AMERICAN LEFT HISTORY

This space is dedicated to the proposition that we need to know the history of the struggles on the left and of earlier progressive movements here and world-wide. If we can learn from the mistakes made in the past (as well as what went right) we can move forward in the future to create a more just and equitable society. We will be reviewing books, CDs, and movies we believe everyone needs to read, hear and look at as well as making commentary from time to time. Greg Green, site manager

Sunday, September 10, 2017

From Socialist Alternative- Twin Cities Socialist in National Spotlight

1:05 PM

Socialist Alternative

To alfredjohnson34@comcast.net

Friends,

We have exciting news to share with you. The most recent issue of Jacobinmagazine features Ginger Jentzen's election campaign for Minneapolis City Council! Jacobin is the national magazine for the Democratic Socialists of America - who have endorsed Ginger's campaign. Ginger’s campaign is about empowering working people to fight for a political revolution against the 1% and to make Minneapolis affordable for all. That means taxing the wealthiest developers to create high quality, city-owned affordable housing, building a movement to fight for rent control, and building a political alternative to corporate politics as usual.

“Our district is really at a crossroads for what will happen in the rest of the city. There’s a lot of working- and middle-class home ownership [and renters], and it’s one of the places where some of the fastest development is happening throughout the city, a lot of which is done by these profit driven, big developers who have been given basically free rein to transform the city into a playground for the rich...

You cannot be taking money from big developers and say that you will be able to just easily vote against their interests. You cannot be taking money from the Downtown Council or slumlords...and have working people still believe that you’re going to have their best interests in mind or be able to really fight and organize with them.

It’s critical to stay materially connected with the folks who are constantly dealing with the pressures of trying to make ends meet, facing issues with housing, and all these day-to-day problems. I think taking the average wage of a worker in the ward is one key way that a representative of working people can remain accountable.” - Ginger Jentzen

Can you chip in $27, $50, or $100 to Team Ginger, the campaign that’s not for sale?

“[Winning a $15/hr minimum wage] is about racial, gender, and economic equity. It is disproportionately women and workers of color who are in these low-wage jobs, and you can’t just say a lot of nice things about being for racial and economic equity and then fundamentally disregard that in the end. What we won is $140 million going from the biggest businesses in Minneapolis back into the pockets of workers every year once this is fully implemented. It’s huge. It’s going to have a dramatic impact on people’s lives…”

Read the full interview here. Please donate and join #TeamGinger to win an organizing seat in City Hall!

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