In This Issue  

 Young Democratic Socialists Update: May 1, 2008

YDS Summer Retreat
 
 
 
 


 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
Save the Date: YDS Summer Retreat
YDS and Friends to Gather for an August Weekend of Strategizing, Networking, and Fun
  
Save the date: August 8th to 10th for Young Democratic Socialists' annual summer conference.  This year offers an exciting change of venue: the laid-back ambiance of Valley Brook Inn in upstate New York.  Just an hour and half outside of New York City, the retreat center comes with a heated pool and sports facilities, and is perfect for great political discussions and activist training. End your summer right, with memories and friends that could last a life-time.  
 
The summer conference is also where YDS votes on its national program, the Activist Agenda, and elects its volunteer leadership, the YDS coordinating committee.  With the presidential election creating the possibility for new space for progressive politics, the conference is a critical event where members can shape the direction of YDS and how we work for change in the coming year.
 
More information and registration will be available shortly.  Feel free to contact us ahead of time at yds@dsausa.org.  
 
Celebrating Workers
Remembering the True Meaning of May Day
 
International Workers' Day is a celebrated on May 1st.  Commonly referred to as May Day, it originated as a tribute by the Socialist International to the workers killed fighting for the eight-hour day in Haymarket Square, Chicago in 1886.  Unlike Labor Day, which preceded May Day and is a leisurely end-of-summer federal holiday, May 1st has always symbolized workers' solidarity and class struggle.  Today, of the major world countries, only Canada and the U.S do not formally recognize and pay respect to May Day.
 
Still, many in the U.S. do use May Day as a catalyst for mobilizing toward labor justice.  This year's May 1st will feature rallies for immigrant rights nationwide, and YDS chapters are participating as part of our National Immigrant Rights Project.
 
We encourage you all to do the same. Read "Capitalist Workday, Socialist Workday" by Michael A. Lebowitz for  socialist perspective on the need to remember the eight-hour day not only as part of May Day's true legacy, but as part of the necessary socialist struggle against capitalist exploitation.
 
Spring 2008 Red Letter
Covering Another Season of Great YDS Activism
 
The Spring 2008 Red Letter is out!  Click here for stories on YDS's work on immigrant rights and the Student Labor Week of Action, the YDS winter conference, fighting against the Iraq War on the 5th anniversary of the conflict, and more than a dozen spring semester activist highlights from YDS chapters nationwide. Who knows, you and your group might be in the issue! 
 
Hardcopies of the Red Letter are sent to dues-paying YDS members.  Not a member?  You can join here.  You'll get a subscription to the DSA's quarterly, the Democratic Left, too.  Read "Get Involved" to learn more about the benefits of YDS membership.
 
Intern with YDS this Summer
Great Opportunity to Work for Social Justice on Your Vacation
 
YDS is offering two great new internships for the summer.  The first is "Grassroots Organizing and Planning."  The intern would help build the YDS summer conference and be a lead participant in New York City YDS actions, while mastering valuable office and organizing skills.  This position is based out of YDS's New York office.
 
The second intern opportunity is as lead research assistant on YDS's upcoming "Hip-Hip and Socialism: A Reader" - a project of the YDS Anti-Racism Committee.  You'll work hand-in-hand with YDS leaders researching and contacting Hip-Hop artists in an
efforts to illustrate the connection between radical politics and this still-emerging form of urban music.  The internship need not be New York City-based.
 
YDS internships are unpaid, but we do offer school credit where available.  Hours range from 15-20 hours a week, but we are flexible.  Check out our Idealist.org page for more detailed descriptions.  You can also email us at yds@dsausa.org with your questions about the positions. 

  JOIN YDS!  It's easy, it's cheap, and it connects you with other democratic socialist activists around the country.  Click here to read more about why you should consider joining: www.ydsusa.org/getinvolved.html

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