Democratic Socialist Kelsea Bond was just elected to the Atlanta City Council. Kelsea is a long-time DSA member and organizer. For many years, they have worked closely with local labor unions to expand workers’ rights on picket lines, at sip-ins and community meetings, in marches, and inside and outside of the State Capitol. They have canvassed for reproductive justice and advocated for the City to fund life-saving abortion care. They have fought to Stop Cop City and instead fund public services, build affordable housing, and expand mass transit. Our Chapter is immensely proud of their victory, as well as the work of the hundreds of volunteers and Atlanta DSA members who made this historic win possible.

For months, our members knocked doors and talked to District 2 residents about the issues that matter to working people — affordable housing, green public transit, and an economy for the 99%. The success that came from this massive effort proves that these bread-and-butter issues are broadly and deeply popular — even here in the deep south, even in a city whose government too often bends to corporate interests and the capitalist class.

This people-powered campaign was about standing up to billionaire commercial property owners who aren’t paying their fair share in taxes, and colluding landlords who are jacking up our rent year after year. It was about closing Atlanta’s wealth gap, which is one of the highest in the nation, by fighting for workers’ rights and a guaranteed living wage. It was about protecting the trans and immigrant members of our community, who are under attack by the fascist Trump administration and the Republican-controlled State government.

It was about building greener, more resilient city infrastructure that can withstand climate disaster and make Atlanta a more convenient and affordable place to call home. It was about ensuring that no Atlanta resident is without housing, healthcare, and a truly democratic say in how our city is run. We plan to continue our fight for working-class Atlantans alongside proud DSA member and Atlanta City Councilmember Kelsea Bond this spring, and we’re bringing the movement into City Hall with us.

Help us maintain our momentum and continue our work to make Atlanta more affordable, equitable, and safe for the 99%. This election is only the beginning. From here, we’ll continue relentlessly organizing to build a mass movement for working people.

Get involved today with Atlanta DSA to be a part of this fight, and win the socialist future workers deserve: atldsa.org/organize

By the Jail Communications Coalition

We fought hard, we fought smart, and we won! The Abolitionist Working Group and our community coalition for free jail communications campaigned against a 3-5 year, exploitative contract between the Dane County Sheriff and Smart Communications, which the Dane County Board of Supervisors voted to reject on September 18, 2025. 

The contract would have meant continued financial exploitation of jail residents and their families, keeping human connection for those awaiting trial behind a paywall and denying jail residents physical mai through the dehumanizing and inefficient practice of mail scanning. We are celebrating and learning from this win, and continuing to fight for the rights of jail residents and their families to stay connected. 

Getting Started 

We began thinking about the jail communications contract process in July of 2024, when a comrade remembered that the current jail communications contract was going to expire soon. In response, we began a long period of intensive research on the request for proposal (RFP) process, the County’s current jail communications system, alternatives to for-profit jail communications corporations, successes in other communities, and probable positions of current Board members. 

As we expected, the sheriff’s office fumbled the opportunity to present a more just communications system. The County Board was informed of the end of the current contract too late, forcing an extension of the contract to allow time for the RFP process, committee discussions, and votes on the contract. The RFP process resulted in only two proposals, and the chosen proposal by Smart Communications was sent to Board committees this June. AWG was ready to oppose the contract and sprung into action. 

Our Coalition

This victory would not have been possible without a coalition of community members working together or the extensive preparation that the Abolitionist Working Group did leading up to this summer. When the contract was sent to the Public Protection & Judiciary Committee (PP&J), there was very little notice to the board or community, and an immediate response was required. Thankfully, we were ready. Members of MADSA’s Abolition Working Group turned out to a PP&J committee meeting to testify, where we met like-minded community members opposing the jail communications contract also ready to advocate. A Signal chat was formed among these community members, and advocates across the left joined in to form a loose coalition, including community organizers from MADSA, LGBTQ Books to Prisoners, the Politicized Healers Network, and many other local advocates. Working as a coalition, we benefited from a diverse array of experience, skills, and contact with County Board Supervisors, and together, we fought against this contract every step of the way. 

