Category: Statements

Pittsburgh DSA expresses our continued full and unequivocal support for the Palestinian struggle for freedom. We mourn the loss of life across the region which is a direct result of over 75 years of brutal occupation and apartheid including 17 years of a blockade and siege on Gaza, funded and backed by our own government.

Living deep in the belly of the US Empire, we must do all we can to address our own capitalist government’s attacks on the working class and oppressed peoples both here and abroad.   To secure the socialist future, we fight for democracy, and demand that democracy bloom and expand in all areas of life and all corners of the earth. 

That flower cannot bloom in Palestine while the IDF carries on a daily campaign of terror and oppression against the Palestinian people, while Gaza is kept under siege, while settlements in the West Bank continue to displace and attack Palestinians, and while Palestinians are subjected to daily violations of their basic democratic rights at the hands of the IDF and the rest of the Israeli state apparatus, including the encouragement of reactionary opposition to justify further atrocities. All the while, the deadly exchange of police and military training between the US and Israel continues to intensify tactics of repression and surveillance in both countries.

 Violent opposition is the inevitable response to the conditions imposed by Israeli occupation. The conflict can only end if the apartheid regime is lifted from the river to the sea. Our goal as socialists and internationalists is liberation for all oppressed peoples, especially those oppressed by the largest recipient of United States foreign aid. Our desire for peace goes much further than the cessation of active warfare, and must include active reversal of over 75 years of systematic violence and oppression.

In accordance with DSA’s national political platform, we continue to support the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) movement, and we continue to demand the right of return for Palestinian refugees, the end of all US military aid to Israel and all military cooperation with Israel, an end to all training exchanges between US police forces and police and military in Israel, the closure of all US military bases on foreign soil, and the immediate withdrawal of the US from NATO. We also call on members and non-members alike to consider the action list from Jewish Voice for Peace and to get involved in Palestinian solidarity actions as this situation develops.

-Pittsburgh DSA Coordinating Committee

We, the Pittsburgh Chapter of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), reaffirm our commitment to Palestinian Liberation. We join the chorus of DSA chapters formally rebuking the DSA National Political Committee’s (NPC’s) decision to de-charter the Boycott, Divest, & Sanction and Palestine Solidarity Working Group (BDSWG) and to remove the organizers who were doing work in that group from current and future leadership positions. 

At the 2019 Convention of the DSA, member delegates voted to pass Resolution #35 which reads, (in part, full text can be read here):

Be it resolved that the Democratic Socialists of America establish a national working group dedicated to BDS and Palestine Solidarity; 

Be it resolved that the National will allow autonomous leadership and membership of said working group; 

Be it resolved that the National will reaffirm BDS and Palestine solidarity as a priority for the national organization and further commit itself to organizing in solidarity with the BDS movement, which urges nonviolent pressure on Israel until it meets three demands: ending its occupation and colonization of all Arab lands and dismantling the Wall; recognizing the fundamental rights of the Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel to full equality; and respecting, protecting and promoting the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties as stipulated in UN Resolution 194.

In late 2021, a DSA-endorsed congressman, Jamaal Bowman of New York’s 16th district, voted to support Israeli Iron Dome defense funding, met with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, and took a trip to Israel sponsored by J Street, a pro-Israel lobby group. These actions, along with a failure of attempted meetings to produce course corrections from Rep. Bownman led to calls from BDSWG (among others) for the NPC to censure or expel Rep. Bowman from DSA membership. Ultimately, neither occurred. Instead the NPC retaliated against the BDSWG by de-chartering the working group and banning its leaders from future leadership positions in the DSA for one year.

The decision to de-charter the group was undemocratic, was not supported by our bylaws, and remains highly detrimental to the future of this organization on a strategic level insofar as it sent a message to our Palestinian members and other leftist organizations that Palestine is not a priority for DSA, and that we are more interested in building personal relationships with elected officials than adhering to our democratically determined values.

