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.

- Lyndon Baines Johnson, Speech on the Great Society

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.

- Richard Milhouse Nixon, The Great Silent Majority Speech.

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.

We are the red embers of democracy which refuse to go out. We are the embers of this great flame of democracy that must be rekindled higher and brighter than ever before.

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.

Local News:

A new study reveals that singles are struggling more than married couples to make house payments. Nearly 70% of singles have difficulty paying rent or mortgages, compared to 52% of married couples. Additionally, 21% of singles and 27% of divorced or separated individuals skip meals to afford housing, a higher rate than the 14% of married couples. Those not married are also more likely to borrow money or take side jobs. With fewer married couples in U.S. households, experts urge city planners to consider affordability for singles. Despite challenges, most people are still paying on time, with only 1 in 20 homeowners late.

A St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office corrections deputy, Devin Mills, was arrested by the Port St. Lucie Police on a charge of burglary with assault or battery. The incident occurred while he was off duty. Following the arrest, Mills was placed on unpaid administrative leave, and the SLCSO has launched an administrative investigation while awaiting the results of the criminal charges.

State News:

Two Florida women, Rileigh Decker (20) and Summer Layman (24), were attacked by a shark while swimming in Bimini Bay, The Bahamas, on Friday evening. The women had been on a boat ride and decided to jump in the water together. Decker felt a tug on her leg and realized she had been bitten by a shark. Layman suffered a bite on her foot, while Decker’s injuries were more severe. Both were initially treated locally and then airlifted to a hospital for further care. Both women are expected to recover fully. Shark attacks in the Bahamas are rare, with only 34 recorded since 1580. This is at least the third reported attack involving American tourists in the country since 2023.

Florida lawmakers are meeting for a special session starting Tuesday to address immigration, called by Gov. Ron DeSantis after weeks of internal GOP disagreements. The session, lasting until Friday, focuses on legislation related to President Trump’s immigration orders. DeSantis aims to enhance law enforcement cooperation between state, local, and federal authorities to combat immigration. Proposed bills include penalties for noncitizens voting, stricter bail conditions for unauthorized migrants, and restrictions on benefits for immigrants. DeSantis also highlighted a new agreement with ICE giving the Florida Highway Patrol expanded powers.

Citations:

https://www.wptv.com/news/treasure-coast/region-st-lucie-county/st-lucie-county-deputy-arrested-in-port-st-lucie-faces-charge-of-burglary

https://www.wptv.com/money/consumer/nearly-70-of-singles-are-skipping-this-to-pay-for-housing

https://www.wptv.com/news/state/2-florida-women-injured-in-apparent-shark-attack-in-the-bahamas

https://www.wptv.com/news/state/florida-lawmakers-returned-for-special-session-to-address-illegal-immigration

Cleveland DSA joins the rest of the Democratic Socialists of America in condemning President Trump’s immediate assault on immigrants, trans people, and workers through his recent slew of executive orders. These orders will not only make life worse for workers across the nation, they highlight the undemocratic nature of the US state, investing such powerful authority in its executive and judiciary to carry out these attacks while obstructing and limiting our proportional representation as workers in the legislature.

As socialists, we are not surprised that right-wing Republicans are joining their pro-capitalist, anti-worker economic policies with hateful culture-war rhetoric, which always go hand-in-hand—neither are we surprised that Democrats, equally committed to the status quo, have failed to put up any meaningful resistance to these efforts, with many falling directly in line. Despite these conditions, DSA will continue fighting for its program and loudly proclaiming that Workers Deserve More! While we prepare to defend each other, we will never stop demanding universal healthcare, a shorter work week, an end to the US war machine, a free Palestine, and a socialist economy that works for us all. 
It is our belief that only the organized power of the working class, whether at the ballot box or in the streets, can prevent Trump’s agenda from coming to pass. It is our mission to do everything we can over the next four years to build that power. To join us in resisting these attacks on working people and to build a socialist alternative to the two-party system, join DSA at https://dsausa.org.

The post Cleveland DSA Statement on Trump Executive Orders appeared first on Democratic Socialists of America.

Across our region, many people are frustrated by the political system and eager for change. One major obstacle is the current campaign funding structure, which allows vast amounts of money to be funneled into races at all levels of government, sidelining the voices of everyday residents. When most campaign funding comes from super PACs and special interests, policies are inevitably shaped by those donors rather than the people. This must change.

