Winning Time for Socialists in Tacoma

Socialists are taking on Tacoma City Hall and winning. My four guests today are all good friends and fellow leaders of Tacoma DSA. We're in the midst of a major ballot initiative campaign to win the strongest tenant protections in Washington state, and on the cusp of winning DSA’s first seat on Tacoma City Council for Jamika Scott, a deeply-rooted Black leader and democratic socialist.In this episode, we tell the story of how Tacoma City Council, on behalf of the landlord lobby, tried to defeat our Tenant Bill of Rights with a watered-down, competing ballot measure – and how we took them to court and won, getting their deceptive measure removed from the November ballot.We discuss the labor movement’s strong support for our Initiative #1, the debate in labor around Jamika's campaign, and how these fights are positioning DSA to help transform Tacoma city politics in the years ahead.Find out more about Initiative #1, the Tenant Bill of Rights, at Tacoma4All.org, and follow our campaign on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @Tacoma4AllTacoma DSA endorsed candidate Jamika Scott’s website is jamikafortacoma.comCheck out The Stranger's article, “Tacoma is the Revolution,” which we reference in this episode.Become a Monthly Sustainer of SOCIALIST SOUNDThis podcast is only possible due to the generous monthly contributions of Seattle DSA members and supporters who pay my part-time salary as the chapter’s Communications Organizer. To sustain this podcast, and our wider communications work, please become a monthly contributor at seattledsa.org/podcast