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East Bay DSA Newsletter August 12, 2021
Solidarity is what we want. We do not want to find fault with each other, but to solidify our forces and say to each other: We must be together; our masters are joined together and we must do the same thing.
Mother Jones
Comrades,

As socialists, we're guided by the belief that the working class is the only group that’s big enough, powerful enough, and dissatisfied enough with the status quo to overcome capitalism and to eventually usher in socialism. And yet, the working class is not a monolith: workers don't act as a single bloc, but are fragmented and isolated from one another in myriad ways. In order to more effectively exercise its power, the working class has to see itself as a class that stands for human flourishing, and against the exploitation of the capitalist class. 

Our task as socialists is to take part in struggles that not only win material gains for working people, but that help workers feel their own power and help them articulate who their true enemy is: the capitalists (and their parties) who hoard wealth, pollute our earth, and privatize public goods. Workplace struggles can be effective vehicles for class formation: when workers band together to take action against the boss, they feel their power. Electoral struggles, when waged against the corporate political establishment, can also be effective vehicles for class formation. When Jovanka Beckles ran as an open democratic socialist in her campaign for AC transit board, she called for fare-free transit, broadening the horizon of what’s possible to demand from a transit authority. 

The goal of socialists running for office is twofold: on the one hand, to win and legislate reforms that erode the power of capitalists in the state. On the other, it's to convince workers that the Democrats are not their friends, and that they should demand more from their representatives than hollow, unfulfilled promises. Electoral campaigns, even when we lose, can reach millions of working people at a time when they're most likely to be thinking about politics, can heighten the contradictions of the Democratic party, and can help workers see the need for a future workers' party. 

We need more of our own homegrown DSA candidates to run for office. The campaigns we take part in should be for candidates who are embedded in unions and working class movements, and who are accountable to those movements. Our electoral endorsements should be substantial, and should enable us to be involved in a campaign from the ground up. 

We hope you'll join us at this Sunday's General Meeting, where we'll debate and vote on a new electoral endorsements process, aimed at helping us do just this!

Solidarity!
Missouri Representative Cori Bush staged a sit-in earlier this month on the US Capitol steps in a successful push to get the Biden administration or Congress to extend the pandemic-era national eviction moratorium.
News and Information
Be sure to check out East Bay Majority, East Bay DSA's news source with a socialist perspective, for the latest news and information.

DEMANDING HAZARD PAY, TRANSIT WORKERS FORCE AC TRANSIT TO THE NEGOTIATING TABLE

Riders and drivers unite to demand hazard pay and force the AC Transit board to the bargaining table.

Read more
Featured Events
While we are still mostly unable to meet face-to-face, events are still going on that you can be a part of. RSVP below to stay updated. You can also keep track on our Events page.

Branches Working Group: Open Meeting

TONIGHT! August 12 | 6–7:30 p.m.
Join on Zoom ♿️
Do you want to build local connections in East Bay DSA and orient our work regionally? Do you live/work north of Berkeley or south of Oakland and want to organize a DSA presence in your area?

Join the Branches Working Group, which meets on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 5:30 pm. RSVP for the Zoom link!

RSVP

Education Workers Social

Saturday, August 14 | 1– 3 p.m.
RSVP for location
East Bay DSA's first Labor Circle formation is the Education Workers Labor Circle. We have a wide definition, spanning from early childhood education to university workers and anyone employed by a school. Join us to kick off the start of the school year and meet fellow education workers and socialists. We will be having some refreshments in the park, sharing our stories about our workplaces during the pandemic and what our next year looks like. Masks are highly encouraged, and we will be practicing social distancing.

Children and families are welcome. The field that we will be gathering in is accessible by ramps and flat sidewalks.

RSVP

August General Meeting

Sunday, August 15 | 1–3 p.m.
Online on Zoom
Join us for our August General Meeting of East Bay DSA!

The meeting will be conducted via Zoom — please register and find the call-in info below!

This month, we will be voting on a resolution regarding our chapter's electoral strategy.

This resolution revamps our chapter's process for considering electoral endorsements and is modeled off of the NYC-DSA endorsement process. It has two main features. (1) In order to increase member participation in electoral endorsements, the resolution adds a dedicated candidate forum where members can hear from interested candidates, ask questions, and debate outside the time constraints of a General Meeting. (2) The resolution gives the Electoral and Steering Committees the ability to democratically decide which of the candidates seeking endorsement are put to the general membership for consideration.

