APRIL 10, 2026
This is the weekly newsletter of the Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America (MDC DSA), which is produced by local members of the chapter’s Publications Working Group. The Weekly Update publishes every Friday at 9am. Ready to fight the Trumpocalypse? Join DSA, fight to win with a real alternative!
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CONTENTS
UP FRONT
DC Future Land Use Map falls short of DC’s housing crisis
Final call for candidates seeking endorsement: Metro DC DSA’s 2026 general election endorsement applications are open until Sunday, April 12 at 11:59pm
- Socialists planning spring Brake Light Repair Clinic; outreach mobilizing THIS Sunday (April 12) at 1pm
DC Future Land Use Map falls short of DC’s housing crisis
A conversation around the future of DC’s land use has been developing across the last month, following the Office of Planning’s publication of the draft Future Land Use Map (FLUM). The office’s Comprehensive Plan, of which this map is part, will determine the next 25 years of development and land use in the District. The map has drawn criticism from nearly all corners, but none more salient than those from MDC DSA endorsed candidates Aparna Raj (Ward 1) and Janeese Lewis George (Mayor).
In a statement to Greater Greater Washington, Aparna noted, “Every single person in Ward 1 and across DC deserves a dignified, affordable place to live. But that life is out of reach for too many, and the Office of Planning’s draft Future Land Use Map has failed to meet the scale of the housing crisis. […] The Office of Planning’s Future Land Use Map does not just fail to meet the moment; it deeply entrenches racial segregation and shameful exclusionary zoning at the expense of the working class and people of color.”
In her video on the FLUM, Aparna has encouraged supporters to provide feedback in the Office of Planning’s DC 2050 online form advocating for legalizing rowhomes & apartment buildings District-wide, increasing density & mixed-use housing on public land (hopefully social housing in the future), reducing setback requirements, and eliminating parking minimums. Residents have until the end of the month to submit their feedback.
In a series of posts of X, Janeese stated, “DC’s housing shortage is driving our affordability crisis — and we need to act like it. We cannot address the crisis while banning rowhomes and apartments across much of DC and codifying exclusion. There are too many missed opportunities here for a plan meant to get us to 2050. It’s tempting to think the status quo will keep our neighborhoods the same as they are now, but it won’t. Instead, it will worsen our housing shortage — pushing families out, draining revenue from our city, and emptying out storefronts. Our communities will pay a visible price.”
As the affordability of housing continues to squeeze residents of DC, both Janeese Lewis George and Aparna Raj offer ambitious plans to both expand housing availability while protecting and expanding tenant rights. To join the fight to get them elected, join MDC DSA in the canvassing operation this weekend:
- Saturday, April 11 at 11:30am: Socialists are planning outreach in scenic Park View to talk with locals about Aparna’s vision for a more affordable and accessible DC.
- Sunday, April 12 at 2:30pm: Socialists will be mobilizing in NoMa to discuss Janeese’s plan to address DC’s housing crisis.
Final call for candidates seeking endorsement: Metro DC DSA’s 2026 general election endorsement applications are open until Sunday, April 12 at 11:59pm
Socialists across the DMV are pounding the pavement in support of the chapter’s endorsed candidates in primary elections, knocking doors, making calls, texting, and talking with neighbors about the candidates who have real platforms to improve the lives of everyday people. Looking past the primaries: Metro DC DSA recently announced its updated 2026-2027 electoral endorsement process and timeline (see the endorsement handbook for a comprehensive look). In short, the timeline for the 2026 general election endorsement process will be as follows:
- Endorsement questionnaires (linked on endorsements page) due by THIS Sunday, April 12
- Endorsement resolution deadline on Sunday, April 19
- First read of endorsement resolution at MDC DSA general body meeting on Sunday, April 26
- Candidate or ballot measure campaign Q&As in May
- Second read and debate of endorsement resolutions at general body meeting on Sunday, June 28
All who wish to submit a request for endorsement in the 2026 general election cycle must return their completed endorsement questionnaire to pec@mdcdsa.org by the deadline of Sunday, April 12.
