by Chris Mills Rodrigo

Taking a glance at how the spike in union activity over the last few years has been described in traditional media — a wave, a surge, a boom — one could be forgiven for thinking that the process is natural. Anyone who has organized their workplace will tell you the opposite. Organizing is hard work, from covertly building support amongst colleagues to weathering management retaliation to navigating the byzantine process of formal elections. Desire to unionize can only go so far without organizers willing to put in the work to make it happen.

Few places experienced that disconnect between interest in unionization and successful campaigns as acutely as the Bay Area in the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite exciting organizing activity across the nation — particularly at chains like Starbucks and Trader Joe’s — and a rich local history of organized labor, new unions in the area were still few and far in between.

Fearing that the Bay Area was at risk of missing out on a special opportunity to build durable labor power, the East Bay chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) started asking itself what it could do to help. 

“There was this huge wave of new organizing happening across the country, and to some extent in the Bay Area, but not quite as much as we were expecting,” Zach Weinstein, one of the co-chairs of the organization’s Labor Committee, explained. “We were having a conversation: what do we do in terms of engaging with this wave of organizing that’s happening? How do we do labor work that isn’t just sitting around waiting for workers or a union to ask us for help?”

Taking a look at what was working elsewhere in the country to motivate unionization, members of the labor committee were taken by the successes of the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee. 

At the height of the pandemic, when the contempt of many employers for their workers became harder to ignore, the DSA and the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America teamed up to create a one-stop-shop for workers with the desire to organize that lack the know-how to make it happen.

Since its inception in March 2020, EWOC has helped over 70 organizing drives win demands and aided almost 100 successful unionization campaigns by providing resources, training and individual help to workers. 

In the spring of 2022, the East Bay DSA members began discussing whether forming a local equivalent would be a good way to help turn the rise of pro-labor sentiment in the area into concrete organizing wins. By September of that year, a resolution establishing the East Bay Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee was approved. 

A little over a year in, based on the raw numbers alone, the project has been a success. The group has played a part in seven successful unionization campaigns, aiding workers in successful efforts to win union elections at three Peet’s Coffee locations, a Starbucks, a Trader Joe’s, Berkeley’s Ecology Center, and Urban Ore. 

After becoming the first local EWOC in the Bay Area – and the second nationally after New York City’s – the organization has helped the San Francisco and Santa Cruz DSA chapters launch their own local affiliates.  

Those behind the campaign say the next goal for East Bay EWOC is to bring some of the workers they have helped organize into the DSA to help the group better represent the region’s working class. 

East Bay EWOC provides a variety of services to workers fighting to improve their workplaces. The group utilizes the national organization’s online support form, which workers can fill out to get help from trained organizers. Requests for help from the region are forwarded to the local EWOC, which then has volunteers contact workers directly. 

The group’s volunteers have helped give workers interested in organizing direction, turning get-togethers that would often devolve into aimless complaining and gossip into more structured discussions with clear targets in mind, according to workers who spoke with Majority for this article.

“They gave us tools and resources to structure our meetings to make them productive and to envision the arc of the campaign, to have goals to be constantly working towards,” one worker, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retribution, said. 

The organization has also hosted a series of workplace organizing trainings, three of which were adapted from Labor Notes’s Secrets of a Successful Organizer and a fourth which focused on contract negotiations. The training not only helped upwards of 30 workers develop the skills necessary to organize their workplaces, but it also helped spread awareness about the assistance that East Bay EWOC offers.

Another worker at a not yet public unionization drive, heard about one of these trainings through a friend, showed up, and then was connected to a local organizer who helped get their campaign to the next step.

“There’s been a lot of different things over the years that have had people talking about the benefits of unionizing,” they told Majority. “But previously in those conversations, it was a small group of people and when we looked into what it would take to actually unionize it felt really overwhelming.”

The local organizer assigned to the campaign was able to provide strategies for how to reach new colleagues, answer questions about eligibility and give tips on how to keep shop lists organized. 

As East Bay EWOC heads into its second year, there is still a lot more to achieve.

For one, none of the union campaigns that the group has aided have secured their first contracts yet. Helping get those challenging negotiations over the finish line is a priority.

Once those contracts do start getting ratified, East Bay EWOC organizers hope they can convince some of the workers involved in the process to join the local DSA chapter and contribute to the fight to grow worker power nationwide.

“I think EWOC has the power to make an organization like DSA actually feel and look like the working class,” Taylor Henry said. “When you have something like EWOC that focuses on supporting and growing the power of the working class, that will have a big impact on our membership.”

If you want support to organize your workplace, fill out this form to be connected to a local organizer through EWOC. To volunteer with EBEWOC, email labor@eastbaydsa.org.

by Sarah H

A day after the Israeli Defense Forces began its latest assault on Gaza, a group of East Bay DSA members crossed the bridge into San Francisco, bound for the Israeli Consulate. Their crimson shirts blended into a sea of red, green, black and white, as they joined our coalition partners in a call for resistance and the right to return after decades of struggle.

Since the war in Gaza broke out on October 7, an upsurge in solidarity with Palestine has reverberated around the world and across the East Bay. Chapter leaders and paper members alike have stepped up to bottom-line actions, from the chapter’s first mobilization on October 8 at the Israeli consulate, to the “No Money for Massacres” phone bank, to Oakland Educational Association’s resolution on Palestine and beyond.

Just as any mass organization becomes conditioned through struggle, EBDSA’s response to the war in Gaza has been a learning process. Not without its growing pains, our membership is figuring out how to mobilize people in the face of an American-backed genocide. 

By joining the Palestinian resistance, the chapter took a step in becoming a mass organization that supports movement work and centers the anti-imperialist, internationalist line more directly.

In an effort to document this process, East Bay Majority spoke with six organizers who have bottom-lined large actions, phone banks and labor-backed resolutions.

In lieu of compiling a comprehensive list of all of the actions the chapter has taken to support Palestinian liberation, this article focuses on these three organizing tactics, which may continue to inform our local strategy and build our mobilizing capacity.

Actions

Public actions have become a central, and of course, highly visible, part of this movement. According to EBDSA member Thomas M, a crucial first step in the chapter’s mobilization was to democratically decide to support the Palestinian Action Network—a coalition that includes the Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC), the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) and Jewish Voice for Peace, among others. 