It is the position of the Pittsburgh DSA that the BDSWG was unjustly punished for legitimate public criticism of the NPC’s actions in contravention to the will of DSA’s membership, as expressed at the 2019 convention. While the NPC has attempted to justify these undemocratic actions as a response to harassment, grievances among individual members should have been resolved through existing harassment and grievance channels, rather than through the undemocratic collective punishment of the BDSWG.

While the NPC has since partially reversed their decision, by reinstating the BDSWG as a working group, it has failed to reinstate the leaders who were unjustly removed from the group and banned from future leadership positions for one year. 

As an chapter, we want to be clear: Palestinian liberation is a priority in our organizing. The Pittsburgh DSA has been proud to support local Palestinian justice coalitions—including The Pittsburgh Coalition to End the Deadly Exchange and the Pittsburgh BDS Coalition—and to host the BDSWG at our January 2022 General Body Meeting. Our chapter also voted unanimously at our March General Body Meeting to issue our own BDS Resolution which holds us to support the Pittsburgh BDS Coalition, to avoid purchasing boycotted products or services with chapter funds, and to hold our own endorsed candidates accountable for anti-BDS stances or actions. 

Therefore, the Pittsburgh DSA makes the following demands:.

1. Reinstate the leaders of the BDSWG who have full rights, in a democratic organization, to freely and openly critique the broader organization and its leadership, the NPC, when they violate adopted resolutions of the general membership. The freedom to publicly criticism of leadership is essential to any democratic institution.
2. Revoke the one-year ban on these members running for future leadership positions.

In closing, we want to thank the members and leaders of the BDSWG, the minority of the NPC who spoke out against the decision and provided the membership with transparency throughout the process, and our fellow DSA chapters, working groups, and members who have continued to unconditionally support Palestinian liberation.

[Approved by the General Body, May 16, 2022]

The Pittsburgh Democratic Socialists of America recommends its members and the Allegheny County Community vote for Turahn Jenkins for District Attorney in the May 21st Primary Election.

Incumbent District Attorney Stephen Zappala has caused irreparable damage to the people of Allegheny County, especially Black and Brown communities, who face higher rates of incarceration and a terrifying lack of justice regarding police brutality in Allegheny County.

As a direct consequence of Zappala’s work, the Allegheny County Jail imprisons more than 2,000 people, and sees upwards of 100 new arrests per day. Zappala has also chosen to prosecute sex workers, as well as those charged with so-called “crimes of existing” such as loitering, public urination, and other behaviors necessary for survival that have been criminalized under the capitalist system. If re-elected, Zappala would continue and deepen the harms faced by Allegheny County’s most marginalized residents.

If we had a District Attorney committed to rehabilitative justice, communities all across Allegheny County would see improvements in their day to day lives. A District Attorney who believes that Black lives matter and is committed to abolishing cash bail, decriminalizing sex work, holding police accountable for their crimes, refusing to cooperate with ICE, and stopping the school-to-prison pipeline could save thousands from being forced into the criminal justice system and save lives.

The Primary Election on May 21st is our opportunity to choose that District Attorney by voting for Turahn Jenkins.

In his responses to our endorsement questionnaire and during the Q&A session at our meeting, Mr. Jenkins pledged to implement a slew of policies that would reduce the criminal justice system’s destructive role in Allegheny County communities.

First and foremost, he pledges to massively reduce cash bail through a presumption of release policy. He views cash bail as “essentially criminalizing poverty.” Additionally, Turahn Jenkins plans to create a conviction review unit to identify wrongful convictions and free the innocent, and to end the practice of overcharging defendants in order to secure plea deals. He promises to never cooperate with ICE or any other immigration enforcement agency. Further, he has pledged to help unhoused people access treatment and other non-carceral services, and to interrupt the school-to-prison pipeline by opposing police presence in schools and favoring restorative justice initiatives in cases involving juveniles.

Turahn Jenkins is committed to the decriminalization of sex work, and promised to examine the predatory practices of the Pittsburgh PRIDE court.

