Steering Committee Meeting September 26th, 2022

September 26th, 2022

2-4 pm

I. Settle in

Hasan A
Shane R
Yari G
Maddy GW
NIck R
Graham D
Matthew L
Max M
Michael S
Kat O
Drew B
Mike H

II. Approval of Agenda

Passed via Acclimation

III. Consent Agenda

A. Resolution to Assign Nation Builder Login Access to Newsletter Publishers

By Kat O., Juan C., Carlos C., Matthew L., Ian W.

Whereas, Andrew R., Ian M. and Elliot S. have all stepped down from their roles as the publishers of the chapter Newsletter resulting in our current hiatus of the chapter newsletter ;

Whereas, Kat O., Matthew L., Carlos C. and Ian W. have demonstrated commitment to the reboot of the chapter newsletter by working on the redesign along with the rest of the team for the past 3 months;

Whereas, when the Newsletter team was asked who would be able to commit to publishing the newsletter on a twice monthly basis, Kat O., Matthew L., Carlos C. and Ian W. agreed to this commitment;

Therefore be it resolved that the East Bay DSA Steering Committee grants Kat O., Matthew L., Carlos C. and Ian W. access to the chapter Nation Builder account in order to publish the chapter newsletter twice monthly,

Be it further resolved, that the East Bay DSA Steering Committee will require Kat O., Matthew L., Carlos C. and Ian W.. to sign our chapter’s data protection agreement before being given access to Nation Builder.

Consent Vote - PASSES

IV. Report Backs

EBLS - Maddy

Postponed for later

Electoral - Shane
Highlights:
4 campaigns have been endorsed
Will de-escalate DSA’s campaign as it appears Nikki is poised to win city council seat. Focus will be on school board elections; as it's more competitve.
Berkeley Rent Board is very competitive, likely will lose the seat; YDSA is heavily involved

V. Discussion

A. Staffer Discussion

Report back - Shane and Ella
Prioritization
Fundraising - Ella

B. Better SC Meetings - Yari

BRAINSTORM:

WHEREAS not all Steering Committee members are on equal footing when it comes to chapter procedures and Roberts’ Rules

WHEREAS if Steering Committee meetings are more inclusive so that all members are given the opportunity to fully engage, there will be positive impacts on the chapter as a whole

WHEREAS leadership development must happen within Steering Committee as it should throughout the chapter, in order to help sustain a healthy and durable organization

WHEREAS clarity and transparency are important for effective functioning of the Steering Committee,

THEREFORE be it resolved that:

Chairs or their designated appointee(s) provide a training or resources on Roberts Rules within the next three weeks, available to all Steering Committee members

Chairs or their designated appointee(s) provide a training or resources on how to write resolutions within the next four weeks

Steering Committee meeting facilitators do their best to prompt fellow Steering Committee members to use the necessary Roberts Rule process to help the Steering Committee members achieve their stated outcome

Steering Committee secretary or their designated appointee(s) will take informal live notes for all Steering Committee meetings held over Zoom, visible to Steering Committee members for ease of tracking conversations and helping improve clarity around live topics and votes.

Facilitation for Steering Committee meetings will rotate between Steering Committee members who are willing to facilitate, and Chairs or their designated appointee(s) will help prep the facilitator with any important information or helpful tips for facilitating

Steering Committee meeting facilitators will do their best to post a reminder in the Steering Committee WhatsApp to send in resolutions and agenda items promptly

Steering Committee meeting facilitators will share the agendas ahead of time, and make an effort to ensure that notes to referenced resources, related notes, or recent relevant decisions are linked to

Steering Committee meeting facilitators will do their best to be precise when framing discussions

Steering Committee meeting facilitators will allow for more silence, and if one person has already spoken extensively during the meeting (determined at the discretion of the facilitator), and that person is the only one on stack, the facilitator will wait for 10 seconds to allow time for others to potentially join the stack, and then use progressive stack from there

Chairs will take measures to diversify the Steering Committee members leading different agenda items, such as but not necessarily asking an SC member who is not leading a discussion or motivating a resolution if there is a topic of discussion they would like to raise for discussion, or proposing discussion topics that are germane to the work of all SC members

Chairs will delegate Steering Committee related tasks where possible to help grow leaders and capacity within the Steering Committee.

C. Replacing Matthew T & Kat O

VI. New Business

A. Resolution to Join “Pivot to Peace” Coalition

[full text]

Submitted by Mike H, Bert K, Marc P, Helen D, Susan S, Michael K

Whereas the United States government continues to wage war throughout the world violating national boundaries and sovereignty.

Whereas this has currently taken the form of expansion of US and proxy military forces deeper into Europe, Africa, and the Far East.