“It was an important and healthy act of self-criticism as a chapter to ask ourselves, ‘How much are we centering ourselves versus providing support to make it happen?” Thomas said. 

Though there was significant discussion about how a coalition should be built, and how much unity is required to take action with other organizations, ultimately, the chapter democratically decided that international solidarity should take precedence. EBDSA member Bert K. put it this way:

“In general, we should be willing to have programmatic unity with groups who may disagree with us on certain things,” Bert said. “It’s more important to get people out in this moment when genocide is happening in front of our eyes.” 

As such, EBDSA members have taken on support roles at protests, like acting security marshals, to back the Palestinian Action Network. 

“These are organic formations of people who have capacity who are willing to throw down,” Thomas said. 

Bert also noted that the chapter steering committee has expedited its process of endorsing actions so that organizers can ensure better turnout at each protest.

The chapter’s capacity to mobilize has grown with each action, even sending a small detachment to the famous AROC-organized action to block a boat transporting Israeli military equipment out of the port of Oakland on November 4. The next day, DSA members from all Bay Area chapters came out in droves to the International Day of Solidarity: Free Palestine, joining a crowd of around 50,000 people that converged on San Francisco City Hall.

“I’ve really been impressed with the comrades that have come forward,” Bert said. “Some people who have been on the fringe of the work are now stepping forward as leaders, and it’s a great thing to see.”  

Thomas M also pointed to smaller actions, such as the November 9 letter delivery and die-in at Representative Eric Swalwell’s District 14 office (following one at DeSaulnier’s District 10 office, led by organizers from outside DSA) in Castro Valley, when members demanded a conversation with the Democratic congressman. He told East Bay Majority that he believes DSA’s status as a mass organization shouldn’t preclude us from supporting liberatory movements. 

“It’s imperative to embrace community organizing on top of mass organizing,” Thomas said.  

“Letting myself be tutored by other organizers from other movement spaces and adopting their toolkits is, I think, a powerful way to reaffirm our commitment to becoming an organization of organizers, by learning from other orgs and creating those relationships.”

Phone banks 

By the second week in October, the National Political Committee (NPC) voted to launch a national series of phone banks called “No Money for Massacres” to target members of Congress, urge them to vote no on sending military aid to Israel and call for an immediate ceasefire.

EBDSA and California DSA steering committee member Nickan F. helped kick off the first California phone banks on October 16, a coordinated effort between different DSA bodies that has continued weekly since then. 

Nickan said that the East Bay phone banks have generated 25,000 calls and patched 450 people into their representatives, resulting in a few elected officials flipping their position to support a ceasefire, including Barbara Lee and Mark DeSaulnier. Nickan feels it’s a vital leadership development tool, as “a lot of people, myself included, had never taken on this specific task before, or never bottom-lined an event before.”

The phone banks also introduced a political education segment where guest speakers explain and summarize the conflict to help educate volunteers.

“I think we can build on this experience and do what we’ve done right again in the future,” Nickan added.  

Labor for Palestine

Finally, organized labor has assumed a critical role in EBDSA’s response to Israel’s attacks on Gaza. By October 14th, members of East Bay DSA’s labor committee, themselves union members, had drafted a template resolution for union members to adapt and try to pass through their own unions. That effort quickly grew into Bay Area Labor for Palestine, as rank-and-file union members met weekly to figure out how to advance solidarity with Palestine in their unions.

According to EBDSA member Keith BB, many activists within the organization who found jobs as rank and file teachers and public workers have led the charge within their unions to create public statements about the genocide.

Part of that leg work is simply about figuring out how to talk to your coworkers about Palestine, said Keith.

“The important question to ask is, ‘why are we spending billions of public funds to pay for bombs blowing up schools instead of building them and paying for workers’ wages and addressing understaffing and crumbling facilities?”

These one-on-one organizing conversations are most effective when framed around America’s role in creating consent and the infrastructure required for apartheid, he added.

“We don’t have to be experts to know that huge civilian casualties are not okay and that the US government shipping out billions is causing massive civilian casualties,” he said.

Sometimes, these conversations even lead to widespread rank-and-file support for resolutions in support of Palestine, according to EBDSA member and Oakland educator Hillary C.

Namely, the Oakland Education Association—a union containing many DSA members—was one of the first labor organizations to unite its membership around collective support of the Palestinian resistance.

Almost immediately after October 7, EBDSA member and teacher Maura M. began talking to another rank-and-file member of OEA who wanted to write a resolution. This ad hoc group called itself OEA for Palestine.

“We took the DSA template and started workshopping from there, inserting our perspective as educators,” Maura recalled. “We involved several people from my [school site] and it was really collaborative.”

OEA’s response was fast. In about three days’ time, Maura and her fellow educators had submitted the draft resolution to the union’s executive board. Ultimately, the resolution was passed unanimously on October 18 and went on to pass through OEA’s Representative Council on November 6. These resolutions not only help push an anti-imperialist line forward, it also helps flex the muscle of democracy within the union and normalize the fundamental socialist priority that we fight for people we don’t know.

Hillary C explained that OEA for Palestine has also begun to organize teach-ins as a way to engage their students in dialogue about the Palestinian resistance.

In October, students at Hillary’s school, Oakland Tech, led a walkout of 50 or so high schoolers that she said materialized mostly through word-of-mouth. 

Hillary added that OEA for Palestine has shared these teaching materials with other educational unions, like UESF, to build capacity for cross-rank-and-file organizing. 

Maura M’s school, which is located in the Oakland flatlands, has a significant population of immigrant families from the Americas. The students learn about colonization during the indigenous peoples’ unit in their social studies classes. So it wasn’t a leap for a group of those same students, recognizing the Palestinian struggle as also similarly indigenous and decolonial, to organize a walk-out and turn their parents out for the November 4 protest. 

“These students very much understand displacement and US imperialism,” she said.

