By Henry McKeand

In the everchanging movie landscape of the past decade, one of the great casualties has been the wide-release R-rated comedy. In the 2000s, raunchy joke-a-minute projects were being made with big stars for less than $50 million and reliably turning a profit at the box office, but there was a shift in the industry around a decade ago. Suddenly, studios were afraid to take a risk on releases that didn’t have superhero spectacle or franchise potential, and mid-budget films began to face an uphill battle at the cineplex. Comedy moved to television and the internet, while lighthearted fare in movies was relegated mostly to direct-to-streaming leftovers and throwaway gags in larger blockbusters.

This is part of what makes One of Them Days, Lawrence Lamont’s new comedy starring Keke Palmer and SZA as friends on a Los Angeles odyssey to recover their rent money, such a breath of fresh air. It’s a capital-C comedy with a back-to-basics buddy dynamic and modest budget (around $14 million), relying on a funny trailer and the strength of its stars to drive audiences to the theater. There’s an old-school appeal here that has already made it successful with critics and audiences, but the real highlight is the working class core of the narrative. When was the last time you watched a crowd-pleaser where the main dramatic question was whether or not the main characters would be evicted?

Palmer plays Dreux, an ambitious young woman working as a waitress at a small diner who has an important corporate interview coming up in the afternoon. SZA plays Alyssa, a talented artist with a laid back demeanor and “candles and crystals” sensibility. While Dreux has a plan for everything, Alyssa goes with the flow and believes that the spirits of their ancestors will guide them through anything life has in store. But when Alyssa’s do-nothing boyfriend Keshawn runs off with their rent money, they’re forced to work as a team and race against the clock to get their money back before their landlord kicks them out, contending with various local oddballs, criminals, and love interests along the way. 

The ticking clock, escalating insanity, and “best friends” bickering call to mind countless comedies from yesteryear, from House Party to Superbad, but the best reference point may be the original Friday. Syreeta Singleton’s script shares not only a working class LA milieu with the F. Gary Gray and Ice Cube classic, but also a similar blend of social realism and class clown silliness. The best Black comedies of the 90s and 2000s, such as Friday and The Wood, served as more socially conscious alternatives to their “white yuppie in crisis” peers, and One of Them Days is no different. Whereas the few big-budget comedies of the past ten years have either been absurdist romps disconnected from reality (Bottoms, Barb and Star go to Vista Del Mar) or Hangover-esque tales of well-off middle class characters cutting loose (Booksmart, Ricky Stanicky), Lamont and Singleton focus on the daily problems that Black and working class people face. 

More so than the gangsters and bullies who stand in Dreux and Alyssa’s way (here, Friday’s Deebo is swapped out for a take-no-shit neighborhood woman nicknamed “Big Booty Berniece”), the true villain is the capitalist, white supremacist world that they live in. Their ceiling is falling apart, but their landlord hasn’t fixed it. When they get their first white neighbor (Euphoria’s Maude Apatow) as a result of ongoing gentrification, they’re shocked that her unit has a working AC. In order to whip up some quick money, their only obvious options are trying to donate at a blood bank and applying for predatory loans. And when they end up en route to the hospital after one of them is electrocuted, they decide to escape from the ambulance because they can’t afford the medical bill.

Things aren’t all bleak, though. This is a film that understands the power of friendship and solidarity in the face of oppressive systems. The various neighbors argue and isolate themselves just like everyday people, but they also come together and stand up for one another as tenants and members of a shared community. And while Dreux and Alyssa have their differences, the script never forces conflict between them. For all of her flakiness, Alyssa is refreshingly supportive in her support for Dreux, and SZA, in her first major acting role, captures the character’s eccentricities and contradictions remarkably well. Palmer, too, is predictably great; her movie star charisma has been evident for years, and she is routinely hilarious as Dreux. Together, they create a lived-in quality to their characters’ friendship that’s authentic and warm.

It doesn’t hurt that this is the funniest feature-length script in years, never afraid to balance sweet human touches with comedic big swings. One scene, involving the blood bank and Abbott Elementary’s Janelle James as an irresponsible nurse, is one of the most laugh-out-loud things to grace the big screen in a long time. There’s also no shortage of perfect cameos, including Lil Rel Howery as a sneaker obsessive and Katt Williams as a sidewalk truth teller named Lucky. But the biggest standouts are the lesser-known names, such as Patrick Cage as Dreux’s mysterious crush and Joshua Neal as Keshawn. Neal, especially, embodies an all-too-real kind of unambitious, manipulative boyfriend with hilarious conviction.

Movies like One of Them Days are often classified by Hollywood as “minor” or “low stakes.” There’s no high-concept twist or massive energy beam threatening to destroy the world. These kinds of “low stakes” movies, however, are the ones that capture the actual joys and stresses of modern life. Take, for example, the scene where Dreux has her interview and has to prove herself to a white hiring manager who doesn’t know how to pronounce her name. The sequence is overflowing with emotion and humor and suspense, and it’s all rooted in something “mundane.” 

At one point, as Dreux is talking to a neighbor who has been evicted and is worried about where he’ll go next, she says four simple words: “Your life is lifing.” It’s an acknowledgement that day-to-day existence is far too urgent and scary for the majority of us. One of Them Days isn’t a radical film, or at least it shouldn’t be. It’s not a vitriolic call to action or an openly socialist film. But by honing in on these kinds of mundane, material realities, it stands out from the endless stream of studio releases that are completely disconnected from working class concerns. 

Films are powerful in their ability to reflect and influence public opinion, and the success of One of Them Days points to a growing dissatisfaction with capitalism. The contradictions and stresses in our everyday lives have gotten to a point where audiences are ready for stories that take stands landlords and the healthcare system. Slowly but surely, the needle is moving.