The coalition included people with lived experience and loved ones impacted by the justice system. It included social workers with expertise about addiction, nonprofit workers with expertise about navigating the carceral system, and business leaders with expertise designing and administering RFP processes. It included people with established relationships with board members, and others who had never spoken at a board meeting. We didn’t have a name, or a charter, or a long list of logos from sponsoring organizations. What we did have as a coalition was energy and focus towards a specific goal, one that motivated us to work across political differences to create a unified front against exploitation. 

This loose coalition started building working relationships and together synthesized an ask: that the board deny the Smart Communications contract and instead adopt a system of jail communications that would be free to residents and their families and that would be accountable to tax payers. We identified possible barriers – the upcoming county budget process, the sheriff’s unfounded claims about drug trafficking, and bias against justice-impacted community members. From our long-time fight against the building of a new jail, we also knew that connecting with county board supervisors from outside of Madison would be essential. 

We would need to rely on all of our diverse areas of expertise, because in a budget year, fighting against a contract that would have paid the county for a monopoly on jail residents communication and data was going to be an uphill battle. This work required us, as a coalition, to trust one another, be open to new ideas, respect each other’s expertise, and celebrate each other’s efforts. We had to be agile as conditions and timelines changed, engage fully in the work when we were able, and recognize that we didn’t need to agree on every word or idea to share the same vision and goal. Being in a coalition required more work, but we accomplished so much more than we could have alone. The sum was greater than the parts. 

Our Tactics

Our subsequent efforts were strategic and unfolded as we went: 

• We intentionally recruited community members through social media and activist networks from a variety of districts in the county to register and speak at committee meetings
• We documented which supervisors were for and against us, making note of the particular issues and concerns folks had and what arguments might sway those who were uncertain
• We developed relationships with board members who were on our side to equip them with arguments against the Smart Communications Contract
• We published in Tone and the Cap Times to appeal to the broader community 
• We developed a list of plain-language talking points, each with specific details and citations, and organized to ensure that a variety of talking points were presented at every opportunity for public comment
• We didn’t wait for the all-board meeting, but instead showed up at every committee meeting leading up to the board vote. Close to 20 community members spoke against the contract at each committee meeting, 50+ community members registered opposition and even more folks contacted their supervisors directly, saying “vote no”. 
• We conducted extensive research about
  1. The harm caused by charging for communications
  2. Alternatives to charging for communications, and
  3. How other activists have fought and won the right to communication for incarcerated people elsewhere. 

And finally, after an already long fight, when the full county board vote was delayed by two weeks, our coalition made one final push to convince board members that this contract was not in the best interests of our county. Knowing that board members had already heard emotional and ethical appeals, the coalition focused on showing the Board that they had other options. County supervisors needed to know about the abundance of alternatives and how other counties and states are implementing communication at no-cost to incarcerated people and their families. 

A team of four from this coalition, including DSA members Aedan and Brenda, spent a week and a half creating a presentation focused on 11 specific, well-researched examples of communities where jail and prison communications systems are administered without fees to residents and their families. The presentation also included data from government and nonprofit reports, peer-reviewed research, and news articles. Most notably, this presentation highlighted work in La Crosse County, WI, Champaign County, IL, and Elkhart County, IN after Aeden conducted interviews with county board members, detention center personnel, and sheriff departments who testified about the benefits of offering free phone calls in their facilities. 

We invited all Dane County Supervisors to the webinar, and 8 joined the call, along with 2 lieutenants from the sheriff office, the sheriff himself, and a high-ranking staff member for County Executive Melissa Agard. Due to rules about public record and when and how the board convenes meetings, we offered the presentation as a webinar instead of a discussion, and board members were invited to reach out privately with any clarifying questions. The presentation slides and a recording were sent immediately following to all the board supervisors.

