influence that navigates workers, consumers, and governments toward normalized exploitation, often under the guise of \u201cinnovation\u201d and efficiency.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve always believed that one person\u2019s voice can spark change\u2014a conviction forged in fire across that 10,000-mile walk and reignited on October 15, 2025, when I stood across from Mount Sinai Hospital\u2019s flagship at 100th and Fifth Avenue with the Amazon Labor Union (ALU) and Expose Amazon. The air was thick with truth: stories of pregnant workers denied breaks, forced into unsafe conditions, and fired for needing rest. Dr. Stephen Arapdi, Professor of Pediatrics at Columbia University Medical Center, spoke with quiet urgency: \u201cNo one gets a \u2018do over.\u2019 You cannot go back to an earlier time in a pregnancy and undo the harm done from waiting weeks or months for an accommodation.\u201d That day wasn\u2019t a protest. It was a moral reckoning.<\/p>\n
Amazon isn\u2019t just a retailer. It\u2019s a system weaving itself into the fabric of our deepest societal challenges. Building on Wilson Bryan Key\u2019s warnings about subliminal manipulation in media and Jill Lepore\u2019s exploration of Wonder Woman\u2019s feminist origins\u2014co-opted from a vision of utopian equality into a symbol of womanhood, now a sexualised virgin warrior princess to be conquered, enslaved by the very bracelets meant to empower her\u2014I see Amazon\u2019s operations as social engineering on a grand scale. By examining Project Nimbus with Israel, AWS\u2019s generative AI for military logistics, plans to replace over 500,000 jobs with robots, labor disputes mirroring the dockworkers\u2019 2025 contract win, systemic discrimination against pregnant and disabled workers, and ties to union resistance like the ALU, we see Amazon not as a marketplace\u2014but as a central architect of inequality, militarism, and dehumanization.<\/p>\n
Military Ties: Enabling Conflict Through Cloud and AI<\/strong><\/p>\n When I read the WIRED investigation into Project Nimbus\u2014Amazon\u2019s $1.2 billion cloud contract with Israel\u2014I felt a deep unease. The company claims it\u2019s for civilian use only. Yet Israeli National Cyber Directorate head Gaby Portnoy publicly stated: \u201cPhenomenal things are happening in battle because of the Nimbus public cloud.\u201d AWS\u2019s generative AI for real-time military logistics, as reported in Defense News, goes further\u2014optimizing troop movements, supply chains, and resource allocation in active conflicts like Gaza. This isn\u2019t neutral infrastructure. It\u2019s technology that enables escalation, framed as \u201cinnovation.\u201d<\/p>\n By branding itself a mere service provider, Amazon subtly normalizes militarized AI, reinforcing the \u201cstrong male protector\u201d trope while sidelining women\u2019s roles in peace-building. It echoes Wonder Woman\u2019s co-opted image: once a symbol of feminist utopia, now a sexualized warrior enslaved by her own power. These concerns were first raised at our March 10, 2025, UN parallel event during the 69th Commission on the Status of Women , where panelists urged sovereign wealth funds and policymakers to embed ethical guardrails in AI deployment\u2014prioritizing human rights over unchecked efficiency.<\/p>\n Automation\u2019s Toll: Jobs at Risk<\/strong><\/p>\n The New York Times revealed Amazon\u2019s plan to automate 75% of its operations, potentially eliminating over 600,000 jobs by 2033. Facilities like the Shreveport warehouse are blueprints: robotic systems handle picking, packing, and delivery, reducing staff by up to 50%. Amazon calls them \u201ccobots\u201d\u2014a PR term implying collaboration. But it\u2019s a sleight-of-hand, hiding the reality of displaced workers, especially women.<\/p>\n The October 20, 2025, AWS outage\u2014which crashed Netflix, Venmo, Alexa, and thousands of services\u2014exposed the fragility of this system. If a DNS glitch can paralyze daily life, imagine the chaos when automation displaces millions without transition plans or union protections. This was a core focus at our UN event: automation isn\u2019t progress if it erodes human dignity.