Montgomery County (MoCo), MDC DSA
The Montgomery County (MoCo) Branch of DSA organizes to build local democracy, fight for tax justice and against austerity, demand rent control and sustainable housing, fight fascism, and build solidarity here and abroad.
Current Working Groups
MoCo Tenant Organizing & Rent Stabilization Working Group
The MoCo Tenant Organizing & Rent Stabilization Working Group is working on limiting rent increases throughout Montgomery County through organizing renters. In 2023, members of the rent stabilization working group successfully passed a rent stabilization law that would limit rent increases to 6%. Since passage of the law, the Working Group has been working to garner support for a similar or stronger law to pass in the city of Rockville, as well as advocating for full funding and implementation of the county law. The working group also seeks to organize renters in tenant associations to win improvements in housing costs and conditions at the building level and at the policy level.
MoCo Upcounty Working Group
A group of DSA members who live upcounty (the area of the county off of 270, “where the red line ends” including Rockville, Gaithersburg, Germantown, Montgomery Village, Clarksburg, and beyond) have been meeting regularly to discuss plans for tenant organizing and electoral engagement upcounty. Since first getting together, they have planned several upcounty social events as well as tenant canvasses at the Gateway apartments in Gaithersburg. This group is also spearheading early efforts to organize against data centers in our county.
MoCo Palestine Solidarity Working Group
Currently, the group is organizing to end state and county funding for the Maryland Israel Development Center as part of the Drop the MIDC coalition. Past organizing has included organizing against the county’s adoption of the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism, organizing testimony in support of a statewide ceasefire resolution, organizing voters to vote Uncommitted in the 2024 Maryland Democratic primary to send a message for peace and justice in Palestine, and supporting area students and nonprofits who have faced attacks for their speech in support of Palestine.
MoCo ICE Watch Working Group
In response to attacks on our community from ICE and the federal government, our branch has joined as a partner of the Montgomery County Immigrant Rights Coalition. Our immigrant rights and anti-ice work consists of regularly joining know your rights canvasses and other community events organized by MoCo IRC, as well as fundraising to help pay for the expenses of printing know your rights materials and supporting families impacted by ICE raids and detentions.
MoCo Street Team
The Street Team focused on membership recruitment and having a visible presence for MoCo branch at community events in the county. We have tabled at events in the past like the Takoma Park folk festival, Long Branch Festival, Taste of Wheaton, Silver Spring Thanksgiving Parade. We would love to expand our tabling presence throughout the county! If you like attending community events and talking to neighbors, we invite you to join our work.
Operations Groups
MoCo Communications Team
This team works to promote our branch presence in DMV and online through strategic messaging, social media, and communications campaigns. We are especially interested in re-launching our social media presence, working alongside local journalists to promote our content and events, and increase our rapid response comms work.
MoCo Electoral Team
Currently, we are organizing to support our three endorsed candidates in MoCo. We aim to reach out to local residents to support these campaigns, create a canvass launch playbook, maintain engagement among our membership, and win all three elections.
MoCo Coalitions Team
The Coalitions Team will ensure we are being proactive and supportive partners throughout the county so we can recruit from like-minded orgs and enhance our working group effectiveness.
MoCo Advocacy Team
The Advocacy Team will provide strategic intelligence to the branch, steering committees, and working groups across local, county, and state politics to make our legislative and regulatory advocacy more effective.
MoCo YDSA Team
The YDSA team will ensure the smooth creation of new YDSA chapters in the county and help YDSA chapters collaborate with our branch.
MoCo Branch Development Team
The Branch Development Team should serve branch and working groups by consistently growing membership and quickly and effectively getting new & dormant members active in activities that match their passions and skills.
Monthly MoCo General Body Meeting
All MoCo DSA members are encouraged to participate in these meetings to stay updated and involved. The MoCo General Body Meetings take place monthly in-person and virtually, and are made available for RSVP on the chapter’s Calendar of Events.
Steering Members
| Jack S | Co-Chair |
| Kéah | Co-Chair |
| Mike | Chapter Delegate |
| Sameer | Advocacy Chair & Coalitions Co-Chair |
| Eric | Treasurer & Coalitions Co-Chair |
| Marc | YDSA Chair |
| Tony | Comms Chair |
Land Acknowledgement
The Montgomery County (MoCo) Branch of DSA are on the ancestral lands of the Piscataway Conoy Tribe, the rightful past, present, and future inhabitants of this land. The Piscataway Indian Nation & Piscataway Conoy Confederacy originally lived in large parts of present-day Maryland and D.C. Due to settler colonialism beginning in the 1600s, many of their people were killed and displaced into Northern Virginia & Pennsylvania, and those who stayed remained in the Southern Maryland area. They have not been able to move from Southern Maryland since the early 20th century. White settlers separated Piscataways from important water sources – the Potomac, Anacostia, Chesapeake. We further affirm that this district and this country were built with the stolen labor of enslaved African people, and we resolve that any vision of socialism must center racial justice and commit to fighting white supremacy in all its forms.
Please find the MoCo DSA Land Acknowledgement, Code of Conduct & Participation Guidelines here.