Socialists planning spring Brake Light Repair Clinic; outreach mobilizing THIS Sunday (April 12) at 1pm
Broken brake lights can lead to unnecessary interactions with the police and federal agents — as well as fines and police violence. To combat this, Metro DC DSA’s Abolition Working Group is planning to hold another free brake light repair clinic on Saturday, April 18 from 11am to 4pm outside of the Rhode Island Ave AutoZone (519 Rhode Island Ave NE). At the clinic, anyone will be able to get their brake lights repaired for free, learn how to repair brake lights themselves, and learn more about building an abolitionist future for DC — which includes removing police from traffic enforcement.
In order to spread the word for the brake light clinic, the working group will be wheatpasting on Sunday, April 12 from 1 – 4pm, with a happy hour at the Dew Drop Inn to follow. Any level of experience is welcome; working group leads will teach everyone how to repair a brake light, wheatpaste, and canvass. Comfortable shoes are recommended. Meet at the Rhode Island Ave AutoZone at 1pm to join the brake light outreach and training session, and RSVP at link to receive updates and reminders.
BRIEFS
Spring Hits as Maryland socialists mobilize around electoral slate in Montgomery County, PG County
In Montgomery County: Josie Caballero is fighting to protect tenants, defend MoCo’s immigrant community, and create a progressive county tax structure. Josie will be holding a canvass on Sunday, April 12 at 2pm, from Takoma Urban Park (7035 Carroll Ave, Takoma Park, MD 20912). Training, rides to doors, and buddies will be provided to all who need them.
Zola Shaw is widely recognized as THE pro-tenant and pro-union candidate in the District 3 County Council race, leading the rent stabilization charge in Rockville and garnering endorsements from every labor union in this race. Zola will be canvassing on Saturday, April 11 at 1pm, and Sunday April 12 at 1pm. Training and buddies will be provided to all who need them.
Gabe Acevero is a cadre candidate running to get ICE out of Maryland, lower the cost of living, and expand healthcare throughout the state. Gabe will be holding canvasses on Saturday, April 11 at 10am and 1pm and Sunday, April 12 at 1pm and 3pm, at Whetstone Elementary School (19201 Thomas Farm Rd, Montgomery Village, MD 20886). All are welcome, including anyone new to electoral organizing — training will be provided for those who need it.
And in Prince George’s County: Building on his qualification for public financing through the County’s new Fair Elections Fund, longtime chapter member Imara Crooms, running to represent District 9 on County Council, will be canvassing with DSA members in the Clinton area at 12pm on Sunday, April 12 after meeting up at Branch Avenue Metro Station. As a result of qualifying for matching funds, Imara will have the resources needed to compete with opponents who are not relying on grassroots fundraising.
On Saturday, April 18 at 12pm, Imara and Raaheela Ahmed, whom the Metro DC Chapter endorsed in her run to represent District 23 in the Maryland Senate, will have a joint canvass in Marlton. The PG County Branch is planning to make this the biggest canvass yet — all locals invited to join, regardless of canvassing experience.
Aparna Raj for DC Council, Ward 1: BAWG-led canvass on April 19, Public Land Working Group meeting on April 20
Aparna Raj, former chapter chair and chapter-endorsed candidate for the Ward 1 seat on DC Council, is the clear frontrunner for the race, with her policies setting the tone amongst the candidates. The Bodily Autonomy Working Group (BAWG), Queer Section, and Socialist Feminist Section are joining forces to lead a canvass for Raj on Sunday, April 19 from 1 – 4pm. The canvass will launch from the Columbia Heights Civic Plaza (1400 Park Road). RSVP for the April 19 canvass here.
Raj will also be speaking about social housing in Ward 1 at the Public Land Working Group’s organizing meeting on April 20 at 5:30pm. Comrades in the U Street Corridor will have the opportunity to ask Raj about her vision for social housing and the steps to making it happen. RSVP for the virtual April 20 Public Land meeting here.