See the agenda Join on Zoom RSVP

Racial Solidarity Committee Monthly Meeting

Monday, August 16 | 7–9 p.m.
Contact [email protected] for location information
Our Green New Deal Committee meets on the second Wednesday each month. We will discuss eco-socialist issues, upcoming events and actions, committee priorities, and campaigns. All are welcome! Please RSVP to receive the URL to the meeting or email [email protected].

RSVP

People's Transit Alliance Political Education: Ridership Mobilization

Wednesday, August 18 | 6:30–8 p.m.

Online via Zoom — RSVP for link ♿️

Join the People’s Transit Alliance for an open political education meeting where we will screen parts of the LA Bus Riders’ Union documentary and discuss ways to build power among the transit ridership. The documentary goes in-depth on the BRU’s fight in the mid-90s to organize against and sue LA Metro for racial discrimination. We will watch a segment of the film and discuss their strategies and what we can learn for our own fight in the East Bay. 

Base building for socialism and a good public transportation system will require a politicized and engaged ridership, and we are preparing a campaign that includes canvassing and eventually organizing the AC Transit ridership. Come join us for this night of political education and collective strategizing!

This is the first of what will be a monthly political education meeting through the People’s Transit Alliance. New members and not-yet-DSA-members are encouraged to join!

RSVP

Social Housing Committee Meeting

Wednesday, August 18 | 7–8:30 p.m.
Online via Zoom ♿️
Monthly meeting for the EBDSA Social Housing committee. Come to hear updates about our upcoming projects, and have a political discussion about the decommodification of housing in the Bay Area!

Join on Zoom RSVP

Abolition Working Group

Thursday, August 19 | 7–8:30 p.m. 
Meeting of the Abolition Working Group to hear about work done by members who are organizing for the abolition of the Prison Industrial Complex, and to do political education, plan actions, and hold space for folks within the chapter to get involved.

RSVP

Steering Committee Meeting

Sunday, August 22 | 2–5 p.m.
RSVP for Zoom link
See how your elected leadership works as we deliberate on current chapter issues. This meeting is open to all DSA members to observe the proceedings. Please RSVP for the ZOOM link.

The agenda is TBA.

RSVP

Membership Engagement Committee Monthly Meeting

Monday, August 23 | 7–9 p.m.
Online via Zoom ♿️
We need your help building a strong and active chapter! Join our next Membership Engagement Committee monthly meeting and learn how you can put your skills to work or grow new ones you never knew you had!

The Membership Engagement Committee was created for the purpose of initiating and sustaining our members' active and healthy participation in the chapter's work. We cannot grow our movement without engaging and fostering growth within our current membership. We strive to grow confident organizers and leaders as well as strong relationships between comrades in our chapter by supporting all committees in their work and creating spaces for learning and camaraderie.

Our committee builds and maintains projects such as (but not limited to) our mobilizers program, planning and execution of chapter socials, new member events, and Organizer's Toolbox Trainings, as well as managing the onboarding of new members. As our chapter grows we need to grow our efforts with it and would love to welcome new members to our committee.

Contact us at [email protected]

Join on Zoom RSVP

Medicare for All Committee Meeting

Wednesday, August 25 | 6–8 p.m. 
Join on Zoom ♿️
With the pandemic and its multiple, intersecting crises, and the polling popularity of Medicare for All, our commitment to the movement is more important than ever. Come learn about our committee's efforts, as well as local, state, and national initiatives around Medicare for All and single-payer healthcare. All are welcome!

Join on Zoom RSVP
Upcoming Events

CLASSROOM JUSTICE MONTHLY MEETING

Thursday, August 26 | 7–9 p.m.
On Zoom — RSVP for link ♿️
Join us for our Classroom Justice monthly meeting!

RSVP

LABOR COMMITTEE MEETING

Sunday, August 29 | 6–8 p.m.
On Zoom — RSVP for link ♿️
Please join the East Bay DSA Labor Committee for our regular monthly meeting. It's open to all DSA members who are interested in getting involved in labor work with their comrades! Learn more about how to get involved in the committee, our ongoing projects, and upcoming solidarity actions!

If you'd like to submit an item for the agenda, please email [email protected].

RSVP
Catch up on Socialist Night School
CATCH UP ON NIGHT SCHOOL
Even with social distancing guidelines lifted, now's still as good a time as any to catch up on our Socialist Night School.

Catch up on past night school readings and videos below.

Watch past Night School videos

Catch up on Night School readings
Not a Member Yet? Let's Fix That.
DSA now has more than 90,000 members nationally, and we're still growing. There's never been a better time to get involved than right now! Join our national organization by clicking below and become an official socialist organizer.

