Friend --
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our member Lisa Kennedy on March 10th. Lisa was a proud librarian, educator and union member.
Lisa was the media specialist at Wilde Elementary and shared her love of reading with the students. Additionally, she worked for the Sterling Heights Public Library and helped run the summer youth programs there. As a Warren Education Association union representative, she participated in the protests against anti-union "right to work" legislation.
Later, she and her son snuck behind police lines to protest then-Governor Snyder's cuts to public education funding at a campaign event. In 2019, at her son's urging, she became a card carrying DSA member. Lisa was a longtime supporter of progressive causes and she will be missed.
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On March 8, City Council began holding its departmental budget hearings as part of the yearly city budget process. These hearings are our last chance to put pressure on City Council to defund the police and refund Detroit before the Council proposes changes and votes on the budget for next fiscal year.
We’re continuing our weekly phone banks to talk to Detroiters and ask them to turn out for the final public hearing. We need all hands on deck to pressure Detroit City Council to vote NO in April against any austerity budget that leaves too many low-income and working class Detroiters sick and stuck in the cold. Sign up for one of the remaining two events:
<[link removed]>3/19 PHONE BANK 7-9PM <[link removed]>
<[link removed]>3/26 PHONE BANK 6-8PM <[link removed]>
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At the recent District Community Budget Forums, the top two priorities of Detroiters based on the public comments were Housing (40 comments) and Defunding the Police (34 comments). In his budget proposal presentation on March 5, Mayor Duggan did not even acknowledge these priorities. We have to tell him and the Council again and again that we want our budget to divest from the Police Department and its racist, militarized surveillance machine and reinvest in housing, healthcare, and theenvironment - all things that improve the material conditions for ourselves and our community.
Sign up to join us in doing so at the LAST and FINAL budget public hearing on Monday, March 29th at 5PM before City Council ultimately votes on the budget:
<[link removed]>MAKE PUBLIC COMMENT <[link removed]>
Can't make it? Here are some other ways you can take action:
• Emailthe Budget Office <[link removed]>andyour city council member <[link removed]>. Demand that they defund the police and refund Detroiters. Clickhere <[link removed]> for some talking points.
• Sign <[link removed]>our Action Network Petition.
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<[link removed]>
Kali Akuno, our special guest for next week's Socialist Night School, is one of the founders of Cooperation Jackson. Originally launched on May Day in 2014, Cooperation Jackson seeks to develop a network of worker co-ops in Jackson, Mississippi. Their economic model is built on equity, cooperation, worker democracy, and environmental sustainability to provide meaningful living wage jobs, reduce racial inequities, and build community wealth.
Click the image above to learn more about Cooperation Jackson and be sure you don't miss our Night School <[link removed]>on Tuesday, March 23rd to learn more from Kali about the incredible work they're doing in Mississippi and how we can implement it right here in Detroit!
🌹 UPCOMING EVENTS 🌹
All the Left Questions: Ladies to the Front
Saturday, March 20th 7PM-9PM
Please join us in supporting Landis4BOPC, while having fun and celebrating Women’s History Month!
Do you miss stepping out with some friends to a local pub for some merrymaking and trivia? Are you itching to socialize with comrades and stretch your brain muscles? Did you regretfully miss the last trivia night that had everyone talking?!
Well… you’re in luck!
Join us for the next fundraiser for the Landis4BOPC campaign -- All the Left Questions: Ladies to the Front. It’s Women’s History Month and we want to celebrate some Leftist Ladies, have some fun, and maybe even learn something!
Tickets are $10 per person, with all proceeds going to the campaign to elect Landis Spencer to the Board of Police Commissioners in District 6. Join us for a little competition and a lot of comradery on Saturday, March 20 at 7 PM!
SIGN UP <[link removed]>
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Socialist Discussion Night: DSA & The Unions
Sunday, March 21st 6PM-8PM
Join us for a vibrant discussion on the relationship between socialists and unions, and what we should do about it! The 30 minute panel will feature DSA members Jess Newman and Hussein Beydoun, followed by an open discussion with the audience. All are welcome and encouraged to join!
REGISTER <[link removed]>
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Socialist Night School: Lessons from Mississippi - What We Can Learn From Cooperaton Jackson
Tuesday, March 23 6:30PM-8PM
Kali Akuno, co-author of Jackson Rising, explores the lessons that can be drawn from the experience of organizing grassroots efforts for over a decade in Jackson, Mississippi. Learn about the organizing projects they envisioned, electoral and beyond, to grow a stronger city and a New South.
REGISTER <[link removed]>
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Detroit DSA Does PRO Act Phone Bank
Saturday, March 27th, 6PM
Join National DSA and our chapter comrades for a phone bank to let voters in key states know how important it is that they pressure their elected officials to support the PRO Act - it's a key piece of legislation that will go a long way to strengthen unions and allow workers to organize on the job and help fight for The Green New Deal!
REGISTER <[link removed]>---
Labor and the City Budget
Sunday, March 28th 2PM
The DDSA Labor Working Group along with local union members and leaders will discuss the upcoming city budget and its impact on workers. Join us to learn how funding transportation, housing, and union jobs could transform our workplaces and our communities.
JOIN HERE <[link removed]>
This week in...
"If you are introverted like me, there may be some growing pains when it comes to canvassing. But I hope my experiences show that it is still possible to succeed."
"Canvassing Tips from an Introvert", by Will Froberg <[link removed]>
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"Detroit occupies a central place in the African American experience, from the city’s earliest days as a French colony to the first stirrings of abolitionism to the pioneering of civil rights and up to the present. Black Detroit: A People’s History of Self-Determination chronicles this history through an eminently readable narrative that combines extensive primary and secondary sources, as well as personal memoir."
"Black Metropolis- Lessons from Black Detroit: A People’s History of Self-Determination", by Vince Carducci <[link removed]>
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"Shortly after noon on Friday, March 5, Detroit DSA held a press conference in front of the Spirit of Detroit downtown to voice opposition to the proposed 2022 fiscal year municipal budget Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan has submitted to City Council"
"Community Representatives Voice Opposition to City of Detroit Budget Priorities", by Vince Carducci <[link removed]>
Detroit DSA is a 1200+ member funded organization. We receive no money from outside sources so we can say things like "Defund the Police" and "Abolish ICE" without losing funding, and we will always act democratically in the interests of our members and the working class! If you're able to, we ask that you make monthly contributions as they more directly benefit our chapter. Thank you for whatever amount you're able to contribute!
If you're ready to join us in our fight go here: dsausa.org/join <[link removed]>
Send your dues receipt
[email protected] <mailto:
[email protected]>and we'll get you plugged in!
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In solidarity,
🌹 Detroit DSA
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Metro Detroit Democratic Socialists of America - United States
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