Not subscribed or want to send this update to a friend? Sign up here.

UPFRONT

Defund MPD Coalition responds to Bowser budget proposal – JUNE 5 mobilization
Starting SUNDAY 5/23 — local steering and national delegate voting begins
Fighting rollback of evictions moratorium in DC with Stomp Our Slumlords

~~~~~~~

Defund MPD Coalition responds to lackluster Bowser budget, plans June 5 mass mobilization march

The Defund MPD Coalition, of which Metro DC DSA is a member, is coordinating a mass mobilization on Saturday, June 5th at 2pm at BLM Plaza (16th and I St NW). DSA members are invited and encouraged to attend this action and march as part of a citywide coalition! The action will highlight the opportunity the DC Council has to defund the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), renegotiate a contract with the Fraternal Order of Police in order to reduce police violence and put funding currently allocated to policing into programs that address community needs.

There is are two events leading up to the Saturday, June 5th action that Metro DC DSA members (and non-members!) are invited to attend:

Protester Training: Online, 6 – 7:30pm, Wednesday, June 2nd. This is an optional and informational Street Law training hosted by the Defund MPD Coalition for those who want to know their rights at protests in DC. Access it here.
Red Rabbits Support Role and Protest Safety Training - 1 - 2:30 pm, Monday May 31st. Join the MDC Red Rabbits for a workshop covering the basics of how to stay safe while protesting, as well as the basics of how to help your comrades as a marshal, de-escalator, or police liaison. Sign up here.

On May 27, Mayor Bowser released her proposed budget recommendation to the DC Council. The release caps off the official start of budget season in the District — where organizers, activists and community groups will begin battling with conservative forces in DC to push for a more equitable distribution of taxes and spending.

The Defund MPD Coalition — an alliance of over 29 local community organizations and political groups which Metro DC DSA is a proud partner on — released a statement you canread in full here.

If you’re reading this and you haven’t already signed the Defund MPD petition, sign it here! And if you're an organization interested in getting involved, click here to sign onto the coalition's demands!

Got any questions? Reach out to us at [email protected].

Northern Virginia Primaries rapidly approaching — organize for Karishma Mehta in VA’s 49th District!

We’re just TWO WEEKENDS AWAY from the primaries in Virginia and we’re in it to win it with NoVA branch member Karishma Mehta! The campaign is ramping up activities as we get closer to Get Out the Vote weekend — and we need to hit the doors if we want to elect a socialist in VA’s 49th!

Can you join us for GOTV canvassing shifts as we talk to voters? Sign up for weekend and weekday shifts here.
Do you need a ride or can you drive members to a canvass? Fill out this form for Metro DC DSA members who need a ride, or who have a car for carpooling. The new canvassing meetup location is also an 18-minute walk from the Ballston Metro station.
Are you interested in phone banking or other volunteer opportunities? Then check out this page to sign up.

For the past four months, members of our DSA chapter have knocked on thousands of doors to elect Karishma to the Virginia House of Delegates. Voters have been inspired by Karishma’s vision of a Virginia for all — where nobody gets left behind, and where the rich pay their fair share. But with less than two weeks left until election day, we need everyone’s help! Check out the links above to sign up for a canvassing shift, a phone banking shift or other volunteering opportunity. It’s the final stretch, let’s win this thing!

Local Steering and National Delegate election results

Voting on both Steering Committee and national delegate candidates took place this week and ended last night. The Pubs WG will post the results on the web version of our update as soon as those are made available. Members can check #announcements in Slack.

Who did we elect? You can read more about the Steering Committee, Treasurer, Secretary and Campaigns Coordinator roles on our website. Delegates will be responsible for representing our chapter as voting members at the 2021 DSA National Convention.

Interested to know what the DSA’s Bi-annual Convention is like? Check out this old report-back from 2019 to learn more!

BRIEFS

The DSA’s PRO Act Campaign Keeps Rolling!

DSA is aiming to hit 1 million calls by the end of May to pass the PRO Act — and we’re already past 800,000! We’ve accomplished a lot on the campaign already: over 1,400 people have made calls for the campaign, thousands more have plugged into our organizing calls, 80+ DSA chapters organized May Day actions, we brought the labor movement into fighting mode and we flipped two US Senators.

