Tag: events

  • Monthly Round-Up – November 2025

    By a Comrade

    This article is written by a DSA member and does not formally represent the views of MADSA as a whole or its subgroups. 

    Welcome to Vol. 4 of the monthly round-up! The content in this publication overlaps significantly with our DSA newsletter and monthly General Membership Meetings. To sign up for the newsletter or check out an upcoming General Membership Meeting, visit: https://madison-dsa.org/events/

    Behind-the-Scenes in a Growing Org

    Over the past year, the DSA has had a huge boom in membership nationally, a surge in membership here in Madison, and an increase in name recognition after Zohran Mamdani’s recent high-profile win in NYC (as well as other wins across the nation!). MADSA saw several new work groups form throughout 2025, as well as new projects, book clubs, potential candidate endorsements, and events for members and the community at large. These efforts all remain underway!

    As MADSA has scaled up, we’ve also contended with more mundane operational questions– How do we handle marketing and social media posts, now that there are so many more events? How are we feeling about our electoral endorsement process when it’s for re-elections? How can we keep developing comradeship among members? What is a good venue for our monthly meeting?!

    Here is a small behind-the-scenes look at some changes as we expand:

    • The Communication Committee (Comms) is working on appointing “liaisons” within each working group and project, so that Comms can stay better oriented to the chapter’s marketing/posting needs;
    • Comms and Executive Committee are also working on increasing direct posting access for various Working Groups so that they are not solely reliant on Comms for posting information about events and actions;
    • The Electoral Working Group has been exploring endorsement for several candidates running in state and local races, as well as discussing and reviewing the endorsement processes themselves;
    • Various members continue their efforts to revitalize Red Madison for internal and public readership – this has included identifying people who are open to contributing, as well as making calls for submissions at our general meetings;
    • The chapter will be publishing a resource to prepare for the 2026 Chapter Convention, where members will continue shaping the direction of MADSA;
    • The chapter has been experimenting with a few different venue options for GMMs to accommodate our new numbers and the geographical distribution of our membership.

    It is our hope that these changes will support the continued growth of the chapter, both in scope and in activity levels. 

    Social Events

    Our chapter had two reading groups wrap up in November:

    • Skyscraper Jails, discussed in the Abolitionist Working Group meetings;
    • Wretched of the Earth, discussed on Sundays, in a hybrid virtual/in-person format.

    We continue hosting recurring social events – New Member Orientations, Coffee with Comrades, Crafting with Comrades, MADSA Run Club, and the Rosebuddies program. 

    As the year comes to an end, we’ll be reaching out to members and asking about their experiences in MADSA this year, and their socialist resolutions for 2026. We’re also planning a New Year’s party on New Year’s Eve, details forthcoming!

    Protest Song of the Month

    For a November protest song, I’d like to highlight an artist from an indigenous background and ties to the Midwest – John Trudell. John was a Santee poet, musician, actor, speaker, veteran, and activist, at one point chairing the American Indian Movement (AIM). Here is the Listening / Honor Song, a spoken word piece over traditional music. The lyrics can be found here. 

    And that concludes our monthly round-up!

  • Monthly Round-Up – October 2025

    By a Comrade

    This article is written by a DSA member and does not formally represent the views of MADSA as a whole or its subgroups. 

    Welcome to Vol. 3 of the monthly round-up! The content in this publication overlaps significantly with our DSA newsletter and monthly General Membership Meetings. To sign up for the newsletter or check out an upcoming General Membership Meeting, visit: https://madison-dsa.org/events/

    Union Efforts Continue in Madison

    In August we celebrated the successful union elections at Festival Foods, and Hilton Monona Terrace. Another union battle continues in Madison, however, led by healthcare workers at GHC, and supported by patients and community members.

    The GHC union effort was able to initiate a Special Member Meeting on October 13, where patients with GHC could express opinions on unionization, and conduct an “advisory” vote directing GHC to support the union. Members unanimously supported the union, and asked GHC’s board for transparency around how much money they’re spending on union busting.  Read more here! 

    Beating Back the Political Doom

    MADSA members have been creating more opportunities to learn and be in community, for members AND non-members. These are crucial antidotes to the doom, overwhelm, and helplessness that many people are feeling about the current state of the world. 

    This month, these events included:

    • A discussion with Copaganda author Alec Karakatsanis about policing, media, and narratives around safety;
    • A presentation, for people of all knowledge levels, on understanding the mechanisms of capitalist exploitation, titled Marx’s Capital and Global Capitalism Today;
    • An Organizing 101 workshop for people to learn about workers’ rights and the union process.

    The Electoral Working Group is also busy at work in this realm. Members of this WG have been canvassing local residents to learn more about the issues that matter most to them, and what solutions they hope to see. The working group also organized a public Madison Community Town Hall, with the goal of creating a space for community members to express grievances and connect around possible next steps.

    There was also fruitful internal discussion this month about a potential change to a MADSA voting policy, and how this interacts with the role of meetings in our organization. Some members made compelling points about meetings as a space for developing important leadership skills, refining our ideas and worldviews, changing each others’ minds, and strengthening community bonds; on the other hand, other members discussed concerns around accessibility and inclusivity, and encouraged the chapter to ensure that people can participate meaningfully in major decisions if they have limitations around meeting attendance. Debates like this reflect the chapter’s process of growth, and ongoing work around participatory and inclusive democracy. 

    Further Organizing Highlights This Month

    Our work continues in many ways thanks to our dedicated membership. Here are other key organizing efforts taking place this month in MADSA. This summary is not exhaustive! 

    • No Kings, No Bosses – The “No Kings” protests had a massive presence across the country this month, and this included Madison, WI! MADSA members showed up with a strong presence at the rally.
    • The petition process begins for potentially endorsing candidates in statewide elections. When MADSA endorses a candidate, it is not just a symbolic seal of approval; the chapter is also pledging to provide consistent labor and organization to help that candidate win and to collaborate with them throughout their term. Candidates who wish to gain backing from MADSA must go through a process that includes collecting petition signatures, meeting several times with various chapter bodies, and ultimately winning a chapter-wide endorsement vote. The candidate must demonstrate their commitment to following the expectations outlined in the chapter’s endorsed candidate policy, found here.
    • MADSA’s No Appetite for Apartheid contingent is supporting members in making a pledge to boycott Israeli products. Click here to take the pledge, and to get updates about stores who commit to being an Apartheid Free Store.

    Social Opportunities

    Our chapter has several ongoing reading groups, including:

    • Skyscraper Jails, discussed in the Abolitionist Working Group meetings;
    • Wretched of the Earth, discussed on Sundays, in a hybrid virtual/in-person format.

    We continue hosting recurring social events – New Member Orientations, Coffee with Comrades, Crafting with Comrades,  MADSA Run Club, and the Rosebuddies program.

    Protest Song of the Month

    The song I choose for this month is “Freedom Now” by Tracy Chapman! This song was dedicated to Nelson Mandela and his work in the anti-apartheid movement. I think that the sentiments in this song still resonate to this day.

    And that concludes our monthly round-up!