Stories Set Our Movement on Fire!
This article by Jack Lundquist originally appeared in Socialist Forum at https://socialistforum.dsausa.org/issues/2023-dsa-national-convention-discussion/for-an-independent-socialist-movement-an-open-letter-to-the-democratic-socialists-in-congress/
DSA’s mass media operation is essential to its success. Ideas are the spark that can set a movement aflame. With our ideas and our media, we capture people’s imagination, bring them into the fold, spur ourselves to action and reflect on past struggles. All effective social movements utilized mass media in their struggle for a better world. When Tom Paine sat down in 1775 to write his pamphlet “Common Sense,” anti-British sentiment was high, but American independence was not on the table. 500,000 copies later (1 for every 5 Americans!), the American republic was born.
The Black Panthers understood the power of independent mass media for socialists. They produced a weekly newspaper with an international distribution of over 300,000!
Today, DSA’s publications lack the resources needed for them to be a spark for the American socialist movement. We need to scale up our distribution, and we need to bring in more volunteers and political perspectives. DSA is a big-tent organization, but our publications rarely reflect that fact. That is why we are putting forward “For a Political, Prolific and Democratic DSA Editorial Board,” a resolution that will bring democracy and representation to our editorial decisions, and will scale up our mass media to more effectively meet the moment we are in.
The socialist movement is strongest when we unify forces and fight together. This applies to our publications, as well: if contributors to DSA’s many caucus and chapter publications gave even a portion more of their energy towards Democratic Left and Socialist Forum, we would start to see some serious conversations about our path forward. Let’s talk together, experiment together, reflect and grow our movement together. A reinvigorated, big-tent DSA editorial board will allow us to tell the stories that have the potential to set our movement for democracy and socialism on fire. Join us by voting YES on “For a Political, Prolific and Democratic DSA Editorial Board,” and most importantly, by contributing to the conversation in Democratic Left and Socialist Forum. Together, we can rebuild a vibrant culture of political agitation and debate, within DSA and into the mass movements!