Join DSA
Take the DSA Member Survey before August 31!
Caucus Corner
Our caucuses organize events too! Check out the Caucus Corner of our website to learn more about the activities of East Bay DSA caucuses and how to participate.
Announcements
SIGN UP TO TALK TO A MOBILIZER!
Are you a new DSA member? Or are you looking to get more involved with East Bay DSA's projects and campaigns? Sign up to talk to a mobilizer!

Here are three reasons to sign up to talk to a mobilizer:

  1. Meet a fellow socialist organizer
    We want to build a movement of millions of working class people and change the exploitative and oppressive system in which we live, but we do that first and foremost by building one-to-one connections with each other.
     
  2. Answer your questions
    Learn more about DSA, the local East Bay chapter, and our different committees and projects.
     
  3. Get more involved
    The main thing a mobilizer will help you with is getting more involved in DSA. Maybe there’s a campaign or project you’re particularly interested in, or maybe you’re a blank slate and you don’t really know what to do. Either way, a mobilizer will help you figure it out.
Sign up to talk to a mobilizer!
If the Left is going to get anywhere, if it’s going to recapture the role it once had, as the engine of social justice, it will only do so by replanting itself within laboring communities. As of yet, nobody has shown any evidence that changes of the scale we need — to put people over profits, to save the environment,to eradicate social oppressions — can be achieved without taking on capital. And how do you do that if you don’t harness the capacity of the one social force that can bring capital to heel — the class that generates its profits?
Vivek Chibber

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Solidarity is what we want. We do not want to find fault with each other, but to solidify our forces and say to each other: We must be together; our masters are joined together and we must do the same thing.
Mother Jones

Comrades!

While many of us hoped that the COVID-19 vaccine would bring an end to our year's long crisis, the Delta variant, coupled with our lack of international public health authority, has seen an explosion in cases and deaths. Hardest hit have been those nations where the vaccine has been withheld by corporate interests. We see more and more that the paradigm of competition cannot overcome the collective crises our world faces. The virus knows no national border.

But we know of another force that knows no national border: working class solidarity! It is in knowing that our fates as working people are intertwined that socialists can offer an alternative to the ravages of the world we’re living in.

Solidarity isn't just a feeling. It's a reaction to the reality that from DC to Beijing, our societies are ruled by the capitalist class. They won the 20th century, expanding their tentacles into every nation on earth without exception. We are, everywhere, answerable to the rule of the market.

Unfortunately the left has not yet risen to the challenge that this poses. We know of course, that the situation is dire, never have the capitalists controlled so much wealth, meanwhile working class organization here in the US continues to be decimated. Looming over all of this is the impending crisis of climate change grows ever more apocalyptic.

But it's exactly in this fire of crisis that solidarity can be forged in the struggle for a better world. Not out of sentimentality, but out of a dire need. We need each other to win, and we need to win to survive. Only when millions rise up in collective struggle, can we hope to challenge the might of the capitalist class.


News and Information
Be sure to check out East Bay Majority (https://eastbaymajority.com/) , East Bay DSA's news source with a socialist perspective, for the latest news and information.


** DEMANDING HAZARD PAY, TRANSIT WORKERS FORCE AC TRANSIT TO THE NEGOTIATING TABLE
------------------------------------------------------------
Riders and drivers unite to demand hazard pay and force the AC Transit board to the bargaining table.

Read more (https://eastbaymajority.com/ac-transit-jovanka-beckles-covid-hazard-pay-bus-drivers/)
Featured Events
While we are still mostly unable to meet face-to-face, events are still going on that you can be a part of. RSVP below to stay updated. You can also keep track on our Events page (http://eastbaydsa.org/events/) .


** Branches Working Group: Open Meeting

------------------------------------------------------------
TONIGHT! August 12 | 6–7:30 p.m.
Join on Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82844073645?pwd=R0djblY1TXA0Q0NMMm1NNStkT2N0QT09) ♿️
Do you want to build local connections in East Bay DSA and orient our work regionally? Do you live/work north of Berkeley or south of Oakland and want to organize a DSA presence in your area?

Join the Branches Working Group, which meets on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 5:30 pm. RSVP for the Zoom link!

RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1966/2021-08-12-branches-working-group-open-meeting/)


** Education Workers Social
------------------------------------------------------------
Saturday, August 14 | 1– 3 p.m.
RSVP for location
East Bay DSA's first Labor Circle formation is a group of Education Workers Labor Circe. We have a wide definition, spanning from early childhood education to university workers and anyone employed by a school. Join us to kick off the start of the school year, meet fellow education workers, and socialists. We will be having some refreshments in the park, sharing our stories about our workplaces during the pandemic, and what our next year looks like. Masks are highly encouraged, and we will be practicing social distancing.

