Maria Poblet

Maria Poblet

Maria Poblet... is the Executive Director of Causa Justa/Just Cause. She is Chicana and Argentine, and has more than a decade of experience in Latino community organizing in the Bay Area. At St. Peter’s Housing Committee, María was instrumental in transforming a service provision model into a membership and organizing structure, and a grassroots leadership development and political education program. In 2009, she helped lead the merger between St. Peter’s and Just Cause Oakland that created Causa Justa/Just Cause. She is a leader in grassroots movement building work, including the Grassroots Global Justice Alliance. Maria had the privilege of being mentored for many years by June Jordan, is an avid writer, and was the Artistic Director of Poetry for the People before she fell in love with community organizing.

Early life, education, radicalization

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in the late 1970s Maria Poblet,immigrated to east Los Angeles in the mid-1980s. "I thought the U.S. would be like a TV show; people would be thin, wealthy, white," she says. "But, instead, I saw poverty where I thought it did not exist, and people of color that I did not know lived here."

As a student at UC Berkeley, Poblet jumped into the campus fight to preserve affirmative action-where she met Harmony Goldberg-then running SOUL out of her apartment. In 1998, Poblet signed up for SOUL's first summer school session, interning at the Oakland hotel workers' union local. "When we learned about civil disobedience, I thought we should take over the hotel manager's office. But that was not the proper strategy. It was humbling," Poblet says. "I learned that I could not create The Movement by myself."

Grassroots Power Project history

Grassroots Power Project has supported state-level and national social justice infrastructure for more than 20 years. In 1993, Grassroots Policy Project started out as a small group of organizers with academic and policy experience who were determined to bridge the divide between progressive think tanks, and policy shops, on the one hand, and grassroots organizers and leaders, on the other.

As we formed relationships with staff and leaders in statewide, regional and national organizing groups, we evolved into an unusual intermediary. We walk side-by-side with organizers and leaders as they struggle to make shifts in their organizing models, developing deep relationships.

In 2019, after several decades under the leadership of Richard Healey and Sandra Hinson, Maria Poblet assumed the Executive Director role and GPP transferred our leadership, frameworks, resources and relationships to a new and growing team that is younger, more diverse and women-led. GPP’s new leadership is scaling up our efforts so we can be equal to the work ahead.

"Power concedes nothing"

"Power Concedes Nothing", a new collection edited by Linda Burnham, Max Elbaum, and Maria Poblet, tells the stories behind a victory that won both the White House and the Senate and powered progressive candidates to new levels of influence. It describes the on-the-ground efforts that mobilized a record-breaking turnout by registering new voters and motivating an electorate both old and new. In doing so it charts a viable path to victory for the vital contests upcoming in 2022 and 2024.

Open Letter to the Biden Campaign on “Unprepared”

Open Letter to the Biden Campaign on “Unprepared” was released May 12 2020.

":Our demands: The country’s greatest priority at this moment is to beat the COVID-19 crisis, and this requires embracing principles of antiracist solidarity and international cooperation. The Biden campaign can and should beat Trump and the GOP with a message centered on our real public health needs and the progressive values that are required to meet those needs. The “Unprepared” ad must be taken down, and all campaign messaging that fuels anti-Asian racism and China-bashing must end. We refuse to allow the Biden campaign to sacrifice our dignity in the name of political expediency."

Signatories included Maria Poblet .

Seed the Vote

In 2020 Maria Poblet Bay Area Rising Action was a supporter of Seed the Vote.

Center for Political Education

In 2002 Maria Poblet and and Marianna Viturro gave a teach-in entitled: "Pan y trabajo: The People’s Movement of Argentina." The classes were held at the San Francisco based Center for Political Education, an organization closely associated with the Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism.

In 2002 Maria Poblet of St. Peter’s Housing Committee; Zulfiqar Ahmad a Pakistani scholar and activist; Eyad Kishawi of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee]]; Richard Becker of the International ANSWER Coalition and Co-sponsored with the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, the School of Unity and Liberation and War Times gave talks entitled: "Anti-war Activist Dialogues." The talks were held at the San Francisco based Center for Political Education.

STORM

Circa 2005 the Catalyst Project held a lecture"Reclaiming Revolution: A study of the history and lessons of STORM" (Standing Together to Organize a Revolutionary Movement), a multi-racial, internationalist, left cadre organization based in the Bay Area from 1994-2001. Speaking on STORM's history were Harmony Goldberg, Maria Poblet, and Jason Negron-Gonzales.

SOUL

People trained by SOULare seeded throughout the nonprofit world of social work in San Francisco and Oakland.

Maria Poblet is employed as an organizer for St. Peter's Housing Committee, an agency that counsels immigrant tenants in San Francisco's Mission District. She is also a poet whose writings on poverty and revolution have been published by Doubleday and the University of California Press.

In 2009 serving on the boardof SOUL in San Francisco were;

Alicia Garza, Adam Gold, Stacy Kono, Danielle Mahones, Genevieve Negron-Gonzales and Maria Poblet.

For May Day and Beyond: White People Step up for Immigrant Rights!