If your life is lifing right now, and you want to fight for a world in which people don’t have to struggle in order to have simple necessities, then the time is now to get involved with groups like Triangle DSA and Triangle Tenant Union!

Welcome to another Town Meeting Day.

Last year, Champlain Valley DSA’s Burlington-focused voter guide lamented the brevity of the Queen City’s ballot following Democratic city councilors’ unusual refusal to allow voters to consider a citizens’ initiative condemning Israeli apartheid, even though more than 1,700 residents had signed the organizers’ petition. And now, the same thing has happened again.

One question, six towns (or more)

This time around, however, activists didn’t limit their efforts to Burlington. The Apartheid-Free Community pledge – drafted originally by the American Friends Service Committee – will appear on ballots in Winooski, Vergennes, Montpelier, Brattleboro, Newfane, and Thetford. Hearteningly, as it turns out, the Burlington Democrats’ contempt for democracy may be unique within Vermont; across the state, other city councils and select boards have determined to let the people have their say.

Coincidentally, Champlain Valley DSA no longer exists: Green Mountain DSA – a new chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America seeking to represent all of Vermont (or, at least, all but the sliver belonging to our Windsor County comrades in Upper Valley DSA) – has replaced it. On our first Town Meeting Day, we endorse the Apartheid-Free Community pledge in every municipality whose ballot contains it.

The text is the same in all six places. Vote yes on Article 5 in Winooski, Article 7 in Vergennes, Article 13 in Montpelier, Article 2 in Brattleboro, Article 38 in Newfane, and Article 23 in Thetford. Please tell your friends, or you can send them this video or this op-ed written by GMDSA’s co-chair for the Times-Argus.

On behalf of the Shelburne Progressive Town Committee, a member of Green Mountain DSA also plans to propose the Apartheid-Free Community pledge from the floor at Shelburne’s Town Meeting Day, along with a resolution advocating for healthcare reform. GMDSA endorses this effort as well. If you’re planning to attend an in-person town meeting where you live, consider doing the same thing!

Winooski

Due to a procedural error last time around, Winooski must vote again on its Just Cause Eviction charter change, which passed by a huge margin in 2023. You can learn more about Just Cause Eviction, a policy that protects renters, here.

Municipal charter changes must travel through the statehouse. Burlington, Essex, and Montpelier passed Just Cause Eviction in 2021, 2023, and 2024, respectively, but none of them has won permission to implement it. And with the Vermont General Assembly trending rightward, its immediate prospects don’t look good.

But tenants will keep fighting, and someday the tenants will win. GMDSA endorses Just Cause Eviction. Vote yes on Article 4 in Winooski.

Randolph

The Orange County town of Randolph has 4,774 residents. At that size, one might expect it not to have a police force. Jericho, Georgia, and Waterbury are all larger than Randolph, and none of them employ police officers.

Yet Randolph does have its own police department, and that police department has requested a budget of $820,937 for fiscal year 2026. Including generous supplements from the town’s American Rescue Plan Act allocation, spending has grown rapidly since fiscal year 2022, when the town paid just $343,960 for law enforcement services.

The Randolph Police Department serves the Randolph Police District, not the entire municipality. The residents of the Police District, specifically, must therefore approve or reject the police budget as an independent article rather than as a component of the townwide vote on Randolph’s annual general fund expenditure. As a result, they have a chance to say no to this particular form of municipal spending without saying no to the rest.

Like many other parts of Vermont, Randolph appears recently to have begun moving toward austerity. The Orange Southwest School District has proposed cutting $1.1 million from its new budget in order to avoid property tax increases in Randolph, Brookfield, and Braintree. Yet the Randolph Police Department has bet that the growing cheapskate attitude that has emerged out of Vermont’s cost-of-living problem will make an exception for expensive policing.

We hope they’re wrong. GMDSA endorses a “no” vote on Article 5 in Randolph. It won’t abolish the police, but it’ll send Randolph’s bloated cop budget back to the drawing board.

Candidates

The membership of Green Mountain DSA did not vote to endorse any candidates for public office on Town Meeting Day this year. But our Electoral Working Group recommends the 17-candidate slate endorsed by the Vermont Progressive Party.

We’re especially pleased to see Progressives in Windham, Lamoille, and Addison counties running for select board and school board positions. In Burlington, East District and South District candidates Kathy Olwell and Jennifer Monroe Zakaras both face competition for open seats.

Victories in those races would give Progressives a majority on the Burlington City Council. Burlington’s ballot also includes a critical vote on a $152 million bond for improved wastewater and stormwater infrastructure, upon which plans for new housing depend – we recommend a yes on Question 3.

School budgets

Taking a hint from the stronger-than-usual showing for Vermont Republicans in November’s legislative elections, school districts have aimed to head off an anticipated taxpayer revolt on Town Meeting Day by slashing their budgets preemptively. Hundreds of school employees will lose their jobs, but that may not be enough to satisfy voters in some towns.

In 2024, Vermonters shot down about a third of the school budgets across the state, forcing cuts that hurt students, teachers, and families alike. This year, we recommend voting yes on every school budget.

Town Meeting Day is Tuesday, March 4, 2025. Please email us at hello@greenmountaindsa.org if you’d like to join a canvass between now and then (here’s one option), or if you’d like to see an item on your town’s ballot included in this guide. 

You can check your voter registration here. 

Enjoy your National Political Committee (NPC) newsletter! Our NPC is an elected 18-person body (including two YDSA members who share a vote) that functions as the board of directors of DSA. This month, join a call hosted by the International Migrant Rights Working Group, hear from Amazon organizers who went on strike, get involved with the Mutual Aid Working Group, and more. 

And to make sure you get our newsletters in your inbox, sign up here! Each one features action alerts, upcoming events, political education, and more.