Whereas we have seen a recent upsurge in US saber rattling including provocative military maneuvers and political excursions to the island of Taiwan such as Speaker Pelosi’s Taiwan trip in early August.

Whereas such provocations undermine the long standing US- China policy of a measure of domestic autonomy for the Twainese without official recognition.

Whereas this bipartisan China bashing has encouraged prejudicial and violent attacks against Chinese and Asian communities in the United States.

Whereas the DSA international committee has stated, ‘’The so-called Pivot to Asia, which was announced in 2011, has developed into a pivot toward war and confrontation’’ which Increases the danger of escalation into a nuclear war.

Whereas the US policy of confrontation with China makes vital cooperation to deal with the pressing issues of climate catastrophe and worldwide pandemics more difficult

Whereas there are developing movements within the progressive and Asian communities both nationally and locally to fight back against this increased warmongering.

Whereas on August 18th, 2022,several hundred people, largely from the Chinese community, filled Portsmouth Square in San Francisco’s Chinatown and marched to protest Pelosi’s Taiwan trip with messages like “Peace Not War With China,” “China is not our Enemy,” and “No U.S. Cold War on China.”

Therefore be it resolved that the East Bay DSA will sign on to the Pivot to Peace mission statement.

Be it further resolved that EBDSA will help build national and local coalitions such as Pivot to Peace and China is Not Our Enemy to educate and mobilize public opinion about the benefits of a policy that facilitates cooperation and mutual respect between the United States and China in accordance with the policies of the DSA Convention, NSC and IC.

Resolution motivated by Mike H
Q&A
Motion to Amend - Shane R
"Be it further resolved that the anti-imperialism subcommittee will provide a campaign plan and monthly updates on the coalition to the steering committee."
Amendment vote: PASSES via acclimation
Resolution debate
Resolution vote: PASSES: 7 Yes / 2 No

B. Resolution to Sign Lease on an Office

Submitted by Yari G

WHEREAS East Bay DSA membership voted for the chapter to get an office in fall of 2021.

WHEREAS there is growing interest in holding more in-person meetings and events

WHEREAS a team of chapter members has spent a total of six months actively searching for an appropriate office space

WHEREAS an office with a large open space will enable members to organize in-person more regularly and engage more members more deeply in chapter efforts.

WHEREAS the Steering Committee has discussed a monthly budget of $2,000-$2,500 for an office, with a preference for more affordable spaces.

WHEREAS an office in or near Oakland, and near a BART station, provides convenience for a plurality of current chapter members.

WHEREAS an office on ground floor is more accessible than an upstairs office

WHEREAS it will be easier for chapter members to access supplies if we have an office that can accommodate some storage space

WHEREAS we have found only one other available office space in the past two months that have the desirable qualities listed above, and were not offered a lease on that office space, due in part to our delays in moving promptly with documentation and paperwork

WHEREAS most office landlords are seeking tenants who will sign multi-year leases.

WHEREAS the significant effort and time required to find an office space makes a two-year lease preferable and more practical as compared to a one-year lease

WHEREAS we have the opportunity to sign a two-year lease for an office space at 3351 Martin Luther King Junior Way, Berkeley, which has a large open space and room for storage, is near the border with Oakland, is a 10 minute walk from the Ashby BART station, is $2,000/month, and is on the ground floor

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Steering Committee Chairs will promptly sign the lease for 3351 Martin Luther King Junior Way, Berkeley, with a start date of October 1 2022.

Motivated by Yari G

Motion to Amend: Substitute previous resolution for Resolution to Become an Omni Tenant

Submitted by Max M

WHEREAS East Bay DSA membership voted for the chapter to get an office in fall of 2021.

WHEREAS there is growing interest in holding more in-person meetings and events

WHEREAS a team of chapter members has spent a total of six months actively searching for an appropriate office space

WHEREAS an office with a large open space will enable members to organize in-person more regularly and engage more members more deeply in chapter efforts.

WHEREAS the Steering Committee has discussed a monthly budget of $2,000-$2,500 for an office, with a preference for more affordable spaces.

WHEREAS an office in or near Oakland, and near a BART station, provides convenience for a plurality of current chapter members.

WHEREAS it will be easier for chapter members to access supplies if we have an office that can accommodate some storage space

WHEREAS Omni Commons has a loan deadline coming up in December, so they are trying to revitalize and make better use of their space, including renting out space to organizations who need it.

WHEREAS Omni Commons has offered to lease East Bay DSA an office space comprising one large 530 square foot room for $1000/month. This rental agreement would include some to-be-determined number of usages of the ballroom, where we currently hold General Meetings.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Steering Committee will officially make intentions known to Omni Commons that we wish to apply for tenancy.

