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Hi Everyone,
This week is our final big push to save our public libraries from a 40% budget cut that would lead to branch closures and layoffs of public library workers. New Orleans DSA has been fighting hard alongside a massive coalition of organized labor, community groups, library patrons, and passionately concerned individuals to urge folks to Vote No on Proposition 2. We're confident in our coalition, and that confidence comes from knowing that we can count on mass participation to defeat this millage. If and when we win, we'll continue to fight for a better millage that doesn't pit workers against each other, and says No to austerity measures in the midst of a pandemic. There are so many ways to be involved! Go to saveyournolalibrary.com to sign up for phone banking, no contact canvassing, to give money, and to learn more! Our December 5th Run Off Voter Guide is another great resource for information on this fight and all the other races you'll find on the December 5th run off ballot.
Pivoting slightly from our immediate campaign, we would like to urge those of you who are not yet dues paying members of our organization to take the step into membership. One convenient conversational tool for DSA organizers is that we have a common answer for so many difficult questions. How do we create a world where every person can receive medical treatment for free at the point of service? How do we transition away from fossil fuels while making sure we take care of workers currently in that industry? How can we have higher wages? How can we guarantee safe and quality housing for every person? How can we reprioritize our budgets away from policing and imperialistic military conquest? Our common answer to all of these questions and more is that we must create a multiracial and multigenerational mass movement of the working class to fight in solidarity for our common interests and a better world. We hope you'll join today.
Lastly, considering our resent boost in membership, we want to check in to make sure that our General Meeting time is accessible. If you have input, you can fill out this form.
Solidarity,
DSA New Orleans Local Council
P.S. New to DSA? Check out our chapter's new member resources here. You can also always email [email protected] with questions about how to get involved or about the work our chapter is doing.
P.P.S. Not yet a member? The most important tool that the working class has is organization. We're strong when we fight together. We have to build a durable, mass political organization to wield the kind of power we need to win real change in our society. If you aren't a dues-paying member of DSA yet, join here!
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New Orleans DSA Upcoming Events Tuesday, December 1st 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Phonebank to Save the Libraries!
On December 5th, we will vote on a millage that could cut funding to the libraries by 40%. Library workers will almost certainly face layoffs if this millage passes. Help us call voters in New Orleans and ask them to save the libraries! Join this virtual phonebank to make calls to voters with friends, or if you'd rather phonebank on your own time, you can use this remote phonebank link anytime between 8:30 AM and 8:30 PM to call voters (with a built in script!).
Tuesday, December 1st 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Direct Service Committee: Mutual Aid + Neighborhood Organizing
Every other Wednesday, our Direct Service Committee will be meeting to discuss ongoing mutual aid and neighborhood organizing projects, including our Brake Light Clinics. Everyone is welcome to join!
Wednesday, December 2nd 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Canvass to Save the Library!
Sign up here: https://forms.gle/HKnTki59x2Rc3SMZ9
On December 5th, we will vote on a millage that could cut funding to the libraries by 40%. Library workers will almost certainly face layoffs if this millage passes. Help us reach voters in New Orleans and ask them to save the libraries!
Join us as we leave flyers in the neighborhood around at-risk libraries! Zero contact canvassing to maximize safety and reach the most doors - we aren't knocking doors to talk to people, just leaving flyers and door hangers!
Wednesday, December 2nd3:00 PM - 6:00 PM
DSA Free Food Distribution
Southern Rep Theatre, 2541 Bayou Rd, New Orleans, LA 70119, USA
Come join us every Friday afternoon just outside the Southern Rep theatre in the Seventh Ward to distribute food, register folks to vote and offer information about the DSA! Or come to pick up a meal if you'd like! Drive through or walk up, because there is such a thing as a free lunch.