<\/p>\n Pregnant Workers\u2019 Pain: A Reckoning<\/strong><\/p>\n At the October 15 ALU event, I heard stories that broke my heart: a Louisiana worker miscarrying after being denied breaks; another losing her home when Amazon cut her hours post-pregnancy. Current VP of the Amazon Labor Union, Brima Sylla, stood firm: I do believe that pregnant women need to be respected and should be given the right accommodation to take care of their health. The inhuman treatment of pregnant women by Amazon in the workplace is against human rights. New Jersey’s October 22, 2025, lawsuit confirms its systemic-den\u2014pregnant and disabled workers fired for failing quotas, denied lighter duties, or forced onto unpaid leave.<\/p>\n I see these as attacks on bodily autonomy and dignity, echoing the post-WWII domestication of Wonder Woman\u2014stripped of agency, reduced to ornament. The demand to remove Amazon board member Edith Cooper from Mount Sinai\u2019s board is a call for accountability: health institutions must not be complicit in harm. Our UN panel, \u201cAI, Automation, Amazon Labor Unions, and the Equal Rights Amendment\u201d, linked this to the ERA\u2014constitutional equality is the foundation for reproductive and workplace justice.<\/p>\n Media, Monopoly, and the CNBC Threat<\/strong><\/p>\n This influence extends to culture and content. In The Neighborhood (Season 8, Episode 2), Gemma needs wine to cope with her husband Dave\u2019s AI-driven job loss\u2014then promotes its use. It\u2019s satire, but it normalizes alcohol as a coping mechanism and women adapting to tech upheaval through emotional labor, not structural change.<\/p>\n Amazon\u2019s media empire amplifies this control. In 2021, Amazon acquired MGM for $8.45 billion, gaining a vast library of over 4,000 films (including James Bond and Legally Blonde) and 17,000 TV shows like Fargo and The Handmaid’s Tale\u2014all integrated into Prime Video to boost subscriptions. This merger, cleared by the FTC despite antitrust concerns, exemplifies how Amazon consolidates storytelling under its umbrella, subtly shaping narratives that align with its interests.<\/p>\n On July 30, 2025, I filed a formal complaint (Report No. 19189657) with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regarding Jeff Bezos\u2019s reported interest in acquiring CNBC after its spin-off into Versant. This move risks consolidating financial journalism under Amazon\u2019s influence\u2014potentially suppressing coverage of:<\/p>\n Anti-union harassment<\/p>\n<\/li>\n OSHA violations (30% higher injury rates)<\/p>\n<\/li>\n $5.2 billion in avoided federal taxes (2021)<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Predatory pricing that closed independent bookstores<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Audible\u2019s library lockouts<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n This isn\u2019t just consolidation. It\u2019s a threat to truth. We first raised these media-monopoly fears at our March UN event, tying them to misinformation undermining the ERA and union rights.Anti-union harassment.<\/p>\n Unions as Resistance: Learning from Dockworkers<\/strong><\/p>\n The International Longshoremen\u2019s Association (ILA) showed what\u2019s possible. In February 2025, backed by Teamsters, they ratified a six-year contract with 62% wage hikes and automation protections\u2014securing \u201clabor peace\u201d until 2030. Amazon workers deserve the same. The Power of One campaign includes the push for the Warehouse Workers Protection Act and Faster Labor Contract Act\u2014tools to give workers a voice against engineered obsolescence.<\/p>\n A Utopian Horizon: From Cave to Cosmos<\/strong><\/p>\n Imagine a future where humanity\u2014guided by diligence in the infancy of information technology\u2014thrives from cave to cosmos. In this society, AI serves not as a tool of displacement or domination, but as a partner in liberation. Automation frees minds for creativity, not survival. Military AI is repurposed for planetary defense\u2014against asteroids, climate collapse, and cosmic threats. Cloud infrastructure connects every village to knowledge, healthcare, and opportunity. Work is dignified, balanced, and shared. Women lead in equal measure. No one is left behind because no one is deemed expendable.