East Bay DSA members started Bay Area Labor for Palestine as an organizing space for supporting these rank-and-file efforts to push local unions to stand in solidarity with Palestine and call for a ceasefire. The group now includes members of nearly twenty Bay Area unions, and community and political organizations. The organizing efforts of Bay Area Labor for Palestine coalesced at the Bay Area Labor for Palestine rally at Oakland’s Oscar Grant Plaza on December 16, with contingents from unions like OEA, UESF, UAW 2865, ILWU Local 10 and more, as well as the Palestinian and Arab-led organizations PYM and AROC. This labor-led march was the first of its kind in the country.

Looking ahead

As the Palestinian resistance continues to grow, there will be more opportunities for EBDSA to build mobilizing capacity and bolster our international solidarity work. Another one of the highlights coming out of this moment of political rupture is a reinforcing of our cross-chapter relationships with those others in the Bay area, namely DSA San Francisco, Marin DSA, and Silicon Valley DSA, as mutually-supportive contingents formed for these mass rallies.

“Having that communication across chapters, allowed us to be supportive in each other’s local organizing as well, if even just being able to plug other folks into work that was closer to where they could express their power,” Thomas said.

“For example, Marin DSA has been wanting to pressure their local House Rep. Huffman into calling for a ceasefire, meanwhile someone in JVP who I’ve been working with did as well, and I was able to connect them to bolster their efforts or at least get conversations going.” 

Bert noted that humanitarian crises have an unfortunate way of fading into the background as time goes on and atrocities become normalized. 

“The challenge is, how do we become part of a sustainable movement in support of Palestine and connect to anti-imperialist struggles?” 

Both Thomas M and Bert K emphasized that the rechartering of the chapter’s International Solidarity Anti-Imperialist subcommittee as its own proper committee is a further step in the right direction. 

“It’s never not a crisis for the Palestinian people,” Bert said. “At this moment, we need a broad united front to oppose Israeli apartheid and support the Palestinian resistance. It has to be central to our work.”

Tip 1: Identify the sources of stress in your life

Stress management starts with identifying the sources of stress in your life. This isn’t as straightforward as it sounds. While it’s easy to identify major stressors such as changing jobs, moving, or going through a divorce, pinpointing the sources of chronic stress can be more complicated. It’s all too easy to overlook how your own thoughts, feelings, and behaviors contribute to your everyday stress levels.

Sure, you may know that you’re constantly worried about work deadlines, but maybe it’s your procrastination, rather than the actual job demands, that is causing the stress.

To identify what’s really stressing you out, look closely at your habits, attitude, and excuses:

• Do you explain away stress as temporary (“I just have a million things going on right now”) even though you can’t remember the last time you took a breather?
• Do you define stress as an integral part of your work or home life (“Things are always crazy around here”) or as a part of your personality (“I have a lot of nervous energy, that’s all”)?
• Do you blame your stress on other people or outside events, or view it as entirely normal and unexceptional?

Until you accept responsibility for the role you play in creating or maintaining it, your stress level will remain outside your control.

Start a stress journal

A stress journal can help you identify the regular stressors in your life and the way you deal with them. Each time you feel stressed, make a note of it in your journal or use a stress tracker on your phone. Keeping a daily log will enable you to see patterns and common themes. Write down:

• What caused your stress (make a guess if you’re unsure).
• How you felt, both physically and emotionally.
• How you acted in response.
• What you did to make yourself feel better.

Tip 2: Cut out unhealthy ways of dealing with stress

Many of us feel so stressed out, we resort to unhealthy and unproductive ways to cope. A lot of these unhelpful strategies can temporarily reduce stress, but in the long run, they actually cause even more damage:

• Smoking, drinking too much, or using drugs to relax.
• Bingeing on junk or comfort food.
• Zoning out for hours in front of the TV or phone.
• Withdrawing from friends, family, and social activities.
• Sleeping too much.
• Filling up every minute of the day to avoid facing problems.
• Procrastinating.
• Taking out your stress on others (lashing out, angry outbursts, physical violence).

If your methods of coping with stress aren’t contributing to your greater emotional and physical health, it’s time to find healthier ones that leave you feeling calm and in control.

Tip 3: Practice the 4 A’s of stress management

While stress is an automatic response from your nervous system, some stressors arise at predictable times: your commute to work, a meeting with your boss, or family gatherings, for example. When handling such predictable stressors, you can either change the situation or change your reaction. 

When deciding which option to choose in any given scenario, it’s helpful to think of the four A’s: avoid, alter, adapt, or accept.

Avoid unnecessary stress

It’s not healthy to avoid a stressful situation that needs to be addressed, but you may be surprised by the number of stressors in your life that you can eliminate.

Learn how to say “no.” Know your limits and stick to them. Whether in your personal or professional life, taking on more than you can handle is a surefire recipe for stress. 

Avoid people who stress you out. If someone consistently causes stress in your life, limit the amount of time you spend with that person, or end the relationship.

Take control of your environment. If the evening news makes you anxious, turn off the TV. If traffic makes you tense, take a longer but less-traveled route. If going to the market is an unpleasant chore, do your grocery shopping online.

Avoid hot-button topics. If you get upset over religion or politics, cross them off your conversation list. If you repeatedly argue about the same subject with the same people, stop bringing it up or excuse yourself when it’s the topic of discussion.

Pare down your to-do list. Analyze your schedule, responsibilities, and daily tasks. If you’ve got too much on your plate, distinguish between the “shoulds” and the “musts.” Drop tasks that aren’t truly necessary to the bottom of the list or eliminate them entirely.

Alter the situation

If you can’t avoid a stressful situation, try to alter it. Often, this involves changing the way you communicate and operate in your daily life.

Express your feelings instead of bottling them up. If something or someone is bothering you, communicate your concerns in an open and respectful way. If you don’t voice your feelings, resentment will build and the stress will increase.

Be willing to compromise. When you ask someone to change their behavior, be willing to do the same. If you both are willing to bend at least a little, you’ll have a good chance of finding a happy middle ground.

Be more assertive. Don’t take a backseat in your own life. Deal with problems head on, doing your best to anticipate and prevent them. If you’ve got an exam to study for and your chatty roommate just got home, say up front that you only have five minutes to talk.

Find balance. All work and no play is a recipe for burnout. Try to find a balance between work and family life, social activities and solitary pursuits, daily responsibilities and downtime.

Adapt to the stressor

If you can’t change the stressor, change yourself. You can adapt to stressful situations and regain your sense of control by changing your expectations and attitude.

