Blog
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Cut off! Canvassing as an Independent
Whether you love it or hate it, if you’ve canvassed for a liberal, progressive, or DFL candidate for office in the last few years, you’re probably aware of the Voter Activation Network (VAN). Grassroots campaigns can “make or break” on their ability to reach out to communities and connect with voters on the issues, and…
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Minneapolis neighborhood says “Urban Farm Not Toxic Harm”
City: Wants to relocate the city’s water yard to East Phillips, which would add at least 220 additional vehicles every day to the neighborhood—an area already incredibly burdened by traffic pollution. Additionally, the city would have to demolish the existing Roof Depot building, which sits on an arsenic plume. The demolition risks exposing residents to…
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Lessons in Individual Psychology for Socialists
Political Education Snippet #8 “Only in socialism did the feeling of community remain as the ultimate goal and end as demanded by unhampered human fellowship.” -Alfred Adler, creator of Individual Psychology People are drawn to socialism and DSA for many reasons. Our different backgrounds and motivations lead to political conflict, and at times interpersonal conflict.…
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Love (of Profits) in the Time of COVID-19
No one should be surprised at Big Pharma’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but I can’t help feeling nauseated as the bodies continue to pile up (nearly 4.5 million as of August 20, and it’s estimated that the true number is two to three times that). At first glance, the way the pharmaceutical industry is…
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The New and Improved DSA International Committee
Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) has various national-level committees, working groups, and other structures, in addition to the more widely known National Political Committee, or NPC, its overall governing body. One of these which is coming more and more into prominence is the International Committee (IC). Unlike working groups which are open to anyone willing…
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2021 Position Descriptions
The following positions will be up for election in September at the 2021 TCDSA Convention: Co-chair Recording Secretary Technology Coordinator Treasurer Political Education Coordinators (three seats, one of which is a Steering Committee seat) Members At Large (three seats) Grievance Committee (six seats) For more info about the powers and duties of the Steering Committee…
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Everything You Need To Know About Our 2021 Endorsements
With massive support from membership, Twin Cities DSA has endorsed four candidates in the 2021 Minneapolis Elections. All candidates are committed to the chapter backed measures for a meaningful rent control policy and department of public safety, and understand that change will require a broad, multiracial working-class coalition to create a Minneapolis for all of…
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Twin Cities Area New Party (TCANP) and The Tyranny of the Two-party System
Political Education Snippet #7 Lisa Disch’s book, The Tyranny of the Two-Party System, after both a preface and Introduction, opens Chapter 1 – “The Politics of Electoral Fusion 1994-1997,” with the following paragraph: At a sparsely attended press conference in St. Paul, Minnesota, on July 18, 1994, a third party and an incumbent state legislator…
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2021 Convention Delegates Questionnaire
Are you a member of any caucuses within DSA, either locally or nationally, and/or a member of a non-DSA leftist organization? What do you believe the relationship between local chapters should be? Are there specific structural or operational changes you think are necessary to achieve this relationship? What is your highest priority in terms of…
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Behind the Scenes: “The Co-op Wars” Movie Missed the Real Story
“The Co-op Wars” premiered at the Minneapolis St. Paul Film Festival in mid-May. It shows how one man known as Smitty organized a closed group (the Co-op Organization or “CO”) that aimed to transform the coops into a mass base for anti-capitalist organizing. The movie captures the flowering of the counterculture and the explosive growth…
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Let Us Vote! Day of Action for Rent Control
Save the Date! June 12th, Day of Action with Minneapolis United for Rent Control. The Minneapolis City Council has proposed two charter amendments that lay out two possible paths to pass rent control. One puts the decision into the hands of City Hall. One makes possible a renter-led petition. We want to keep the decision…
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The TCDSA Grievance Committee: Who we are and what we do
Greetings from your chapter Grievance Committee. Since our founding in the fall of 2019 we’ve been hard at work trying to figure out our place in the chapter and how to best embody the values the committee was founded upon. We’d like to share what we’ve come up with so far to open a dialogue…
2023 Elections Aisha Chughtai Anti-imperialism Association of Flight Attendants Book review Ceasefire in Gaza Delta Delta Air Lines Democratic Party/DFL East Phillips Neighborhood Institute/EPNI East Phillips Urban Farm Electoral Committee Endorsements Environmental racism General Strike Three International Association of Machinists International Brotherhood of Teamsters Jason Chavez Labor MFT/ESP MFT59 Minneapolis Minneapolis Police Department Minnesota Uber/Lyft Drivers Association (MULDA) MN Governor Tim Walz Mutual aid Nelsie Yang Omar Fateh Political education Rent control Rent Stabilization Ordinance Robin Wonsley Roof Depot Soren Stevenson St. Paul Starbucks Starbucks Workers United TCDSA Teamsters UFCW 663 Ukraine invasion 2022 Union Organizing United Auto Workers (UAW) Unite HERE Local 17 YDSA