Canvass with the Palestine Solidarity Movement for Janeese on April 18th from 11am – 2pm at Lyman’s Tavern
While Zionists continue to smear JLG for her support for Palestinian human rights and her DSA endorsement, residents are pushing back against their conflation of Palestinian solidarity with antisemitism; see this op-ed by a chapter member in the Washington Blade and this article in the People’s World for two recent examples. The Red Machine and DC’s Palestine solidarity organizers are hitting the doors in Ward 4 on Saturday, April 18th from 11am – 2pm to talk to voters about making Janeese Lewis George the next mayor of DC. With Janeese being the only candidate committed to ending US-Israel police partnerships and protecting residents’ right to protest freely, it has never been more important to join Metro DC DSA’s electoral work. From the heart of the US empire to Palestine, our movement for working-class liberation endures. RSVP for the Palestine solidarity canvass for Janeese here.
DC Spanish Club for Socialists is at St. Stephen’s — Monday, April 13th at 7pm
Spanish Club for Socialists, a project of multiple area socialist and mutual aid organizations including Metro DC DSA, is a free weekly event where organizers meet up to practice their Spanish. The event is about 90 minutes long and is split into beginner, intermediate, and advanced groups, so learners of all levels should feel welcome. The next session is scheduled for Monday, April 13th from 7 – 8:30pm at St. Stephen’s (1525 Newton St NW). Sign up here for calendar updates and conversation guides.
DC Budget 101 and hearing testimony preparation on April 16 at 7pm
The Mayor’s budget is supposed to be released today, April 10, and budget hearings should be scheduled next week. In preparation for the upcoming budget season, Metro DC DSA is holding a virtual workshop on Thursday, April 16 at 7pm to explain some basics about the DC budget process, as well as how to write budget testimony. Participants will learn more about the budget timeline, how budget hearings fit into the process, and how to effectively deliver budget testimonies as an individual and within a coalition. Though put on by the chapter’s Abolition working group, this workshop will not focus on public safety and will be accessible to any working group or issue within the District. RSVP for the April 16 budget 101 workshop here.
PG Abolition Working Group cohosting fundraiser for DMV Black Mamas Bailout
The Metro DC DSA Prince George’s Abolition Working Group is co-hosting a fundraiser for the DMV Black Mamas Bailout on Sunday, April 19 from 10 – 2pm, taking place at Creative Suitland (4719 Silver Hill Road, Suitland, MD). The fundraiser will be a clothing swap where people can drop off clean and gently-used clothes and get a bag of new clothes for $10. The working group is looking for at least five volunteers for the event — volunteers will handle payments and greet people, sort clothes, and table for the Prince George’s branch; anyone interested in volunteering can email pgdsa@mdcdsa.org. For anyone unable to join on April 19 who wants to contribute clothing, feel free to DM the PG branch Instagram or DM Sarah S. on the chapter Slack to organize a pickup.
Bodily Autonomy Working Group hosting fundraiser party on April 30 at as you are.
Join the Bodily Autonomy Working Group for a night of fundraising and partying on April 30 from 7 – 9pm. There will be tunes by DC’s resident DJ Byte Back, local handmade goods for sale by silent auction, and free reproductive sexual health care kits and Narcan available to all who want them. RSVP for the fundraiser party here. Can’t make it but want to support the Bodily Autonomy Working Group’s essential work? Donate to the fundraiser here.
Comrades needed: Member Engagement Department seeking ward captains and AdCom team seeking tech/AV experts
Metro DC DSA members in Wards 2, 4, 7, or 8 who are interested in building neighborhood community are invited to complete this interest form to become a ward captain. Each ward will have one or two ward captains to track ward membership, manage communication and outreach channels, and plan social events to bring together DSA members and non-members alike.