Children and families are welcome. The field that we will be gathering in, is accessible by ramps, and flat sidewalks.

RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1964/2021-08-14-education-workers-social/)


** August General Meeting

------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday, August 15 | 1–3 p.m.
Online on Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88679822433?pwd=TDd6cVl3dldGVUgxekJZbGhjWmdiQT09)
Join us for our August General Meeting of East Bay DSA!

The meeting will be conducted via Zoom — please register and find the call-in info below!

This month, we will be voting on a resolution regarding our chapter's electoral strategy.

This resolution revamps our chapter's process for considering electoral endorsements and is modeled off of the NYC-DSA endorsement process. It has two main features. (1) In order to increase member participation in electoral endorsements, the resolution adds a dedicated candidate forum where members can hear from interested candidates, ask questions, and debate outside the time constraints of a General Meeting. (2) The resolution gives the Electoral and Steering Committees the ability to democratically decide which of the candidates seeking endorsement are put to the general membership for consideration.

See the agenda (https://docs.google.com/document/d/180VINNYhezmV4JDEs6I0MLMGh2y50xXRf4nc2WucN5A/edit) Join on Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88679822433?pwd=TDd6cVl3dldGVUgxekJZbGhjWmdiQT09) RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1972/2021-08-15-august-general-meeting/)


** Racial Solidarity Committee Monthly Meeting
------------------------------------------------------------
Monday, August 16 | 7–9 p.m.
Contact [email protected] for location information
Our Green New Deal Committee meets on the second Wednesday each month. We will discuss eco-socialist issues, upcoming events and actions, committee priorities, and campaigns. All are welcome! Please RSVP to receive the URL to the meeting or email [email protected].

RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1703/2021-08-11-green-new-deal-committee-monthly-meeting-virtual/)


** People's Transit Alliance Political Education: Ridership Mobilization
------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, August 18 | 6:30–8 p.m.

Online via Zoom — RSVP for link ♿️
Join the People’s Transit Alliance for an open political education meeting where we will screen parts of the LA Bus Riders’ Union documentary and discuss ways to build power among the transit ridership. The documentary goes in-depth on the BRU’s fight in the mid-90s to organize against and sue LA Metro for racial discrimination. We will watch a segment of the film and discuss their strategies and what we can learn for our own fight in the East Bay.

Base building for socialism and a good public transportation system will require a politicized and engaged ridership, and we are preparing a campaign that includes canvassing and eventually organizing the AC Transit ridership. Come join us for this night of political education and collective strategizing!

This is the first of what will be a monthly political education meeting through the People’s Transit Alliance. New members and not-yet-DSA-members are encouraged to join!

RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1970/2021-08-18-people-s-transit-alliance-political-education-ridership-mobilization/)


** Social Housing Committee Meeting

------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, August 18 | 7–8:30 p.m.
Online via Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85023852802?pwd=V0VaZEgvZTJxQXZ5c1I2K1FLQlQxdz09) ♿️
Monthly meeting for the EBDSA Social Housing committee. Come to hear updates about our upcoming projects, and have a political discussion about the decommodification of housing in the Bay Area!

Join on Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85023852802?pwd=V0VaZEgvZTJxQXZ5c1I2K1FLQlQxdz09) RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1733/2021-08-18-social-housing-committee-meeting/)


** Abolition Working Group

------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday, August 19 | 7–8:30 p.m.
Meeting of the Abolition Working Group to hear about work done by members who are organizing for the abolition of the Prison Industrial Complex, and to do political education, plan actions, and hold space for folks within the chapter to get involved.

RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1952/2021-08-19-abolition-working-group/)


** Steering Committee Meeting

------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday, August 22 | 2–5 p.m.
RSVP for Zoom link
See how your elected leadership works as we deliberate on current chapter issues. This meeting is open to all DSA members to observe the proceedings. Please RSVP for the ZOOM link.

The agenda is TBA.

RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1481/2021-08-22-steering-committee-meeting/)


** Membership Engagement Committee Monthly Meeting

------------------------------------------------------------
Monday, August 23 | 7–9 p.m.
Online via Zoom (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1881/2021-08-23-membership-engagement-committee-monthly-meeting/) ♿️
We need your help building a strong and active chapter! Join our next Membership Engagement Committee monthly meeting and learn how you can put your skills to work or grow new ones you never knew you had!