Reframe problems. Try to view stressful situations from a more positive perspective. Rather than fuming about a traffic jam, look at it as an opportunity to pause and regroup, listen to your favorite radio station, or enjoy some alone time.

Look at the big picture. Take perspective of the stressful situation. Ask yourself how important it will be in the long run. Will it matter in a month? A year? Is it really worth getting upset over? If the answer is no, focus your time and energy elsewhere.

Adjust your standards. Perfectionism is a major source of avoidable stress. Stop setting yourself up for failure by demanding perfection. Set reasonable standards for yourself and others, and learn to be okay with “good enough.”

Practice gratitude. When stress is getting you down, take a moment to reflect on all the things you appreciate in your life, including your own positive qualities and gifts. This simple strategy can help you keep things in perspective.

Accept the things you can’t change

Some sources of stress are unavoidable. You can’t prevent or change stressors such as the death of a loved one, a serious illness, or a national recession. In such cases, the best way to cope with stress is to accept things as they are. Acceptance may be difficult, but in the long run, it’s easier than railing against a situation you can’t change.

Don’t try to control the uncontrollable. Many things in life are beyond our control, particularly the behavior of other people. Rather than stressing out over them, focus on the things you can control such as the way you choose to react to problems.

Look for the upside. When facing major challenges, try to look at them as opportunities for personal growth. If your own poor choices contributed to a stressful situation, reflect on them and learn from your mistakes.

Learn to forgive. Accept the fact that we live in an imperfect world and that people make mistakes. Let go of anger and resentments. Free yourself from negative energy by forgiving and moving on.

Share your feelings. Expressing what you’re going through can be very cathartic, even if there’s nothing you can do to alter the stressful situation. Talk to a trusted friend or make an appointment with a therapist.

Tip 4: Get moving

When you’re stressed, the last thing you probably feel like doing is getting up and exercising. But physical activity is a huge stress reliever—and you don’t have to be an athlete or spend hours in a gym to experience the benefits. Exercise releases endorphins that make you feel good, and it can also serve as a valuable distraction from your daily worries.

While you’ll get the most benefit from regularly exercising for 30 minutes or more, it’s okay to build up your fitness level gradually. Even very small activities can add up over the course of a day. The first step is to get yourself up and moving. Here are some easy ways to incorporate exercise into your daily schedule:

• Put on some music and dance around.
• Take your dog for a walk.
• Walk or cycle to the grocery store.
• Use the stairs at home or work rather than an elevator.
• Park your car in the farthest spot in the lot and walk the rest of the way.
• Pair up with an exercise partner and encourage each other as you work out.
• Play ping-pong or an activity-based video game with your kids.

Deal with stress with mindful rhythmic exercise

While just about any form of physical activity can help burn away tension and stress, rhythmic activities are especially effective. Good choices include walking, running, swimming, dancing, cycling, tai chi, and aerobics. But whatever you choose, make sure it’s something you enjoy so you’re more likely to stick with it.

While you’re exercising, make a conscious effort to pay attention to your body and the physical (and sometimes emotional) sensations you experience as you’re moving. Focus on coordinating your breathing with your movements, for example, or notice how the air or sunlight feels on your skin. Adding this mindfulness element will help you break out of the cycle of negative thoughts that often accompanies overwhelming stress.

Tip 5: Connect to others

There is nothing more calming than spending quality time with another human being who makes you feel safe and understood. In fact, face-to-face interaction triggers a cascade of hormones that counteracts the body’s defensive “fight-or-flight” response. It’s nature’s natural stress reliever (as an added bonus, it also helps stave off depression and anxiety). So make it a point to connect regularly—and in person—with family and friends.

Keep in mind that the people you talk to don’t have to be able to fix your stress. They simply need to be good listeners. And try not to let worries about looking weak or being a burden keep you from opening up. The people who care about you will be flattered by your trust. It will only strengthen your bond.

Of course, it’s not always realistic to have a pal close by to lean on when you feel overwhelmed by stress, but by building and maintaining a network of close friends you can improve your resiliency to life’s stressors.

Tips for building relationships

1. Reach out to a colleague at work.
2. Help someone else by volunteering.
3. Have lunch or coffee with a friend.
4. Ask a loved one to check in with you regularly.
5. Accompany someone to the movies or a concert.
6. Call or email an old friend.
7. Go for a walk with a workout buddy.
8. Schedule a weekly dinner date.
9. Meet new people by taking a class or joining a club.
10. Confide in a clergy member, teacher, or sports coach.

Tip 6: Make time for fun and relaxation

Beyond a take-charge approach and a positive attitude, you can reduce stress in your life by carving out “me” time. Don’t get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of life that you forget to take care of your own needs. Nurturing yourself is a necessity, not a luxury. If you regularly make time for fun and relaxation, you’ll be in a better place to handle life’s stressors.

Set aside leisure time. Include rest and relaxation in your daily schedule. Don’t allow other obligations to encroach. This is your time to take a break from all responsibilities and recharge your batteries.

Do something you enjoy every day. Make time for leisure activities that bring you joy, whether it be stargazing, playing the piano, or working on your bike.

Keep your sense of humor. This includes the ability to laugh at yourself. The act of laughing helps your body fight stress in a number of ways.

Take up a relaxation practice. Relaxation techniques such as yoga, meditation, and deep breathing activate the body’s relaxation response, a state of restfulness that is the opposite of the fight or flight or mobilization stress response. As you learn and practice these techniques, your stress levels will decrease and your mind and body will become calm and centered.

Tip 7: Manage your time better

Poor time management can cause a lot of stress. When you’re stretched too thin and running behind, it’s hard to stay calm and focused. Plus, you’ll be tempted to avoid or cut back on all the healthy things you should be doing to keep stress in check, like socializing and getting enough sleep. The good news: there are things you can do to achieve a healthier work-life balance.

Don’t over-commit yourself. Avoid scheduling things back-to-back or trying to fit too much into one day. All too often, we underestimate how long things will take.

Prioritize tasks. Make a list of tasks you have to do, and tackle them in order of importance. Do the high-priority items first. If you have something particularly unpleasant or stressful to do, get it over with early. The rest of your day will be more pleasant as a result.

