a bigger impact in 2023

Friends,

Seattle DSA is committed to playing a much bigger role in 2023.  But to do this, we need to be better organized and have a bigger megaphone to reach our supporters and the broader working class.  

 

In October our chapter voted to hire two part-time staff members – a major milestone for Seattle DSA.  This month, Guillermo Zazueta began work as our new Campaign Organizer and Ty Moore stepped in as our new Communications Organizer. The two staff will help activate our 1,500 members, build in South King County, and ramp up our chapter’s communications and media. Check out their bios below.

 

With its multi-racial working class, the need for socialists to root our movement in South King County is clear. Raise the Wage Tukwila winning by 82% showed there is an opening, and we’ve established points of support during the Gallardo campaign. 

 

But to build DSA in South King County will take serious resources.  

 

To make a substantial impact on Seattle politics we need to take steps toward developing our own socialist media. It is unacceptable that the Seattle left has to rely on two non-socialist publications (The Stranger & the Urbanist) to sometimes get our message out. Hiring our own communications staffer is an important step toward creating our own media infrastructure – but it costs money. 

 

As part of hiring staff we are launching a drive to increase income by $3,500/month.  This is completely within our reach.  Consider that we raised $15,000 to send members and Starbucks workers to Labor Notes and the Socialism Conference, we raised over $4,000 to put on the Oct 8 Abortion Rights rally, and we raised thousands to support striking Starbucks workers.  We’ve proven we can do this!

So far, we’ve increased our local income by $935/month - that’s 27% of our goal of $3,500/month, which we need to reach by the end of February!

 

If 128 of our nearly 1,500 members donated $20 a month, we could raise the $3,500 a month we need. 

If 64 people pitched in $20/month tonight, we’d be nearly half of the way to our goal!

Can you pitch in $20/month today? 

Any amount you are able to donate will make a big difference in Building A Socialist Future. 

 

In solidarity, 

Amy W, Philip L

Seattle DSA Co-Chairs
 

Guillermo Zazueta is our new Chapter Organizer!
He is a local, raised in South King County, attended the University of Washington in 2015, and has since been participating heavily in campaigns both big and small.

“My introduction to DSA began as a volunteer with the Bernie Sanders 2020 Primary Campaign, later working with the 2020 Census as Lead Enumerator. My passion for community and electoral organizing comes from a core belief that societal change can (and must) be made through organizing and mobilizing communities to the ballot. My later work with Stephanie Gallardo’s Campaign for Congress as Field Director, then afterwards as Campaign Manager for a ballot measure, King Co. Prop. 1, aimed at restoring  critical funding for environmental conservation programs, has solidified my interest in organizing in my community and building DSA. These experiences have transformed me into a hardened field organizer and campaign manager.

I am a recent fellow with the Institute for a Democratic Future, a Washington-based fellowship program that prepares aspiring progressive leaders with the knowledge and tools to make change. In my role as Chapter Organizer for Seattle DSA, I will remain grounded in my commitment to lead the effort to expand membership and participation in South King County, whether it is by leading up ballot initiatives, partnering with local unions, or working with local leaders to bring about meaningful change for working class communities. It will also be my priority to support ongoing organizing efforts within Seattle DSA, support internal mobilization of our current membership, participate in fundraising efforts, and engage with working group leadership and support their ongoing efforts.

Ultimately, I hope to become a good ambassador for the values and shared vision we all share as socialists fighting to end capitalist exploitation, fighting to win a world organized by the working class, and fighting to question the fundamental causes of all forms of injustice in our communities.”

 

Ty Moore is our new Communications Organizer!
With over 25 years of experience building the socialist movement and working-class campaigns, Ty is excited to put his skills to work to strengthen Seattle DSA.

“As a new father, my determination to win a socialist world for the rising generations has only grown. I grew up in Washington State and got active in socialist politics as a student at Seattle Central, before moving to the Midwest and spending 15 years organizing as a socialist in Minneapolis. There I played a central role in the housing justice and labor movement, initiating 15 Now Minnesota which led the fight to make Minneapolis the first non-coastal city to win a $15/hr minimum wage. 

Since returning to Washington in 2016, my organizing work has focussed on housing justice. I helped launch Seattle DSA’s Housing Justice Working Group and, after moving to Tacoma in 2021,  I was elected as TDSA’s Campaign Coordinator and initiated our central campaign here, “Home in Tacoma for All.” With backing from organized labor, we are leading the effort to win a “Tenant Bill of Rights” ballot initiative in 2023. 

Until last month, I was a union organizer with WFSE and helped initiate the ongoing organizing drive at the Tacoma Art Museum. While disappointed to leave that work unfinished, I’m eager to bring my years of experience with socialist media and campaign communications into SDSA. With all of you, I am excited to transform DSA into a powerful force for working class liberation!”

Seattle DSA Needs You to Step Up and Pitch in!
Can you pitch in $20/month today? 
 

I-135 Canvassing This Weekend!

Here's some opportunities if you'd like to get involved in the campaign to bring social housing to Seattle! Help us reach out to voters before the February special election to help educate them on what social housing is all about! Joining an organized canvass is a great way to get involved for people new to the campaign, as training is provided on site!

If you can't make it and would still like to help out with canvassing, please reach out and we'll get you set up!