Mountain View is attempting to drive off low income residents, we are fighting back

SV DSA Newsletter
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In this great crisis, the proletariat is not a spectator; it is an actor. In it the fate of the world proletariat is to be resolved. From it will emerge the proletarian civilization, the socialist civilization.”
José Carlos Mariátegui

Hi John!


At our October Branch Meetings, both branches (Lower Peninsula and San Jose) endorsed overturning an RV parking ban in Mountain View. Banning overnight parking displaces Mountain View community members who can't afford the cost of housing. SV DSA members have been working hard - gathering 500 signatures this past weekend alone - to get a ballot initiative ending the ban in front of voters. The Mountain View Housing Justice Coalition is now less than 1,000 signatures away from their goal, with petition forms due by the end of this week. Fill out this form ([link removed]) to join us!
Want to know what it's like canvassing out in the field? One of our members has written about his experience with the referendum campaign:

November has been campaign season for Silicon Valley DSA. We’ve been collecting signatures. My rotten Mountain View City Councilors passed an ordinance to evict the two hundred people who live in vehicles on the street. As people with at least half a heart and an ounce of courage, we obviously oppose this eviction ordinance. As socialists who practice class solidarity, we’re actually doing something about it.

To challenge this eviction ordinance we’re tabling, standing on street corners, and canvassing for signatures. Mostly canvassing. In material terms, that means walking house-to-house, knocking on people’s doors, and telling them to sign. If you’ve never been canvassing, this might sound terrifying! I know I was terrified the first time I canvassed. “I don’t even know these people! What if they hate me? What if they slam the door in my face? What if… they say no!?”

My first canvass turned out like almost everybody else’s. It was really enjoyable! Most people didn’t even answer their doors. Half who did answer politely said no. The other half enthusiastically said yes! I got signatures, connected people with DSA, and raised class consciousness in my community. It’s one hell of a fun time if you’re a socialist organizer! But sometimes when I canvassed I came home emotionally drained. How could someone listen to me attentively and fairly as I passionately and reasonably described this awful eviction ordinance… But then not sign?!

The Mountain View City Council’s eviction ordinance is a monstrous act. It’s base political violence, plain and simple. Displacing harmless people just because they’re too poor to afford housing is unconscionable. Our council claimed that the ordinance is for public safety, road visibility, and other nonsense countered by public testimony. In truth, the eviction ordinance is political violence done to advance a social-economic agenda. Our council has a majority faction which — more than human life — is interested in property values and incumbent homeowner community control.

What is the way out from under this terrible reactionary machine, the housing market? As socialists, we already know: solidarity and democracy. The struggle against this awful eviction ordinance is just one battle in the war for democratic determination of our lives, the war of the propertied class against the class without property. We fight for the freedom for workers to choose to remain in their communities. We fight this battle by canvassing, talking to our neighbors, and explaining what is at stake. If we don’t draw a line here and stop our council, they will continue their evictions, either through other ordinances or by continuing to allow our runaway housing market to do their dirty work for them. Eventually we’ll all be priced out of our cities. We’ll lose not just our homes, but our democratic control over our communities.

We take those short thirty seconds at our neighbors’ doors to make our case: we’re in the middle of this war; it may not be at your door today, but eventually you will be on the front line too. Marx showed that the market logic of capitalism is ever-expanding, dispossessing growing numbers of their property and social control of their communities. We either stand together now or fall divided later.

Stand together now. Campaign with us.

Solidarity Forever,
Your SV DSA Newsletter Team 🌹

Silicon Valley DSA is your local chapter of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). We're a nationwide movement organizing for democratic socialism.


** Calls to Action
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* This week is your last chance to help gather signatures against the RV Ban. Fill out this form ([link removed]) with your availability and we'll be in touch!
* Join the Anti-Imperialist Coalition San Jose on Monday, Novermber 18 at 5:00pm for a Hands Off Bolivia Rally @ Santa Clara and 4th Street in San Jose. (See National DSA's statement condemning the coup in Bolivia here ([link removed]) .)
* Speak out against right wing hate-monger Ann Coulter. UC Berkeley invited her (and spent tens of thousands of students' tuition dollars on special police for her event!) while Coulter praises violence against immigrants and people of color. Join the protest against her ([link removed]) Wednesday, November 20 from 7pm - 11pm at The Campanile at UC Berkeley.