• From Our Co-Chairs — Organizing Amidst the Chaos
• Immigration 101: No Human is Illegal hosted by the International Migrant Rights Working Group 
• DSA Amazon Priority Campaign
• Pitch an article to Socialist Forum
• Check out Democratic Left’s new website!
• Nationwide Abolish Rent Reading Group
• Announcing our new SC and calling for members to join MAWG!
• Organizing Fair for At-Large Members on 3/2
• Convention Planning Committee

From Our Co-Chairs — Organizing Amidst the Chaos

“Now is the accepted time, not tomorrow, not some more convenient season. It is today that our best work can be done and not some future day or future year. It is today that we fit ourselves for the greater usefulness of tomorrow. Today is the seed time, now are the hours of work, and tomorrow comes the harvest and the playtime.” – W.E.B. Du Bois

Dear Comrade,

There’s never been an easy time to be a socialist in the USA, but organizing amidst the chaos of this second Trump administration – where Elon Musk, the richest man alive, attempts to dismantle our public services one by one; where Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an anti-science nepo baby, is attempting to roll back crucial public health initiatives (and life-saving SSRIs); where the Democratic Party, the only opposition that holds formal power, is throwing their hands in the air and saying that nothing can be done – is uniquely exhausting. But that’s the point, right? Overwhelm is intended to lead us to inaction and despair. But because we have a strong socialist analysis and a theory of change that is continuing to prove correct, we do have hope; we do have stamina; we do know that a better world is possible, and we do know that an organized working class is what will get us all there.

Just this week, we’re seeing DSA chapters throw down with the Federal Unionists Network to turn out hundreds and thousands of people for events to Save Our Services and fight for federal workers, as they become one of the hottest new targets for Elon Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)” cronies.

We keep showing how we are so much more than the sum of our parts, and even as the fire hydrant of bad news continues to spew uncontrollably, this analysis and the actions we take to combat it are leading to significant DSA membership growth (over 10%, with no signs of slowing, especially as chapters across the country take on intentional recruitment campaigns to meet this moment). But our work is not just about the numbers — it’s about building power for the working class, and we are seeing signs of that power everywhere.

We’re drawing hope and inspiration from the dozens upon dozens of chapters who are finding ways to show up and build connections with the broader working class in their areas, from strike support on hundreds of picket lines to know-your-rights trainings for targeted migrant workers from border to border; from abortion aftercare kit building events to protests led by DSA chapters from New York City to Chicago to Los Angeles to defend trans youth’s access to healthcare and demand that hospitals and university systems refuse to comply in advance with Trump’s anti-trans orders. 

And DSA chapters continue to rack up major wins — just a few among them recently:

• East Bay DSA were leaders in the successful movement to push Alameda County to divest over $30 million from Caterpillar, one of the primary targets of the Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions Movement (BDS)
• Seattle DSA helped achieve a major working class victory with the passage of Prop 1A, which will tax wealthy businesses to pay for a massive investment in social housing, estimated at around $50 million per year
• Philly DSA threw down and saw victory as a major partner in the Save Chinatown coalition, working alongside and building crucial connections with a variety of community organizations to halt the building of a new stadium that would have razed a historic working-class majority-AAPI downtown neighborhood for the sake of billionaires
• Pittsburgh DSA organized with the Not On Our Dime campaign to get over 21,000 signatures to get on the ballot this May, well above the necessary threshold, for a referendum that would prevent the city of Pittsburgh from investing or doing business with any government actively committing genocide, apartheid, or ethnic cleansing, in solidarity with Palestine.

If you are part of any of this work already, please know that your comrades across the country and throughout the world are drawing inspiration from you and your local comrades. If you’re not already jumping in on a local project or campaign, there’s no time like the present. Find your chapter, join a meeting, and get to work – we need you! If you don’t have a chapter in your area, join us for an At-Large Organizing Fair on March 2 to find out ways to either start a local chapter or plug into national DSA work!

We also know that not everyone has time, energy, or emotional capacity to dig into organizing work, but may have other resources to share. If that sounds like you, please consider becoming a Solidarity Dues payer, or even simply upping your current dues amount by a couple bucks per month. We know that we will never beat the capitalist class with money alone –it’s our organizing and people power that will get that job done. That said, we won’t beat them without money, either, and your monthly dues help fund the work of your own chapter and pay for nationally-shared resources, from tech tools to staff support, that make these big wins possible.

As always, we remain fiercely proud to be in this fight alongside each and every one of you.

In Solidarity, 

Megan Romer and Ashik Siddique
DSA National Co-Chairs

Immigration 101: No Human is Illegal hosted by the International Migrant Rights Working Group on 2/25

As we prepare against the ongoing attacks on migrants, it is important that we have a shared understanding of what reforms currently exist, what they actually do, and how we got to where we are today. Whether you’re new to DSA or new to the fight for immigrant rights, join DSA’s International Migrant Rights Working Group on Tuesday, February 25th at 7 pm CT/8 pm ET as we dig into the ever-changing issues involving immigration and go over the basics of what you need to know, where to start, and what you can do for the long-fight ahead.

This will be the first of many events in our newly-launched chapter organizing support program. This call is open to everyone, so please share widely to anybody interested in DSA! RSVP here.

DSA Amazon Priority Campaign

Last fall, the NLC membership passed the Amazon Priority Resolution, designating DSA Labor resources and capacity towards organizing Amazon’s 1.5 million workers. Organizing Amazon is Do or Die for the American Labor movement and the Left. We are launching the Amazon Priority Campaign on Sunday, February 23 at 8pm EST/5pm PST! Come hear from Amazon organizers who went on strike and are fighting for a first union contract, learn about how you can support local campaigns, and find out how you can get a job to organize. Amazon workers are leading the labor battle of our generation, will DSA step up to the challenge and fight with us?

