Metro DC DSA endorses Janeese Lewis George for DC Council Ward 4
Following a 96% in-favor vote by members, Metro DC DSA endorsed Janeese Lewis George for DC Council in the 2024 DC primary elections, a reflection of Councilmember Lewis George’s commitment to acting on behalf of working-class people since her 2020 win. In her first term, Lewis George championed a tax on the wealthiest residents of the District (which funded direct payments to underpaid childcare workers), introduced legislation to bring a Green New Deal for Social Housing to DC, advocated to expand rent control and raise the minimum wage for tipped workers, and much more.
Metro DC DSA members will launch an official kickoff canvass for Councilmember Lewis George this weekend: Saturday, March 2 and Sunday, March 3 at Chevy Chase Library from 1 to 4pm each day. RSVP here to get notified about future canvasses. Campaign updates and GOTV events will be covered in continuous weekly updates.
Grassroots push against Secure DC legislation — final showdown against the legislation on March 5th
On March 5, DC Council will hold a final vote on the “Secure DC” omnibus crime bill (the “Crimnibus”). This comes after the first vote on February 6, when hundreds of residents flooded the DC Council with emails and calls, and packed its first hearing on the measure. As a result of this successful sortie, some (but not all) critical provisions were removed from the bill.
If passed, the Crimnibus will:
revive old, ineffective, and racist practices, like drug-free zones and anti-mask laws, which the Council already unanimously repealed years ago;
expand MPD’s power to kill and injure DC residents using dangerous neck restraints and deadly police chases;
reduce transparency and oversight over the police by allowing them to view body camera footage before writing initial reports and hiding the names of cops on police misconduct hearing notices;
expand prosecution, lengthen prison sentences and change the Sentencing Commission;
broaden current surveillance practices, like GPS monitoring and camera subsidies;
create loopholes to recriminalize Metro riders for fare evasion;
and make it easier to violate data privacy of children in the youth legal system.
Metro DC DSA’s Abolition working group, in coordination with a grassroots alliance mobilizing across the city opposed to the measure, will be turning out on March 5th in a final showdown with proponents of the legislation. Aside from turning out on March 5th, the coalition has identified the following ways of getting involved in the fight:
Learn more about the crimnibus. A new website launched by the coalition details and documents what is in the bill, and what should be expected. Fight misinformation about the legislation, stay informed, and spread the word.
Let the DC Council know they are on watch. It takes just 30 seconds to email DC Council and 2 minutes to call a councilmember to let them know to stay strong on the changes made in the first vote and to remove the remaining harmful provisions in the bill.
Sign on to this joint, city-wide letter. Almost 1,500 DC residents joined this letter when it was first sent to Council on February 5 ahead of the first vote. Add your name ahead of the final vote on March 5!
Pack the Wilson Building on March 5th. Activists, community members and workers from across DC will be turning out against the Crimnibus legislation to demonstrate popular opposition to this bill. MDC DSA members interested in getting involved should follow the #abolition channel in the chapter slack to get connected. Mayor Bowser is also likely to be in attendance — creating conditions for a popular showdown on March 5th.
Chapter Happy Hour: next Friday, March 8th, Aslin Brewing — 5:30 to 8pm
Celebrate International Women’s Day with MDC DSA comrades at a chapter-wide happy hour at Aslin Beer Company, DC’s newest union brewery, on Friday, March 8th, from 5:30 to 8pm. The happy hour will be a place to catch up with comrades you know, meet new comrades, get plugged into our chapter’s work on the Trans Rights and Bodily Autonomy National Campaign, and support union beers. This event was planned by the new Community Builders formation in the chapter. Register in advance at this link.
BRIEFS
Metro DC DSA ballots on Initiative 83 endorsement — votes due by March 6
An OpaVote email on MDC DSA's electoral endorsement of I-83 was sent Wednesday morning (February 28) and the voting deadline is Wednesday, March 6. The ballot includes links to member statements for and against the endorsement. All MDC DSA members in good standing are eligible to vote and should have received the email ballot. If a member feels they should have received a ballot, or has problems with the ballot, email [email protected].
