All debate for resolutions and amendments took place on Saturday, although three items captured the most attention from the general body. Find brief reporting below:

• PASSED: CR18 – Unified for an Anti-Zionist Metro DC DSA (267 yes, 5 no). This resolution clarifies Metro DC DSA’s already existing support for BDS and Palestinian liberation, and sets a number of expectations for elected officials endorsed by the chapter, including: pledging opposition to redefinitions of antisemitism that include opposition to Israel’s policies or legal system, or support for BDS; pledging to support legislation that furthers the cause of Palestinian liberation (including the BDS movement); and refraining from association with the Israeli government or Zionist lobby groups (including AIPAC, DMFI, Christians United for Israel, and J Street). The resolution also outlines accountability processes for chapter members seeking redress from endorsed candidates deemed in violation of the resolution, among other stipulations.

• FAILED: BA4 – STV method for electing chapter steering (119 no, 133 yes). As bylaw amendments require two-thirds support to pass, the motion failed. This amendment would have adopted STV (ranked choice) voting for chapter positions.

• FAILED: BA3 – Mass orientation of working groups (118 no, 120 yes). As bylaw amendments require two-thirds support to pass, the motion failed. This amendment would have placed additional reporting and organizational requirements on working groups operating under the chapter.

Additional resolutions passed, clarifying the path forward for the chapter:

• CR5 – For a Chapter Program: calls for the formation of a Program Development Commission to create a two-year (‘26-27) plan to develop a clear chapter program. The program will codify points of unity, clarify chapter positions and areas of focus, and identify electoral targets.

• CR4 – Fight Fascism, Build Socialism: sets Metro DC DSA’s orientation in anti-fascist resistance organizing. Stated positions of the chapter include: endorsing the National DSA’s “Weekend of Action” spanning January 18-20, including participation in The People’s March and We Fight Back rallies; supporting growth of mutual aid efforts for workers, LGBTQ+ people, and immigrants; establishing a stronger recruitment program; and initiating protest and first-aid training programs for chapter members.

• BA2 – Clarifying Chapter Business: Adopted in the consent agenda, this bylaw amendment updates two components of the process by which business is brought before the general body for consideration. Resolutions/amendments will now require at least three sponsors to be considered, and the process by which resolutions move through the chapter is also clarified.

• BA1 – Clarifying Ballot Line Endorsements: Adopted in the consent agenda, this bylaw amendment specifies the way ballot line endorsements are proposed for consideration to the chapter, and specifies that endorsements for all ballot items require a two-thirds vote to move for endorsement.

Bylaw Amendment changes will be reflected on the Metro DC DSA chapter website within two days. All results can be found in the Metro DC DSA wiki chapter vote archive. Members may email [email protected] to get wiki access, or ask in #helpdesk, and readers can respond to this email if they would like a copy of resolutions/amendments. Stay tuned for more coverage of the convention in the next issue of Washington Socialist.

Shayla Adams-Stafford campaign launch and door-knocking TOMORROW

Shayla Adams-Stafford is running in the special election for the Prince George’s County Council District 5 seat. Shayla is a current PG County Board of Education member and former Educators’ Association shop steward. She’s led the fight to replace policing with care in our schools and fought back against developers to get strong project labor agreements on public school projects. From creating Saturday tutoring academies, to revitalizing parent engagement, to securing critical resources for underperforming schools, her work has made a real difference. If elected to County Council, she’ll be the swing vote on a body split 5-5 between progressives and developer-backed conservative Democrats.

Metro DC DSA voted to endorse Shayla, and chapter members are encouraged to attend her campaign launch and canvass TOMORROW (Saturday, December 14), where attendees will hear her vision for what’s next. The event will take place at 2pm, at the LiUNA Training Center (4721 Boston Way, Lanham, MD) — please RSVP here to join. Shayla is facing forceful retaliation from the Democratic establishment, and she needs backup. For those without cars, organizers with Metro DC DSA will be offering rides from the New Carrollton Metro Station at 1:45; please indicate on the RSVP form if assistance is needed. Members who have questions or need additional support can also comment in the #shayla-pg-district-5 channel on the chapter Slack.

Metro DC DSA has developed an impressive electoral force over the past four years, making the organization the counter-balance to capitalist forces in the region. The Socialists’ Big Red Machine needs socialists, progressives, workers, and allies to join the chapter’s organizing team for Shayla’s campaign: planning canvasses, drafting communications, and mobilizing chapter volunteers. If interested in getting directly involved, fill out this interest form and join the #shayla-pg-district-5 channel to stay looped in.