Mr. Jenkins wants to expand the Citizen’s Police Review Board to be county wide, and says that he would handle cases of police brutality much differently than Zappala’s office has. Mr. Jenkins believes that no profession makes you above the law, and that being a police officer is not an exception to this rule. In regards to the recent trial of Michael Rosfeld, Mr. Jenkins has said that he would have done a number of things differently than Zappala’s office. Zappala did not try the case himself, and Mr. Jenkins said that he would have handled the case personally. He also would have called in an expert on police use of force, which Zappala’s office failed to do.

During our chapter Question & Answer session with Turahn Jenkins, many of our members expressed concern around Mr. Jenkins’ hurtful comments towards the LGBTQ+ community last year. Our members asked whether Mr. Jenkins had taken deliberate steps to educate himself around issues impacting the LGBTQ+ community, and whether he would support policies important to the LGBTQ+ community. He answered “yes” and shared with us how he has been educating himself and seeking education from the queer community. Turahn told us that he opposes conversion therapy and is committed to using his position as District Attorney to pressure Allegheny County Jail to treat LGBTQ+ people with the basic respect they deserve. This includes policies that improve the material conditions of those currently incarcerated, such as housing trans people in prisons that match their gender. Mr. Jenkins also pledged to have queer people on his staff and understands that he will be a better District Attorney with the queer community having a seat at the table.

Turahn Jenkins apologized to our LGBTQ+ members who were harmed by his remarks and actions. He acknowledged that he still has lots of learning to do and is actively working to do so. Because we know so many of Allegheny County’s LGBTQ+ community have felt torn deciding how to approach this race, we are hopeful that Turahn Jenkins will share publicly the steps he has taken to unlearn homophobia and transphobia, and the ways that as District Attorney he could reduce harm done to the LGBTQ+ community – in particular, because we believe it is important and commendable that those entrusted with power in an unjust justice system demonstrate an ability to recognize wrong in themselves and work to change, as he is doing and has done. With so much at stake for all of Allegheny County’s marginalized and oppressed communities in this election, we hope that everyone will get to hear about his commitment to justice that our membership so appreciated.

Turahn Jenkins understands well that the present criminal justice system and its old guard leadership like Zappala have undermined and incapacitated the poor and marginalized, thus sabotaging safety, solidarity, and justice. Together, his policies and stances reflect a  commitment to push back against this system of criminal injustice, institutional racism, and mass incarceration. As socialists, we admire a candidate who shares these commitments with us.

Electing Turahn Jenkins is the moral choice, one that would reduce the daily and ongoing violence waged upon the people of Allegheny County by Stephen Zappala’s unjust and racist term as District Attorney, particularly for the Black community.

For the past year, our streets have seen protest after protest demanding change, demanding justice, and making clear: Stephen Zappala has got to go. We do not believe one election or a different District Attorney will bring total justice. We do believe that District Attorney Turahn Jenkins would materially improve the lives of everyone in Allegheny County, particularly those disproportionately targeted by a white supremacist police and prison system.

We strongly encourage our membership to vote for Turahn Jenkins.

The Pittsburgh chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America endorses the National Prisoners Strike taking place from August 21 to September 9. We stand in solidarity with prisoners across the US bravely demanding their rights, dignity, and material well-being.

The National Strike has been called in response to a tragic massacre on April 15 at Lee Correctional Institution in South Carolina. When tensions between inmates that had been stoked by prison officials boiled over into a brawl, officials did nothing to intervene or treat the injured, culminating in at least seven people losing their lives. The blame for this tragedy lies at the hands of the institution, not the prisoners.

More broadly, the blame lies with a violent society that warehouses people for their social problems — unemployment, drug addiction, mental health issues, and more — instead of actually solving their problems. The vast majority of the imprisoned are not violent, having committed mostly drug and property crimes. Rather, the system of prisons and policing is inherently violent.

As we support the brave striking comrades on the inside, we simultaneously call for the abolition of prisons and police on the outside, knowing full well that this system provides more harm than security and exacts intolerable suffering on the marginalized.