** Upcoming Events
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** Justice and Labor Working Group Meeting
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November 19 at 6:30pm - 8:00pm
Details link ([link removed])

Join us for the first joint Justice and Labor Working Group meeting! We’ll be covering debriefs from ongoing actions and campaigns, and plans for the future!


** YDSA at SJSU
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November 20 at 5:00pm - 6:30pm
Details link ([link removed])

YDSA is the Youth Section of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). If you’re an SJSU student, employee, or member of the campus community, and you’re interested in fighting for democratic socialism, we hope to see you there! 🙂


** San Jose Branch Meeting
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November 21 at 6:30pm - 9:00pm
Details link ([link removed])

Join us for our San Jose Branch Meeting, where we'll be hearing from candidates for local office, and deciding whether or not to endorse (and work on) their campaigns! We’ll have snacks and socializing from 6:30pm to 7:00pm. (Newbies: this is a great opportunity to find out more about the chapter and get to know some comrades!) The meeting itself starts at 7:00pm. See you there!


** South Bay Indigenous Solidarity Meeting
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November 21 at 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Details link ([link removed])

Join us to learn about the effort to save the area traditionally known as Juristac, the ancient Amah Mutsun ceremonial site located south of Gilroy. A proposed sand and gravel quarry threatens to level sacred hills and rip 40 million tons of materials from pits covering 317 acres.


** AfroSOC Happy Hour
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November 22 at 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Details link ([link removed])

Join activists of color from Silicon Valley DSA and other organizations in the South Bay at our very first AfroSOC Happy Hour! This will be a casual meetup over food & drinks for activists of color in the South Bay, to connect and learn so we can better support each other in the future.


** DSA New Member Orientation and Q&A
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November 23 at 11:00am - 12:30pm
Details link ([link removed])

Have you heard about DSA on the news and want to know more about it? Or are you a brand new member and want to find out how to get more involved? Come by our New Member Orientation for an introduction on what democratic socialism is, and what your local chapter is up to in Silicon Valley!

11:00-12:00pm: Orientation

12:00-12:30pm: Q&A


** Mobilizer Working Group Meeting
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November 24 at 1:00pm - 3:00pm
Details link ([link removed])

This will be a Silicon Valley DSA meeting for our Mobilizer Working Group. We will be discussing our media presence, on-boarding, local meet-ups, etc. Newcomers strongly encouraged to attend!


** Chapter Committee Meeting
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November 25 at 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Details link ([link removed])

Officers meet regularly to check in on all of our working groups and plan future events. If you’re interested in the nuts and bolts of chapter administration, or have questions for the officers, you’re welcome to attend. Just fill out this form ([link removed]) for details!


** Lower Peninula Branch Meeting
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November 26 at 7:00pm - 9:00pm
Details link ([link removed])

Join us for our Lower Peninsula Branch Meeting, where we'll be hearing from candidates for local office, and deciding whether or not to endorse (and work on) their campaigns! We’ll have snacks and socializing from 6:30pm to 7:00pm. (Newbies: this is a great opportunity to find out more about the chapter and get to know some comrades!) The meeting itself starts at 7:00pm. See you there!


** Announcements
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** Join DSA!
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To join DSA and vote at our meetings, you can pay dues ([link removed]) or request a waiver (mailto:[email protected]?subject=Dues%20waiver%20request) .
(If you're not sure your membership is current, we can check (mailto:[email protected]?subject=Membership%20check) . If you've moved, let us know ([link removed]) .)


** Support your local chapter
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Membership dues mostly go to support national DSA—to support Silicon Valley DSA directly, set up voluntary local dues ([link removed]) ! We recommend you pay up to $5 monthly in national dues, if affordable, and reserve your additional generosity for the local. 🌹


** Organize a local meet-up
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To win the world, we need to win our buildings, our neighborhoods, and our cities. If you want to start a DSA local meetup in your neighborhood, email us (mailto:[email protected]?subject=Interested%20in%20Local%20Meetup) ! This is a fun and easy way to connect local comrades and bring in new folks.


** Let's connect 1-on-1
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Want to chat with one of our mobilizers to figure out ways to make a difference with DSA? Sign up here ([link removed]) .


** Submit content!
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* Newsletter & Events. Click here ([link removed]) to submit an event, update, or call to action for next week's newsletter. Please submit it by Friday at 8pm. Accepted submissions will also go out on our calendar and social media.
* Twitter. Click here ([link removed]) if you have a short message to publish on our Twitter.


** Questions?
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If you have any questions, please reply to this email. 🌹
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