The MDC DSA Administrative Committee is also seeking volunteers to help run the A/V equipment during general body meetings and other chapter events. On-the-job training is provided. Contact member-engagement@mdcdsa.org if interested in either opportunity or for other ways to get involved in the department.
INFO ACCESS
Metro DC Democratic Socialists of America, uniting the DMV, is one of a number of big urban DSA chapters — and many more compact but potent ones within the country’s Blue AND Red corridors — that are building a true political Left across the US. All this as Trump, flailing, seeks a nationalist rush with brain-dead warmaking, and ill-trained ICE paramilitary irregulars layer white-nationalist terrorism atop our everyday capitalist yoke. This is the terrain on which we fight back, gain allies, and, more often every day, win.
- Your first step? Join DSA and fight to build socialism. We’re the alternative that works for people, not profiteers and their captive politicians. Still thinking about it? Be sure to get this Update every Friday in your inbox, member or not.
- Check out the breadth and scope of our Metro DC chapter — DMV branches, working groups, campaigns, current activities, and enduring values — right here. Get the full but concise picture at “Why You Should Join DSA/New Member Orientation” in a virtual version from 7 – 8pm on Wednesday, April 15.
- How is our activism grounded? See the rich archive of our acclaimed Socialist Night School. Read the Washington Socialist, published since the 1970s, which is set to publish its spring 2026 issue this month. Ahead of time, several timely works of analysis: Big Tech’s role in apartheid and genocide (and local resistance), the US-supported UAE-RSF genocide in Sudan, and an overview of the suppressed history of the Black socialist tradition. Watch the latest MDC Dispatch video chronicle on YouTube for more recent coverage.
- Already a member? Join our Slack for real-time info on working group and campaign events, strategy/tactic exchange, and inspiration. Email slack@mdcdsa.org with your most recent DSA dues receipt to get access.
DSA CALENDAR OF EVENTS
Friday, April 10
3pm – 6pm | PGDSA and YDSA at UMD Happy Hour
Saturday, April 11
10am – 2pm | Canvass for Josie Caballero
10am – 3pm | Canvass for Gabe Acevero
1 – 4pm | Canvass for Zola Shaw
3 – 5pm | MoCo Branch April General Body Meeting
Sunday, April 12
11am – 2pm | NoVA MAWG Monthly Distribution, Courthouse Edition
12 – 3pm | Canvass for Imara Crooms for PG County Council
1 – 4pm | Brake Light Clinic Training and Wheatpasting
1 – 4pm | Canvass for Zola Shaw
1 – 5pm | Canvass for Gabe Acevero
2 – 3:30pm | Socialist Movement Walking Club: National Mall
2 – 6pm | Canvass for Josie Caballero
8 – 9pm | NoVA Electoral Working Group Monthly Meeting
8 – 9pm | 2026 Primaries REDBUG Research Working Meeting
Monday, April 13
5:30pm | Organizing Skills Workshop with National DSA Representative
7 – 8pm | DC/MD Abolition Working Group Biweekly Meeting
8pm | April Workers Organizing Workers Training Session 1
Tuesday, April 14
8 – 10pm | Political Engagement Committee Biweekly Meeting
Wednesday, April 15
6 – 8pm | Why We Organize – MoCo New Member Cohort Session 2
7 – 8pm | Repro Justice Campaign Meeting
7 – 8pm | Why You Should Join DSA: New Member Orientation (virtual)
Thursday, April 16
6:30 – 8:30pm | NoVA Branch DSA Social Meetup
7 – 8:30pm | Testifying at DC Council Budget Hearings 101
Friday, April 17
5pm | MoCo DSA April Upcounty Gathering
Saturday, April 18
10am – 2pm | Canvass for Josie Caballero
11am – 2pm | Palestine Solidarity Canvass for Janeese
11am – 4pm | Abolition Working Group, Free Brake Light Repair Clinic
12 – 3pm | Canvass for PG Candidates Imara and Raaheela
1 – 4pm | Canvass for Zola Shaw
2 – 5pm | MDC DSA Community Defense Working Group Monthly Meeting
Sunday, April 19
1 – 4pm | BAWG Canvass for Aparna Raj
1 – 4pm | Canvass for Zola Shaw
2 – 6pm | Canvass for Josie Caballero
7 – 8:15pm | MDC DSA Internationalism Working Group Monthly Meeting
DMV LEFT BULLETIN
Wheatpaste Against War | April 13 from 7 – 9pm at Kalo House, April 19 from 2 – 5pm at the Festival Center
Join other leftists across the DMV in wheatpasting against the US and Israel’s war on Iran. The workshops are free and accessible to every level of experience — and will also include know your rights trainings. The April 13 session will take place at Kalo House (1827 Kalorama Rd NW) from 7 – 9pm and will be part of the “Liberation According to the Artist Clothing.” The April 19 session will take place at The Festival Center (1640 Columbia Rd NW) from 2 – 5pm and will be part of the Art for Actions skill share with the 411 Collective. More information can be found on Instagram.