Break projects into small steps. If a large project seems overwhelming, make a step-by-step plan. Focus on one manageable step at a time, rather than taking on everything at once.

Delegate responsibility. You don’t have to do it all yourself, whether at home, school, or on the job. If other people can take care of the task, why not let them? Let go of the desire to control or oversee every little step. You’ll be letting go of unnecessary stress in the process.

Tip 8: Maintain balance with a healthy lifestyle

In addition to regular exercise, there are other healthy lifestyle choices that can increase your resistance to stress.

Eat a healthy diet. Well-nourished bodies are better prepared to cope with stress, so be mindful of what you eat. Start your day right with breakfast, and keep your energy up and your mind clear with balanced, nutritious meals throughout the day.

Reduce caffeine and sugar. The temporary “highs” caffeine and sugar provide often end with a crash in mood and energy. By reducing the amount of coffee, soft drinks, chocolate, and sugar snacks in your diet, you’ll feel more relaxed and you’ll sleep better.

Avoid alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs. Self-medicating with alcohol or drugs may provide an easy escape from stress, but the relief is only temporary. Don’t avoid or mask the issue at hand; deal with problems head on and with a clear mind.

Get enough sleep. Adequate sleep fuels your mind, as well as your body. Feeling tired will increase your stress because it may cause you to think irrationally.

Tip 9: Learn to relieve stress in the moment

When you’re frazzled by your morning commute, stuck in a stressful meeting at work, or fried from another argument with your spouse, you need a way to manage your stress levels right now. That’s where quick stress relief comes in.

The fastest way to reduce stress is by taking a deep breath and using your senses—what you see, hear, taste, and touch—or through a soothing movement. By viewing a favorite photo, smelling a specific scent, listening to a favorite piece of music, tasting a piece of gum, or hugging a pet, for example, you can quickly relax and focus yourself.

Of course, not everyone responds to each sensory experience in the same way. The key to quick stress relief is to experiment and discover the unique sensory experiences that work best for you.

Original: https://www.helpguide.org/articles/stress/stress-management.htm

The post Stress Management: How to Reduce and Relieve Stress appeared first on Central NJ DSA.

Central NJ Democratic Socialists (“CNJ DSA”) is committed to providing a safe and inclusive environment for everyone, regardless of gender, race, or class, to organize without fear of harassment. We aim to design a space that amplifies and protects marginalized voices by developing a policy for reporting grievances based on the harassment policy Resolution 33 which was passed at the DSA National Convention in August 2017, while adding several extra protections not guaranteed by the Resolution and an eye towards restorative justice, healing, and victim support.

DSA’s national harassment policy can be found at: https://www.dsausa.org/about-us/harassment-policy-resolution-33/

Section 1.0 Policy Overview

A. Scope Of This Policy

Prohibited behavior. Members shall not engage in harassment on the basis of sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, physical appearance, disability, race, color, religion, national origin, class, age, or profession. Harassing or abusive behavior, such as unwelcome attention, inappropriate or offensive remarks, slurs, or jokes, physical or verbal intimidation, stalking, inappropriate physical contact or proximity, and other verbal and physical conduct constitute harassment when:

• Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of a member’s continued affiliation with DSA;
• Submission or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for organizational decisions affecting such individual; or
• Such conduct has the purpose or effect of creating a hostile environment interfering with an individual’s capacity to organize within DSA.
• Other protected classes. Harassment based on categories not encompassed by those listed section (a) will be evaluated at the discretion of the Harassment and Grievance Officer (“HGO”) and Steering Committee (“SC”) representatives.
• Members may also file grievances not directed at a specific individual, such as hostile environments and other systemic issues. Investigation in these cases shall center and seek to support the grievant in determining the appropriate remedy.

B. Reporting Harassment

Complaints. Members may follow the standard complaint process as set out in the following sections if they believe they have been harassed by another member. Time Limitations. There will be no time limits requiring the grievant to file a report within any amount of time after the alleged harassment has occurred.

C. This document describes the complaint procedure adopted by CNJ DSA. If any grievant does not feel that their concerns can be adequately addressed by CNJ DSA, they may pursue a complaint with National Grievance Officers and the NPC without going through the Chapter procedure first.

D. The SC of CNJ DSA will publicize this policy and make HGO contact information available to membership as often as possible, including, but not limited to: Chapter- wide emails, meeting agendas, social media, and online chapter communication platforms.

Section 2.0 Harassment and Grievance Officers

A. Membership shall elect two members to serve as HGOs. Due to the gendered nature of many harassment complaints at the National level, no more than one HGO may be cismale. HGOs may not be SC members, but may run for Steering Committee when their HGO term has ended. Election of HGOs will follow standard procedures outlined in the Chapter bylaws. HGOs will serve staggered two-year terms.

B. HGO Responsibilities

• Receive, acknowledge receipt of, and archive grievant reports
• Contact the accused to notify them of the accusations, request their written response, and archive any written response
• Conduct any necessary investigation of the claim
• Present their findings to the Steering Committee with a written report.
• If necessary, take disciplinary action and report the discipline administered to the Steering Committee.
• Present an anonymized version of the report to deliver to membership after conclusion of an investigation. The HGOs may make exceptions to anonymity in service of the restorative justice process, in the case of any member who has been removed from the chapter permanently or temporarily as a result of the investigation.
• Compile a yearly report that details:
• How many reports were made
• How many were taken to the formal disciplinary process
• How many disciplinary actions were taken
• Any recommended changes for making the reporting system effective, preferably informed by survey of membership

C. Removal of an HGO.

An HGO may resign at any time. If an HGO fails to perform their duties fairly, diligently, and ethically, there may be cause for removal. The SC may remove an HGO by majority vote after the HGO is informed of the cause for removal and given the opportunity to self- advocate to the SC.

Section 3.0 Complaints

A. Making A Complaint The SC will establish a confidential email for submitting complaints, which is monitored only by the HGOs. Login information will be changed at each new term or sooner. The SC will make a complaint form available upon request that is linked to the HGO email.