Vote on priority campaigns and chapter secretary by 11:59pm, Sunday, December 15

Voting on the Steering Committee election and Priority Campaign resolutions from our local convention opened Wednesday, December 11. Members in good standing should have received an OpaVote email (subject line: “2024 Local Convention Ballot: Secretary Election and Priority Campaign Vote”) on Wednesday; if you haven’t received the email (please check your spam), contact [email protected].

There are 11 candidates running for 11 seats on next year’s Steering Committee. All candidates will be on the committee by acclamation, but we are still voting to determine next year’s secretary. Per our bylaws, secretary, treasurer, and campaigns coordinator are elected by ranked choice voting. There are two candidates: the winner will be next year’s secretary, and the other candidate will be seated as an at-large member of the Steering Committee.

Priority Campaign resolutions require a two-thirds vote in favor to pass, and there can only be five active at any time. If more than five clear the two-thirds threshold, the five campaigns with the highest vote totals will be chosen as priority campaigns; if less than five clear the two-thirds threshold, we will have less than five priority campaigns in 2025.

All candidates for Steering were vetted prior to the election, and nothing of concern was found. This report has already been shared with the candidates.

Voting is open from Wednesday, December 11 until 11:59pm on Sunday, December 15. Members are encouraged to vote, and to reach out to [email protected] with any questions.

BRIEFS

War criminal Yoav Gallant visits White House as Israel conducts airstrikes on Syria

As Israel continues its genocidal attacks on Gaza, along with brutal settler violence in the West Bank, events in Syria are proceeding at a tumultuous pace. From Democracy Now: “In northeast Syria, more than 100,000 people have been displaced due to fighting between Turkish-backed forces and U.S.-backed Kurdish forces. Israel continues to seize more land in the Golan Heights and has carried out over 480 airstrikes on Syria since Sunday. Swiss Syrian left-wing activist and scholar Joseph Daher explains how civil society is attempting to rebuild democracy [following the fall of the Assad regime] through ‘struggle from below,’ and how that could unleash popular support for Palestine. ‘Israel wanted a weak Assad and is not happy with the fall of this regime,’ says Daher. ‘A democratization process in the Middle East is the biggest threat for Israel.’”

Syrian architect and writer Marwa al-Sabouni added that “the general atmosphere is an atmosphere of relief, of joy, of celebration … But also there’s this background of apprehension, of uncertainty, of observing what — the strikes that Israel has been conducting since the first moment of the Assad regime’s fall.” Regarding the airstrikes, United Nations special rapporteur on human rights Ben Saul noted: “There is absolutely no basis under international law to preventively or preemptively disarm a country you don’t like. … But it’s a continuation of what Israel has been doing in Syria for at least a decade.”

All of this occurs as Yoav Gallant, former Israel defense minister, was welcomed to the White House this week — despite an International Criminal Court warrant for his arrest for crimes against humanity. Meanwhile, “a coalition of organizations representing faculty, staff, students and other advocacy groups at George Mason University and beyond is alleging that university police acted inappropriately in banning two pro-Palestinian student activists from campus and searching their family’s home for reasons authorities have yet to describe publicly,” the Washington Post reports.

This is all happening ahead of a second Trump presidency. In other words, internationalist socialism is more important now than ever. Get involved in the struggle from the heart of empire with Metro DC DSA’s Internationalism Working Group; plug in via the #Internationalism channel on the chapter Slack.

GWU resident physicians and fellows vote overwhelmingly for strike authorization; join their picket line, December 17-19

In a powerful show of solidarity, members of the Committee of Interns and Residents/SEIU Healthcare (CIR/SEIU), who are resident physicians and fellows at George Washington University, voted overwhelmingly to authorize their bargaining team to call for a strike. For more than a year, CIR has bargained in good faith, yet GW representatives have failed to provide meaningful concessions to the workers’ core demands: fair salary increases, improved mental health benefits, and support resources. Instead, management has demonstrated blatant disregard for resident physicians’ wellbeing, going so far as to violate federal labor law by making unilateral changes to working conditions and benefits in some departments without notification or negotiation with CIR.

Workers will be staging a picket from December 17 through 19 to demand a fair contract and good faith negotiation from management. Community support is requested: RSVP for the picket here.