Pitch an article to Socialist Forum

The next issue of Socialist Forum will be asking members how the U.S. Left should respond to a world on fire, metaphorically and quite literally. The recent years have been brutal, but there is great potential for the left to expand and grow its power if we are willing to analyze the political situation as is and learn from one another. We also welcome pitches on any other topic of potential interest and use to DSA members. First drafts will be due on Monday, March 24th. if your pitch is accepted. Please send pitches (~250 words) that include the following to socialistforum@dsausa.org by Friday, February 28th to be considered: 1) a general description of the topic, 2) your argument, unique perspective, or intervention, and 3) why you think our audience would be interested or should engage with this issue. See full call for pitch description here.

Check out Democratic Left’s new website!

Our national publication Democratic Left has launched a new and beautiful website! Please check it out and read some great articles by fellow members. 

Nationwide Abolish Rent Reading Group

Join DSA members and tenant organizers around the country for a nationwide reading of the new book Abolish Rent, written by two co-founders of the Los Angeles Tenants Union, Tracy Rosenthal and Leonardo Vilchis.

With unsparing analysis and striking stories of resistance, this deeply reported account of the resurgent tenant movement centers poor and working-class people who are fighting back, staying put, and remaking the city in the process. Rent drives millions into debt and despair and onto the streets, but tenants can harness our power and make the world our home. Together, we’ll learn from the book, share our experiences as tenants and organizers, and discuss how to create a future where rent doesn’t exist.

We will meet biweekly for 4 sessions (3/12, 3/26, 4/9 and 4/23) at 5pm PST/8pm EST. Please sign up here to receive the zoom link to join.

Announcing Our New Steering Committee and Calling for Members to Join MAWG!

The Mutual Aid Working Group (MAWG) just elected a brand new Steering Committee for 2025! We are working to support chapters and members in doing more mutual aid work, getting involved in their communities, and fighting fascism and capitalism with cooperation! Now more than ever we need to support each other as natural disasters and higher cost of living are destroying people’s lives. So, we hope new members get involved in our work and join MAWG! And we look forward to seeing you at our first all members meeting that will be announced soon! 

Organizing Fair for At-Large Members on 3/2

At-large members (members who do not have a local DSA chapter) are invited to join the NPC, a variety of national committees, and our organizing staff for a virtual At-Large Organizing Fair on Sunday, 3/2 at 2pm Eastern/11am Pacific. You’ll hear about ways that you can get plugged into all kinds of national work, learn about the process for starting a chapter locally, get filled in on the process for running as an at-large DSA National Convention delegate, and connect with other members across the country. Join us! 

Convention Planning Committee

Planning is in full swing for the 2025 DSA National Convention, to be held August 8-10 in Chicago. Keep an eye on our Convention Website and your email for ongoing updates on everything you need to know, including information about when and how to submit proposals, apply for scholarships, run your chapter delegate elections, and more!

The post Organizing Amidst the Chaos  — Your National Political Committee newsletter appeared first on Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).

Thorn West: Issue No. 226

City Politics

• As many criticize the city’s lack of wildfire preparedness in advance of the Santa Ana winds, Mayor Karen Bass has today fired LAFD chief Kristin Crowley. The LA Times covers the firing in the context of a “sense of disarray that has enveloped City Hall.”

• Children’s Hospital Los Angeles stopped offering several forms of gender-affirming care, in response to a Trump administration executive order threatening the funding of any medical institution that provided this care to transgendered youths. The hospital has now partially reversed that decision, following weekly protests.

Housing Rights

• The LA City Council postponed voting on a motion that would offer eviction protections to Angelenos economically impacted by the wildfires. It will revisit the issue in March. A similar measure did pass at the County Board of Supervisors. That motion applies countywide, but only protects those who specifically lost work. Tenants in Maui, devastated by wildfires in 2023, suffered a variety of cascading displacements, despite the passage of stronger tenant protections than LA is considering.

• The California FAIR Plan, a state-administered fund that provides fire insurance to property owners in high-risk areas, has run out of money in the aftermath of the wildfires. This triggers a condition that allows the fund to collect an additional $1 billion from insurers. Half of this cost may be passed onto consumers, with the state’s approval.

Education

• This week, a Los Angeles Unified School District policy went into effect that bans student phone use during school hours.

• The Trump administration’s terrorization of immigrant communities is depressing school attendance, per CalMatters.

Police Violence and Community Resistance

• A member of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department Civilian Oversight Commission has resigned, amid a conflict pitting the oversight body against county attorneys, LASD, and the State Attorney General’s office.

• In San Francisco, an effort to bolster recruitment to the Police Department has failed, as a growing percentage of cadets are dropping out of the police academy.

Transportation

• A long-awaited discussion about how Los Angeles will implement Measure HLA was delayed; the City Council’s Transportation Committee has been drawn into the efforts to block an affordable housing development, and ran out of time.

• The Trump administration has signaled that it will sabotage a California high speed rail project. At Union Station, a press conference by the U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy was shouted down by project advocates.

The post County Passes Some Eviction Protections in Response to Wildfires + Mayor Fires LAFD Chief appeared first on The Thorn West.

Our annual Madison Area DSA Chapter Convention is Saturday, March 15 from 10 AM to 4 PM at the Madison Labor Temple. Please RSVP as soon as possible! (Masks will be required and provided; lunch will be available to those who RSVP by March 4th.)

At Convention, we’ll take a look back at the past year, and members in good standing will make important decisions about the direction of the upcoming year.

The 2025 About the MADSA Convention Guide has everything you need to know about our Convention.

We’re asking members to submit resolutions, bylaw amendments, working group reports and charters, and executive committee and community accountability committee nominations by March 4th.

If you have questions or want to team up with other folks on resolutions, join #2025-convention in the Slack.

