RSVP for the Annual Local Convention JUNE 29th! (and visit the Brake Light Clinic & Hurricane Prep and Solidarity Event TOMORROW!)

Posted by cochairs

Hey comrades!

Mark your calendar for our Local Convention! 📆 RSVP HERE (especially if you need to indicate any accessibility, dietary, or childcare needs!)

Our Local Convention is an annual meeting where our members elect chapter leadership, vote on amendments to our bylaws, discuss the political direction of our chapter, and review the year’s progress, priorities, and upcoming challenges to overcome. It’s our largest gathering of the year, so it’s also a great opportunity for socializing, building community, and sharing good food.

We will be holding a hybrid convention, with in-person meeting at the Broadmoor Community Church (2021 S Dupre St) and on Zoom (registration link here) starting at 12pm noon on Saturday, June 29th.

Please RSVP as soon as you can, and visit our Convention Hub at bit.ly/NOLADSA24 for more info. We look forward to seeing you there!

Nominations are open for the Municipal Action Committee Co-chairs. Members in good standing are eligible and can nominate themselves. Please submit your nomination (link here) by June 22nd.

ALSO! TOMORROW (SAT 6/15) @ 11AM-2PM — Brake Light Clinic, Health Fair, & Hurricane Prep and Solidarity Event at A.L. Davis Park, Saturday 11am-2pm!

  • We can check and change your brake light, take your blood pressure, connect you to community health resources, share food and cold drinks, and chat about achieving socialist revolution together!
  • We’ll also be hosting a Solidarity and Hurricane Preparedness event where we’ll talk about prepping for this hurricane season, share skills for mutual aid during disasters, and distribute mini hurricane prep kits. Did you know they have forecast as many as 27(!) hurricanes this Atlantic Hurricane Season!? We’re all in this together — Be ready and help your neighbors be ready.
  • If you want to volunteer at the Brake Light Clinic & Health Fair, sign up here: https://forms.gle/cAMSMxnffhF5CefJ8 (or show up day of). See you Saturday!
Are you ready for this Hurricane Season? The forecasts predict a bad hurricane season. How much do you need to stock up? How do you cook when the lights go out? How do you make sure you have water if the disaster outlasts your supplies? How do you treat minor wounds or avoid heat stroke? How do you safely operate a generator? What about your neighbors -- what do they need and what do they know how to do? Come out to the DSA New Orleans Solidarity and Hurricane Preparedness Event to talk about these questions and more... AND get a free mini prep kit to get you started! Saturday June 15th, 11am to 2pm in A.L. Davis Park.

Solidarity forever,

New Orleans DSA

New Orleans DSA ’24 Convention Hub

Posted by cochairs

New Orleans DSA is a democratically-run, all-volunteer organization of the working class, and every year we convene to elect officers, consider amendments to our bylaws, and debate member-submitted proposals for the coming year. In short, Convention is our most important annual gathering! Members can weigh in on chapter priorities and fully exercise their power to shape Chapter work for the coming year and beyond. This year our Convention will be held June 29th at 12PM at the Broadmoor Community Church, 2021 S Dupre St. Don’t miss it!

Important Dates

RSVP Now!

Submit your bylaw amendments, political resolutions, and electoral endorsements to hello@dsaneworleans.org by June 25th. We also encourage members to post submitted or draft proposals to the #amendments-and-resos channel in slack for feedback and discussion.

Officer Elections

The following positions are up for election this year:

  • Co-Chairs (2): Wash F. & Jack RS.
  • At-Large Council Members (2): Bob M. & Emmanuel S.
  • Secretary: Madeleine H.
  • Membership Chair: Iman N.
  • Treasurer: Chris C.
  • Communications Chair: Taylor G.

Proposals & Bylaws Amendments

Below is a list of resolutions which will be debated and voted on at Convention (these require a 50%+ vote to be adopted). 

Resolution for Consistent Endorsed Candidate ExpectationsElectoral Working Group
Resolution to Endorse Devin Davis for Louisiana Congressional District 2Bob M., Jack R.S.
Resolution to Form a People’s PlatformBob M.