On the form, the grievant may have the option to submit the complaint as an emergency, in which case an expedited investigation will take place. If a grievant objects to both HGOs viewing a complaint, they may contact one HGO directly and confidentially. The identities of all involved parties will remain confidential to everyone who is not an HGO, including the SC (and at the request of the grievant, disclosure may also be denied to the HGO not currently investigating the case), pending the outcome of the investigation, except as necessary for a complete investigation. Multiple complaints against one person may be consolidated into a single investigation. Any grievant may veto this consolidation. Grievants have the right to a proxy or representative of their choosing to speak on their behalf and act as the primary contact with HGOs throughout the investigation.

B. Recusal

An HGO is required to recuse themselves from any investigation involving either a complainant or accused who is a close friend or family member of the HGO, or with whom the HGO has an extensive working relationship or past or present romantic or sexual relationship. An HGO should also recuse themselves if other conflicts would present an appearance of impropriety. Such potential conflicts may be raised by any party or by any member of leadership at the outset of an investigation and may be determined by other

Section 4.0 Responding To A Complaint

A. Informal conversation/mediation

Some complaints may be resolved without the need for a formal grievance process. In this case, there may be an informal conversation between parties mediated by an HGO. In an informal mediation, all parties must attend voluntarily and express a desire for resolution; the HGO remains neutral; each person has the ability to state their perspectives uninterrupted; the mediator may follow the general structure of affective questioning; and the goal is to find a solution to the conflict that is primarily developed and mutually agreed upon by all parties. a final summary of the conversation is made available to the SC, but the SC does not participate in the results of the mediation.

B. Filing Official Grievance.

After a written report has been submitted, whether through the email hotline or otherwise:

1. The HGO(s) will contact the grievant within three days to acknowledge receipt of the complaint and set up a conversation.
2. The HGO(s) will contact the accused member within five days to notify them that a report has been filed against them and request a written response to the report either affirming or denying its substance.
3. The accused will submit their written response within seven days of being notified. If the accused fails to meet this deadline or request an extension, the HGO will consult the grievant first regarding appropriate disciplinary measures.
4. If the accused denies the substance of the report, the HGO will set up a conversation. The HGO overseeing the dispute will have the option to investigate the report by:
   1. interviewing other members with direct knowledge of the substance of the report;
   2. requesting documentation from either the grievant or accused or any other parties directly involved; or
   3. employing any and all other means deemed necessary, with the utmost respect for the confidentiality and emotional needs of the parties, within a time period not to exceed ten days.
5. When victims are closed out of the disciplinary process, they are re-victimized. In order to avoid replicating the oppressive structures of our current judicial system, before reaching a conclusion, the HGO(s) will schedule a final conversation with the grievant following the general guidelines of post-conflict affective questioning. The purpose is to amplify the voices of victims and consider their needs and perspectives when moving forward with disciplinary action or otherwise.

C. The HGO(s) responsible for investigating the dispute will determine whether the report is credible and take appropriate disciplinary action, if necessary, as soon as practicable, without exceeding thirty days. The HGO(s) may notify SC of the accuser’s report and its substance at any time after the report is filed, but must give written notice to both the accuser and the accused member before doing so.

Section 5.0 Remedies and penalties

A. Determinations

All reports will be assessed on a case-by-case basis by the HGO(s) associated with the accuser’s reporting channel. The ultimate determination in each case will be made by the HGO(s).

B. Standard for Determining if a Report is Credible

The HGOs will find a factual allegation is “credible” if it more-likely-than-not occurred.

C. Remedies and Penalties

1. If the HGOs find a factual allegation to be credible, they are authorized to carry out disciplinary action, which may include:
   1. A formal discussion between the accused and the HGOs and/or Steering Committee to develop a plan for repairing the harm;
   2. Suspension from committee meetings and other chapter or organizational events;
   3. Removal from chapter committee(s);
   4. Removal from the chapter; and
   5. Any and all other relief deemed necessary and just by the HGO(s).
2. The SC will enforce any suspensions or expulsions in accordance with chapter procedures.

Section 6.0 Appeals Process

A. Either party may appeal the final result of the grievance by filling out an appeal form, available upon request from an HGO or the Steering Committee. Appeals must be filed within thirty days of receiving written notice of the decision. The limited grounds for appeal are:

1. Either party believes the behavior was not interpreted using the standards for harassment set out in Section 1a;
2. Procedural errors, misconduct, or conflicts of interest affected the fairness of the outcome; and
3. The remedy or penalty determined by the HGOs was disproportionate to the violation committed

B. Appeals will be heard by the Harassment and Grievance Officers of North or South Jersey DSA, provided they have adopted a policy agreeing to this arrangement. They will follow Central Jersey’s grievance policy in deciding the appeal.

C. Nothing in this policy can limit a member’s right to file an appeal directly with the national organization.

Section 7.0 Retaliation

This policy prohibits retaliation against any member for bringing a complaint of harassment pursuant to this policy. This policy also prohibits retaliation against a person who assists someone with a complaint of harassment, or participates in any manner in an investigation or resolution of a complaint of discrimination or harassment. Retaliatory behaviors includes threats, intimidation, reprisals, and/or adverse actions related to organizing. If any party to the complaint believes there has been retaliation, they may inform the HGO who will determine whether to factor the retaliation into the original complaint, or treat it as an individual incident.

The post Harassment And Grievance Policy appeared first on Central NJ DSA.

Join us this Sunday for Comradesgiving, November 26 from 3:00 to 5:30pm at the Gallatin Labor Temple. We will be sharing food and continuing the conversation around Social Housing and why a Public Housing Authority is needed. We will also be practicing how to write and submit public comment in preparation for the upcoming Gallatin County Commission hearing (Tues 11/28) to determine whether a Public Housing Authority should be established at the county level. Join us for a potluck with comrades. Multiple dietary restrictions are being considered, including vegan and vegetarian options. RSVP here.

Can’t make it, but want to show your support for establishing a PHA? See here for directions for submitting public comment to the Gallatin County Commissioners. Public comment for the County is due by November 27.

Don’t be fooled: failed politicians and Proud Boys tried to spread antisemitic bile at Harvard. DSA anti-fascists won’t let them

On November 11, 2023, several members of Boston DSA, a mix of non-Jews and Jews, disrupted Shiva Ayyadurai’s antisemitic, “anti-Zionist” rally in Harvard Square. As the flier advertising it made clear, this was no rally in support of Palestinians or anti-Zionism, but a rally to support Shiva’s particular brand of conspiracy theory and the idea of Jews as all-controlling oppressors of working people.