Solidarity from the Convention Committee! 

Now, at Stonewall we are watching our own undoing.

At our monument, a hollow has been carved into history—a deliberate emptiness where our stories used to live. Where Marsha’s name once stood proud, teaching generations that we have always existed, that we have always fought, that we have always loved and been loved. Now there is only silence.

They think we don’t notice when they chip away at our memories, stone by stone. That we won’t feel the weight of each erasure, each redaction, each carelessly crafted omission. But we feel every cut. We see our elders’ names fade like ghosts from the walls they built with their own hands. We watch as they try to orphan us from our own history.

Every time they try to erase us, we write ourselves back into existence—in permanent ink, in unshakeable community, in unwavering solidarity.

But they have forgotten something crucial: We are still here. We are still telling our stories. In basements and bookstores, in community centers and living rooms, in whispered conversations and shouted protests. Every time they try to erase us, we write ourselves back into existence—in permanent ink, in unshakeable community, in unwavering solidarity.

There is a bitter irony in attempting to sanitize a monument that exists precisely because people refused to accept such violent marginalization. Stonewall stands as testament to the power of collective rage, to a moment when the marginalized said “enough” and transformed their pain into action, to a moment that showed their oppressors they knew how weak the chains really were. It commemorates not polite requests for dignity, but the throwing of bricks, the breaking of barriers, the raw and necessary fury of people who had been pushed too far. Those who now seek to edit this history, to remove some of its participants from the record, seem to miss the fundamental lesson of what they’re trying to erase: that oppressed people will not quietly accept their own erasure, that solidarity is stronger than state power, and that the very actions they’re commemorating prove the futility of their sanitization effort. They seek to remove transgender people from the story of a riot that began, in part, because society tried to deny transgender people’s right to exist—a historical echo that would be laughable if it weren’t so dangerous.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

This is why we must act now, together. Not just transgender people, but all who understand that when they come for one community’s history, they pave the way to erase others. Every activist, every ally, every person who believes in truth and dignity must stand together.

What can we do? We document. We archive. We create underground histories and public demonstrations. We build networks of resistance that transcend individual identity. We teach our children not just about Stonewall, but about every attempt at oppression and how we fought back. We turn their acts of erasure into fuel for our collective memory and action.

Most importantly, we recognize that this is not just about preserving history—it’s about protecting our future. When they try to erase transgender people from Stonewall, they are trying to erase the possibility of transgender youth seeing themselves in history, of understanding their place in a long line of resistance and triumph.

Let this attempt at erasure be the spark that ignites our collective resistance. Let every blank space they create become a canvas for our truth.

Let this attempt at erasure be the spark that ignites our collective resistance. Let every blank space they create become a canvas for our truth. Let every silence they impose become a chorus of our voices. Together, we will not just preserve our history—we will make it impossible to erase.

The time for passive observation is over. We must act with the urgency of people watching their own existence being questioned, with the determination of communities who refuse to be written out of history, and with the solidarity of those who understand that an injury to one is an injury to all.

Who will join us in ensuring that our stories survive? Who will stand with us in turning this moment of erasure into an era of unprecedented visibility and power? Our history is not just words on a monument—it lives in our actions, in our unity, and in our unwavering commitment to truth and justice.

The future is watching. What will we show them?​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

The purpose of protecting the life of our Nation and preserving the liberty of our citizens is to pursue the happiness of our people. Our success in that pursuit is the test of our success as a Nation.

At this time, we have witnessed what many have known was coming for decades: The death knell of American democracy. When Lyndon Baines Johnson gave this now-forgotten speech it was in the wake of the Kennedy assassination and at the beginning of his great society program to eradicate poverty throughout America - perhaps the most ambitious welfare program since the New Deal as well as the height of the American civil rights movement.

How did we end up here? We now find ourselves in a world where basic social security and long-accepted federal grants are under threat. The long-held compromises of democracy have been stripped away until all that remains is a mere facade of legitimacy that now is coming apart. We find ourselves on the path of Eastern Europe’s authoritarians in Belarus and Russia. Far from the premier standard of democracy we once held ourselves up to, we can no longer keep up the illusion as oligarchs ascend openly in power and the media is reduced to mere mouthpieces of their nightmarish commands as we teeter ever further over the abyss. Many fear the Rubicon will be crossed soon when it has already. Our answer for how we got here lies in the speech of LBJ’s successor;

And so tonight, to you, the great silent majority of my fellow Americans, I ask for your support. I pledged in my campaign for the presidency to end the war in a way that we could win the peace.

We find ourselves here not because of the silent majority as Nixon conjured to justify his policy in Vietnam, but instead because of what I like to call the “silenced majority”. These Americans have long been ignored by either party due to their prior irrelevance in their eyes. They were discarded to the side with the implementation of NAFTA and the failure of American Industry to maintain its competitive edge on the global market, a by-product of Neo-liberalism’s failure. You only need to look at the ghost towns of the midwest. For these people, what remains of the American dream but abandoned homes and once lively streets? Where is their savior or their salvation?

In came Bernie Sanders, a champion of progressivism and left-wing populism with a reputation as an honest figure, a rarity in our politics. Out of left field, he overnight became a challenge to Clinton despite having been dismissed for decades as a figure who only represented the leftward fringes. He spoke of hope, healthcare, and revival. He presented a constructive revolution to rebuild democracy and revitalize those forgotten communities. Sanders experienced a groundswell of support among democratic voters, and he was ignored following his loss in the DNC primaries in 2016 despite securing 43% of the vote. The common refrain in the media is that it was nothing but hype and youthful energy now expelled, citing his lower showing in 2020. But this is a mere excuse to avoid reckoning with what Sanders had tapped into - something much larger and much more uncomfortable than the Democratic party was ever willing to give voice to. Yes, Sanders ran again in 2020 and won 26% of the vote, but that only showed there remained a sizable base captivated by his message. So, where did the remainder go? Simple: they stayed home. Who wanted to stand up for Clinton, an ally of the massive corporations? Who wanted to stand up for the very establishment and the oligarchs they wanted out?