<\/p>\n This is not fantasy. It is the logical endpoint of ethical stewardship today. The same generative AI that now optimizes troop movements could model sustainable cities. The same robotics displacing warehouse workers could build homes, grow food, and explore Mars. The same cloud that crashed global services could power a decentralized, resilient web of human flourishing.<\/p>\n We stand at the threshold. The choice is ours: let Amazon\u2019s web tighten into dystopia\u2014or weave a new tapestry of justice, beginning with the ERA, union rights, and accountable technology. The stars are waiting. Will we rise to meet them?<\/p>\n Tying It Together: A Call to Action<\/strong><\/p>\n Amazon\u2019s web\u2014military AI, job-killing robots, worker exploitation, media control\u2014normalizes inequality under the guise of progress. The AWS crash exposed fragility. The Expose Amazon event revealed human cost. The UN panel, \u201cAI, Automation, Amazon Labor Unions, and the Equal Rights Amendment,\u201d sparked global vision.<\/p>\n I put it all on the line.<\/em><\/p>\n I was terminated from Amazon on September 17, 2025, for speaking out\u2014for standing with pregnant workers when I expressed concern for EMF\u2019s sensitivity, for filing a OSHA complaint, for filing a New York State Attorney General\u2019s Office Complaint, for providing testimony for the Senate HELP Committee, and for filing a formal FTC complaint on July 30, 2025 against Jeff Bezos\u2019s potential acquisition of CNBC, and for refusing to be silenced.<\/p>\n I am still here.<\/em><\/p>\n I walked 10,000 miles across the USA for equality. I\u2019ve launched a grassroots campaign for justice. Now, as part of Power of One,<\/a> I\u2019m turning personal sacrifice into collective power.<\/p>\n The ERA (SJ Res. 38) is foundational. It would:<\/p>\n Ban sex discrimination in law<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Force Amazon to accommodate pregnant workers<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Break poverty cycles for women-led households<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n Every day, I call Congress. You can too.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s how to join Power of One \u2014 in 4 simple steps:<\/p>\n Call your Senators Dial (202) 224-3121 ? Ask for your senator ? Say: \u201cPlease co-sponsor SJ Res. 38 to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Call the White House Dial (202) 456-1111 ? Leave a comment: \u201cSupport the ERA and union rights for warehouse workers.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Text 10 friends Send: \u201cJoin me in the fight for equality \u2014 call Congress for the ERA! #PowerofOne\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Forward this message to 20 people and ask them to take the same 4 steps. One voice becomes 20. Twenty becomes a movement.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n We are working alongside Senator Lisa Murkowski.\u00a0 We will be having our following-up meeting shortly. I am asking that you call to thank her for ERA support and urge your senators to co-sponsor it\u2014sharing how equal pay strengthens families and futures.<\/p>\n Collective action\u2014like the dockworkers\u2019 win, the ERA\u2019s long march, and truth in media\u2014is our path forward. The ERA, union laws, and media accountability are tools for justice, ensuring no worker, woman, or community is left behind.<\/p>\n Your voice is next. Will you raise it?<\/strong><\/p>\n Support the movement: Donate $20<\/a> to 20 for 20: Igniting Equality<\/a> campaign at katrinasdream.org \u2014 because one voice becomes a chorus.<\/p>\n Love and Light in Christ,<\/p>\n Helene de Boissiere<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" October 24, 2025 Dear Family and Friends, In the landscape of modern capitalism, Amazon stands as a colossus whose influence reaches into nearly every societal challenge\u2014from perpetuating sexist stereotypes through discriminatory and anti-union practices to enabling military conflicts via advanced technology, all while engineering mass job displacement through automation. I reached out to Longfei Zhang,…\n
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