Write letters to incarcerated folks at the NoVA Abolition Working Group’s Solidarity Social

Join the MDC DSA NoVA Abolition Working Group on Saturday, Dec. 14 from 3 – 5pm for a winter Solidarity Social. Chapter members will be raising money for the Free Them All VA commissary fund and writing letters to incarcerated people while enjoying cozy drinks. The working group will be using Letters for Liberation to get matched with long-term incarcerated pen pals, but there are several opportunities for orientation before the social. If you cannot make a longer-term commitment, writers will be connected with those who would appreciate a one-off holiday letter as well. The working group will supply paper, envelopes, and stamps for all writers.

Free Them All VA is a coalition amplifying the demands of folks organizing in VA migrant detention centers, jails, and prisons. Their Liberation Fund supports incarcerated people and their families with legal costs, bonds, and commissary funds. Their liberation work can be supported through their online donation form; please leave the note “Liberation1214” to help them track.

Join abolitionist organizers tomorrow at Detour Coffee, 946 N Jackson St, Arlington, VA. Masks encouraged and provided. Event will take place outdoors, weather permitting. RSVP for the Solidarity Social here.

Book talk with Brett Christophers, author of The Price is Wrong — Sunday, December 15 at 11am

This fall, We Power DC’s DSA reading group dove into Brett Christophers’ The Price Is Wrong: Why Capitalism Won’t Save the Planet. Now they’re inviting folks to join their meeting with Brett Christophers himself! Come learn about why the price really is wrong — no need to have already read the book. RSVP here.

Metro DC DSA Street Team monthly meeting — Saturday, December 14 from 2:30 – 4pm

Build power in the DMV and join the Metro DC DSA Street Team by attending the next monthly meeting on Saturday, December 14 from 2:30 to 4pm. This event is for anyone interested in getting active in the chapter’s Street Team to build socialist power in the DMV. The Street Team hosts and attends community events to connect Metro DC DSA and its campaigns with the community in order to expand the chapter’s base and build a more democratic society. In this meeting the Metro DC DSA Street Team will discuss this year’s work and prepare for 2025, with a holiday happy hour to follow. Sign up here to attend the in-person meeting at MLK Memorial Library, room 205-B.

Early sign up available: 11 Spring 2025 Reading Groups

The Political Education Working Group is excited to host 11 different reading and discussion groups for Spring 2025 — sign up today! Reading groups provide an opportunity to share learning and political education in a group setting, helping members and supporters develop their organizing and knowledge alongside comrades. Topics range from theory to socialist feminism to science fiction to internationalism (and many more in between). Find out more about each group here, and sign up here.

Join ecosocialists and progressives to raise funds for a Green New Deal — December 17 at 6pm

Join the Green New Deal in DC coalition — which includes Metro DC DSA’s very own GND Working Group — in Mt. Pleasant to be in community with each other, talk about the successes and challenges of this year, and to celebrate each other and our work pushing for a Green New Deal in the District. No matter the circumstances, organizing work never ends. Come hang out, support the GND4DC Coalition’s work, and learn about what comes next. RSVP for the fundraiser here, which is to be held at Don Juan Restaurant (1660 Lamont St NW) at 6pm on Tuesday, December 17.

MDC DSA BAWG care kit packing event and fundraiser planned for Saturday, January 25 from 7 – 10pm

Metro DC DSA’s Bodily Autonomy Working Group, in partnership with the Internationalism Working Group, has announced an upcoming fundraiser for the DC Abortion Fund (DCAF) and Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA). At the event, participants will pack 1,000 reproductive healthcare kits to distribute to Emergency Contraception for DC (EC4DC). The event will take place on Saturday, January 25th, from 7 – 10pm, at As You Are. Care kit packing will occur from 7 – 8pm and the event will be rounded up with a DJ set. RSVP here.

INFO ACCESS

COMMUNITY BULLETIN

Homegrown Strategies: Fun and Effective Action Planning | Homegrown Revolutions
Have you ever wanted to make a change in your community, city, country, or the world but got stuck wondering how? Are you excited about taking action and making a difference but feel intimidated by coming up with a strategy for change? Wondering how to get the attention of elected officials or other powerful people but need some support and inspiration? Then join Homegrown Revolutions for this interactive online training on Saturday, December 14 at 12pm that will teach you how to think strategically when you want to make a difference. The workshop will include case studies from Homegrown Revolution’s founders’ decades of experience and a simulation that will be worked through together.

