Update from the Young Democratic Socialists

www.ydsusa.org
post far & wide

June 15th, 2006

In this YDS UPDATE you will find:                                      

                                    1) YDS IS HIRING! NATIONAL ORGANIZER JOB OPEN
                                    2) SUMMER STAFF AND CONFERENCE UPDATES

                                    3) YDS NATIONAL OFFICE LOCATION CHANGE

                                    4) LATEST FROM UNITED FOR PEACE & JUSTICE
                                    5) DIRTY WORDS: ELECTORAL POLITICS
                                    6) DSA ADOPTS IMMIGRATION RESOLUTION
                                    7) GUIDED TOUR OF CLASS IN AMERICA
                                    8) SIGN YDS ENDORSED RESOLUTION ON IRAN
                                    9) THE SWEATSHOP STOPS HERE!      
 

_______________________________________________________________
 

3) YDS NATIONAL OFFICE LOCATION CHANGE
Because of the Metropolitan Transit Authority's condemnation of the building at 198 Broadway to make way for a transit hub, YDS/DSA relocated its office to 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 505, New York, NY 10038 on Friday, June 2. The organization signed a seven-year lease at this location.

Mail addressed to the old address will reach us without undue delay, so members should continue to use Business Reply mail envelopes addressed to us at the 198 Broadway address. We will distribute them until our current supply is exhausted, and renewal mailings will continue to use forms with the old address for the next several months.  YDS' phone, (212) 727-8610, and fax number, (212) 608-6955, remain the same. The email addresses and web site have not changed.

4) UFPJ: ORGANIZE, MOBILIZE & EMPOWER THE PEACE MAJORITY
Below is a recent update from United for Peace and Justice (YDS is a member of UFPJ).
After several months of drafting, soliciting feedback, and then re-drafting, we are pleased to be sending the member groups of UFPJ the plan for work for the coalition for the rest of this year. Our process for developing the plan included sharing the draft with all of the UFPJ member groups, convening three conference calls in April for member groups to get your feedback, and having UFPJ's national steering committee discuss four different drafts, so it took some time to pull it all together. We believe the time was well spent and we now have a plan of work that will allow us to address current conditions and the needs of the coalition.

The final plan is included as an attachment or can be downloaded at:
www.unitedforpeace.org/downloads/UFPJ2006Plan.pdf 

TELL THE SENATE TO VOTE TO END THE WAR IN IRAQ!
Congress has spent years avoiding responsibility for Iraq. But this week, the Senate will vote on several different proposals to bring the troops home and end the war, calling for measures that range from immediate withdrawal to a gradual withdrawal stretched out over 18 months. This is an important moment in the work of the peace movement -- we have made it impossible for Congress to avoid the issue any longer.

Check here for talking points, more details on the issues and how to take action:
www.unitedforpeace.org/article.php?id=3293


5) DIRTY WORDS: ELECTORAL POLITICS
Where, exactly, is the line between social movements and electoral politics? Aside from being a heady topic of academic inquiry, this is an important, practical question for activists eager to be both effective and progressive in deciding where to put their time, hopes and energies.
Read more from former YDS National Organizer, Daraka Larimore-Hall, on his blog:
http://hoverbike.blogspot.com/2006/05/dirty-words-electoral-politics.html


6) DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS ADOPT IMMIGRATION RESOLUTION
DSA's National Political Committee adopted a resolution addressing the immigration issues currently being debated in Congress. The resolution specifically condemns the bill passed by the House of Representatives (sponsored by Republican James Sensenbrenner) earlier this year and calls for legalization with full political rights for immigrants. It also opposes guest worker programs. The movement for a path to citizenship emerging all over the country in the last several months is a very important political development that has DSA's wholehearted support. The complete text of the resolution is posted on DSA's web site and can be viewed at: www.dsausa.org/LatestNews/2006/immigrant%20rights.html


7) GUIDED TOUR OF CLASS IN AMERICA w/ BARBARA EHRENREICH
A Tomdispatch Interview with Barbara Ehrenreich (DSA Honorary Co-Chair and noted author)
www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=10&ItemID=10375

Barbara Ehrenreich has her own blog!:  http://ehrenreich.blogs.com/barbaras_blog


8) SIGN YDS ENDORSED RESOLUTION ON IRAN
The YDS Coordinating Committee recently unanimously voted to endorse a statement crafted by the Campaign for Peace and Democracy.  The statement has been signed by notable figured on the democratic left, including DSA members like Cornel West, Frances Fox Piven, Stephen R. Shalom and more.

IRAN: NEITHER U.S. AGGRESSION NOR THEOCRATIC REPRESSION
A call for a new, democratic U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East
The read the full statement and sign on as an individual endorser, go to: www.cpdweb.org


9) THE SWEATSHOP STOPS HERE!  

Young Democratic Socialists
c/o DSA 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 505
New York, NY, 10038
office: (212) 727-8610
fax: (212) 608-6955
yds@dsausa.org
www.ydsusa.org