February General Body Meeting — Sunday, February 26, 7pm
Metro DC DSA’s February General Body Meeting is scheduled for this Sunday, February 26, 7 – 9pm. DSA general body meetings convene all chapter members once monthly. Workgroups, caucuses, committees, and leadership provide key updates on campaigns and other activities. Members may also propose and vote on business. Members, potential members, and supporters alike are welcome to attend. Sign up now.
Momentum for rent control continues to grow in Maryland
This Tuesday, the Mount Rainier City Council in Prince George County, MD voted unanimously to cap rent increases to 60% of the consumer price index or around 3%. This vote makes Mount Rainier the first city to pass a rent stabilization ordinance in Maryland in over 40 years.
Meanwhile, the Montgomery and Prince George’s County councils are considering permanent, county-wide rent stabilization measures. Progressive members of the Prince George’s County Council are supporting a bill to cap rent increases at 3% with the backing of tenants. In Montgomery County, a wide coalition of labor unions, service providers and community groups including Montgomery County DSA are pushing the Montgomery County Council to cap rent increases at 1.4%.
Next Saturday, March 4, Sunrise Silver Spring, Montgomery County DSA and Everyday Canvassing are holding a “Stable Rents and Healthy Homes” townhall with members of the Montgomery County Council. Then, on Sunday, March 5, another rent stabilization canvass is planned in Wheaton. Fill out our action alert to send a message to Montgomery County Council in support of rent stabilization and use the checkboxes to get involved in the campaign.
Rally to Defund ICE & Shut Down Detention — Wednesday, March 1, 5:30pm
March 1st marks 20 years since the creation of the Department of Homeland Security. Muslim Counterpublics Labs, the Defund Hate Coalition and partner organizations including the NoVA Branch of MDC DSA are coming together as part of a day of action to highlight the harm and violence caused by DHS and the lives lost in ICE custody, as well as those who continue to be at risk. We will be rallying on Wednesday, March 1st, starting at 5:30pm, in front of the ICE Headquarters in DC (500 12th St SW, Washington, DC, closest to the Smithsonian Metro). Please reach out to us at #nova-migrantjustice if you can join and want to meet up with other DSA members.
BRIEFS
Montgomery County Branch meeting — Sunday, February 26, 2pm
Comrades who live, work or study in Montgomery County, join the Montgomery County branch for our February branch meeting this Sunday, February 26 at 2pm at the Bethesda Library. We’ll have workers from the Olney, MD Starbucks, which voted to form a union last spring; University of Maryland workers who are campaigning for collective bargaining rights; and a Q&A session with James Hedrick, who is a finalist for an appointment to the Montgomery County Planning Board. We’ll also have updates on our Montgomery County rent stabilization campaign and hold a candidate forum for branch steering elections. RSVP here.
The Bethesda library is walkable from the Bethesda Metro, and parking next to the library is free on weekends. We plan to gather at the Bethesda Streetery after the meeting.
Reproductive Kit-Packing Event — Wednesday, March 8, 6pm
Join MDC DSA’s Reproductive Justice Working Group to help us package our reproductive care kits! The kits will include critical reproductive healthcare items including condoms, Plan B and a handmade ‘zine to help those in need in West Virginia. Join us at sPACYcLOUd in Adams Morgan anytime from 6 – 9pm on Wednesday, March 8, to socialize and grab a bite while taking part in a meaningful direct action supporting reproductive access. This event is open to both DSA members and supporters. RSVP here.
Wheatpaste with DSA — Walking Tour Posters on Saturdays, #DecrimPoverty Posters on Wednesdays
You’re invited to join groups wheatpasting posters around the area to spread the word about Chapter events and campaigns. This Saturday, February 25th and March 4th, join the Political Education Working Group to get out word about the upcoming Walking Tour of Plutocratic DC. We’ll gather near the Columbia Heights Metro at 1pm both days to put up posters about the event around the DMV. To join the Political Education team for this, sign up for the Walking Tour or email Taylor W at [email protected].
Plus, on most Wednesdays in the coming months, join the #DecrimPoverty campaign for Wheatpasting Wednesdays, which is building support for their advocacy campaign for harm reduction and non-carceral solutions in the District. Sign up to help #DecrimPoverty using this form. These are great ways to get your hands dirty and build awareness of the local left. See you there!
Sign Up: Walking Tour of Plutocratic DC - Power and Capitalism — Saturday, March 18, 1pm
Sign up and invite your friends, coworkers, family and comrades to the Plutocratic DC: Power and Capitalism Walking Tour, starting at 1pm on Saturday, March 18th! The Walking Tour will explore how institutions such as the Carlyle Group, Pepco and City Center DC create and maintain extreme wealth in the District. The Walking Tour will be led by Metro DC DSA Chapter members, who will use original research on private equity, public utilities and luxury real estate in DC to explore what your electric bill, Taylor Swift’s original recordings and luxury handbag stores have in common – and how to take power back from our local plutocrats. The tour will connect attendees with campaigns to democratize DC and its power grid led by MDC DSA and We Power DC.
The tour is an outdoor event visiting three sites in downtown DC after meeting at The Park at City Center (1098 New York Ave. NW) at 1pm. The tour will adjourn at 2:45pm at 1001 Pennsylvania Ave. NW after just under a mile of walking, then will be followed by an optional outdoor happy hour at the Penn Quarter Sports Tavern. We will provide snacks and water, and public bathrooms are available along the route. Make sure to sign up in advance if you may attend to get day-of notices around weather and to volunteer.
