Bulletin: Committing to a Green New Deal

Last weekend, Philly DSA held our first (unless we’re forgetting something from the dark pre-Bernie days) fully online General Meeting. We voted to organize around the Essential Worker Protection Bill (which just passed today! More on that below) and heard a final report from the Green New Deal Strategy Committee. Nobody’s call dropped mid-sentence, nobody’s cat stepped on their computer keyboard, and we were done with new business ahead of schedule. Overall, though we sorely missed the subtler aspects of a Philly DSA GM — seeing five other members in line for coffee at the 22nd & Market 7/11, picking up every issue of Catalyst from the Pol Ed book table & then putting them back in the wrong stacks because you only have $5, hooting and hollering whenever a speaker says “Bernie Sanders” — the online meeting went about as well as it could have.

  1. Home
  2. Bulletin
  3. 6.25.2020 Bulletin

Last weekend, Philly DSA held our first (unless we’re forgetting something from the dark pre-Bernie days) fully online General Meeting. We voted to organize around the Essential Worker Protection Bill (which just passed today! More on that below) and heard a final report from the Green New Deal Strategy Committee. Nobody’s call dropped mid-sentence, nobody’s cat stepped on their computer keyboard, and we were done with new business ahead of schedule. Overall, though we sorely missed the subtler aspects of a Philly DSA GM — seeing five other members in line for coffee at the 22nd & Market 7/11, picking up every issue of Catalyst from the Pol Ed book table & then putting them back in the wrong stacks because you only have $5, hooting and hollering whenever a speaker says “Bernie Sanders” — the online meeting went about as well as it could have.

The largest chunk of the meeting went to the GND Strategy Committee report and to three related resolutions, all of which passed: a SEPTA Frequency and Route Redesign Campaign, a Philly Green Schools Campaign, and a GND Campaign Evaluation Commission to make sure those campaigns run smoothly and to help us work toward the long-term goals we set at the 2019 Local Convention. The report is on our website, and it’s good reading if you have the time; seven principles of a Green New Deal (in line with our Medicare for All principles), a discussion of tactics and potential allies, and a ton of resources for anyone looking to get involved in our GND work.

With respect to these two campaigns, we’re looking to ramp up member involvement. Are you a member of the Transport Workers Union? The Transit Riders Union? Do you work in or send your kid to a Philadelphia public school? Let us know!

DSA Election Updates

  • We couldn’t confirm this last Bulletin because there were so many mail-in ballots left to count, but: Nikil Saval, Rick Krajewski, and Elizabeth Fiedler each won their primaries — barring the unprecedented, we’ll have five democratic socialist representatives (three from Philly and two, Summer Lee and Sara Innamorato, House members from Pittsburgh districts) in state government next year!
  • NYC-DSA ran a slate of members for state and national office in last Tuesday’s primary, and if results hold, Jamaal Bowman (NY-16) will join Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez in Congress. Three of their five state-level candidates are leading at the time of writing, with another, union nurse Phara Souffrant Forrest, within mail-in striking distance.

Essential Workers Protection Act Passes!

We want to thank all of our members who made calls and pushed for this bill, Councilmembers Helen Gym and Kendra Brooks for their leadership, and the dozens of local unions involved in the fight to ensure that essential workers are protected. We cannot stop here. Philadelphia's workers need hazard pay, expanded health protections, and safe and sanitary workplaces. We will keep pushing to ensure their are better pandemic protections and strong rights for workers coming out of the coronavirus crisis.

This Week in Unions

Are you a union worker affected by the coronavirus crisis? Are you organizing in your shop or workplace to demand higher safety and sanitation standards? PHLDSA’s Labor Commission is convening a series of calls where representatives from unions in the greater Philadelphia area are discussing and coordinating responses. Email Paul Prescod for more information.

  • On June 10, the Philadelphia Museum of Art hired notorious anti-union law firm Morgan Lewis to represent them in front of the NLRB. Now, with hearings underway, the museum is announcing furloughs and possible layoffs. Since they can’t open the hearings to the public, PMA Union is livetweeting the proceedings; read through this thread if you want to get really really mad at museum management.
  • From Philly DSA’s Paul Prescod in Labor Notes: “More than 200 city workers and community supporters rallied June 9 in the famous Love Park. The event was made bigger and more energetic by the heightened climate of protests in recent weeks. People are connecting the dots between the treatment Black people receive from police in the streets and from their bosses at work.”
  • Finally, according to the Athletic, Your Philadelphia Union are slated to restart their season on July 9 at 9am against NYCFC, though with COVID-19 cases spiking in Florida right now, MLS’s grand plan to fly every pro soccer player in the country to Orlando looks… foolish, to say the least.

Events

The Case for a Job Guarantee with Pavlina R. Tcherneva

Thursday, Jun 25 | 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm | Virtual

Virtual Home School: The World In Crisis

Tuesday, Jun 30 | 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm | Virtual

Marx Reading Group: Capital Vol. 1

Wednesday, Jul 8 | 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm | Virtual

Steering Committee Meeting

Thursday, Jul 9 | 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm | Virtual

POC Virtual Happy Hour

Friday, Jul 10 | 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm | Virtual

Virtual Home School: Is Neoliberalism Dead?

Tuesday, Jul 14 | 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm | Virtual

Announcements

Support 👏 Philly 👏 DSA 👏!
Local Dues - support our campaign work and cover everyday operating costs like meeting space // Contribute to Philly DSA PAC - help fund our independent electoral campaigns // Accommodations, Accessibility, Childcare - let us know what you need to stay involved // Moved away from Philly? - update your address on the DSA national database.

Harassment and Grievance Process
In accordance with Article XIII of our Bylaws, a commission has been formed to receive, process, and review grievances for disciplinary action. To read more about the process or to file a grievance you can do so here.

 

Stay safe and wash your hands,

Philly DSA Bulletin Team

 

Inquiries | Website

 

PAID FOR BY PHILADELPHIA DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS OF AMERICA (WWW.PHILLYDSA.ORG.) NOT AUTHORIZED BY ANY CANDIDATE OR CANDIDATE'S COMMITTEE.

Join Philly DSA

Isn’t it time to do something? Get involved with the Local.