The Result

During the summer, and in response to our advocacy, both the Public Protection & Judiciary and Personnel & Finance Committees had voted to send this contract to the full board with recommendations to deny the contract, based on several concerns, including:

• The harm caused by fee-based jail communications systems and the isolation they inflict on both jail residents and their loved ones
• A lack of data privacy and ambiguity in this contract about data ownership
• Ethical and financial concerns about Smart Communications and their leadership in particular
• The risk of lawsuit based on Smart Communications pattern of violating 1st and 4th amendment rights
• The lack of notice and transparency from the sheriff’s department in the RFP process.

Our summer of advocacy efforts, and year of research prior, then culminated in September. On September 4, 2025 the full Dane County Board planned to take up the issue for discussion. Just hours before the meeting, Sheriff Barett, who had previously claimed denying residents physical mail was non-negotiable, introduced a new contract that eliminated mail scanning. This in itself was a win and showed the power of our community’s voice. It also threw off-guard both community members prepared to give comments and the board supervisors prepared to discuss and vote on the former contract.

We spoke up against the contract anyway. Every public comment given was strongly opposed to the contract. Already frustrated by Sheriff Barett’s late submission of this substitute contract, the Board voted to table the item and re-take the issue at the September 18 meeting, not only in light of community members’ concerns, but also to give Supervisors a chance to read the contract before voting. At the Board’s meeting on September 18, 2025, further public comment wasn’t allowed based on procedural rules, and it was during those two weeks between meetings that we presented to the board about alternatives. 

Board members, having been educated by members of the community at large and our coalition in particular, stood to voice their discomfort with for-profit jail communications and the poor data privacy practices that this contract would include. During debate, multiple supervisors asserted that the county needs to improve communication for incarcerated people without causing financial burden, referencing the information and examples our coalition shared. Finally, two issues went to vote. First, whether to adopt the sheriff’s revised contract and second whether to approve the proposed contract. Both versions of the contract were denied by the Dane County Board of Supervisors in a landslide. 

What’s Next

In an ideal world, the jail wouldn’t exist. We would have strong community-directed systems that promote real healing and accountability without the carceral state. Humans in our county would not be kept in a cage, however gilded the new jail will be, simply because they’ve been accused of wrong-doing and don’t have money for bail. This is a world we will continue to fight for. And because of this specific push against one particularly exploitative part of the injustice system, we have a real shot at making sure incarcerated members of our community have the right to connect with their loved ones. 

With the current contract set to expire, and with county board members engaged and committed to adopting a more ethical communications system, we look forward to working together as a coalition to continue resisting exploitative practices and advocating for systems that affirm the dignity of our jail residents and their families. 

Events & Actions

Events with a are especially new-member-friendly!

Tuesday, November 4 (8:00 AM – 4:30 PM): ICE out of SF courts! (in person at 100 Montgomery St)

Tuesday, November 4 (4:00 PM – 8:00 PM): Zohran Mamdani Election Night Party (in person at The Plough and the Stars, 116 Clement St)

Tuesday, November 4 (6:00 PM – 7:30 PM): Ecosocialist Bi-Weekly Meeting (zoom and in person at 1916 McAllister St)

Wednesday, November 5 (6:45 PM – 8:00 PM): Tenant Organizing Office Hours (in person at 1916 McAllister St)

Thursday, November 6 (5:30 PM – 6:30 PM): Education Board Open Meeting (zoom)

Thursday, November 6 (7:00 PM – 8:00 PM): Immigrant Justice Court Action Orientation (in person at 1916 McAllister St)

Friday, November 7 (8:00 AM – 4:30 PM): ICE out of SF courts! (in person at 100 Montgomery St)

Friday, November 7 (7:00 PM – 11:00 PM): Comrade Karaoke (in person at the Roar Shack, 34 7th Street)

Saturday, November 8 (10:00 AM – 2:00 PM): No Appetite for Apartheid Training and Outreach (meet at 1916 McAllister St)

Sunday, November 9 (11:00 AM – 1:00 PM): Physical Education + Self Defense Training (in person at William McKinley Monument)

