Creating and maintaining worker unions, particularly the Undergraduate Worker Union, should be the primary focus of the chapter always, for it is a keystone in our broader strategy to build power. Solely focusing on unionism must not be a myopic struggle; for our goals are not just economic but also political. A political union then, works within the framework of class struggle. Going beyond the typical conceptions of organizing around “GOTV”, “calling your congressmen”, or “electioneering” for local politicians: a refusal to cooperate with upper echelons of current power hierarchies is inherent to class struggle and it builds worker power; this is inherently difficult but necessary to take power that will not be given to us, the power that we are entitled to as a democratic majority.
The union is at its core, a broadly focused struggle to take back power from the systems that oppress all of us. There are core ideas nestled within this thought, primarily Marxist conceptions of labor and production. One, the capitalist-imperialist mode of economics that we live under is inherently unsustainable, it generates instability and crisis (that progressively get worse). For instance, as we’ve seen in the 2024 - 2025 academic year; there was a contradictory lust of ISU’s administration for constant growth via tuition dollars. Simultaneously though (much like any other corporation), ISU Admin was unwilling to provide equitable wages for all members of ISU (as well as continued investment in the genocide of Palestinians); planting the seeds for broader crises for ISU community members and paradoxically, seeds for collective, organized action. Marxist theory dictates this “inevitability” for the overall collapse of corporations and capitalism broadly, but we can not fall into leaping from crisis to crisis to determine our work.
If we were to fall into this “spontaneity”, our movements would look much like those of the Democrats- poignant and focused around the voting season, and lackluster any other time of the decade. Our dedication towards mass organizing then is the continuation of the fight against capitalism and oppressive institutions, as we realize that they oppress us daily. One could look at a movement that forms swiftly in response to a crisis (for example, the 2024 Encampments) and might say that it is only necessary that we rely on these mass movements to form the base of our work; while other times the “masses” are simply “apathetic”. This thought would neglect earlier points on the fundamentally oppressive nature of capitalism- there is always work to be done. It is the goal of the organizer to agitate constantly via mass propaganda (i.e. TPV) and mass organizing (i.e. unionism), to create an organized base that is ready to seize opportune moments of “spontaneity”.
But, Co-Chairs (or any member of YDSA), where do you lie in this picture? As it currently stands, a co-chair’s role is not much different than any other socialist. Building an autonomous organization, consistent class struggle against the University via creative and out-of-the-box thinking, political education of themselves and others, and maybe most importantly: different from movements that have failed us before. ISU @ YDSA is in a primordial revolutionary state, and in some senses, a broader continuation of historically leftist movements on this campus. Class struggle defines our movement, incorporating other organizations with individuals who may not normally participate in socialist causes is key. This knowledge here is not sacred or special, it should be the goal of a co-chair to insure all members understand the importance of building organizing skills and their political knowledge.