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, If East Bay DSA is approved as a tenant, that the Steering Committee will work with Omni Commons to arrive at and execute a lease agreement satisfactory to both parties.

Motivated by Max
Move to committee as a whole
Moved to amendment debate
Second Motion to amend to include Yari G and Max M to negotiate the tenant contract.
Amendment vote: PASSES via Acclimation
First Amendment Debate
Calling to Question
Call Vote: PASSES - 10 yes, 1 no

Method of Voting: For Onmi = yes; For Berkeley = no; For neither = no for both

Resolution debate
Resolution vote: PASSES - 10 yes 1 no

Motion to extend meeting by Shane R; seconded by Matthew L

C. Campaign to Pass Rent Control, Good Cause for Eviction, and other Tenant Protections for Residents of Unincorporated Alameda County

Submitted by Eden Branch, Social Housing Committee, Matthew L, Juan C, Paola L, Drew B, Eric E, Eric L, Barisha S

WHEREAS, “The landlords, like all other men, love to reap where they never sowed, and demand a rent even for the natural produce of the earth”, and as such burden the working class both directly, by charging workers rent, and indirectly by inflating the price of goods, services & housing with their unearned & undeserved income; and

WHEREAS, tenants in jurisdictions that do not have just cause ordinances, can be arbitrarily evicted and such leverage can and often is used to harass tenants; and tenants in jurisdictions that do not have rent controls, can face arbitrary rent increases, with such increases backed by the threat of eviction; and

WHEREAS, many tenants in Alameda, Berkeley, Hayward, Oakland, and other cities are partially protected from arbitrary rent increases by rent control ordinances. However, tenants living just a few miles away in unincorporated Alameda County (e.g. Ashland, Castro Valley, Cherryland, Fairview, San Lorenzo, and Hayward Acres) have been left without almost any substantive tenant protections as the price of rent increases, evictions sky rocket, and vulnerable communities are displaced; and

WHEREAS, tenants in unincorporated Alameda County, are currently being protected by a COVID-19 eviction moratorium that will end, at which time, in the absence of strong tenant protections, many residents will be evicted; and

WHEREAS, by fighting alongside the 60,000 tenants (40% of the population) living in the unincorporated areas of Alameda county, we can develop class consciousness, demonstrate solidarity with fellow workers & directly oppose the interests of capital; and

WHEREAS, tenants organizations such as the Berkeley Tenants Union (BTU), Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) & East Bay Housing Organizations (EBHO) have already committed to campaign for the Alameda County Board of Supervisors to PASS FULL tenant protections for unincorporated Alameda County; and

WHEREAS, having East Bay DSA campaign for this is supported by the chapter’s Eden Branch and Social Housing Committee;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT, East Bay DSA will campaign for the Alameda County Board of Supervisors to pass full tenant protections for the unincorporated areas of Alameda County; and

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT, East Bay DSA will work with organizations that have the same objective, in order to both pass full tenant protections and build cross organizational solidarity to help in the wider fight for tenants rights.

Motivated by Paoula G and Matthew L
Q&A
Debate

Motion for 10minute extension by Mathew L; seconded
Motion vote: Failed 4 yes, 5 no’s

Resolution Vote: FAILS 4 yes, 6 no’s

D. Resolution to Endorse Abortion is a Human Rights Rally

Submitted by Claudette Begin, Bonnie Lockhart, MV Watson, and Shane Ruiz

Whereas the Women’s March organization has called for a national weekend of action on the weekend of Oct 7th, against the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision which eliminated the federal right to an abortion,

Whereas the informal coalition of the Peralta Federation of Teacher, OEA, rank-and-file SEIU 1021 and CNA members, Planned Parenthood and DSA, which hosted the Abortion Teach-In at Lake Merritt, is now planning an Abortion is a Human Right Rally at Frank Ogawa Plaza on October 8th from 10am-12pm in support of Proposition 1, a California Consititutional amendment securing abortion rights,

Whereas, Senator Lindsey Graham has submitted a bill that would establish a federal ban on abortion,

Whereas, DSA should seek to build mass action and organization against the erosion of political democracy and human rights like abortion,

Whereas, the role of socialists in movements for liberal rights should be to merge them with the worker movement,

Therefore be it resolved, East Bay DSA endorses the Abortion is a Human Right Rally in support of Proposition 1 on October 8th,

Therefore be it resolved, East Bay DSA will provide $100 for the graphic to advertise the event,

Therefore be it resolved, East Bay DSA will provide an additional $100 for incidental payments in support of the rally

****MOVED TO AN EMAIL VOTE****