Zohran Mamdani And The DSA In Its Own Words

Zohran Mamdani is a candidate for Mayor of New York City. He is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). What exactly that means, Mamdani does not seem in any hurry to explain. He smiles a lot, and he promises free stuff, and he seems to think that is as much as New Yorkers need to know.

We thought then we would spell out for you exactly what the DSA is and what it stands for, and to avoid any confusion, to let the DSA itself do the talking.

“DSA stands for the total dissolution of the United States empire.”

“The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is dedicated to a world free of exploitation and oppression, leading to the liberation of all people from capitalism and imperialism.”

“The U.S. is a prison house of nations founded on genocide, built by slavery, maintained by exploitation, and expanded through conquest.”

“DSA gives its full commitment to decolonization, deoccupation, demilitarization, and full repatriation of indigenous lands, policies that are essential to ensuring a socially just and environmentally sustainable future.

In short, DSA stands for the destruction of the republic as you know it.

Within DSA are a number of caucuses, members of which hold positions on what amounts to the ruling council that runs the party. Among these are:

Red Star Caucus –

“Red Star is a Marxist-Leninist caucus in DSA. Our primary goal, the goal which informs all of our organizing work, is to abolish capitalism and, ultimately, to achieve communism. We do not believe that capitalism can be reformed into socialism – it must be overthrown and replaced.”

“Red Star strives to weaken and ultimately dismantle the US empire.”

Marxist Unity Group-

“Marxist Unity opposes a constitution that was written by a ‘holy alliance’ of capitalists and slavers to make the United States a perpetual oligarchy. There can be no question of submitting to a political order that exists to divide and conquer the working class, that slices up the government and divorces it from the will of the people—that is set in stone and almost impossible to amend. Black people cannot be free under a constitution written by slaveholders; indigenous people cannot win sovereignty under a constitution designed to facilitate their elimination; women cannot be free under a constitution written before they had the right to vote, and working people cannot be free under a constitution that enshrines private property. No one can be truly free if they are forced to bow to a reactionary constitution written by the dead. We want socialist leaders to erode the popular legitimacy of the U.S. Constitution through combative political agitation: never bowing to the old order, and always acknowledging the need for a working class revolution in the United States.”

“Immediately upon taking power, socialists will implement a sweeping minimum program to cement working class political rule. We will need to destroy every institution that denies the people an authentic popular democracy, abolishing the Senate, the Electoral College, the Supreme Court, and the independent presidency.”

Marxist Unity Website

Liberation Caucus –

“We Are Marxist-Leninist-Maoists in DSA: Democratic Socialists of America is the largest socialist mass organization in the United States, with dozens of members holding elected office, and thousands of members engaged in active grassroots participation in movements that have and will continue to shape the world that we live in for the better. However, as Maoists in DSA, we believe that ideological and political struggle can not be shirked and Comrade Mao’s call to combat liberalism must be heeded and taken seriously; otherwise, opportunist and revisionist trends will arise and rot the soul of the organization. Therefore, we operate under these principles and call on all revolutionary communists working in DSA to unite with us.”

“The Settler-Colonial Contradiction is the Primary Contradiction: The United States is a settler-colony. It is not a nation, it is a prison-house of nations, with the Euro-Americans being the jailer. Many comrades commit errors of line and practice because they fail to take this into account, making allusions to the “multinational working class” and flattening the contradictions derived from settler colonialism. This is a disservice to our Black, Indigenous, and Latine comrades, and a major reason why many do not flock to our orientation. Liberation will come only when the prison-house of nations is broken open. We support national liberation for all colonized peoples in the United States.”

Liberation Caucus Website

So, New York Voters - if Lenin and Mao are your cup of tea and you really, really want to live in a Communist country under the control of a Communist party, then Mamdani is clearly your man. If you’d rather not trade in free enterprise, the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution for the joys of living in an American Pyongyang, maybe you’d better rethink your vote.

In any event, take a few moments. Go online. Read what the DSA has to say in its own words.