Kari Thompson
Template:TOCnestleft Kari Thompson is Director of International Strategies and Co-Director of Education at UE. Prior to joining UE staff, she was a rank-and-file UE member in Iowa.
"Them and Us Unionism"
December 2 2020, join the Democratic Socialist Labor Commission (DSLC) for a panel discussion on the United Electrical Workers’ (UE) new pamphlet: “Them and Us Unionism.” Drawing on the union’s history, “Them and Us Unionism” identifies the UE’s five core tenets: aggressive struggle, rank and file control, political independence, international solidarity, and uniting all workers.
The panel will include UE organizer and former DSLC Steering Committee member Kari Thompson on the union’s unique history and philosophy; labor historian and Chicago DSA member Toni Gilpin, author of The Long Deep Grudge, a history of the radical Farm Equipment Workers Union (FE);, and International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU) member and current DSLC Steering Committee member Zachary Pattin, whose own union’s history greatly parallels that of the UE experience. Don’t miss this exciting conversation about class-struggle unionism and where we go from here![1]
Socialist Majority Caucus
DSA's Socialist Majority Caucus signatories list as of April 25 2019 included Kari Thompson of Pittsburgh Democratic Socialists of America.
Labor Notes: comrades in the Movement
Zachary Pattin April 9, 2018 near Rosemont, IL ·
Movement-building and organizing on a nationwide scale is a funny thing. You spend months and months on regular phone calls, emailing, messaging, tweeting, whatever, otherwise communicating through some indirect means and you build intensely durable and genuine relationships with people you’ve never actually met – but you know ‘em. You only know the sound of their voice and what they look like fro... See More — with Max Belasco, Kari Thompson, Joel Hertzog, Julia Symborski and Megan Little.
Healthcare Committee, DSA-LA
Members of the Healthcare Committee, Los Angeles Democratic Socialists of America closed Facebook group, as of August 30, 2017 included Kari Thompson .[2]
DSA NPC meeting
Democratic Socialists of America National Political Committee Minutes of Meeting of July 21-22, 2018.
Approved August 13, 2018. Present: Ravi Ahmad, Ajmal Alami (Young Democratic Socialists of America Coordinating Committee), Theresa Alt, Dele Balogun, Christian Bowe, Allie Cohn, Zac Echola, Michelle Fisher (Young Democratic Socialists of America Coordinating Committee), Lisa Flores (Administrative and Office Coordinator), Jeremy Gong, Ella Mahony, Chris Maisano, Natalie Midiri, Chris Riddiough, Frances Rizo (Parliamentarian), R.L. Stephens, Maria Svart (National Director). Present by phone: Catherine Hoffman. Absent and excused: Joseph Schwartz. Visiting: from the Steering Committee of the Democratic Socialist Labor Commission (DSLC): Francisco Cendejas, Spencer Cox, John Kaderbek, Marsha Niemeijer, John Pearson, Paul Prescod, Meredith Schafer, Kari Thompson, Annabel Vera; also Austin Binns, and DSA member from Washington: Aaron Marks, Annie Shields (The Nation), Melissa Woods, Paula Brantner (by phone).
We met in the office of The Nation. Parliamentarian Frances Rizo chaired throughout.[3]
Structure of DSLC
In 2019 the Democratic Socialist Labor Commission is headed by a nine-person elected Steering Committee. Members of the current Steering Committee are:
- Francisco Cendejas, Los Angeles, union staffer representing healthcare workers
- Spencer Cox, Seattle, unrepresented labor activist in the private logistics industry
- JP Kaderbek, Chicago, rank-and-file union member in the private sector
- Marsha Niemeijer, New York City, union staffer representing healthcare workers
- John Pearson, East Bay, rank-and-file union member in public sector healthcare
- Paul Prescod, Philadelphia, rank-and-file union member in public education
- Meredith Schafer, Metro DC & Northern Virginia, union researcher in building trades and transportation
- Kari Thompson, Pittsburgh, union staffer representing workers in Labor and Education
- Annabel Vera, Sacramento, rank-and-file union member in the public sector
At this time, the DSLC is further organized into five subcommittees: Education; Leadership Development; Mapping; Organizing the Unorganized; and Communications.[4]