Metro DC DSA is currently leading chapters in calls made; let’s make sure to keep leading and bring it home in the next week! We need 50 people on each of the remaining six shifts to reach our goal. Sign up here to keep the pressure on Mark Warner and get the PRO Act passed!

Labor working group updates

Support Strathmore Workers!
The historic Strathmore Theater has a rat. The management there is looking to eliminate full-time positions at the front of the house, using COVID as the excuse. There will be a demonstration on Sunday, May 30th at 5pm. Meet at the Grosvenor Metro Station parking garage. RSVP here.

Rising Organizers Training Opportunity!
Rising Organizers is working with the Nonprofit Professional Employees Union for a 101 union organizing training! Next opportunity on Sunday, June 6th at 1pm. Register here.

Labor Speaker Series!
Our next LSS will feature members of AFSCME at the University of Maryland who have been fighting hard for hazard pay and better work arrangements, and a whole lot else! Come hear how you can support this labor struggle in our region. June’s LSS will be on Monday, June 7th at 7pm. RSVP here!

June 12th PRO Act Rally
CWA and Our Revolution will be rallying at the Crystal City Waterpark on Saturday, June 12th at 10:30am, once again demanding Mark Warner stand with Virginians and workers across the US and sign onto the PRO Act. RSVP Here.

Northern Virginia primaries on June 8 - Vote for Karishma Mehta!

We’re nearing the final stretch of the campaign to put a socialist in Amazon’s backyard. The primaries in Virginia are on June 8 and we’re in it to win it with NoVA branch member Karishma Mehta! The campaign is ramping up activities as we get closer to the Get Out the Vote weekend — starting up Tuesday evening canvasses, Saturday potlucks/meet & greets and of course the path to victory: doors, doors, doors!

You can find links to everything to do with getting signed up for a canvass, phonebank or recruitment call night here. One event we want to highlight is a watch party for a debate between Karishma and incumbent Alfonso Lopez on May 25 at 6pm.

National March for Palestine — TOMORROW, Saturday, May 29

This week, the National March for Palestine is taking place TOMORROW, Saturday May 29th at 2:30 PM. Socialists will be meeting at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial at 2:30pm.

Locally, demonstrations and shows of solidarity continued. MDC DSA signed on to petition for Palestinian Rights and urging Virginia’s representatives in the US Congress to sign onto H.R.2590 and H.J.Res.49, and vote NO on S.1061. And at Rep. Jamie Raskin’s district office, 205+ people stood in solidarity with the Unity Intifada (uprising) that “fights the hand of injustice wherever it tries to reach.” No funding state violence ANYWHERE.

Monday, June 7th at 7pm — Environmental Racism in DC Reading & Discussion Group

Join our reading group on environmental racism in DC to discuss the environmental and public health impacts in the River Terrace community in DC!

We will discuss how the community got there, how the local pollution disproportionately impacts the Black residents in the area, and what this has to do with Pepco and our fight for energy democracy in the District. Dr. Janet Phoenix, a GWU professor whose work involves the public health effects of the power plant on residents of the River Terrace community, will speak at this event.

Mobilize Socialists in the DMV!

Want to help get unengaged DSA members involved in our chapter’s crucial political work? Want to join an awesome team of mobilizers helping to build up our chapter’s capacity? Want to learn organizing and mobilization skills that we’ll all need to make socialism a reality?

If you’re interested in talking with other DSA members about their skills and helping them get involved in our chapter’s work, we’d love to have you join our Mobilization team! Schedule a 30 minute meeting with one of our Mobilizers using this Calendly link! We’d love to chat with you about how you can get involved.

HGO nomination process wraps up

The Steering Committee is very pleased to announce the appointment of Noelle B and Kaitlyn as our new Harassment and Grievance Officers (HGOs)! Adam M, one of our current HGOs, has done a wonderful job building out the HGO systems and handling grievances, and will be staying on in the positions for at least a six-month transitional period to train and onboard Noelle and Kaitlyn. We’re really excited to have the three of them serve in this role!

Thank you to all of the members who applied — we received many excellent applicants, and we’re incredibly grateful to everyone who took the time to speak with the Steering Committee.