Sunday, November 9 (2:00 PM – 4:00 PM): Palestine Study: There is No Socialist Israel (in person at 1916 McAllister St, San Francisco, CA 94115, USA)

Sunday, November 9 (5:00 PM – 7:00 PM): Capital Reading Group (zoom and in person at 1916 McAllister St)

Monday, November 10 (6:00 PM – 8:00 PM): Tenderloin Healing Circle (in person at Kelly Cullen Community, 220 Golden Gate Ave)

Monday, November 10 (6:30 PM – 8:00 PM): Homelessness Working Group Regular Meeting (zoom and in person at 1916 McAllister St, San Francisco, CA / Zoom)

Monday, November 10 (7:00 PM – 8:00 PM): Labor Board Meeting (zoom)

Wednesday, November 12 (6:45 PM – 9:00 PM): DSA SF General Meeting (zoom and in person at Kelly Cullen Community, 220 Golden Gate Ave)

Friday, November 14 (5:30 PM – 6:30 PM): Social Committee Meeting (in person at 1916 McAllister St)

Saturday, November 15 (6:00 PM – 8:00 PM): Homelessness Working Group Food Service (in person at Castro Street & Market Street)

Sunday, November 16 (1:00 PM – 3:00 PM): SF EWOC Flyering (location TBD)

Sunday, November 16 (3:00 PM – 6:00 PM): Organizing Mindset Training (in person at 1916 McAllister St)

Monday, November 17 (7:00 PM – 8:00 PM): Labor Board x Divestment Priority Meeting (zoom and in person at 1916 McAllister St)

Check out https://dsasf.org/events for more events and updates.

---

ICE Out of SF Courts!

Join neighbors, activists, grassroots organizations in resisting ICE abductions happening at immigration court hearings! ICE is taking anyone indiscriminately in order to meet their daily quotas. Many of those taken include people with no removal proceedings.

We’ll be meeting every Tuesday and Friday from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM at Immigration Court at 100 Montgomery. We need all hands on deck. The 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM window is when we most need to boost turnout, but if you can’t make that please come whenever works for you. 1 or 2 hours or the entire time! We’re also holding orientation sessions for folks, but that is not required to attend. See the Immigrant Justice Court Action Orientation event for more details.

---

Take Action: Support a Green Public Bank for San Francisco

San Francisco has the chance to make history by creating a green bank: a publicly-owned institution that invests in affordable housing, small businesses, and clean energy instead of Wall Street profits. A Green Bank Resolution was recently introduced by our Socialist in Office Jackie Fielder, and we need to show the Board of Supervisors and Mayor Lurie that San Franciscans support it.

A public bank would keep our money circulating in our communities, fund climate solutions, and help build a city that works for everyone — not just the wealthy.

Take two minutes to send an email to the Mayor and Supervisors using our email tool.

Want to help build the campaign? Join the #public-bank channel in Slack or email ecosocialist@dsasf.org to get plugged into organizing efforts and stay updated on next steps.

---

NYC Mayoral Election Night Watch Party

Join us on tonight, November 4 to watch LIVE election night results for the NYC Mayoral race! DSA SF members are proud of NYC DSA member Zohran Mamdani and the tens of thousands of volunteers and comrades that have built the historic movement backing him. We will be cheering Zohran on from across the country as we watch for results. Solidarity!

The Plough and Stars, 116 Clement St
Tuesday, November 4, 4:00 – 8:00 PM

---

Immigrant Justice Court Action Orientation

Come one, come all to 1916 McAllister St for our court watch orientation! You’ll learn how we are resisting ICE , how you can help, and participate in a biweekly art build. Bring questions and anti-ICE slogans! This event will take place every other week on Thursdays starting at 7:00 PM and the next one is November 6th!

---

Comrade Karaoke Night

Come meet your friendly neighborhood socialists and blow off steam at Comrade Karaoke Friday, November 7 at 7:00 PM at the Roar Shack (34 7th Street). Whether you want to sing your favorite protest song or your favorite childhood banger, we’ve got you covered! No singing ability required, only enthusiasm! Drinks will be provided for cost and there’s a $10 suggested donation to help cover the venue and raise a little money for the chapter, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds!