Campaign to anchor rent control in PG County to set off on canvassing expeditions Saturday, March 2nd from 2 to 4pm
In alliance with Prince George’s County Housing Justice Coalition, the Prince George’s County Branch DSA will be joining a canvass led by CASA to push for permanent rent stabilization on Saturday, March 2 from 2 to 4 pm, starting at Franklin Park Apartments, 6220 Springhill Road, Greenbelt, MD. Members will also canvass on Sunday, March 3 from 11am to 2pm at 7500 50th Ave, College Park, MD. Canvassers will be talking to tenants whose council members are on the fence on adopting permanent rent control protections, which are being considered by the PG County Council. Last year, Prince George’s County became the first municipality in the region to anchor stronger rent control laws post-pandemic, but these provisions are now at risk of being pulled back. Those interested in joining should sign up here to get updates, or contact branch member Thomas Silverstein, who can provide logistical details.
Poor People’s Campaign to rally in Annapolis this weekend — March 2nd at 2pm
Metro DC DSA’s PG County Branch will be in Annapolis this Saturday, March 2nd from 11am to 2pm at Lawyer’s Mall. The March 2nd Maryland rally will unite low-income individuals with allies to demand an end to poverty, launch a year-long campaign for voter registration, and influence the political discourse during election season. RSVP here.
Metro DC DSA Street Team monthly meeting — Saturday, March 2 at 4pm
Build power in the DMV and join the Metro DC DSA Street Team by attending our monthly meeting at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library on Saturday, March 2nd at 4pm. This event is for anyone interested in getting active in the chapter’s newly formed Street Team. The Street Team will be hosting and attending community events to connect Metro DC DSA and its campaigns with the community in the DMV in order to expand the chapter’s base and build a more democratic society. Socialists interested in talking to DMV residents to hear what is going on in their everyday lives: Join the Metro DC DSA Street Team at this meeting to create our mission statement and go through what we want to see in the Team’s culture. All are encouraged to attend in person on the fourth floor of the MLK Memorial Library, 901 G St NW, Washington, DC, room 401-D.
History of Tenant Rights: DC Walking Tour taking place on Sunday, March 10
Everyone in the area is invited to sign up for the History of Tenant Rights: DC Walking Tour, starting at 1pm on Sunday, March 10 at Columbia Heights Civic Plaza in DC. The event will take attendees on a walking tour through Columbia Heights, exploring the past, present and future of tenant rights in the area. The tour will explore how Columbia Heights tenants could and have previously come together to demand rent control and better housing conditions, buy their buildings from landlords and form cooperatives, organize tenant unions and exercise their power to get the DC Council to pass the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase (TOPA) Act. The Walking Tour will be led by Professor Amanda Huron, organizers with Stomp Out Slumlords and tenant organizers in Columbia Heights.
Sign up in advance to receive weather updates and notices. In the form, you can indicate if you’d like to volunteer during the tour or help wheatpaste this Sunday, March 3.
New to the DSA and want to connect with others? Apply for the New Member Community Cohort, starting in March
Anyone new to Metro DC DSA is invited to apply to join the Spring 2024 New Member Community Cohort. The cohort will hold trainings and social events weekly from mid-March through mid-April covering “Why We Organize,” “What is Socialism?,” chapter operations and resources and a dedicated social outing. It’ll be a great way to get to know new people and familiarize yourself with socialism, along with the chapter and those in it. But don’t wait — cohort applications are due by March 12th.
Will Biden listen to Michigan? Biden campaign responds flippantly to mass rejection in Michigan
In just under three weeks, a mass GOTV campaign undertaken in Michigan delivered over 100,000 Uncommitted votes in the state’s Democratic presidential primary. The DSA, particularly the Detroit DSA chapter, played a vital role in the effort. Currently, Colorado, Minnesota and Washington (state) are being targeted in phonebanks being organized by Vote Uncommitted.
Michigan is a crucial swing state for Biden, and the campaign was designed as a last-ditch signal to his campaign: core constituencies care about the genocide taking place in Gaza and are fed up with the Biden administration’s approach to this moral and political crisis. A failure to change course threatens Joe Biden’s campaign.
Following the Michigan primary, Biden campaign co-chair Mitch Landrieu took to NPR with a flippant response: “We’re going to continue to talk to [non committed voters] and then ask them to think about the choices and what the consequences are about electing somebody who wants to have a Muslim ban.”
Campaign manager of the Listen to Michigan campaign, Layla Elabed, issued a statement in response, expressing shock that the Biden campaign continues to insist it has a messaging problem. Biden’s weakness among Muslim, Arab, young, socialist and conscientious voters is not a misunderstanding of Biden’s policy — it is a rejection of it.