You can read more info on the HGO in the web version of our update.

Socialist Feminist Caucus — Fund-A-Thon and raffle updates

We have raised over $4,600! Thank you to everyone who came to trivia this week! There is still time to help DC Abortion Fund reach the $150,000 goal. We have two more ways to fundraise through the end of the month. First, we are donation matching until May 30th.

Second, from May 23 to 29, we are hosting a tattoo Raffle with Cry Baby Studios in Dupont Circle! The artists at Cry Baby Studios have generously offered their talents in support of Fund-A-Thon. Forty time slots will be raffled off for exclusive flash (to be released this week). Raffle entries are $5 per entry (enter as many times as you want) and if you win the raffle the tattoo itself will cost $40 the day of. Raffle ends Saturday, May 29 at 12pm; winners announced May 29 at 8pm. To enter, send payment via Venmo (@simbalsym) or CASHAPP ($simbalysm).

MDC DSA CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Saturday, May 29

2 – 3:30pm | (How) We Keep Us Safe! Red Rabbits Support Role and Protest Safety Training

Midnight | Deadline for articles for the June issue of the Washington Socialist. Send to [email protected].

Sunday, May 30

2 – 3pm | MoCo DSA Member Orientation

4 – 5:30pm | AfroSocialists and Socialists of Color Caucus Monthly Meeting

5 – 6:30pm | Medicare for All Work Group Weekly Meeting

5 – 7pm | Defund MPD Phonebank

8 – 9pm | Birth Strike Reading Group – Session 2/4 [New River Valley DSA + MDC DSA SocFem]

Tuesday, June 1

6 – 6:30pm | Medicare For All Working Group: Research Team

Wednesday, June 2

5:30 – 7:30pm | Defund MPD Phonebank

8 – 9pm | Why You Should Join DSA / New Member Orientation

Sunday, June 6

2 – 4:30pm | MoCo DSA June Branch Meeting
Maryland State Delegates Gabriel Acevero and Vaughn Stewart will join our monthly branch meeting to discuss the 2021 General Assembly session.

Monday, June 7

7 – 8pm | NoVA Branch Office Hours

7 – 8:30pm | June Labor Speaker Series — AFSCME members, U of Maryland

7 – 8pm | Environmental Racism in DC Reading & Discussion Group

8 – 9pm | Why You Should Join DSA / New Member Orientation

Sunday, June 13

8 – 9pm | Birth Strike Reading Group – Session 3/4 [New River Valley DSA + MDC DSA SocFem]

Wednesday, June 16

8 – 9pm | Why You Should Join DSA / New Member Orientation

Thursday, June 17

7 – 8:30pm | NoVA Executive Meeting

Saturday, June 19

7 – 8:30pm | NoVA Book Club — People’s Republic of Walmart

Monday, June 21

7 – 8:30pm | June Labor Working Group Organizing Meeting

Thursday, June 24

7 – 8:30pm | NoVA Branch Monthly Organizing Meeting

NATIONAL DSA HIGHLIGHTS

Monday, May 31 | 8pm
Elections in Peru: Shift to the Left or Slide Backwards to the Far Right?
Stakes are high as Peruvians go to the polls to elect their next President on June 6th. The country has been devastated by the mismanagement of the COVID-19 crisis, which has led to tens of thousands of reported deaths, mass unemployment, and economic decline. RSVP at link; more info

Thursday, June 3 | 8pm
Intro to Abolition
What is abolition? Why should socialists care about abolition? Join the Abolition Working Group on June 3rd at 8 pm EST for an introductory call that answers these questions on why this work matters, how socialism and abolition go hand in hand, and how you can plug your chapter in going forward. RSVP at link; more info

COMMUNITY BULLETIN + ALLIED EVENTS

A new section to amplify smaller notices from allied organizations, community groups and mutual aid formations.

Cooperative Arts Cohort
Applications are open for the Cooperative Arts Cohort, which will explore how anti-capitalism and art intersect in a nine-week, nine-member educational cooperative run by Anti-Capitalism for Artists. The cohort will be facilitated by a different member each week (some of whom will be DSA members), who will guide an educational session about anti-capitalism and art, organized around specific techniques or topics.