New York City’s Campaign Matching Funds Program for empowering residents. This program amplifies small-dollar donations by matching them with public funds, allowing grassroots candidates to compete without relying on big-money donors. By implementing a similar system in Cincinnati, we can create a fairer electoral process that supports candidates who prioritize residents’ needs rather than corporate interests.

Currently, establishment candidates in Cincinnati benefit from a fundraising system that makes it difficult for grassroots campaigns to compete. While some local leaders have enacted positive policies, much more must be done to address the serious challenges our communities face. A publicly funded campaign matching system would level the playing field and ensure that candidates focused on working people—not wealthy donors—have a fair shot at winning office.

It’s time to bring this reform to Cincinnati. We need to build momentum for a Campaign Contribution Matching Program and push for action. Let’s organize, advocate, and demand a system that puts power back in the hands of the people.

A plea from a civil servant: do not let them overwhelm you into apathy. We must stay united, informed, and proactive.

Thorn West: Issue No. 224

State Politics

• Amid fears that his administration will withhold federal aid, Governor Newsom met with President Trump in Washington DC.

• Newsom announced that Casey Wasserman, currently serving as chair of the Olympics Committee, will also lead a private-sector wildfire recovery program, known as “LA Rises,” along with Magic Johnson and Dodgers owner Kevin Walter. In Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass appointed Steve Soboroff, former chair of the police commission, to lead the recovery effort in Pacific Palisades. It isn’t yet clear how the multiple city and state efforts will be coordinated.

City Politics

• At a press conference with Mayor Bass and other local leaders, President Trump demanded that Pacific Palisades residents who had lost their homes be immediately allowed to begin the process of rebuilding, before they could be safely cleared of toxic debris. His subsequent executive order implemented an “unprecedented” short time frame for debris removal.

Health Care

• Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles to demand that the hospital reverse its recent decision to stop offering gender-affirming care to transgender youth. The hospital’s decision was a capitulation to an executive order from President Trump threatening to derail federal funding to medical institutions that provide this form of health care.

Immigration

• A week of protests at City Hall, as well as student walkouts, all in opposition to the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant policies, gained media attention after protestors briefly shut down the 101 freeway.

• A leaked document obtained by the LA Times indicates that Immigration and Customs Enforcement is planning a “large scale” flood of “immigration enforcement actions” this February in Los Angeles.

Environmental Justice

• Video evidence strongly implicates Southern California Edison equipment as the cause of the Eaton fire. Spokespeople for the private utility company initially denied responsibility, and even attempted to shift blame to a nearby encampment, but have now acknowledged irregularities with their equipment at the time of the fire.

• Rain earlier in the week caused debris flows in the burn scar of the Palisades fire, triggering a weeklong shut down of a stretch of the Pacific Coast Highway. Heavier rain is expected this week.

The post Trump Executive Orders Derail Wildfire Recovery + Spark Protests appeared first on The Thorn West.

Submission from a member of Cleveland DSA

Note: This post has been updated on Feb 10 to reflect the amended language of the Building an Independent Party chapter resolution, which removed and added passages to the language based on our discussion with DSA compliance.

This post is inspired by Chad’s new segment of the same name in our General Meetings.

With the second Trump presidency here and already disrupting so many lives, we are going to be in crisis mode for the foreseeable future. This will encourage a tendency towards reacting to crises, as opposed to responding to them. During this time, we must ground ourselves in our shared principles and perspectives to avoid the tendency towards liberalism.

As happened last time the Cheeto was sworn in, we have seen a bump in new members joining our chapter – which is a massive source of hope for me personally! At the same time, turnover within the movement and specifically within our chapter is predictably unpredictable. Leaders step away for a variety of capitalism-related or burnout reasons. When this happens, we often lose important institutional knowledge and continuity from previous internal chapter debates.

In our flurry of activity since I joined in 2021, I’ve seen some of the same political debates play out again and again in our chapter. It hasn’t been because circumstances are vastly different and we needed to re-evaluate past decisions, though. The debates often center around our theory of power, how we relate to liberals, coalitions, or NGOs, or the money in our bank account. From what I understand, this pattern even predates my time at DSA.