Bernie was an independent, an outsider who spoke to these forgotten communities and provided a chance for the revival of liberal democracy and the American dream in their eyes, and he was shot down by the establishment and their calls for normalcy. His reforms and calls for change were ignored. Meanwhile, in the Republican primaries, a billionaire businessman by the name of Donald Trump took the forefront of the American populist movement, mobilized them, and called for a destructive revolution against “Wokeness, NAFTA, and the Establishment” which had ignored them. And with their hope for a positive revolution underneath Bernie, these working-class communities threw in their lot with Trump. A base of the forgotten, ignored by the parties, who cared little for the partisanship of the democrats and republicans. A base Bernie could easily have appealed to. Trump gave them not a voice for change but a voice for revenge against the institutions that had wronged them. So fell the Grachii and so now rises Caesar.

Who cares for healthcare when you can’t access it? Who cares for flying when you’ve never been on a plane? Who cares for honesty and integrity when the ones who had it are gone? And who cares for democracy when it never cared for you? We are indeed witnessing the end of at least the old American democracy as the democrats remain hesitant to do what must be done to delay if not stop these changes. They have become too accustomed to power and their tradition of liberalism to recognize they must let go of their old norms to preserve it and their supporters.

I expect the Democrats to fail to learn from these experiences, just as Kamala Harris learned nothing from Biden’s failures, and as we have come to see the previous status quo is no longer viable as a point of return. Far from the days of LBJ and Kennedy, the democrats have only fallen further into the control of corporations, consistently prioritizing money, and their re-election, over the people they represent. They regard their role of political dominance as natural now even when it is not. It lies upon us as socialists to pick up the Promethean Torch of Democracy from where it has been forgotten and raise it higher than ever before. The people must reclaim their voice so that we can have a true functional democracy rather than a 2-party diarchy or a populist dictatorship. We as Americans, should never again have to fear for their livelihoods or our communities. We can restore democracy and the American dream but one better and stronger than before. Not as the founding fathers envisioned, but as we were promised as children. Only through that idealized America achieved through socialism may we triumph.

It is thus in my eyes necessary to launch a new crusade against fascism, bigotry, prejudice, corruption, and poverty. An honest one, a just one, and a peaceful one, but one that nonetheless is a new and more radical change than anything before it. We now live in abnormal times and the old norms are no longer sustainable. There is a struggle before us from which we cannot back down and we cannot surrender. The leaders that people trusted to defend their rights have shown that they will do nothing in the face of this crisis, and all that remains for the people are each other.

Triangle DSA stands firmly in support of Palestinian Liberation. Our chapter is staunchly anti-zionist and anti-imperialist. We also find it essential to engage in a practice that is rooted in the rich history of resistance to colonial projects. In light of the recent implementation of a temporary ceasefire in Gaza, we find it all the more important to emphasize the importance of anti-colonial struggle and an end to the occupation with full rights and liberties to Palestinians as the true goal of this movement. 

This article will cover the theory that guides our practice through an exposition on the South African Anti-Apartheid movement and its connection to the Palestinian Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions movement. We will then cover the direct ways in which TDSA has put this theory into practice through campaigns, commitments, and material changes in our communities. We call on all comrades committed to Palestinian Liberation to join us in this member-led work, and sign our pledge to boycott Israeli products in our communities.

Section I - The importance of being anti-zionist

Zionism is a nationalist movement that seeks to establish a Jewish ethnostate. Though other locations were initially considered during Zionism’s ideological formation in the 19th century, Palestine was ultimately chosen as the site for this colonial project. Zionism historically emerged in response to the severe deprivation, discrimination, and antisemitism that Jewish communities experienced across Eastern and Western Europe, and it relied on the imperial powers such as the UK, France, and later the US for financial, ideological and military support for this colonization (1, 2, 3). From the outset, Zionism was conceived as a settler colonial movement, which expels Palestinians from their land through ethnic cleansing, extermination, and expropriation. It is intent on rendering Palestinian lives unlivable through occupation, siege, policing, infrastructural and legal apartheid, and maiming (4,5,6). As a political, economic, and sociocultural ideology that operates transnationally, Zionism seeks continuous expansion through warmaking, proliferation of settlements on Palestinian territories, and eradication of Palestinian identity, history, memory, and culture (7). 

Because Zionism claims to represent all Jews, it erases non-European Jewish experiences and other ways of being Jewish that were historically formed in entanglement with Muslims and Arabs (8). The ideological machine of Zionism is supported by donors and committed politicians, pro-Zionist think tanks and media, religious institutions such as evangelical churches in the US, and cultural practices such as birthright trips to Israel (9). Apart from liberal political circles across the globe, the Israeli government has forged relationships with the far-right leaders and movements in apartheid South Africa and some Latin American countries, and it has found ideological support among Hindu nationalists, Christian militias in Lebanon, and forces that are deeply antisemitic (10).

In the DSA, we do not support Zionism. To take an anti-Zionist stance is to speak and act against the racist violence of the ethno-nationalist state, unleashed with brutality and impunity on the Palestinian people, land, culture, and future and propped up by colonial logics and imperialist calculations of the global powers such as the US. To be an anti-Zionist also means to call for the end of continuous Nakbah, or the catastrophe for Palestinians; to demand the end of war on Palestinian children; and to advocate for the end of illegal occupation of Palestine and Israel’s expansionist ambitions in the region. To challenge Zionism is to pursue the creation of a space where Palestinians and Jews will collectively flourish in peace, safety, and justice (11).