We carried signs reading “Antisemitism is the Anti-Zionism of Fools” (a play on the old quote “Antisemitism is the socialism of fools”), “Pro-Palestine, Pro-Jewish, Antifascist” and others. We did this because we find antisemitism repellent, and we find it repellent that Shiva would co-opt the suffering and death of Palestinians for his own ends in this manner. And, we did this to send a message, in deed and not just word, that principled anti-Zionists oppose antisemitism. Jewish, Palestinian, Muslim members of the Harvard and Cambridge communities—indeed, all members—did not deserve Shiva’s spectacle, or the stress and fear that they may have felt as a result of the rally fliers. Indeed, some passers-by thanked us for helping them understand what was happening. Several people who had simply heard about a Palestine rally in Harvard Square spoke to us and were upset and disappointed about the true nature of Shiva’s rally.

We are all experienced antifascists, and we understand the difference between principled anti-Zionism and antisemitism masquerading as anti-Zionism. John Medlar, a well-known Proud Boy who tried to crash a Drag Queen Story Hour in Fall River last year, was Shiva’s livestreamer. Another rallygoer told us that he too was a Proud Boy and a friend of Proud Boys founder Gavin McInnes, and called a member of our group a “homo.” One of us, a Jewish survivor of the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville in August 2017, was wearing Palestine colors with a Star of David necklace, and was asked multiple times by Shiva’s rallygoer fans what was around their neck. Another of us was told by a rallygoer that 60% of Congress has dual citizenship with Israel, a variant on a longstanding antisemitic myth. Several told us that vaccines are a “globalist” (a dogwhistle for Jewish) population control plot. In no way is any of this Palestine solidarity or helpful to the people being murdered in Gaza.

We encourage readers to attend rallies for Palestine and a ceasefire that are sponsored by legitimate coalitions and organizations such as the Boston Coalition for Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace, and to contact their representatives in support of the Ceasefire Now resolution. Unfortunately, right now, with the increased attention to Palestinians’ oppression and many new people in the movement, the antisemitic far right will do what it often does, and try to inject its ideas into the movement through spreading them to well-meaning people (some of them new activists, English language learners, and/or people new to North American cultural contexts) who don’t realize the full implications of certain framings, terms, or images. If you see a friend repeating things that seem off (like suggesting that Americans need to be freed from Israeli dominance, or that Israelis or Jews are “unbelievers” in some way, or using Jewish symbols like the menorah to signify something bad, or using the neo-Nazi phrase “Zionist Occupied Government”), talk to them about it! That’s how we build healthy movements.

No to antisemitism, no to anti-Palestinian hatred, no to Islamophobia, no to fascism!

We repeat here the points from the educational fliers that we distributed on site:

We are supporters of a ceasefire in Israel/Palestine. Many of us are longtime Palestine solidarity activists. We oppose antisemitism, Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian hatred, and fascism.

The rally we are here to oppose claims to be an anti-Zionism, pro-worker rally. However fliers advertising it intertwined the Star of David with a dollar sign as the chain in a pair of handcuffs, accusing “Zionists” of enslaving workers throughout the world. The use of a plain Star of David in this way is unambiguously antisemitic.

While Zionism is an ideology and there is nothing intrinsically antisemitic in anti-Zionism, there is a long and unfortunate history of antisemites using “Zionist” and “Zionism” as antisemitic dog whistles, dating back to Willis Carto’s Liberty Lobby in the 1950s.

Shiva Ayyadurai, who called the rally that we are here to oppose, has spoken at several far-right rallies in the Boston area since 2017, speaking alongside notorious figures such as the violent neo-Nazi/former Proud Boy Kyle “Based Stickman” Chapman, Proud Boy and convicted 1/6/21 Capitol attack leader Joe Biggs and Patriot Prayer leader Joey Gibson. For more on this era of fascist activity in Boston, see this 2019 piece.

One of the local rallies he spoke at was the 2018 Proud Boys rally in Concord, MA. The Proud Boys have become well-known as one of the groups that led the attack on the Capitol on 1/6/21. Massachusetts Proud Boy John Medlar is a long-time collaborator of Shiva’s.

Shiva is a conspiracy theorist who testified at “election audit” hearings to claim the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Donald Trump

We find it grotesque that Shiva is co-opting Palestinian suffering and death in this opportunistic, antisemitic way. As principled anti-Zionists, ceasefire supporters, antifascists, we say no.

Join us this Sunday, October 29 3pm at the Labor Temple for some grilling, chilling, and organizing! We will be discussing how to mobilize and organize, and what’s the difference. Afterwards we will be grilling, and have some good ole Socialist Socialization! Workshop starts at 3 and cookout afterwards.

Grillidarity art is by local artist Gavin Herzog.

After the events of October 7th, 2023, the Israeli occupying force wasted little time in launching an indiscriminate bombing campaign against the 2.1 million Palestinian civilians in Gaza as a collective punishment, targeting ambulances¹, apartments, schools, mosques, hospitals, and media outlets, turning the existing blockade into an active and deadly siege. Israel has cut off all water, power, fuel, and food supply to Gaza, a further crime against humanity, and the specter of starvation and genocide looms. Telegraphing further escalation, Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant ordered a complete siege on the Gaza Strip²; only a day earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Palestinian civilians in Gaza to “leave now.”³ Leave to go where exactly?

At the time of this writing, thousands of people have already been killed inside and near the Gaza Strip. International law is clear on the legitimacy of occupied peoples to liberate themselves from “colonial domination, apartheid, and foreign occupation by all available means, including armed struggle.”⁴ International law is also clear on the prohibition of punishing a civilian for an offense he or she has not personally committed and the prohibition of reprisals against protected persons and their property.⁵ But since the beginning of 2023, the Israeli police, military, and armed settlers have killed, on average, one Palestinian a day. Since Israel imposed the blockade on the Gaza Strip, the occupying force has bombed Gaza a total of seven times: 2008, 2012, 2014, 2018, 2021, 2022, and 2023 — and Palestinians have never been able to leave for safety.

