Jack-In-The-Box Workers Successfully Strike Over Broken Air-Conditioning

For the last several weeks, workers at an Arden-Arcade Jack-in-the-Box have been fed up. They've been dealing with issues typical in the fast food industry: wage theft, poor scheduling practices, abusive management, etc. And every year, for three years, the air conditioner has broken during the summer. In the most recent heatwave, where temperatures have hit 109 degrees, a boss blamed older workers going through menopause as an excuse to avoid fixing the air conditioner.

When management refused to listen to their concerns, the workers turned to their union -- the Fight for $15 -- and they went on strike.

Last Tuesday, seven workers courageously walked off the morning shift. They were supported by a large crowd of fellow fast food workers and their allies, including SEIU 1021, Sacramento City Councilmember Katie Valenzuela, and DSA. They told their stories to the media. And they were ultimately successful, forcing corporate to fire their manager.

The movement is growing. If you are a fast food worker, know a fast food worker, or want to support the fast food worker movement, please email [email protected]. DSA will keep our members posted on any similar upcoming strikes.

Announcing The Green New Deal For Public Schools Campaign

The climate crisis is wreaking havoc around the country, with record-breaking droughts, extreme temperatures, and mounting risks of wildfires. We need a Green New Deal now. Winning a Green New Deal will require accelerated working class militancy demanding a radical and transformative expansion of public goods in the United States.

We are excited to announce a new phase of DSA's Green New Deal campaign. The first phase of our campaign focused exclusively on the PRO Act. We have made strides, and that fight continues. We are now adding a new demand: a Green New Deal for Public Schools. Our campaign will organize key groups around public schools with the aim of politicizing a public institution that exists in every community and from which we can make broad-based demands for aggressive green investment. This is a campaign for dignified, unionized green jobs; it is a campaign for climate resilient and zero-carbon, public buildings; it is a campaign for high levels of public, green investment in multiracial working class communities across the country.

This campaign, like all DSA work, is based on the foundation of chapter-level leadership and organizing. Join us on July 13 at 5pm California time to learn how you and your chapter can get involved! Online meeting registration link here.

Mutual Aid Opportunities This Week: Water Drops & Food Prep/Distribution

There's an urgent need for water drops this week! We've got to keep each other safe. Want to know where/how? Email us at [email protected] or donate at https://www.patreon.com/SacDSAMutualAid

Sac DSA's Mutual Aid Committee also hosts a food and supply distribution for the unhoused at Cesar Chavez Plaza every other Monday. Our next distribution is Monday, July 12, at 5:30 PM. All members are invited to attend or donate. We especially need people to help prepare food, even if you can't take part in distribution! We are seeking donations to support this work through https://www.patreon.com/SacDSAMutualAid. Email [email protected] for more information.

Meet Your Comrades!

Beer & Roses Happy Hour in Elk Grove & Sacramento

Beer & Roses (DSA Happy Hour), Friday July 9 @ 6-9PM, Flatland Brewing in Elk Grove (9183 Survey Rd #104, Elk Grove 95624)

Beer & Roses (DSA Happy Hour), Friday July 23 @ 6-9PM, Honey & The Trapcat in Old Sacramento (1023 Front St Suite A, Sacramento, CA 95814)

Come drop in to one of these relaxed event and say hello to your comrades! Drinking alcohol is not required, and people are always willing to help pay for the next round if your boss or landlord has been extra-stingy this week. New faces especially welcome!

Become a One-on-One Rose Buddy!

Interested in getting more involved with Sac DSA, but don’t know where to start? Or perhaps you’re an experienced member, and want to help some new folks get their bearings?

We’re starting a new “Rose Buddies” program here in Sac DSA, in which newer members can be paired with an experienced member to meet up for a coffee (or whatever else sounds good to you) and get to know more about each other and DSA. Sometimes it helps to have a friend when joining a new group!

New members looking for a buddy can sign up here.

More experienced members looking to mentor a buddy can sign up here.

Tickets Available to DSA Pre-Convention Telethon & Retrospective

DSA is kicking off our first-ever virtual National Convention this year with a virtual fundraiser to “Jumpstart Socialism for a New Tomorrow” on Friday, July 30 from 5-8PM California time, and tickets are now available! Come celebrate your comrades and our movement, and help us raise the funds we need to keep growing our working class movement and pushing for the change we need.

The telethon will kick off the Convention with a celebration of all that we’ve achieved as a democratic socialist movement, while raising funds to support the important work we still have ahead of us. DSA chapters and member leaders will be featured along with a few surprise special guests to round the evening out. We’ll also be hosting a friendly competition amongst chapters, and the chapter with the highest proportion of members who attend will get a special shout-out on the Telethon, so be sure to make sure your comrades have the link to register.

You can buy tickets for the event here. Donations are strongly encouraged, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds -- there is also an option to attend without buying a ticket (ie for free), using the same link

International Solidarity Updates

This part of the newsletter is for updates on international situations that national or Sacramento DSA has identified as priorities for our organization. If you would like to write any of these updates, please email us or consider joining our international committee!