Want a free hat from the MDC DSA Merch Store? Recruit three comrades by March 1st
At its meeting on February 15th, the Steering Committee resolved to launch a chapter Recruitment and Recommitment Drive ending on March 1st, the deadline for delegate apportionment for the DSA National Convention in August. The number of delegates is determined by the number of members in each chapter, and the more delegates we have, the more collective power we can wield on issues important to the growth and development of our chapter and organization as a whole. To sweeten the deal, we are going to redistribute some Metro DC DSA hats from our merch store. If you can recruit three new comrades by March 1st, we will give you a free hat of your choosing!
We are still currently looking into generating unique recruitment links for members who would like to participate in the drive. In the meantime, if you would like to get involved in the Recruitment and Recommitment Drive more directly, please get in touch with Dieter L.M. (@dieter) on Slack or email [email protected]!
INFO ACCESS
Publications schedule: The March issue of the Washington Socialist goes out with the next (Friday, March 3rd) Update. Articles for the March newsletter issue should be submitted by tomorrow, February 25, emailed to [email protected] or as a doc link dropped in the #publications Slack channel. March Updates will drop Fridays, the 10th, 17th and 24th and the April issue of the Washington Socialist will accompany the March 31 Update. Join our monthly Publications WG planning meetingSaturday, March 11, at 3pm to make comms happen for MDC DSA and the DMV Left.
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About MDC DSA: The local chapter’s website is here. There is a rich array of info there for newer comrades who seek a campaign to embrace and for the DSA-curious to see how the campaigns interlock to dismantle capitalism and promote the socialist future. The road map of MDC DSA’s activism — campaigns, working groups, etc. — is here. And here is an introduction to the chapter including our branches covering the DMV.
We learn, and relearn, to apply our thought and action as socialists in new and archived sessions of Socialist Night School. Check out also the range of our sponsored Reading Groups.
Weekly Update Tip Line: The Metro DC DSA Tip Line is live. If you have news or events that you think should be promoted in the weekly Update, please submit it to the form above. Include your contact information and all possible details for consideration. Deadline is Thursdays at 4pm for the following Friday publication.
COMMUNITY BULLETIN
Trauma is Too Big for Bandaids | Ward 8 Wellness Youth ages 13 – 18 are encouraged to join the Ward 8 Wellness community on Sunday, February 26 at Capitol View Hill Neighborhood Library (5001 Central Avenue SE) from 1:30 – 4:30pm. Professional coaches will be on hand to support teens in sharing any challenges or struggles they may be having in a safe and encouraging environment. Email [email protected] for more information.
Volunteers Needed, No Green Thumb Required! | DUG Network The bi-weekly DUG Network Newsletter is looking for a few good writers! DUG stands for the DC Urban Gardeners Network and their mission is to inform and connect DC residents to resources, events, opportunities, forums, services and programs that support food access, healthy eating, urban agriculture and environmental sustainability in the greater DC area. DUG provides an extremely extensive bi-weekly newsletter, all done by volunteers! They are looking for volunteers who can commit between 1-4 hours every two weeks to help create this newsletter with at least a three month commitment. If interested, email [email protected] with a short description of yourself and your interests.
Coffee and Conversation | So Others Might Eat (SOME) SOME’s Young Professionals Network is hosting a Coffee and Conversation session on Saturday, March 11 from 1 – 3pm. Join in for networking, a roastery tour, and an exclusive coffee pouring and tasting at the brand new Compass Coffee at 1401 Okie St NE.
Special guest speakers and community leaders will join the event to discuss SOME’s mission and how they are tackling poverty in the community.
Food Waste Drop Off Opportunity | Sistained8 Spring is almost here, and so is the start of Sistained8’s annual composting program at Lederer Gardens! Sistained8 is a creative composting company run by DC’s own Najwa Womack. They strive to increase awareness related to environmental sustainability at a time when negative climate change impact is calling out for human attention. Sign up to drop off food waste here.
ESSENTIAL TRAFFIC
Any member or reader with a tip on leftish-oriented material available online without a paywall is invited to contribute. Comrades put it in #publications Slack; readers send to [email protected]
The headwinds affecting progress on renewable power generation are hardly an accident; they are coordinated and organized by big money from the Fossil Power and buffeting local officials who can’t or won’t access accurate info on renewables. From NPR working with Floodlight, an enviro organization.
Meanwhile, notes a Guardian opinion piece, the story of US climate migration is only beginning to be told: “We as Americans don’t often hear about this chaotic process of displacement and relocation, but the scale of movement is already overwhelming: more than 3 million Americans lost their homes to climate disasters last year, and a substantial number of those will never make it back to their original properties. Over the coming decades, the total number of displaced will swell by millions and tens of millions.” By Grist contributor Jake Bittle.
The expanding capabilities of artificial intelligence have raised a range of moral, ethical, and legal questions among experts. But as the technology becomes more widespread, how A.I.-savvy are Americans—and how worried? From Pew Research Center
As Maryland legislators grapple with the new governor’s campaign promise to accelerate and (maybe) index the $15 minimum wage, plus related moves to include now-tipped workers, Maryland Matters fingers a highly partial disinfo group’s thumb on the scale. “A study [forecasting financial disaster] comes from the Employment Policies Institute, which has an innocuous and neutral-sounding name. But it’s more like a front group for the restaurant, fast food and hotel industries, funded largely by conservative foundations and Richard Berman, a business executive once described as ‘Dr. Evil’ in a 60 Minutes profile, for his work as a point person on Capitol Hill for the tobacco and alcohol industries.”
The flame of thought, the magnificence of art, the wonder of discovery, and the audacity of invention all belong to revolutionary periods when humanity, tired of its chains, shatters them and stops inebriated to breathe the breeze of a vaster and freer horizon..
- Virgilia D'Andrea
Sent via ActionNetwork.org.
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