The Membership Engagement Committee was created for the purpose of initiating and sustaining our members' active and healthy participation in the chapter's work. We cannot grow our movement without engaging and fostering growth within our current membership. We strive to grow confident organizers and leaders as well as strong relationships between comrades in our chapter by supporting all committees in their work and creating spaces for learning and camaraderie.

Our committee builds and maintains projects such as (but not limited to) our mobilizers program, planning and execution of chapter socials, new member events, and Organizer's Toolbox Trainings, as well as managing the onboarding of new members. As our chapter grows we need to grow our efforts with it and would love to welcome new members to our committee.

Contact us at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected])

Join on Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81869433453?pwd=RXpoRnYwR200K21STDkzYzlpM1NMdz09) RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1881/2021-08-23-membership-engagement-committee-monthly-meeting/)


** Medicare for All Committee Meeting

------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, August 25 | 6–8 p.m.
Join on Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81235048894?pwd=RDZHcnRDQ0FpV3ZndzdUenVJZ3JaZz09) ♿️
With the pandemic and its multiple, intersecting crises, and the polling popularity of Medicare for All, our commitment to the movement is more important than ever. Come learn about our committee's efforts, as well as local, state, and national initiatives around Medicare for All and single-payer healthcare. All are welcome!

Join on Zoom (https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81235048894?pwd=RDZHcnRDQ0FpV3ZndzdUenVJZ3JaZz09) RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1722/2021-08-25-medicare-for-all-committee-meeting/)
Upcoming Events


** CLASSROOM JUSTICE MONTHLY MEETING

------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday, August 26 | 7–9 p.m.
On Zoom — RSVP for link ♿️
Join us for our Classroom Justice monthly meeting!

RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1971/2021-08-26-classroom-justice-monthly-meeting/)


** LABOR COMMITTEE MEETING

------------------------------------------------------------
Sunday, August 29 | 6–8 p.m.
On Zoom — RSVP for link ♿️
Please join the East Bay DSA Labor Committee for our regular monthly meeting. It's open to all DSA members who are interested in getting involved in labor work with their comrades! Learn more about how to get involved in the committee, our ongoing projects, and upcoming solidarity actions!

If you'd like to submit an item for the agenda, please email [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .

RSVP (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/events/1654/2021-08-29-labor-committee-meeting/)


Catch up on Socialist Night School
CATCH UP ON NIGHT SCHOOL
Even with social distancing guidelines lifted, now's still as good a time as any to catch up on our Socialist Night School.

Catch up on past night school readings and videos below.

Watch past Night School videos (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeMYhhCCTFq1jGdOt6lcF8l7HQJwnJndD)

Catch up on Night School readings (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/night-school/)


Not a Member Yet? Let's Fix That.
DSA now has more than 90,000 members nationally, and we're still growing. There's never been a better time to get involved than right now! Join our national organization by clicking below and become an official socialist organizer.

Join DSA (http://dsausa.org/join?source=East%20Bay)
Take the DSA Member Survey (http://dsausa.org/survey) before August 31!


Caucus Corner
Our caucuses organize events too! Check out the Caucus Corner of our website (https://www.eastbaydsa.org/about/caucuses/) to learn more about the activities of East Bay DSA caucuses and how to participate.


Announcements
SIGN UP TO TALK TO A MOBILIZER!
Are you a new DSA member? Or are you looking to get more involved with East Bay DSA's projects and campaigns? Sign up to talk to a mobilizer!

Here are three reasons to sign up to talk to a mobilizer:
1. Meet a fellow socialist organizer
We want to build a movement of millions of working class people and change the exploitative and oppressive system in which we live, but we do that first and foremost by building one-to-one connections with each other.

2. Answer your questions
Learn more about DSA, the local East Bay chapter, and our different committees and projects.

3. Get more involved
The main thing a mobilizer will help you with is getting more involved in DSA. Maybe there’s a campaign or project you’re particularly interested in, or maybe you’re a blank slate and you don’t really know what to do. Either way, a mobilizer will help you figure it out.

Sign up to talk to a mobilizer! (https://forms.gle/np21b7Jt225z4xmq5)


If the Left is going to get anywhere, if it’s going to recapture the role it once had, as the engine of social justice, it will only do so by replanting itself within laboring communities. As of yet, nobody has shown any evidence that changes of the scale we need — to put people over profits, to save the environment,to eradicate social oppressions — can be achieved without taking on capital. And how do you do that if you don’t harness the capacity of the one social force that can bring capital to heel — the class that generates its profits?

Vivek Chibber

============================================================