In the time I’ve been involved, I’ve certainly seen a coalescence in our perspectives towards DSA as a mass party, our endorsement criteria and process, our expectations for future electeds, and our desire to have independent messaging which directly ties our work to socialism. That’s not to say every member agrees, but there seems to be broad strategic alignment in these areas which were previously fractured in the chapter.

But the unfortunate truth of Cleveland DSA is that we haven’t been great at documenting our reflections on our past work/decisions, codifying our shared strategic vision, or educating new members on these perspectives as they’ve developed and merged over the years.

---

In this piece, I’m hoping to shed light on our chapter’s formally established perspectives. I think it’s especially important for newer members to know and understand our chapter’s history so that we can avoid repeating the events of the past and keep the chapter growing as a political force.

This is not to say that we should never repeat a particular debate. Instead, I’m calling for our chapter to operate in a way that once the majority does agree on a particular perspective/vision, we make sure our record-keeping reflects that and, ideally, develop educational materials for new members that reinforce that shared perspective. 

Our chapter would benefit greatly from the development of education materials anytime we take a decisive stance on a political question. A great candidate for this treatment in my opinion is the passage of the Building an Independent Party resolution at the 2024 convention. (More on this later.)

In this way, we will learn and retain information as a chapter, rather than as a group of individuals.

Additionally I’d love to call for others to write their own reflection on the chapter.

Our Chapter’s Strategic Vision

The Democratic Socialists of America is a big tent organization which does not require agreement with its national platform or “purity tests.” As our chapter grows and develops politically, we pass resolutions to formally establish our perspectives based on what we have learned through practice. These perspectives guide our tactical decision-making as we undertake the historic task of bringing democratic socialism to the masses.

As established in our Member Handbook, our theory of change is as follows:

“…collective power can be wielded for tremendous good when done so with wisdom, care, and effort; that our capitalist society is tremendously weighted against regular, working people, and critically: that we can win, especially if we engage in deep organizing. We believe that through shared struggle and political education, we can build a democratic, multiracial, working-class, explicitly socialist movement, in Cleveland, Ohio.”

From the National DSA Constitution:

“We are socialists because we share a vision of a humane social order based on popular control of resources and production, economic planning, equitable distribution, feminism, racial equality, and non-oppressive relationships. We are socialists because we are developing a concrete strategy for achieving that vision, for building a majority movement that will make democratic socialism a reality in America. We believe that such a strategy must acknowledge the class structure of American society and that this class structure means that there is a basic conflict of interest between those sectors with enormous economic power and the vast majority of the population.”

How We Codify Our Strategic Vision

In addition to our foundational documents, a number of resolutions passed at our 2024 convention* formally established some of our chapter’s perspectives around questions like our messaging strategy, our anti-drug war stance, our perspective on DSA as a political party, and our desire to form a formal relationship with the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee.

The “Whereas” clauses of a resolution, although not binding, reflect the author’s perspective towards the work in the “Be it resolved” sections. In this way, we put forward perspectives which inform our tactical-level decisions.

Thus, although the Democratic Socialists of America and our chapter are “big tent” organizations, individual political views do not supersede our democratic mandates. Acceptance of a democratic mandate does not require the individual to agree with the direction or political undertones of that mandate because the “big tent” allows for factions/caucuses and internal organizing towards differing political perspectives.

Putting on my Cleveland DSA Historian hat, I’d like to highlight some perspectives and priorities we established at the 2024 Chapter Convention. (As an aside, Damion also provided us with some excellent opening remarks.)

Passed at 2024 Chapter Convention*

These are the resolutions that passed that I think were important for establishing the politics of our chapter. I’ll provide a brief rationale for their importance for each. Any emphasis (bold or italics) is mine.

Campaigns (Projects) Communications Strategy

This resolution establishes the need to craft messaging that ties our work to the movement for socialism:

“[Be it resolved,] …at minimum, a blog post announcing the campaign and talking points that will be shared with membership to help them articulate how the campaign relates to the struggle for socialism.”

It also reflects the chapter’s broad support of building a mass political party to advance socialism:

“[Whereas,] in order to build the kind of mass political party we need to advance socialism, we need to illustrate how our campaign (project) work ties into socialism more broadly.”

