Executive Committee
Administers chapter affairs, oversees the implementation of decisions made by the chapter membership.
- Co-Chairs: Patrick R., Kacee W.
- Secretary: Hannah H.
- Treasurer: Ian D.
Electoral Committee
Comrades of our electoral committee strive to place DSA members in elected or appointed seats of political power. To that end the committee identifies willing and knowledgeable candidates from among the membership as well as finds opportunities for political power within the Capital District. The committee then will focus the efforts of the general membership to win the position for our candidate. Once elected, the committee’s work continues by ensuring that a successful candidate’s actions remain consistent with the political positions and principles of the Capital District DSA.
Mutual Aid Committee
Assists in the creation and strengthening of structures of exchange & aid on the basis of non-hierarchy, voluntary association, and solidarity.
Public Power Committee
The Public Power Committee organizes around eco-socialist causes such as democratizing New York’s energy grid and pressuring the state to build towards our goal of 100% renewable power. We work with a statewide coalition of DSA chapters to bring a New York Green New Deal to fruition, while focusing on the work to be done in the Capital Region. We recognize that the incentives of capitalism will never save us from the existential threat of climate change, and that ownership over our energy should be taken from for-profit monopolies and reclaimed by the public. Our efforts have resulted in the passage of the Build Public Renewable’s Act, and the introduction of legislation like the Hudson Valley Power Authority Act. We continue to fight for tangible wins like these that help build renewable energy, create green union jobs, slash rising utility bills, and bring us closer to a world where the people own our own power!
Political Education Committee
The political education committee provides programs and events that deepen our understanding of socialism and the issues that drive the economy and society towards a socialist future. We have offered readings, film screenings and podcast episodes on Antonio Gramsci, Alexandra Kollontai and Karl Marx; discussions on important moments in labor history from strikes in a New Mexico mine, a Chicago slaughter house and a Los Angeles hotel. Currently, we’re developing tutorials for each standing committee to support what they do.
Housing Committee
CDDSA’s housing committee believes that housing is not a commodity to be bought, sold, and speculated — it’s a human right. As the climate crisis wreaks havoc, fascism rises across the world, and landlords get passes to collude over rent hikes, now more than ever it is evident that any sense of housing stability in our current system is precarious — we can lose it all at any moment. This affirms our belief and goal for a world where all people have secure, safe, and dignified housing. We work towards that future by organizing tenant unions to build power and materially change the conditions of working class people’s homes and lives. We fight for transformative housing justice through laws that work for tenants, not real estate or politicians.
Labor Committee
The Labor Committee wants to put the “movement” back in the labor movement of the Capital Region. The foundation of working class power is strong organization at the workplace. Our committee works to deepen our chapter’s roots in the labor movement through education, organizing, and supporting our members in unions.