So You’ve Been to a Protest: Now What? | April 17 from 12 – 1pm
Join Rising Organizers for this free, virtual training focused on the role of direct action, how to build the networks and relationships that make winning possible, and guidance for what comes next after attending a protest. More information can be found on Instagram and those interested can RSVP here.
Healthcare not Warfare: From Gaza to Cuba to the US | April 14 at Busboys and Poets from 6 – 8pm
Join CODEPINK DC and Doctors Against Genocide to hear from healthcare workers and advocates about their experiences in Gaza and Cuba, how US policies prioritize warfare over the needs of its own people, and how the genocide of Palestinians and economic warfare in Cuba have targeted the healthcare systems. The event will be on April 14 from 6 – 8pm at Busboys and Poets (450 K St NW). RSVP for Healthcare not Warfare here.
ESSENTIAL PERSPECTIVES
ESSENTIAL PERSPECTIVES are articles and opinion pieces of interest to DMV leftists but not, generally, appearing in local media. They should have links without paywalls. Readers are invited to submit candidates at our tip line.
Unemployment Has Increased for U.S.-Born Workers in the Face of Mass Deportations
Trump’s draconian immigration enforcement is harming all workers. The theory was simple: remove immigrant workers, and native-born U.S. citizens would fill those open positions. Well, the results are in, and the opposite is happening. Economic Policy Institute via Portside
Israeli Police Are Violently Suppressing Our Growing Anti-War Protests
As dissent over the Iran war spreads to the political center, demonstrators face crackdowns while opposition lawmakers are still nowhere to be seen. +972 Magazine via Portside
As left activists who choose electoral work, we can both maintain ideological clarity while also remaining politically pragmatic. That can be done. In the difficult times we now find ourselves in, that must be done. Portside
A Remembrance: Martin Jay’s Habermas
What Habermas exemplified then [in 1968] and in the many, many public debates that followed was the ideal of an “engaged intellectual.” But unlike Adorno and Horkheimer, he was hopeful of at least narrowing the gap separating theory from praxis, and to that end he argued directly with his activist opponents. The Ideas Letter
Protests as Organizing Opportunities
An organizer looks at a mass protest and sees something completely different than the cynic does. Scoffing at people who showed up and did the work to turn out millions while offering no alternative is just inaction with an alibi. Tim Hjersted Substack via Portside
Will Avi Lewis turn crisis into coherence for the NDP?
Avi Lewis, the recently elected chair of the New Democratic Party (NDP) in Canada, is perhaps a harbinger of change in the US’ northern neighbor; challenging the “business-as-usual” politics that brought the NDP to near extinction and bringing instead a radical vision inspired (in part) by the examples of Mandami and Bernie. Canadian Dimension
The flame of thought, the magnificence of art, the wonder of discovery, and the audacity of invention all belong to revolutionary periods when humanity, tired of the chains of its restrictions, shatters them, and stops inebriated to breathe the breeze of a vaster and freer horizon.
–Virgilia D’Andrea
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