Know your protest rights!
Wednesday, June 2 from 6-7:30pm, an informational Street Law training hosted by the Defund MPD Coalition for those who want to know their rights at protests in DC. Access it here.

Ward 3 Mutual Aid support
Volunteer at the Ward 3 community food pantry every weekend to redistribute resources to our neighbors in need. Send an email to [email protected] to sign up as a regular volunteer. If you can’t volunteer, consider donating to help sustain this movement.

INFO ACCESS

Updates for June will be sent Fridays, June 4, 11, 18 and 25, and the June newsletter issue will be published Friday, June 4. Send submissions for June to [email protected] by midnight TOMORROW, Saturday, May 29, and be sure to join our #publications Slack channel to join the chatter about how to write our socialism.

Your personal socialist kick-start — a continuing project in the Washington Socialist. Somewhere embedded in all of our socialist souls is the memory of that first book — fiction or nonfiction — that set us on our course to socialism. You might have encountered it well before you actually decided to join DSA. But without it you wouldn’t be a socialist. Tell us about it, in a few paragraphs or more, and send it to [email protected] with the subject line MY KICK-START — we’ll collect/curate them in upcoming issues of the Washington Socialist. If you want to discuss the project, visit our Slack channel, #publications. We read, we write, we act, and this is how we extend our socialism to the world we live in and work to change. Check out what we published in the May issue.

Our Slack platform, with numerous channels for all our caucuses, branches, campaigns and working groups, is a great place to get connected with the kind of socialist work YOU want to do in DSA. Are you an MDC DSA member who wonders how to get on our chapter Slack? Just email [email protected] and identify yourself as a member. Put “request for #Slack” in the subject line. Use the email address national DSA knows you by. If you are a new member, forward the email national DSA initially sent you acknowledging your status.

GOOD READS

An article in the Stansbury Forum warns about legislation in the making — in some surprising US states — that would provide separate labor standards for “independent contractors” like Uber and Lyft. Some prominent unions appear to be collaborating.

As GOP governors try to force people back to unsafe workplaces by refusing new federal top-ups of unemployment insurance, our local comrade Max S in Jacobin via Portside shows how these outrages demand federalization of the state-by-state patchwork of worker assistance.

From The Guardian via Portside, a roundup on state-level efforts to suppress teaching the actual history of Black people in America under the catchall (incorrectly used) term “critical race theory.”

Popular Information reports Amazon was sued for inflating prices across the internet. The lawsuit, filed by the DC Attorney General, alleges Amazon uses monopolistic practices to artificially inflate prices for products — even those offered for sale on other websites.

1995 was a year of major change in the leadership of organized labor in the US, and not a moment too soon. As our comrade Kurt Stand outlines in the latest issue of Socialist Forum, the new officers — current AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka was one — brought incomplete but far-reaching changes that are still being worked out today. An essential deep dive into labor history right up to the present.

Ages have come and gone, kingdoms and powers and dynasties have risen and fallen, old glories and ancient wisdoms have been turned into dust, heroes and sages have been forgotten and many a mighty and fearsome god has been hurled into the lightless chasms of oblivion.

But ye, Plebs, Populace, People, Rabble, Mob, Proletariat, live and abide forever.
- Arturo Giovannitti

CONTENTS

UPFRONT

Defund MPD Coalition responds to lackluster Bowser budget, plans June 5 mass mobilization march

Northern Virginia Primaries rapidly approaching — organize for Karishma Mehta in VA’s 49th District!

Local Steering and National Delegate election results

BRIEFS

The DSA’s PRO Act Campaign Keeps Rolling!

Labor working group updates

Northern Virginia primaries on June 8 - Vote for Karishma Mehta!

National March for Palestine — TOMORROW, Saturday, May 29

Monday, June 7th at 7pm — Environmental Racism in DC Reading & Discussion Group

Mobilize Socialists in the DMV!

HGO nomination process wraps up

Socialist Feminist Caucus — Fund-A-Thon and raffle updates

MDC DSA CALENDAR OF EVENTS

NATIONAL DSA HIGHLIGHTS

COMMUNITY BULLETIN + ALLIED EVENTS

INFO ACCESS

GOOD READS