DSA Visits Venezuela, Meets with Activists and President Maduro

Members of DSA’s national leadership have spent the past two weeks attending the Bicentennial Congress of the Peoples of the World in Venezuela -- a gathering of leftist activist groups, political parties, and unions from across Latin America and the wider world. In addition to its formal meetings at the congress, the DSA delegation also visited with Venezuelan political organizers and toured local development projects. The visit culminated with a meeting between DSA and President Nicolás Maduro (the successor to Hugo Chávez as leader of the leftist “Bolivarian Revolution” in Venezuela). We will share with Sac DSA members when a detailed report-back on the trip is available.

DSA strongly opposes the US sanctions regime on Venezuela, and supports the Venezuelan people’s struggles for economic justice and against foreign aggression. As our International Committee put it, “The Venezuelan situation is extremely complex for us, as socialists in the United States, to analyze. What responsibilities the PSUV [the ruling party in Venezuela] and the state have for setting the conditions for the ongoing political and economic crisis, or for failing to address it, are severely disputed, but it is indisputable that the sanctions and coup-mongering have had nothing but a destructive effect on the situation; as socialists within the United States, it is these broad attempts at political destabilization and deleterious sanctions that are within our power to change.”

Sac DSA Rallies For Palestine Amid Ongoing Expulsions

Last week, DSA joined in a protest in front of the Robert Matsui Courthouse to stand against the illegal occupation of Palestine and the destruction of houses in the Jerusalem neighborhood in Silwan.

Currently, the Israeli occupation forces are carrying out house demolitions in the al-Bustan area of the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan. The first demolition occurred last Tuesday at a butcher shop, where Israeli forces attacked the owner with tear gas and weapons, as a way to start the demolitions. More than 100 buildings housing around 1,500 people in the al-Bustan area of Silwan face demolition to make way for an Israeli religious theme park. Families are being given a 21-day order which orders them to demolish their own house or Israel will do it and charge you a fine for not demolishing your own home. These are the types of tactics that have been used historically to expel Palestinian residents.

Leadership Opportunities with National DSA

International Committee is Seeking Subcommittee Members

We welcome all DSA members interested in global solidarity to please fill out this application to apply to join National DSA’s International Committee (IC) via one or more subcommittees. The IC will be opening up to full membership in stages as we build capacity. Next application deadline is September 15, 2021, to be considered for our next round of onboarding. The subcommittees you can apply to join are:

Americas
Anti-War
Asia + Oceania
Economics + Trade
Ecosocialism
Europe
Labor
Middle East + Africa
Migration + Refugees

DSA Muslims Leadership Election

DSA Muslims will be having elections very soon, and we want to encourage as many of our members as possible to take part! To run for a position or vote, you need to be a member of DSA Muslims, which you can join here. Members will have access to the DSA Muslims Slack and e-mail list, where nomination forms are available. Nomination forms are due no later than July 13!

Upcoming Sac DSA Meetings

All meetings taking place on Zoom, due to Covid. Open to all members! Some meetings require pre-registration so we can verify your DSA membership; just click the link and provide the email address you used when you joined DSA.

Socialist Education Committee meeting, Thursday July 8 @ 7PM, Zoom link here

Healthcare Committee meeting, Thursday July 15 @ 7PM, Zoom link here

General Membership meeting, Saturday, July 17 @ 1:30PM, Zoom link here

Missed a Meeting? Here are the Notes!

Labor committee meeting notes, 6/28/21

Executive Board meeting notes, 7/6/21

Upcoming National DSA Events & Programs

These events are hosted by National DSA or chapters outside Sacramento. As with all DSA events, they are free and open to anyone!

“So You Want to Start a Chapter?”

Wednesday, July 7th @ 5:00 PM California Time, RSVP Here

Interested in building working class power through DSA, but don't have a chapter in your area? Or maybe you are part of a large chapter, and want to start a branch in an area far from the center of its usual activity? This call is for you!

We will lay out the organizing and administrative steps to take so that you can grow from a small group to a full fledged DSA chapter, featuring DSA staff/leaders and first hand lessons from people who have gone through the process of starting a DSA chapter.

“Holding Good Meetings”

Wednesday, July 7 @ 5:30 PM California time, RSVP Here

Meetings are a basic and necessary component of organizing. They help us build relationships and trust, make collective decisions, learn new things, and teach each other new skills. In this training, we'll give some basic principles and practical advice for planning good, engaging & productive meetings.

“Security For Organizers”

Thursday, July 8 @ 6PM California time, RSVP Here

Join DSA Fresno for a “Security for Organizers” training! We’ll discuss topics like cyber hygiene, protest security, & more! The training is open to the public & we encourage you to join if you’d like some tips to stay safe both online & offline.

What We're Reading (Or Viewing, Or Listening To...)

This is a space where we share interesting articles, videos, podcasts -- whatever -- that our members have shared with each other online.

The Socialist Manifesto (book)

“Spotted at Powell’s in Portland”

National Child Tax Credit Awareness Day (event/ice cream!)

“The Sacramento Poor People’s Campaign and South Oak Park Community Association will hold a community awareness event and press conference Thursday, July 8 at 10:30AM at Jack Davis Park in the South Oak Park neighborhood to provide information about the child tax credit and the application process. Parents can sign up at ChildTaxCredit.gov. The site will ask for social security numbers for the parents and children, a reliable mailing address, and an email address. Please RSVP here.”