This is a mistake, argues NPC member and Zohran field organizer @wellstonism

Article

On October 14, NYC-DSA will hold a general meeting, of sorts, open to the membership of the chapter. It will hear two proposals written by our Steering Committee— to establish a local dues drive and to define our chapter’s orientation to the Zohran administration. Members will not be allowed to submit amendments, submit alternative proposals for consideration, or otherwise intervene democratically through parliamentary procedure. The vote, which members will be sent over email after the meeting, will be non-binding. As a result of such a shoddy process, it comes as no surprise that the proposals themselves are politically lacking. I encourage members to attend the meeting and vote NO on both proposals.

While the dues drive proposal has its own serious issues, the point of this piece will be to discuss the latter—“NYC-DSA’s Orientation Toward a Potential Mamdani Administration.” In brief, it seeks to orient the chapter’s activity and political program towards the “Affordability Agenda”—freezing the rent, no-cost childcare, fast and free buses—championed by Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral campaign. Strikingly, however, it does not mention immigration or ICE, the role of the cops and other undemocratic institutions, the struggle for Palestinian liberation, or the prospect of resisting a federal Trump crackdown on New York City. By ignoring many of the most pressing venues of mass politics, this resolution sets NYC-DSA up to fail. It erodes our ability to make genuine political interventions and ultimately reveals the weakness of our political organization even as we face unprecedented growth.

But there is another concerning issue with this proposal. Before any positive vision is introduced, the authors take pains to denounce any attempt to “demand accountability” from one of the most powerful executives in America:

“If we succeed in electing Zohran Mamdani, our priority will not be policing the mayor’s lapses and demanding accountability—orientations the left has adopted in moments of decline and marginality. Our priority in campaigning for a democratic socialist mayor is to expand working-class power and win material improvements in the lives of the working class. Our members must put first the project of moving and shaping a new political landscape, before the task of critique.” [Emphasis in the original.]

Ignoring the fact that this resolution does little to advance a “project of moving and shaping a new political landscape,” this is, on its face, patently absurd. For one, there is nothing New Yorkers love more than hating the mayor, no matter who occupies the office. Cynicism and frustration will be difficult to overcome as capital asserts itself against Mamdani. Surely, he will stumble in this uphill battle, perhaps gravely. Our goal as socialists should be to put politics and worker self-organization first, not pin our hopes and dreams to a high approval rating. Simply stating that we will not seek to criticize, without providing a roadmap for when and where we should, is a transparently bizarre way of doing politics.

Full Article