Just yesterday, the Israeli government committed a massacre of starving Gazans who tried to access food aid trucks in Gaza.
DC-area locals mourn death of Aaron Bushnell, Palestine solidarity protests and organizing continue
On Sunday, February 25th, air serviceman and anarchist activist Aaron Bushnell self-immolated in an act of protest against Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people. Conducted in front of the Israeli Embassy, he died chanting “Free Palestine” as a police officer looked on with a gun drawn on him. Over the past week, residents in the DMV have been gathering outside the Israeli Embassy to collectively mourn, pay respects and process his act of protest.
Metro DC DSA mourns this loss, just as we mourn the 30,000+ Palestinians killed by Israel in its ongoing genocide. Their blood is on the Biden administration’s hands. In memory of Aaron, we need to keep living, to keep organizing, to keep standing in solidarity against this genocide.
Those looking for a space to organize with comrades fighting for a free Palestine, learn more about the DSA’s No Money For Massacres campaign here. Metro DC DSA members are encouraged to join the #internationalism channel in the chapter slack to get organized and stay appraised of ongoing political efforts and protests being organized in the region.
Meanwhile, in Maryland …
A constituency group of Maryland Congressional District 4 residents has been organizing to put pressure on Rep. Glenn Ivey (4th MD) for his continued support of Israel and AIPAC backing in light of the continued ethnic cleansing of Gazans. Their next meeting will be Saturday, March 2nd from 3 to 4:30pm at the Hyattsville Mennonite Church.
And in DC …
A DC for Ceasefire Coalition is formed and has been active in pushing a ceasefire resolution through the DC Council. Residents in select neighborhoods in DC and in Alexandria can order yard signs in support. Just this week, the Coalition confronted Councilmember Nadeau (Ward 1), asking why a ceasefire resolution has yet to be brought or voted on by the DC Council. Her response was unconvincing, although the Coalition recently suggested that Ward 5 Councilmember Zachary Parker may be introducing a resolution soon.
DSA national has its own site of course. DSA Feed is an RSS feed that aggregates multiple DSA publications — including our own Washington Socialist — in one convenient place. More from the National Tech Committee here.
MDC DSA Publications Schedule:Washington Socialist is now publishing on a quarterly schedule. Updates to the current (“Winter”) number will be published on a rolling basis over the next month. Get on record about your socialism! Contributors to the Washington Socialist can email submissions or questions to [email protected]. Weekly Updates are scheduled for Fridays – March 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29.
Want more INFO ACCESS? Submit your Update suggestions to the tip line. Or even better, participate in MDC DSA’s publications effort. We write, we edit, we design, we do the tech — there are so many ways your hand could lighten the load in 2024 and beyond. Check us out on #publications and let us know what you would like to write, or write about.
COMMUNITY BULLETIN
How to Canvass for Campaigns | Rising Organizers and DC For Democracy Join two partner organizations, Rising Organizers and DC For Democracy, for a Zoom training on how to canvass for electoral campaigns on March 7 at 7pm. As electoral campaigns are kicking into gear for primary season, this virtual training will help prepare attendees on how to talk to voters at the door and work through any questions folks might have. The training is intended for people who are new to canvassing and for those who are looking for a refresher. Register here.
ESSENTIAL PERSPECTIVES
Fragile Juggernaut: What Was the CIO? What is there to learn from the history of industrial workers’ struggles in the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s? For today’s DSA, maybe quite a bit. From N+1 via Portside.
The Auto Workers Go All In By devoting $40 million to its campaign to organize non-union auto plants, the UAW is challenging not just corporate America but also labor’s status quo. Harold Meyerson in the Prospect points out that the NLRB is tilting the game a little more in labor’s direction. Meanwhile, a majority of Alabama Mercedes-Benz workers have signed cards to join the UAW. (Common Dreams)
Assange extradition decision in UK would endanger free speech in US
Our comrade Chip Gibbons warns of bad outcomes if Julian Assange is turned over to vengeful US authorities: “The United States is seeking to put the WikiLeaks founder on trial for exposing its war crimes — which would set a precedent that the Espionage Act can be used to prosecute journalists who publish information the US government doesn’t like.” From Jacobin via Popular Resistance newsletter.
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 vast and free horizon.
- Virgilia D'Andrea
Sent via ActionNetwork.org.
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