Provide harm reduction materials & anti-drug war propaganda at DSA events

This resolution is a great example where we can do low-lift work with a high return. I’m proud that our chapter has been engaged in the community doing NARCAN distribution. I’m not sure if we produced the literature described here but if we haven’t yet, reminder that we are mandated.

“Whereas, there is a pressing need for a politically minded response to engage the public and to dismantle the narrative around the drug war;”

This resolution also establishes a direct political education element and membership growth opportunity:

“Resolved, that the DSA shall allocate $300 for the development and distribution of class-conscious, anti-drug war literature to be presented alongside harm reduction materials at events, with the aim of attracting individuals engaged in this issue into DSA.”

Building an Independent Party

This resolution establishes locally our agreement with the decision at the 2023 National Convention to “Act Like an Independent Party.”

For those unfamiliar with the original resolution, the goal is to establish political independence (in both practice and perception) through rejection of Democratic Party discipline in favor of internally democratic organization.

“[Whereas,] …It means political independence and a rejection of Democratic Party discipline. And political independence requires organizational independence in the form of a membership-based internally democratic political organization. 

All electoral work must therefore be oriented toward building DSA’s organizational skills and capacity as well as towards building popular perception of DSA as politically independent of both major capitalist parties.”

The specifics of this resolution in the “Be it resolved” section are going to become extremely important if/when we move towards having Cleveland DSA cadre run campaigns. I’d encourage a full read/re-read! (And in my opinion it’s .) Highlights:

“[Be it resolved…] Cleveland DSA must put forward a politically independent socialist point of view in all messaging and any campaign materials used by the chapter must be DSA branded…”

“It is the official position of Cleveland DSA that the purpose of DSA running candidates for elected office is to build a democratic socialist movement outside of the state that is in opposition to the existing state…”

“Chapter electoral work should be oriented toward building the skills and capacity of the chapter to run campaigns.”

“If a DSA member gets elected, the Chapter shall form a Socialists in Office (SiO) committee with the elected comrade(s) as ex officio members. Cleveland DSA will only endorse candidates who agree to meet with the SiO to maintain an open dialogue regarding policy positions. The SiO will provide reportbacks to membership.”

Towards an EWOC branch

This resolution is important because it has the potential to strengthen our chapter’s relationship with the Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee and National DSA. It would more directly/explicitly tie our work towards socialism with the organic workers’ movement. It’s also very ambitious and I hope we don’t lose sight of its aims in 2025:

“… [Be it resolved,] The EWOC-trained organizers, a local coordinator, and the advanced organizer will launch the branch and start accepting leads from EWOC. Preference should be given to leads in DSA Cleveland’s zip codes. There is an expectation from EWOC to take leads outside of our immediate area. 

EWOC organizers are responsible for meeting with their assigned leads and developing leads into campaigns. Organizers are expected to support at least one sustainable campaign or several soft leads. 

EWOC organizers are expected to train and onboard new EWOC volunteers. EWOC expects volunteering to be open to non-DSA members. 

EWOC training, meetings, socials, fundraisers, and worker support events will be considered DSA Cleveland events unless specified otherwise. EWOC organizers should avoid scheduling in conflict with priority campaigns, general meetings, and committee meetings…”

Winning the Battle for Democracy

This resolution was primarily to affirm the National DSA Political Platform stance on the American political system and to call for National DSA and our electeds to more explicitly indict the undemocratic state form. It’s honestly an exciting read and clearly establishes the political environment we find ourselves in in this moment.

“[Whereas,] the historical tendencies towards the concentration of capital in few hands and the concentration of people in few states has rendered any constitutional paths that may once have been open to the socialist movement forever closed, obstructing progressive reform and leaving those reforms already won through historical mass struggle defenseless as the political servants of the capitalist class conspire to strip them away.

The DSA has pledged to fight for a “a world organized and governed by and for the vast majority, the working class,” which is clearly impossible under the current Constitutional regime and cannot be won through the antidemocratic channels of reform laid down by the Constitution.”

The following is such a powerful statement of what we must do to reform the state into one worth contesting in the electoral arena:

“[Be it resolved,] Cleveland DSA affirms, from the DSA Political Platform, that “the American political system was not made to serve the working class” and that “the nation that holds itself out as the world’s premier democracy is no democracy at all” by officially raising the demand for a new and radically democratic constitution, drafted by an assembly of the people elected by direct, universal and equal suffrage for all adult residents with proportional representation of political parties, and rooted not in the legitimacy of dead generations of slaveowners and capitalists, but that of a majority consensus of the working masses. 