Support BestWorld workers TONIGHT following rent hike | Mount Pleasant Neighbors
After a 27% rent hike, a small POC-owned local grocery store (BestWorld) is closing down. Neighbors have gotten together to create a GoFundMe to help support workers who were laid off and are having a fundraiser event on December 13 from 6 – 9pm at Don Juan’s in Mount Pleasant. Community members are also hoping that this helps to create more community engagement in fighting back on landlords pushing small businesses out through rent increases.

ESSENTIAL PERSPECTIVES

ESSENTIAL PERSPECTIVES are articles and opinion pieces of interest to DMV leftists but not, generally, appearing in local media. They should have links without paywalls. Readers are invited to submit candidates at our tip line.

What Next 1: David Duhalde in Dem Left

“… DSA can chart a new course and not merely try to repeat the successes of previous election bumps. My major advice is chapter leaders should find projects and asks that build capacity and give them to new members. This can be plugging people into a political campaign, asking them to table, or helping put together an event. Recent joiners are looking for something to do and should be plugged in — not left to figure it out on their own.

“We want to make it as easy as possible to get involved to resist the new Trump administration. People are ready and we need to be too.”

What Next 2: DSA has a chance to move up the ladder

(Paul Garver) “For half a century most Democrats have ‘hunkered down’ when faced with major challenges from the Right rather than offering serious resistance. The assumption is that the electorate will tire of right-wing ineptitude and that the pendulum will automatically swing back to them. This is a dangerous path now. … In contrast, most Left organizations seem better prepared to organize the fight to resist MAGA. … DSA chapters across the country are reporting large numbers attending orientation sessions, while its national membership has begun to grow at an accelerated pace comparable to that of 2016-17 following the first Trump victory. If MAGA is better prepared to consolidate its Christian authoritarian regime than it was before, DSA is also better situated institutionally than it was in 2017 to channel the energies of new members into effective political and labor organizing.” Chartist via Portside

What Next 3: Are there any real US parties left?

What kind of resilience can the two traditional US parties muster? Not much, say NYT columnists Jamelle Bouie and Tom Edsall, both parties having been hollowed out. Bouie notes that Trump assembles his gangster cohort largely from outside the GOP and tags this analysis: “'At the heart of hollowness lies parties’ incapacity to meet public challenges,' Daniel Schlozman and Sam Rosenfeld observe in 'The Hollow Parties: The Many Pasts and Disordered Present of American Party Politics.'" And for the Republican Party, this looks like a party that moves through American politics in the form of a “shambolic, lumbering and decidedly dangerous mess” whose incapacity is “not just the absence of a common public purpose but, more ominously, the inability to control dangerous tendencies located ever more centrally inside the party.” Democrats, in their turn, are hobbled by their uniformly elite status both real and perceived, and disabled by Trump’s singularity — even though he eviscerated his “own” party — so they may be unable to take advantage of GOP near-nullification, as Edsall notes with the help of his endless email list of political-science academics and insiders.

And while the wreckage of the US election and Syria’s convulsion distract us, The West Bank Villages Wiped Off the Map by Israeli Settler Violence — Since October 7, over 50 rural Palestinian communities have been forced to abandon their homes amid intensifying attacks, threats, and harassment by Israeli settlers — almost always with the backing of the army and police. 972 Magazine via Portside

DSA CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Friday, December 13

6 – 8pm | We Power DC December Happy Hour

Saturday, December 14

1:30-4:30pm | Stomp Out Slumlords Anti-Eviction Canvass
2pm | Shayla Adams-Stafford D5 Campaign Launch and Canvass
2:30 – 4pm | Street Team Monthly Meeting
3 – 5pm | Abolition Solidarity Social

Sunday, December 15

10am – 1pm | DMV Gender Marker Clinic
11am – noon | We Power DC Book Talk with Brett Christophers
2 – 5pm | Labor Organizing School
2:15pm | Prince George’s County Branch General Meeting (hybrid)
7 – 8pm | MDC DSA Internationalism December Monthly Meeting

Monday, December 16

6 – 8:30pm | Socialist Feminist December Happy Hour
7 – 8:15pm | MoCo Branch Steering Meeting

Tuesday, December 17

6pm | NoVA Medicare for All Working Group
6:30 – 8pm | Root Causes of Armed Conflict in the Philippines

Wednesday, December 18

7pm | Repro Justice Campaign Meeting
7 – 8pm | Why You Should Join DSA/New Member Orientation

Thursday, December 19

6pm | Social Housing Organizing Meeting

Monday, December 23

7pm | Trans/Queer Liberation Biweekly Meeting

Sunday, January 5, 2025

2 – 4pm | Montgomery County DSA Branch Monthly Meeting