---

No Appetite for Apartheid Training & Canvassing

No Appetite for Apartheid is a campaign aimed at reducing economic support for Israeli apartheid by canvassing local businesses to boycott Israeli goods. Come and canvass local businesses with the Palestine Solidarity and Anti-Imperialist Working Group!

On Saturday, November 8 from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM, we will be doing a training on how to talk to stores in your neighborhood, then going out and talking with stores together! Meet at 1916 McAllister St. RSVP here!

---

Palestine Study: There is No Socialist Israel

How should socialists understand the topic of Labor Zionism with its many contradictions, and how does that understanding inform our resistance to the Zionist project?

Join DSA SF’s education series on Zionism + Imperialism as we debunk the myth of a “leftist Israel”.
RSVP here to join us Sunday, November 9 from 2:00 to 4:00 PM at 1916 McAllister St.

---

Organizing Mindset Training

Organizing is at the core of what we do as socialists — and it’s a skill that can be developed and practiced. Come join fellow comrades as we learn and discuss how we can incorporate organizing fundamentals into our day-to-day actions so that we can build stronger, more cohesive, and more active communities that can rally together against the unjust capitalist system. Whether it’s our neighbors, coworkers, friend groups, fellow transit-riders, or any other communities we interact with daily, we will always be stronger when we are organized, aligned on the most critical issues we are facing, and ready to act in unison and put our collective people power behind our demands.

Join us at 1916 McAllister St on Sunday, November 16th from 3:00 – 6:00 PM for the first iteration in what we hope will become a recurring, multi-part Organizing Mindset training. All are invited and encouraged to attend, whether you are new to DSA, new to organizing, or a more seasoned member/organizer. This first session in particular is a great one to attend if you are interested in helping shape future iterations of this training. RSVP here!

---

Join DSA SF in Demanding Equitable Transit Funding

In response to Mayor Lurie’s office considering a parcel tax to address the Muni funding crisis, we joined Muni Now, Muni Forever, a coalition of community advocates and organizations, in demanding that the measure:

• Generate enough revenue to expand Muni service by 10%
• Be structured fairly, with a variable rate so smaller properties pay less and larger properties pay more
• Protect tenants from additional costs
• Scale with inflation and rising costs to prevent a similar crisis in a few years

Read the full letter here.
Make your voice heard by joining us in these demands: muniforever.org/speak-up

---

Reportback: Growing Community: Urban Food Production with Alemany Farm

This past Saturday, 20+ DSA members volunteered and learned at Alemany Farm (@alemany_farm on Instagram)! We cleared weeds from a plum orchard and hauled brush for compost, contributing our labor to a local producer of free, fresh fruits and vegetables. As SNAP benefits are cut and food security is put in jeopardy, it’s important to get involved with local efforts to feed the community and teach useful skills. Stay tuned for future community gardening and farming events led by the Ecosocialism working group! Thank you Alemany Farm for hosting us!

Get involved by reaching out to ecosocialist@dsasf.org or joining #ecosocialism on Slack.

Behind the Scenes

The Chapter Coordination Committee (CCC) regularly rotates duties among chapter members. This allows us to train new members in key duties that help keep the chapter running like organizing chapter meetings, keeping records updated, office cleanup, updating the DSA SF website and publishing the weekly newsletter. Members can view current CCC rotations.

Interested in helping with the newsletter or other day-to-day tasks that keep the chapter running? Fill out the CCC help form.

By a Comrade

This article is written by a DSA member and does not formally represent the views of MADSA as a whole or its subgroups. 

Welcome to Vol. 3 of the monthly round-up! The content in this publication overlaps significantly with our DSA newsletter and monthly General Membership Meetings. To sign up for the newsletter or check out an upcoming General Membership Meeting, visit: https://madison-dsa.org/events/

Union Efforts Continue in Madison

In August we celebrated the successful union elections at Festival Foods, and Hilton Monona Terrace. Another union battle continues in Madison, however, led by healthcare workers at GHC, and supported by patients and community members.