Additionally Cleveland DSA urges DSA as a whole to take up a stance of opposition to the Constitution, openly indicting it as antidemocratic and oppressive, encouraging all DSA members in elected office to do the same, taking concrete actions to advance the struggle for a democratic republic such as agitating against undemocratic judicial review, fighting for proportional representation, delegitimizing the anti-democratic U.S. Senate, and advancing the long-term demand for a new democratic Constitution. We declare that to be a socialist is to fight for an expansive working-class democracy in which the state and society are democratically managed by the majority. In the U.S. this means demanding a new Constitution…”

*All links are currently members-only access. Please contact membership@dsacleveland.org if you cannot access these documents. I’ll be motioning at a future SC or General to make these publicly available.

Other Outstanding Democratic Mandates

In addition to some of the work above which is ongoing, we have other outstanding chapter-level mandates to keep sight of:

• Our Home In Cleveland (office space)
• Merch Madness (ordering up to $400 worth of shirts)
• Winter Collection (more merch)
• Standing Authorization for Steering Committee to Authorize Fundraising Concerts

Some progress has been made on each of these, but I suspect not all members are aware of this ongoing work. Even in the steering committee, we’ve had difficulty remembering various authorizations or the details of them, like the concert planning one.

We do have the motion tracker now though, which is up-to-date with all motions made in 2025!

Dissent to Current Mandates

As mentioned above, acceptance with a chapter decision doesn’t mean you must agree with the decision. When votes are close or the sides are polarized, internal organizing is the solution. Factions and caucuses may be formed, vote whipping is permitted (provided you aren’t using chapter resources for these purposes).

But an important distinction is that posting dissent across Slack is not the same as internal organizing. It can certainly be the starting point, but we are all here because we believe in collective power and democratic decision-making. Our chapter business is run by Robert’s Rules so that we can openly debate, amend, and vote on decisions. This form of active, engaged, participatory democracy is vastly different than sending messages online and allows for much greater access and involvement across our chapter.

Our Unresolved Political Questions

There are still some outstanding topics we’ve yet to officially form positions on which we can expect to see some polarization on. These include resolutions that did not get debated on the convention floor, plus a meaty topic we only ended up discussing in a small group at a chapter convention plenary – our electoral strategy.

• “Points of Unity for Coalition Work”
• “Chapter Labor Strategy” (however we did vote to create the Labor Chair position)
• Our Electoral Strategy – Discussion Session coming up Feb 22nd!

If you’re interested in working on resolutions around these topics but need some help, my DMs are open! I can either help you or find someone who can.

Luckily, on these topics we aren’t starting at zero. There’s already great writing on these topics and examples we can point to as we develop our positions. I’m hoping especially with the electoral strategy discussion that we will sharpen our perspectives and vision.

I’m taking my Cleveland DSA Historian hat off so that I can directly state my political vision for our chapter.

My Political Vision for Our Chapter

My hope for our chapter is that we work to routinize this cycle of debate/deliberation, codification, and education that will be vital to our political progression as our chapter grows. My long term vision for our chapter is to advance towards some form of programmatic unity.

Programmatic unity is how we can institutionalize our learning so that our organization doesn’t depend too heavily on its long-time members. Acceptance of (not necessarily agreement with)  a program or platform would allow our chapter to move forward as a political body, clearly articulate “where we’re going” to our newer members, and prevent the awkwardness and polarization that comes from repeating the same fundamental debates every few years. To be clear, none of the below is something I’m trying to actively organize for right now but what I see on the horizon that would unify and strengthen our chapter for the long-run.

• Establish a tasks and perspectives doc to guide our decisions on priority projects and non-campaign activities
• Establish topic-specific reading groups within our education committee and an official curriculum
• Get members to publish more reflection pieces on our blog following big chapter decisions or highly contested decisions
• Advocate for programmatic unity at the national level
• Establish a chapter program to unify our local work

Would love to see some response posts if this sparked ideas for any of y’all!

In Solidarity,
Megan R

Feb 5, 2025

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