For information on the striking prisoners’ 10 demands, and how to support them, visit the following websites:
http://prisonstrike.com/
https://fundly.com/2018-prisoner-strike
http://sawarimi.org/national-prison-strike

For printable flyers:
https://incarceratedworkers.org/resources/august-21-prison-strike-printable-flyers

The Pittsburgh chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America is thrilled to announce that Sara Innamorato and Summer Lee emerged victorious from the May 15th, 2018 primary elections for their respective State Representative races. Also endorsed by the national DSA, State Rep. candidates Sara Innamorato and Summer Lee have firmly demonstrated that bold left values hold broad appeal for working Pittsburghers.

These wins indicate that a renewed, vibrant left in America is not an aberration, but instead that working people are ready for real change, progressive policies, and a society that works for all of us, not a select few. Pittsburgh voters will require candidates who stand for economic and social justice, who fight against the injustices of our carceral system, who will ensure that we have clean water and air, who believe in fully funding public education and creating a system that provides healthcare for all, and who will fight for universal reforms for working people.

Endorsement by the Pittsburgh DSA includes the completion of a detailed policy questionnaire, a public statement and Q&A with our membership, and member debate and vote. These candidates were specifically endorsed—in near-unanimous votes—because of their shared belief that our current political and economic system is fundamentally unjust. Members of the Pittsburgh DSA have organized canvasses, knocked on over ten thousand doors, and engaged with Pittsburghers in these districts on the issues that mattered to them, from environmental justice to single-payer healthcare and more.

Though Kareem Kandil, also endorsed by the Pittsburgh DSA, was unsuccessful in seeking the Democratic nomination in House District 30, the tightness of this race in a historically Republican district is, in itself, a success for left politics. A significant portion of the voters in these districts have proven their support for the values of the American left.

The successes of Sara Innamorato and Summer Lee build on top of the wins of Pittsburgh DSA-endorsed candidates Mik Pappas, District Judge, and Anita Prizio, Allegheny County Council, in 2017. The Pittsburgh DSA is hopeful to look forward, ensuring that Sara and Summer will be successful in Harrisburg, and to continue building and growing here in Pittsburgh.

President Trump’s decision today to withdraw the U.S. from the JCPOA with Iran is a harrowing development. Moreover, it is a clear violation of the terms of the deal. As democratic socialists, we object to actions that harm the marginalized at home and abroad, and we advocate building collective power through international negotiations toward denuclearization and demilitarization.

Along with détente with Cuba, the JCPOA was one of the few rays of light in an Obama foreign policy that otherwise institutionalized the perpetual war state of the Bush Administration. The deal was a success at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons, according to leading nonproliferation experts as well as the U.S.’s and Israel’s own security establishments. It also removed the core justification for another aggressive U.S. war. Given the presence in Trump’s administration of lifelong Iran hawks such as National Security Advisor John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, we should not be surprised if Iran’s purported “efforts to get a nuclear weapon” — which the JCPOA was the best tool available for stopping — are used as pretext for future hostile US actions, from more sanctions to all-out bombing or invasion.

Let us not forget, however, that in the summer of 2017 it was Democrats in Congress who paved the way for today’s withdrawal with their foolish Iran sanctions package, which they bundled with Russia sanctions in an attempt to coax President Trump into opposing Putin. Out of hostility towards Iran, Trump happily signed the bill into law. The single Democratic caucus member to vote against it? Independent Bernie Sanders, who cited the need for peaceful reconciliation, not war, with Iran.

As a historic agreement is being realized in Korea, today’s news is a stark and distressing contrast. But we must not lose hope — instead, we must fight back. Here in the U.S., that means uniting to demand that politicians of all parties, in all branches and at all levels of government, commit to a pro-peace, anti-war agenda.

— Pittsburgh DSA Anti-Imperialism Committee

To look at the situation in Syria and believe that the solution is more bombs is barbarous. Military interventions by the United States have never benefited the civilians of the country violated. There are no “precise” air strikes. When children see tear gas canisters and remnants of shells, they see “Made in the USA.” When refugees try to flee from death and destruction, the doors to America are slammed in their faces.

When the United States struck Syria last year, weapons manufacturers gained nearly $5 billion. Where does this money end up? Not in the pockets of the American people; surely not in aid packages to the people whose lives these weapons destroyed. While these billions each year go to more bombs for us to drop on Syria, cities like Flint, Michigan and Pittsburgh do not even have the basic infrastructure to provide safe drinking water to its citizens.