To be an anti-Zionist does not mean to be anti-Semitic. The dangerous and purposeful conflation between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism stifles any critique of the Israeli state’s policies, while diverting attention from the objective rise in anti-Semitism in many societies across the globe (12). Leftist politicians, academics, and religious and secular Jews who have spoken for peace, justice, and liberation in Palestine have been viciously attacked (13). This is a deeply concerning trend because it undermines critique, threatens academic and other democratic freedoms, and continues to render Palestinian—and Jewish—lives unsafe (14).

Section II - Anti-zionism in practice: The Origins of the BDS Movement

Resistance to Zionism as a racist, imperialist, and colonial ideology takes many forms. One of the most widespread globally is the Boycott, Divest, and Sanction movement, or BDS. It calls for an end to the occupation, the recognition of equal rights of Palestinians in their homeland, as well as ensuring the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homeland. BDS emerged as a tactic in 2005 and calls for a full consumer boycott of Israel across food, culture, and academia; institutional divestment from Israeli corporations complicit in apartheid; and governmental sanctions that would end military or free-trade agreements with Israel (15).

This strategy of exerting grassroots financial pressure on entities violating human rights is not new. The BDS movement drew much inspiration directly from the South African Anti-Apartheid Movement, or AAM. Boycott campaigns against the South African apartheid regimes began in 1959 when the African National Congress issued calls to boycott the regime until compliance with a set of demands. This was done in conjunction with other tactics of advocating for international pressure and several armed resistance campaigns. Combined, this strategy had effects both inside and outside of apartheid South Africa. On the inside, millions of workers participated in general strikes, civil disobedience, and sabotage (16). Abroad, diaspora South Africans launched campaigns to boycott and take direct action against companies like Shell Oil who were operating with the apartheid regime. All of this worked to demonstrate the collective power of the South African people and forced the regime to grant them a seat at the negotiating table. From there, the non-white population was granted the right to vote and elected the ANC to power (17).

While this was not an absolute victory, and racial inequality in South Africa still exists, especially in civil and military sectors, we have learned valuable lessons from the AAM. However, the unique context surrounding the Palestinian cause should also be considered. In South Africa, the Black labor force represented the vast majority of the economy, whereas Israel’s globalized economic sectors, exploitation of the labor of Ethiopian Jews (18), and heavy restrictions on the issuing of labor permits for Palestinians (19) mean that the efficacy and potentiality of a mass general strike is weakened. The ANC reached a similar conclusion leading to its adoption of a line of armed struggle, as heavy suppression of strikes meant they “could no longer be effectively employed as an instrument of mass struggle” (20). Similarly, Islamophobia and Zionism’s toxic ideology being widespread means moral appeals against the apartheid regime are an uphill battle. The United States’ direct imperialist resource incentive in the region for its oil and natural gas resources means that it would never support sanctions, as evidenced by their repeated vetoing of UN resolutions (21). This of course does not mean that we should give up the fight. We should apply scientific socialism and learn from history.

Section III - Anti-zionism in practice: How Triangle DSA has fought Zionism with BDS Actions

Support for Palestine grew across DSA in the mid to late 2010s. In 2017, DSA joined the global call for BDS at the national convention when a vote in favor of a Palestine-focused resolution passed. This vote was a historical turning point for the organization, marking the first time it came out publicly in support of Palestinian liberation and against Zionism.  The vote also led to the creation of the DSA BDS and Palestine Solidarity Working Group, which, following a strong recruitment period from 2019 to 2021, included several members of Triangle DSA. However, due to internal friction within the DSA, the BDS and Palestine Solidarity Working Group separated itself from the larger DSA organization, but DSA still holds space for Palestine organizing under the International Committee.

Before any of the steps taken to acknowledge the struggle for Palestinian freedom happened within the larger DSA organization, Triangle DSA was making moves to support and actively engage in Palestinian liberation, cementing our work on local Palestine organizing and support for Palestinian liberation at the local level. In coalition with ten other organizations, Triangle DSA organized with the Demilitarize Durham2Palestine campaign to end police exchanges between Israel and the city of Durham. The work culminated into a historic win at our city level when Durham voted in favor of banning police exchanges with Israel, and became the first city ever to ban police exchanges with Israel.

But it didn’t end there. Momentum grew after the win, and people and organizations reached out to join the coalition as the movement for Palestinian solidarity grew at the local level. The coalition continued Palestine organizing at this local level while Palestine organizing was growing at the national scale through the BDS and Palestine Solidarity Working Group. One of the campaigns that the Working Group produced, among many other valuable resources, is the No Appetite for Apartheid (NA4A) Campaign. In 2024, this campaign gained traction at our local Triangle DSA chapter level and a group from our International Solidarity Working Group formed to work on the campaign across our cities. With much success in the first year, 16 stores across the Triangle (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill-Carrboro, and other towns in between) promised to boycott Israeli goods and products by not purchasing and selling items from Israel. The Triangle soon saw NA4A posters hung on windows across the region indicating the stores’ proud boycott of Israeli goods. 

This local campaign is ongoing and growing momentum. It is our intention to continue to build public support for the boycott and use that to pressure even larger stores into changing their stocking practices. We believe that it is through this collective action that we can exert direct economic pressure on the apartheid regime, striking at nearly $300 million U.S spends on import of Israeli food products (22).