Thursday, December 3rd 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
What's the Deal with This Library Millage? A Teach-In + Phonebank
On December 5th, we will vote on a millage that could cut funding to the libraries by 40%. Library workers will almost certainly face layoffs if this millage passes. But it's exceptionally confusing - why is the Mayor lowering taxes during a financial crisis? Does this money go to fund early childhood education? What happens if this millage fails? Does the library have a surplus in their budget? On Thursday, November 19th and December 3rd, we'll be doing a teach-in about how this millage proposal works and what the impacts of it will be if it passes in December. Join us for the teach-in and stay to help us call voters in New Orleans and ask them to save the libraries!
Join this virtual phonebank to make calls to voters with friends, or if you'd rather phonebank on your own time, you can use this remote phonebank link anytime between 8:30 AM and 8:30 PM to call voters (with a built in script!).
Saturday, December 5th2:00 PM - 3:00 PM
DSA: How we're fighting!
Not sure where to plug in to our organizing? New to DSA? Have you heard about us through our coalition partners but not sure what we are about?
This is our weekly check-in call. We'll get brief updates about campaigns and projects. We'll hear from our coalition partners on what they're working on, and have open discussion about different issues.
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National DSA Upcoming Events
Organizing the Diaspora: The U.S.-China Conflict, Anti-Asian Racism, and Transnational Solidarity Friday, December 4th 6:00pm CST Register for this call here 2020 has seen rising tensions at various pressure points between the U.S. and China: political crises in Hong Kong and Xinjiang; increased anti-Asian racism, specifically Sinophobia, with the spread of COVID-19; and nationalist fearmongering on China from establishment politicians across the aisle. Caught between this crossfire are Asian workers and others in the diaspora, from international students to long-time Chinatown residents. We have also seen heroic struggles against these forms of oppressions and have been inspired by the BLM uprising in the US. How can leftists of color and allies help connect transnational solidarity to anti-racist movement-building at home? What are some of the possibilities or pitfalls to anticipate with a Biden administration in terms of building up Asian and Asian American movements from China to Chinatowns abroad? Speakers in this webinar will show the interconnections between these aspects, addressing topics like the Chinese right wing, pro-Beijing disinformation, Chinese international students’ organizing, and avenues for left-wing solidarity with movements in Hong Kong and China against state repression while remaining vigilant against the forces of U.S. imperialism. This event hopes to stimulate organizing that concretely gives shape to what connecting the transnational and local in the mass movement and beyond can look like. Speakers: Tobita Chow, Justice is Global Helena Wong, Chinese Student Activist Network David Xu Borgonjon, International and Immigrant Student Workers Alliance (IISWA) Sharon Yam, Lausan Collective
JM Wong, Pacific Rim Solidarity Network (Parisol)
Building a Left that Can Fight and Win Friday, December 4th 7:00pm CST Register for this call here The results of the elections are in: Donald Trump narrowly lost and the Democrats under-performed against all expectations in Congress. And while measures such as raising the minimum wage and legalizing marijuana were more popular than either candidate, over 72 million voted for Trump. Socialists must take a hard look at the underlying trends in American political life: the dangerous growth of an assertive, white-supremacist Right and the weakness of declining centrist liberalism. In this continuing period of political instability we need an active, organized socialist movement accessible to people from across the broad, multi-racial working class. What lessons can we draw from the election? What are the opportunities and challenges ahead for working class and socialist organizing? How do we fight the rise of the right? Join us for a panel of DSA labor organizers and leaders from our National Political Committee, Democratic Socialist Labor Commission, and the AfroSocialist and Socialists of Color Caucus to discuss their assessment of the election, the political terrain ahead of us, and what DSA needs to do to build a durable and winning Left that can defeat the Right and create a better world. Featuring: Keon Liberato, Rebecca Garelli, Robert Cuffy and Kevin Prosen in conversation with Marianela D’Aprile.
Workplace Organizing Training Program: Escalation and Public Action (Make-up Session) Sunday, December 6th 4:30 CST Register for this call here
***This is a make-up training sessions for trainees that miss or cannot attend the Wednesday session.***
Join the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee (EWOC) for our five-session organizer training program, designed for people interested in joining a union, addressing safety or equality issues at work, or just learning more about labor! No previous experience required! |