We condemn these attacks on Syria and on imperial wars worldwide. We demand an end to wars for profit fought by and against the poor. No war but class war!

— Pittsburgh DSA Anti-Imperialism Committee

Sen. Bob Casey,

It has come to our attention that you intend to join in on right-wing Sen. Lindsey Graham’s legislation (S. 2311) that would make it illegal for any person to perform or attempt an abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Those performing or receiving an abortion after that point would face the possible penalty of up to five years in prison, fines, or both.

In supporting this legislation, you are aggressively punishing the poor, the working class, people of color, and all marginalized communities in the state of Pennsylvania. Voting yea on S. 2311 will confirm your continuing failure to represent women’s health rights, as your constituents saw in 2015.

There is no choice where there is no access.  

S. 2311 would effectively criminalize abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy. In addition to enforcing waiting periods (which are almost never required for other medical procedures), this bill would unnecessarily burden patients and dramatically restrict their access to healthcare.

This legislation would allow women to seek abortion past 20 weeks in only two cases: rape, or incest against a minor. In the case of rape, a woman must receive medical treatment or counseling at least 48 hours prior to her abortion, or she must have reported the rape to law enforcement. In the case of incest, the incident must have been reported to social services or law enforcement.

There are many reasons why an individual does not report their rape to a justice system poorly equipped to handle the crime, such as instances where intimate partner violence is involved. These provisions would create unnecessary barriers and delays for those seeking healthcare after a rape.

These provisions would also further restrict access to abortion for the poor and the vulnerable. Low income people often have to delay their abortion procedures in order to collect funds for the out-of-pocket cost, or because they have difficulty scheduling the procedure due to lack of sick leave or paid time off. This legislation would systematically and intentionally undermine the reproductive rights of working and low-income people.

This is class war.

In the past you have tried, and failed, to overturn Roe v. Wade and to change public opinion on abortion. Do you think your constituents will not notice as you try to achieve the same goal through regulation instead of litigation? We know that abortion regulations disproportionately and systematically rob women of color and those that cannot afford care of the right to choose and actually kill women. We cannot and should not have to jump through hoops to obtain the care we need.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, the national average cost for an abortion in the first trimester is around $500, and as much as $2,000 for the second trimester. Enacted in 1976, the Hyde Amendment officially prohibits federal taxpayer dollars from paying for abortions . Fifty-three percent of abortion patients pay out of pocket for their procedure. It can take a working person months to save up this much money. Because abortion procedures become more complicated and expensive as a pregnancy progresses, each week of delay further increases these costs.

According to research from the Advancing New Standards in Reproductive Health Project, financial and legal restrictions often push people to the 20 week range, and the most common case for abortions at this stage of pregnancy is that the person simply didn’t know they were pregnant until they were past 13 weeks. Your hypocrisy on this issue is a signal to women, people who can carry pregnancies, the poor, and the working class in your constituency that we are disposable to you.

Criminalizing abortions will not prevent abortions. It will make them more dangerous.

Faced with a lack of access to affordable abortion options, many women have attempted to induce their own abortions through less safe means. Some people seek out more affordable avenues with greater health risks, such as the case with the death of Rosie Jimenez in 1978. The state of Texas, with some of the most restrictive abortion regulations akin to those which you are about to sign on to, has the highest maternal mortality rate in the developed world.

Efforts to limit access to abortions will not stop abortions from happening—they will simply punish those who cannot afford abortion care by forcing them to flee the state or gamble with procedures that put their lives at risk. In the United States, abortion should be a safe and legal medical procedure that can be accessed without delay from qualified medical professionals.

We demand an expansion of Medicare for all, covering the full spectrum of comprehensive reproductive care from family planning, STI testing, safer sex tools, and completely unrestricted abortion, on demand without barriers. We know that these bills do not prevent abortion—they callously punish the poor, restrict bodily autonomy, and kill pregnant people.

Signed,

The Pittsburgh chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America