However, Netanyahu’s faux-humanitarian warning to Palestinians, “leave now,” touches the roots of the “Israeli-Palestinian conflict.” In 1948, Zionist paramilitary groups ethnically cleansed over 750,000 Palestinians from historic Palestine and established the state of Israel, a historic event known as al-Nakba in Palestinian collective memory⁶. It is the reason why nearly 67% of Palestinians in Gaza are descendants of families that were ethnically cleansed from the villages where Israeli kibbutzim and cities stand today. It is the reason why Israel is a military garrison state that maintains an apartheid system today, where Palestinians are harassed, robbed, and murdered by Israeli soldiers and settlers every day, from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea.⁷ It is the reason why, despite Zionist attempts to deny their existence, Palestinians have continued to resist, persevere, and yearn for Return.

Now is not the time for supposedly balanced, measured statements that obfuscate the truth of the conflict. The failure of international bodies and leaders to hold Israel accountable to international law and to apply UN Resolution 194, the right of Palestinians to return to their ancestral homes, has resulted in what we are now bearing witness to. This has been the status quo for Palestinians for 75 years, and it must end.

Israel is able to maintain this barbaric status quo because of the diplomatic, military, and financial support of the United States since 1967. The United States uses this alliance to project its military power into the Middle East, as it seeks to do in all geostrategically important areas of the globe.

As American socialists, we understand the fight for socialism is international, and we understand the unique role the United States plays in administering a global capitalist empire. To assist Palestinians in their struggle for self-determination, our primary role is to pressure the US for a change in its foreign policy. To this end, we unequivocally support the BDS movement and call on American civil society to join the targeted boycott of Israeli goods, companies, and institutions.

The response of the Biden administration to these events still unfolding has been to supply Israel with more money and weapons.^{8 9}The United States must end its policy of arming the apartheid, settler-colonial ethnostate of Israel. We fully condemn the capitalist Republican and Democratic parties, who are largely culpable for the continuation of violence and dispossession perpetrated upon Palestinians. America’s expanding military-industrial complex continues to act as a force of destabilization and oppression throughout the world, and major arms and military technology manufacturers like Raytheon make billions of dollars in profits from exploitation and war.

As socialists living in the heart of a global capitalist empire, we stand in opposition to the imperialism of the American ruling class, and we stand in solidarity with all oppressed people.

Palestine will be free — from the river to the sea.

In solidarity,
Central New Jersey DSA

1. https://www.businessinsider.com/doctors-without-borders-hospitals-ambulances-targets-israel-hamas-gaza-2023-10 ︎
2.  https://www.aljazeera.com/program/newsfeed/2023/10/9/israeli-defence-minister-orders-complete-siege-on-gaza ︎
3. https://gulfnews.com/world/mena/israel-palestine-conflict-more-than-530-killed-after-hamas-launched-unprecedented-attack-on-israel-netanyahu-retaliates-declares-war-1.1696670798153 ︎
4. https://www.un.org/unispal/document/auto-insert-184195/ ︎
5. https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/en/ihl-treaties/gciv-1949/article-33 ︎
6. https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Ethnic-Cleansing-of-Palestine/Ilan-Pappe/9781851685554 ︎
7. https://jacobin.com/2023/10/west-bank-apartheid-israel-idf-oslo-accords ︎
8. https://themessenger.com/politics/biden-administration-discussing-military-aid-package-to-israel-after-hamas-attack ︎
9. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-67049196 ︎

The post From the River to the Sea! appeared first on Central NJ DSA.

Denver DSA unequivocally stands in solidarity with the people of Palestine in their fight for liberation from the apartheid regime of Israel. Palestinians have endured 75 years of dispossession, colonization, desecration, torture, and confinement at the hands of the Israeli government, enabled financially, politically, and culturally by the United States. The path to liberation must include ceasing all U.S. aid to Israel, lifting the blockade of Gaza, ending Zionist settler-colonialism, and ensuring the right for Palestinians to return to their homeland.

Yesterday, a wealthy and well-funded nuclear power with the financial, political, and cultural support of the United States began forcibly evacuating 1.1 million civilians from Gaza City during an ongoing indiscriminate carpet-bombing campaign which has already killed thousands of civilians, injured tens of thousands, and displaced hundreds of thousands. Israel has cut off food, water, fuel, electricity, and medical care from Gaza’s 2.3 million citizens, half of whom are children. These civilians have been deemed “human animals” by the Israeli Defense Minister overseeing these attacks, who committed to “treat them accordingly” – an open declaration of genocide. Yet even now, the American war machine readies itself to ship more weapons and send more military funding to support Israel’s extermination of the Palestinian people for daring to resist their brutal, unlivable conditions.

Border walls, military checkpoints, crippling sanctions, restricted water and electricity, food scarcity, impoverishment, denial of medical care, and routine bombings are the material conditions that Palestinians have been forced to live under for over 75 years. Backed by the US, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) brutally murder Palestinians with impunity, over 8,000 since 2000 and thousands since October 7. The IOF detains 600 Palestinian children every year and keeps over 5,000 Palestinians imprisoned, a quarter of whom are held without charges or trial. For 16 years, Gaza has been transformed into an open-air prison, wherein the IOF concentrates 2.3 million people in an area smaller than Denver and bombs them in politically-motivated campaigns they sadistically term “mowing the grass.” 

Bloodshed is a universal tragedy. But under apartheid and occupation, some lives are deemed more precious than others. The negative blowback of apartheid should come as no shock; people who are oppressed will perpetually seek ways to free themselves from that oppression. The murder of Palestinians has been a systemically invisibilized occurrence for decades. When Palestinians quietly suffer the daily violence inflicted on them, the West calls that “peace”. Denver DSA recognizes that the only true and lasting peace must be predicated on liberation from occupation, and it is towards that goal that we resolve ourselves today.

We call on all DSA members and endorsed DSA electeds to stand unequivocally in support of Palestinian people’s right to resist. We encourage all DSA chapters to stand with the people of Palestine and organize turn-out to local demonstrations.

May Palestine be free, from the river to the sea.

In the face of over 75 years of settler-colonial violence and genocide, the will and spirit of the Palestinian resistance burns brighter than ever. The state of Israel has ethnically […]

The post Statement In Support Of Palestinian Liberation appeared first on Houston DSA.