German artist and filmmaker Enno Schmidt's whirlwind tour of the nation will take him to Duluth Sunday afternoon, where he will once again promote the idea of providing a guaranteed paycheck to every man, woman and child.
Schmidt was one of the primary architects of a Swiss proposal to provide a basic monthly income of 2,500 francs for each adult citizen and 625 francs for every child. While the conversion rate puts the dollar and the Swiss franc on an almost equal footing, Schmidt said the actual buying power of 2,500 francs is really more like $1,400.
Swiss voters defeated the proposal by about three-to-one margin in a referendum last year, but Schmidt said he still believes that seed sown by the campaign could flower there in another 10 years or so.
In the meantime, he has taken the idea of providing a universal basic income on the road. Schmidt is in the midst of a U.S. tour that will take him not only to Duluth but also to Atlanta, New Orleans, New York, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles and Springfield, Mo.
Next up will be appearances in China, Taiwan, Japan and England.
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In partnership with Daniel Hani, Schmidt produced a 2008 documentary called "Grundeinkommen" - translated as "Basic Income" - a film that has found an international audience.
"The idea is a universal basic income, no strings attached, high enough to live on in a more or less decent way. That's the thing, for everybody in society, no matter if he's rich or poor, regardless if he's employed or unemployed, from birth to death," Schmidt said.
While the upfront expense of such a program would be substantial, Schmidt said it would eliminate the need for most other forms of social welfare and would almost certainly enable employers to offer lower pay - savings that could offset the costs associated with providing universal basic income.
Schmidt said such a system would free up people to pursue more meaningful and fulfilling work.
"To be so focused just on the money means to diminish the value of work. The value of work is that you can do something good for others, and I think an unconditional basic income increases the understanding of the value of work," he said.
Although some critics of universal basic income raise fears that it could create a disincentive to work, Schmidt said places that have experimented with the pay floor have seen just the opposite effect. People who might have been hesitant to take low-paying or part-time work in the past, due to a prospective loss of benefits, now welcomed the opportunity to supplement the basic income they continued to receive regardless of their employment status.
"In all the pilot projects, it's been shown that people don't stop working. On the other hand, it is an incentive for the entrepreneurs and enterprisers to create better work conditions," Schmidt said.
Some may consider universal basic pay to be somehow at odds with the American values of self-determination and independence, but Schmidt argues just the opposite.
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"For me, it fits exactly with the values of the United States of America. But it has to be understood," he said.
"I know there's a fear of communism. And there's pride in this feeling that I did everything by myself. I worked hard, and therefore I have money. But look, nobody is standing only on his own two feet. Everybody depends on other people who are working for them. That's the truth. The truth is that you live as a result of the effort and work of other people," Schmidt said.
EVENT INFORMATION
WHAT: Basic income panel discussion, beginning with potluck
WHEN: 12:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 5
WHERE: Central Hillside Community Center, 4th Street and Lake Avenue, Duluth
WHO: Expert panel will include Enno Schmidt, co-architect of the 2016 Swiss Basic Income referendum; Kat McFarland from Basic Income Earth Network, Skip Sandman and activist from BIGMN and BIG.
