The Currency of Care: Weaving Feminist Economics into the DisCO Fabric

The Invisible Engine of Capitalism

Imagine a vast, intricate machine, its gears grinding relentlessly, churning out products, profits, and economic growth. This is the capitalist assemblage, a powerful force that shapes our world, our values, and our very lives. But what fuels this machine? What keeps its engine running, day after day, year after year?

The answer might surprise you: it’s care. Not the kind of care that shows up on balance sheets or stock market tickers, but the invisible, often unpaid labor of social reproduction. The nurturing of children, the tending to the sick and elderly, the cooking and cleaning, the emotional support that sustains families and communities – these are the essential activities that make all other work possible.

Feminist Economics: Exposing the Shadow Economy

Feminist economists, like Silvia Federici, J.K. Gibson-Graham, and the pioneers of the Wages for Housework movement, have long challenged the capitalist assemblage’s blindness to the value of care work. They’ve shone a light on this “shadow economy,” exposing how capitalism systematically devalues and exploits reproductive labor, treating it as an externality rather than a foundational pillar of economic activity.

This devaluation plays out in countless ways: in the gender pay gap, in the lack of affordable childcare, in the invisibility of domestic work, in the social stigma attached to “women’s work.” It’s a pattern that reinforces patriarchy and inequality, perpetuating a system where those who care for others are often the least valued and the most vulnerable.

DisCOs: Rewriting the Code of Value

But a new wave of social and economic experimentation is emerging, seeking to rewrite the code of value and build a more just and sustainable world. DisCOs (Distributed Cooperative Organizations), with their commitment to the commons, open-value cooperativism, and feminist economics, are at the forefront of this movement, challenging the capitalist assemblage’s logic of extraction and exploitation.

DisCOs are not simply advocating for fairer wages or better working conditions within the existing system; they are creating an alternative, a post-capitalist assemblage where care work is no longer relegated to the shadows but is recognized as the vital heart of the economy.

Value Sovereignty: Communities Defining Their Own Worth

DisCOs embrace the concept of value sovereignty – the right of communities to define and measure value for themselves, rather than allowing the market or the state to dictate their worth. This shift in perspective is transformative, empowering communities to recognize and reward the diverse contributions that make up a thriving society.

Weaving Care into the DisCO Fabric: Real-World Examples

Here’s how DisCOs are weaving feminist economics and the currency of care into their everyday practices:

• Value Flows Accounting: DisCOs are developing accounting systems that go beyond the narrow focus on financial capital, incorporating the value of care work, reproductive labor, and the production of commons into their economic calculations. This creates a more holistic and nuanced understanding of wealth creation, recognizing the contributions of activities that are often invisible in traditional economic models. Imagine a digital dashboard, not tracking stock prices and profits, but mapping the flows of care and connection within a community, revealing the true engine of a thriving society.
• Alternative Currencies: DisCOs are experimenting with alternative currencies, such as time banks and mutual credit systems, that allow members to exchange goods and services without relying solely on the market. This creates a space for non-monetary forms of exchange, valuing the time and skills of those who contribute to the common good, including caregivers, educators, and community builders. Think of a community where a single mother can trade childcare hours for web design services, where a retired teacher can exchange gardening expertise for home repairs – a space where money is no longer the only measure of worth.
• Balanced Job Complexes: DisCOs aim to create “balanced job complexes,” where all members have the opportunity to engage in both care work and other forms of productive labor. This challenges the traditional division of labor, breaking down the gendered hierarchy that relegates women to the unpaid realm of social reproduction. It’s about recognizing that everyone has the capacity to both care for others and contribute to the economic well-being of the collective. Imagine a workplace where a software developer spends part of her week teaching coding skills to children, where a carpenter dedicates a few hours a month to building furniture for a community center – a space where work is not just about earning a paycheck, but about building a more just and caring world.

Five Assemblages: Sites of Transformation

This revaluation of care work and the embrace of value sovereignty are not limited to individual DisCOs; they are rippling outwards, creating transformative waves across the five onto-political assemblages:

• Territorial Assemblage: DisCOs rooted in specific communities, like Cooperation Jackson in Mississippi, are building solidarity economies that prioritize the needs of their members and the well-being of their neighborhoods. They are reclaiming local resources, creating worker-owned cooperatives, and fostering a culture of mutual aid and support.
• State Assemblage: DisCOs are engaging with the state by advocating for policies that support the care economy, such as universal childcare, paid parental leave, and a shorter workweek. They are pushing for a reorientation of public spending, away from the military-industrial complex and towards investments in social reproduction and the common good.
• Capitalist Assemblage: DisCOs are challenging the capitalist assemblage’s relentless drive for profit and accumulation by creating alternative business models that prioritize social and ecological impact. They are demonstrating that a more just and sustainable economy is possible, one that values care work, community, and the commons.
• Nomadic Assemblage: DisCOs are building transnational networks of solidarity and exchange, connecting with each other across borders to share knowledge, resources, and practices. This nomadic spirit allows them to learn from each other’s experiences, adapt to different contexts, and build a global movement for a more just and caring world.
• Postcapitalist Assemblage: DisCOs are actively prefiguring a postcapitalist future, where work is no longer a source of alienation and exploitation, but a means of fulfillment, creativity, and contribution to the common good. It’s a future where care work is valued and rewarded, where communities are empowered to define their own measures of value, and where the economy serves the needs of people and the planet.

Conclusion: A Revolution Rooted in Care

The DisCO revolution is a revolution rooted in care. It’s about recognizing the fundamental value of the activities that sustain life and build community, and about creating an economy that reflects this value. By embracing the insights of feminist economics and the currency of care, DisCOs are not only challenging the capitalist assemblage’s logic of extraction and exploitation, but they are also weaving a new fabric of social and economic relations – a tapestry of solidarity, reciprocity, and a shared commitment to a more just and sustainable future.

It’s a future where the invisible engine of capitalism is no longer hidden in the shadows, but brought into the light, where the currency of care is celebrated, and where the work of creating a better world for all is finally recognized and rewarded.