The GHC union effort was able to initiate a Special Member Meeting on October 13, where patients with GHC could express opinions on unionization, and conduct an “advisory” vote directing GHC to support the union. Members unanimously supported the union, and asked GHC’s board for transparency around how much money they’re spending on union busting.  Read more here! 

Beating Back the Political Doom

MADSA members have been creating more opportunities to learn and be in community, for members AND non-members. These are crucial antidotes to the doom, overwhelm, and helplessness that many people are feeling about the current state of the world. 

This month, these events included:

• A discussion with Copaganda author Alec Karakatsanis about policing, media, and narratives around safety;
• A presentation, for people of all knowledge levels, on understanding the mechanisms of capitalist exploitation, titled Marx’s Capital and Global Capitalism Today;
• An Organizing 101 workshop for people to learn about workers’ rights and the union process.

The Electoral Working Group is also busy at work in this realm. Members of this WG have been canvassing local residents to learn more about the issues that matter most to them, and what solutions they hope to see. The working group also organized a public Madison Community Town Hall, with the goal of creating a space for community members to express grievances and connect around possible next steps.

There was also fruitful internal discussion this month about a potential change to a MADSA voting policy, and how this interacts with the role of meetings in our organization. Some members made compelling points about meetings as a space for developing important leadership skills, refining our ideas and worldviews, changing each others’ minds, and strengthening community bonds; on the other hand, other members discussed concerns around accessibility and inclusivity, and encouraged the chapter to ensure that people can participate meaningfully in major decisions if they have limitations around meeting attendance. Debates like this reflect the chapter’s process of growth, and ongoing work around participatory and inclusive democracy. 

Further Organizing Highlights This Month

Our work continues in many ways thanks to our dedicated membership. Here are other key organizing efforts taking place this month in MADSA. This summary is not exhaustive! 

• No Kings, No Bosses – The “No Kings” protests had a massive presence across the country this month, and this included Madison, WI! MADSA members showed up with a strong presence at the rally.
• The petition process begins for potentially endorsing candidates in statewide elections. When MADSA endorses a candidate, it is not just a symbolic seal of approval; the chapter is also pledging to provide consistent labor and organization to help that candidate win and to collaborate with them throughout their term. Candidates who wish to gain backing from MADSA must go through a process that includes collecting petition signatures, meeting several times with various chapter bodies, and ultimately winning a chapter-wide endorsement vote. The candidate must demonstrate their commitment to following the expectations outlined in the chapter’s endorsed candidate policy, found here.
• MADSA’s No Appetite for Apartheid contingent is supporting members in making a pledge to boycott Israeli products. Click here to take the pledge, and to get updates about stores who commit to being an Apartheid Free Store.

Social Opportunities

Our chapter has several ongoing reading groups, including:

• Skyscraper Jails, discussed in the Abolitionist Working Group meetings;
• Wretched of the Earth, discussed on Sundays, in a hybrid virtual/in-person format.

We continue hosting recurring social events – New Member Orientations, Coffee with Comrades, Crafting with Comrades,  MADSA Run Club, and the Rosebuddies program.

Protest Song of the Month

The song I choose for this month is “Freedom Now” by Tracy Chapman! This song was dedicated to Nelson Mandela and his work in the anti-apartheid movement. I think that the sentiments in this song still resonate to this day.

And that concludes our monthly round-up!

DSA-endorsed candidates will be competing for office across the country.

The post DSA Campaigns to Watch on Election Night appeared first on Democratic Left.

Chapter & Verse: a Summary of Chapter News for October 2025

The post 80,000 Members nationwide, Divestment Wins, Progress on Public Bank and More appeared first on Democratic Left.

The post Memphis-Midsouth Democratic Socialists of America Annual Assembly Agenda first appeared on Memphis-Midsouth DSA.

