| It was wonderful to see so many people out this week — from the powerful kiddos above at the Starbucks Solidarity Sip-In at three local unionizing Starbucks, to all of our friends and neighbors at Sunday’s Open Streets on Lyndale. In the blog posts below, you’ll get a recap of our Solidarity Sip-In and the announcement of a contest to redesign the TCDSA logo and a new TCDSA t-shirt. We need all sorts of skills to grow our movement for the working class — whether it’s with graphic design, knocking doors, or even getting a coffee! If you’re new to socialism or organizing — two particular events this weekend would be great places to start — a Saturday Orientation to TCDSA on Zoom and Sunday’s Canvass Training in person. Message from the Solidarity Fund Working Group The Ezra Ishman Solidarity Fund is now temporarily closed until further notice. Over the past month, we successfully distributed over $3,900 to 19 TCDSA members and their friends and families. Thank you to everyone who chipped in with their donations. Please consider setting up a recurring donation to the Ezra Ishman Solidarity Fund if you have the means to do so. You can do that at: https://twincitiesdsa.org/solidarity/. If you have questions, or are interested in joining the Solidarity Fund working group, feel free to reach out to us at the #solidarityfund Slack channel. This is a great opportunity if you’re looking for a way to get more involved in TCDSA, and we’re happy to answer any questions you have. Big Events • Orientation to TCDSA – Saturday 6/11, at 1:00pm – Online, Register Here Designed mainly for new members but any member could benefit. This joint offering from the Pol Ed and Internal Organizing Committees will acquaint you with the structure, culture, and history of Twin Cities DSA, and its position in the national and local “left ecosystem,” help you discern where you might find the most rewarding organizing opportunities, while giving you tips about how do operational roles like planning a meeting or working on the newsletter. • Canvassing: How to Message on the Doors – Sunday 6/12, at 12:00pm-1:00pm – Register here and join us for this in person training in Longfellow Park Real community support and connection is essential to all grassroots campaigns. Canvassing, talking to people one-on-one, allows us to make those connections directly, but how do you do that? Join us for Canvassing: How to Message on the Doors. We are gearing up to door-knock in support of candidates and spread our message, and we need you to hit the doors with us to put socialists in office. At this event, we will talk about what goes into planning and carrying out canvassing events, the ins and outs of door-knocking, and how to listen, understand, and meet folks where they’re at while promoting our message. If you’re new to canvassing, feeling a bit rusty, or are an experienced canvasser, this training is for you. • We Have A Waste Problem! Environmental Racism and Trash Incineration – Wednesday 6/22, at 7:00pm-8:30pm – Online, Register Here Do you know about the trash incinerator in North Minneapolis? Our local comrade Nazir is moderating this panel with DSA members across the country as they debunk greenwashing, explore the science behind trash incineration, hear from communities on the frontlines, & discuss Socialist solutions. Co-hosted by North New Jersey DSA, Delco DSA, DSA Philly, Salem DSA, TCDSA, and the Energy Justice Network From the Blog Logo Redesign / T-shirt Design Contest Twin Cities DSA is seeking submissions for a redesigned logo as well as a new t-shirt design. The contest will run from now until July 8th. Details here. Twin Cities DSA Comrades in Cars Getting Coffee Solidarity Sip-In Success! On Saturday June 4th TCDSA performed the first local Sip-In for organizing Starbucks workers. A Sip-In (adapted from “sit-in”) is an event that has been organized across the country by DSA chapters to support locations organizing with Starbucks Workers United. Comrades visit a location and hold space, rally, and encourage workers as a group. These are casual, social events that promote the confidence of workers that neighbors in the community have their back. Read the rest and watch a cool video from comrade Carlos here. Past posts are all at tcdsa.org/blog Chapter Branch/Committee Meetings and Events • Brake Light Clinic Planning – Saturday 6/11, 1:00pm – Online, Register Here A meeting to discuss and continue planning a Brake Light Clinic. All those interested in assisting are welcome to attend! • East Phillips Community Meeting – Sunday, 6/12 at 1:00pm – 2307 17th Ave S, Minneapolis From our comrades at East Phillips Neighborhood Institute: The East Phillips neighborhood has a dream to create a community-owned urban farm at the “Roof Depot” site along Hiawatha Ave. However, the City of Minneapolis is determined to expand their Public Works truck yard there, which would increase pollution on a community already experiencing severe environmental racism. Please join neighbors, EPNI, and urban farm supporters to decide how to move forward in this fight! • Communications Committee – Tuesday 6/14 at 6:00pm – Online, Register Here We’ll be discussing flyers, tabling handouts, and other tasks that the Comms committee can take on. Help us build a new committee and do great things. • New Member Phonebank – Wednesday, 6/15, at 6:00pm – Online, Register Here Join the Internal Organizing Committee as we call new TCDSA members! We will meet on Zoom to go over the script, mute ourselves and make calls, and then return to debrief how it went. These calls are a chance to meet newer members to TCDSA, hear what they need from our chapter and what brings them to socialism. All are welcome! See the pinned post on the #internal-organizing channel on Slack for more info. • Steering Committee – Wednesday, 6/22 at 6:00pm Check the #steeringcommittee slack channel for the zoom link and agenda. Go to tcdsa.org/events to see everything! |
Twin Cities DSA Little Red Letter #85