The following amendments to our Bylaws will be considered (these require a 2/3rds majority vote):

Amendment to Reconcile Terms, Definitions, and ProceduresWash F, Jack RS, & Bob M
Amendment to re-organize and modernize the Chapter’s internal Committee and Campaign structureMany contributors, consolidated & revised by Jack RS
Amendment to Advance Administrative DiscretionWash F, Jack RS, & Cate R
Amendment to clarify quorum requirements and codify an asynchronous voting processJack RS
Amendment to Clarify Member Oversight and ConductWash F, Jack RS, & Cate R
Amendment to establish procedures for formation and approval of a statewide organizationJack RS

We’ll continually update these lists as new proposals are submitted before the deadline on June 25th, so be sure to check back then to read everything we’ll be voting on this year.

Voting

Only members currently in good standing can vote on proposals and in Chapter elections, so make sure you’ve signed up to DSA before the start of Convention! If you’re unsure of your membership status, please visit proof.dsausa.org, or email us at membership@dsaneworleans.org.

Proxy Voting: If you are unable to attend either in-person or via Zoom, you may identify another member to serve as your proxy. This member then votes on proposals and in elections according to your preferences. Attending members may hold up to two proxies. If you will be requesting a proxy, please notify us at hello@dsaneworleans.org by June 27th with the name of another dues/paying member who will serve as your proxy. If you are unable to identify another member to name as your proxy, please let us know in a note to the above email address, and we’ll assign you a proxy to make sure your votes are cast.Proposals: Resolutions and Bylaw Amendments will be voted on at the Convention using OpenSlides in a browser on your phone or computer. You will receive a login from DSA New Orleans – OpenSlides with your login. For more information, here’s the member guide to OpenSlides.

Nominations for 2020 Local Officers’ Election is Open!

Posted by dsa-chapter-secretary

Each year our local chapter holds a convention for the purpose of electing new officers to the Local Council and debating proposed amendments to our chapter bylaws and political resolutions that can shape the direction of our chapter. Due to the public health crisis of COVID-19 and social distancing measures, our chapter must find ways to do both important elements of the Convention in virtual spaces. 

The Local Council has created our first ever Election Committee to undertake the work of planning an election that is fair, transparent, and accessible despite the fact that we cannot meeting together in a physical space. The Election Committee is currently meeting weekly on Tuesdays at 5pm, and anyone who is interested in contributing is welcome to join. You can join the #election-committee-2020 channel on Slack to participate or register for the Zoom call here.

While we are still researching voting platforms as well as how to collect votes from members with little or no internet access, the Election Committee is pleased to announce that the nomination period is now open!

New Orleans DSA will have elections at the end of June. These positions are a chance for members to take a more direct role in guiding our chapter. It’s an opportunity for our chapter to develop new leaders and get fresh perspectives on our work. It’s also a chance for members to gain experience as leaders in a democratic organization of more than 250 people. 

Candidates must be nominated by another member to run and must be a member in good standing, which means that you are currently paying dues to DSA National. No one may nominate themselves. To nominate a member, email hello@dsaneworleans.org with the subject line Officer Nomination or let a current chapter officer know your nomination(s). There’s no limit on how many people you can nominate. The nomination period is for the next two weeks, ending May 30th. The Election Committee will reach out to each nominee to confirm their acceptance and give them information on what will be expected of them as a candidate. 

Read this document for a full description of the role of each officer (hat tip to Noah T. for writing this up!).

Special Meeting Announcement

Our chapter will be holding a Special Meeting on Saturday, May 30th (instead of our Weekly Update call) to vote on proposed amendments to the bylaws. According to our bylaws, amendments can only be debated and voted on during Special Meetings. We need to have a quorum of 10% of our membership in attendance, so please mark this on your calendar!

This is not a substitute for the Convention. Another special meeting will take place in conjunction with the election this summer, and we will be providing information on how to write, submit, and debate any proposed resolutions or amendments well ahead of time. At this month’s meeting, we will be debating just a handful of amendments to the bylaws to potentially add new positions to the Local Council and a clause that allows our chapter to reformat or reschedule the Convention under extreme circumstances (like the one we are in now). The full text of these amendments will be emailed and posted to the website as soon as possible so that members can review them.

We will also be giving a general overview of the election process and schedule as well as information on Robert’s Rules of Order, which we use for debate.