DSA is beginning to engage in the fight against Trump, while simultaneously building the socialist wing of the movement. By Twin Cities DSA members Ramy K, Sam G, and Emma F October 18th was one of the largest days of political protest in US history!  (See crowd-counting estimate) On April 5th, 2-3 million protestors participated […]

November 3, 2025 (PORTLAND, OR) – Portland Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) condemns in the strongest possible terms Mayor Keith Wilson’s decision to begin enforcement of the city’s “public camping” ban, a policy of profound cruelty that criminalizes poverty and will exacerbate the city’s homelessness crisis.

This enforcement begins on the same day that federal SNAP benefits expire for over 15,000 homeless individuals in Multnomah County, stripping them of essential food aid while the city simultaneously threatens them with fines and jail time. Many low-income renters will also risk eviction and homelessness. Rather than offering support and leniency in the face of this federal abandonment, the Mayor has chosen to pile on penalties.

“Mayor Wilson’s decision to unleash the police on our most vulnerable neighbors on the very day they lose their food assistance is an act of stunning inhumanity,” said Chris Olson, Co-Secretary the Housing Working Group in Portland DSA. “He is exploiting a national tragedy to advance a policy of sweeps and cages that we know, from overwhelming evidence, kills people. To call this ‘compassion’ is a lie. It is a deliberate choice to inflict suffering in a misguided attempt to make poverty invisible.”

The Mayor’s punitive approach is further underscored by his recent decision to place the Director of the Portland Housing Bureau — a national expert in social housing — on administrative leave. This move signals a clear rejection of the long-term, housing-first solutions that are proven to work, in favor of a failed strategy of criminalization. 

The shelter system remains hundreds of beds short of need, operates with restrictive hours that fail to meet the needs of many, and does not address the root cause of the crisis: a catastrophic lack of affordable housing. This misallocation of funds has directly deprived proven, cost-effective solutions — like direct rental assistance, food aid, and public housing — of critical resources.

“Mayor Wilson promised us he was an innovator,” said Nathan Johnson, Co-Chair of the Housing Working Group in Portland DSA. “Now he’s slammed the door in innovation’s face to insist on the same discredited approach that has given us a continuously declared housing state of emergency since 2015.”

Portland DSA questions the fiscal prudence and underlying motives behind the Mayor’s rushed push for a shelter-based solution. The organization calls on the Portland City Council to immediately launch a formal investigation into whether the Mayor’s office wasted millions of taxpayer dollars to prop up a temporary shelter system that was designed to fail.

“We have serious concerns that public funds were squandered to create a pretext for this camping ban,” said Brian Denning, Co-Chair of Portland DSA. “Did the Mayor waste money on a shelter system he knew was insufficient, just to create a veneer of ‘available shelter’ and justify a punitive crackdown? The City Council has a duty to investigate this potential misuse of taxpayer money. Every dollar spent on a failed shelter strategy is a dollar stolen from a rental assistance program that could have actually kept a family in their home.”

The “Finding Home” report recently published by the Welcome Home Coalition and Sisters of the Road confirmed that 91% of homeless Portlanders need rental assistance, and 65% want to live in a house—not a congregate shelter or a temporary bed. The Mayor’s focus on coercion and criminalization is a direct rejection of what people actually need and want.

Portland DSA stands in solidarity with the unhoused and joins Councilor Mitch Green and community advocates in demanding a radical change in direction. A first step would be passage of the Renters’ Bill of Rights — a landmark set of protections which would stem the deepening houselessness crisis. We must stop criminalizing poverty and start investing in real, permanent solutions: social housing, lowering the cap for the eviction relocation ordinance, universal rental assistance, and low-barrier services that offer a hand up, not a sweep away.

The post Portland DSA Condemns Mayor Wilson’s Cruel Camping Ban, Calls for Investigation into Misuse of Public Funds appeared first on Portland DSA .

Multiple exchanges between DSA and MORENA this fall has strengthen connections between the two organizations.

The post Solidarity Knows No Borders: DSA Builds Ties with MORENA through People-to-People Exchanges appeared first on Democratic Left.