Section IV - Anti-zionism in practice: How Triangle DSA rejects Zionism internally 

Alongside this direct action campaign, DSA members across the country were organizing to pass a resolution to explicitly commit to anti-zionism in principle and practice. This was driven in response to certain DSA-endorsed elected officials taking action that contradicted our values. For example, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez voted “present” instead of “nay” on a resolution to fund Israel’s Iron Dome military defense system (23). More recently, she voted to adopt the IHRA’s definition of anti-semitism, which considers any criticism of Israel as anti-semitic (24). The DSA resolution put forth that Zionism, being imperialist, racist, and colonialist, has no place in DSA. In turn, it proposed that candidates seeking DSA endorsement must pledge: to support BDS, to not platform or receive money from Zionist lobbying groups, to support legislation that promotes Palestinian liberation (such as sanctions on Israel and calls for ceasefire), and to oppose legislation that harms Palestinians (such as sending military resources or adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism). The resolution also proposed members of DSA who engage in Zionist behavior, (such as consistent public opposition to Palestine and BDS, material support or affiliation the Israeli government, Zionist lobbying groups, or settler NGOs) would be considered in substantial disagreement with DSA’s principles and thus eligible for expulsion.

This resolution was brought forth to the 2024 National Political Convention, but it was heavily amended before getting passed. The amendments included the removal of the expulsion clause and mechanisms for enforcing the standards against endorsed officials. This sparked a wave among local DSA chapters to pass a local, unamended version of the resolution. Triangle DSA in particular had already passed a BDS resolution in 2022 that affirmed our chapter’s support of BDS and required that our endorsed candidates do so materially as well or risk censure by our steering committee. We saw supporting an Anti-Zionist resolution as a means to bolster and add new restrictions of candidates on members in light of trends at the national level. This resolution was brought forth to our general body meeting in September and passed unanimously with one abstention.

The moment we are in calls for us to be explicit with our stances. When Palestinian voices are being silenced and racist ideologies are being touted as sanctified through conflation with religion, the harm caused by toeing the line is greater and greater. It is clear that Zionism is a racist, imperialist, and colonialist ideology that has no place among those who reject genocide and apartheid. We stand alongside a rich history of resisting such colonial projects and call on you to join us. Pledge to boycott Israeli products. Join our DSA chapter to get involved in local organizing for Palestinian Liberation. Together we can turn the Triangle into an apartheid-free zone.

Citations 

 1. Khalidi, R., 2020. The hundred years' war on Palestine: A history of settler colonialism and resistance, 1917–2017. Metropolitan Books.

2.  Erakat, N., 2020. Justice for some: Law and the question of Palestine. Stanford University Press.

3.  Awad, S. ed., 2020. Palestine: A Socialist Introduction. Haymarket Books.

4. Puar, J. 2017. The Right to Maim: Debility, Capacity, Disability. Duke University Press.

5.  Bhungalia, L. 2023. Elastic Empire: Refashioning War through Aid in Palestine. Stanford University Press.

6. Weizman, E., 2024. Hollow land: Israel’s architecture of occupation. Verso books.

7.  Middle East Eye. 2024. Israel: Settler group advertises new properties in southern Lebanon. https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israeli-settler-group-advertises-new-properties-southern-lebanon 

8. Azoulay, A. A. 2024. The Jewelers of the Ummah: a Potential History of the Jewish Muslim World. Verso.

9.  Documentary. 2023. Israelism: The Awakening of Young American Jews.

10. Loewenstein, A. 2024. Israel and Apartheid South Africa Were the Closest of Friends. Jacobin.

11. Pappe, I. 2024. Ten Myths about Israel. Verso.

12. Pappe, I., 2022. A history of modern Palestine. Cambridge University Press.

13. Hill, M.L. and Plitnick, M., 2021. Except for Palestine: The limits of progressive politics. The New Press.

14. Bailey, C. 2023. Reports of antisemitism, anti-Arab and anti-Muslim bias continue to surge across the US, new data shows. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/11/us/adl-cair-hate-crimes-bias-incidents-reaj/index.htm 

15. Palestinian Civil Society. https://bdsmovement.net/call 

16.  African National Congress, 1969. Strategy and Tactics of the ANC. https://www.marxists.org/subject/africa/anc/1969/strategy-tactics.htm 

17.  Kemp, Stephanie, 2012. The British Anti-Apartheid Movement  https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/british-anti-apartheid-movement

18.  Semyonov, M., Raijman, R., Maskileyson, D. 2015. Ethnicity and Labor Market Incorporation of Post-1990 Immigrants in Israel. Springer Nature

19. Masarwa, L., MacDonald, A. 2023. Gaza workers in Israel stranded after permits revoked. https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-palestine-war-gaza-workers-permits-revoked

20.   African National Congress, 1969. Strategy and Tactics of the ANC. https://www.marxists.org/subject/africa/anc/1969/strategy-tactics.htm 

21. Al Jazeera Staff. 2024. US vetoes UN Security Council resolution demanding Gaza ceasefire https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/11/20/us-vetoes-un-security-council-resolution-demanding-gaza-ceasefire

22. World Integrated Trade Solution. 2022. Food Products Exports by Israel. https://wits.worldbank.org/CountryProfile/en/Country/ISR/Year/2022/TradeFlow/Import/Partner/All/Product/16-24_FoodProd

23. Uddin, R. 2021. AOC faces backlash for crying, but not voting, over bill to fund Israel's Iron Dome https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-iron-dome-alexandria-ocasio-cortez-aoc-present-condemned Middle East Eye

24. Nassar, T., Abunimah, A. 2024 AOC votes to back Israel lobby’s bogus “anti-Semitism” definition. https://electronicintifada.net/content/aoc-votes-back-israel-lobbys-bogus-anti-semitism-definition/50066 Electronic Intifada

Mark your calendars!

Our next chapter meeting is Thursday, February 27th at 6pm PT. It will be a Zoom meeting. RSVP here!

This meeting will be covering our upcoming efforts in 2025, including membership initiatives and Chapter Rules. We strongly encourage members to join this meeting to voice their interests, recommendations, and suggestions for the benefit of the Chapter. 

Additionally, we’ll also discuss our open Chapter leaderships roles.