From a May 2006 letter;

In the past month, five million people, mostly immigrants of color, have mobilized for justice and are making history, flooding the streets in unprecedented numbers. Meanwhile, the most visible participation by white people is coming from the racist and right wing leaders who are defining and dominating the debate in the Federal government and in the news, radio and opinion pages. Where are the voices of anti-racist white people in this crucial moment, when the worst anti-immigrant legislation in decades is still poised to drop?

We, white people who believe in justice and ending racism, have a responsibility and a historic opportunity to stand with immigrant communities and unite behind their demands. As white people, most of us with U.S. citizenship, we call out to our white communities to take to the streets for immigrant rights. We must demonstrate that the rightwing racists, from the Minutemen to in the Congress, do not represent us!

If you agree with these principles, we invite you to sign this letter and make your signature a commitment to putting them into action in your work and life.

In struggle,

Catalyst Project and the Heads Up Collective

Endorsed by: Carlos Munoz, Jr., professor, UC Berkeley, Betita Martinez, Institute for Multiracial Justice, Maria Poblet, St Peters Housing Committee, Eric Mar, Eunice Cho, Sheila Chung, Bay Area Immigrant Rights Coalition, Renee Saucedo, Day Labor Program/La Raza Centro Legal, Kali Akuno, Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, Jose Palafox, professor, Stanford University, Phil Hutchings, Institute for Multiracial Justice.

Revolutionary poetry

In advertizing for a June 2008 poetry festivalin remembrance of the late radical poet June Jordan Maria Poblet was described as a;

...queer Latina poet. She has studied poetry under the direction of June Jordan and Martín Espada. She served as Artistic Director of June Jordan's Poetry for the People, and taught poetry workshops at Mission Cultural Center, FCI Dublin Women's Prison, and Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Her work has been featured in the SF Weekly, Revolutionary Voices, and the Street Sheet. She has been a community organizer in San Francisco’s mission district since 1999, fighting for immigrant Latino tenants’ rights. She agrees with Cape Verdian revolutionary Amilcar Cabral that culture is a weapon in the fight for freedom, and can often be found reading poetry through a bullhorn.

Ad-Hoc Left Committee

POLITICAL HIGHS, ECONOMIC LOWS: MANAGING U.S. DECLINE

Featuring Gary Younge, Author of "No Place Like Home: A Black Briton's Journey Through the Deep South"

THURSDAY, APRIL 30 2009 St. John's Church, San Francisco

Like previous events sponsored by this Ad Hoc Committee, this program is aimed at fostering dialogue and debate among leftists who see themselves operating within the left-wing-of-the-Obama-motion political space. If there are people sharing this broad viewpoint who you believe would be interested in participating in this conversation, we encourage you to extend this invitation to them.

Ad-Hoc Left Committee: Carl Bloice, Linda Burnham, Max Elbaum, Michelle Foy, Juan Lopez, Calvin Miaw, Giuliana Milanese, Maria Poblet, Tim Thomas, Mei-ying Williams, Steve Williams.

US Social Forum National Planning Committee

Contact Sheet for the National Planning Committee of the U.S. Social Forum, Detroit 2010. Original April 09, 2009, Updated February 23, 2010.

• Causa Justa/Just Cause (San Francisco/Oakland, CA) - Maria Poblet .

World Social Forum 2013

Grassroots Global Justice Alliance activists attended the World Social Forum 2013 held in Tunis, Tunisia. Delegates included Kali Akuno (MXGM), Jordan Flaherty (Floodlines), Maria Poblet (CJ/JC), Helena Wong (CAAAV), Erin Byrd (BWFJ), Autumn Martinez (UE 199), Cindy Wiesner (GGJ), Charity Hicks (EMEAC), and Tammy Bang Luu (LCSC).

Left Forum 2013

Grassroots Visions of Socialism: The Growing Vision of Alternatives to Capitalism Emerging from Contemporary Social Movements

• Rishi Awatramani, Chair Beyond Capitalism Project
• Maria Poblet
• Mazibuko Jara Amandla!
• John Cronan, Jr.
• Vivek Chibber

"Towards Collective Liberation" followers

Melanie Cervantes, follow · March 11, 2013;

From author Chris Crass: " When I first imagined a poster promoting my new book, Towards Collective Liberation: anti-racist organizing, feminist praxis,and movement building strategy, the images that came to mind were the people in Melanie Cervantes’ “We are the 99%” posters, coming together to build the multiracial, feminist, working class-based movement for collective liberation that we need. M... See More — with Carla F. Wallace, Mari Mujica, Steve Williams, Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, Ingrid Chapman, Dawn Haney, James Haslam, Cindy Wiesner, Marquez Rhyne, Jayanni Elizabeth, Malachi Garza, Miguel CarItu, Chris Crass, Carl Patrick, Abbey Lolcano, Maria Poblet, Kate Cardona, Z. Lula Haukeness, Lydia Pelot-Hobbs, Elandria Williams, Harsha Walia, Marc Mascarenhas-Swan, Jason Lydon, Jardana Peacock, Chris Dixon, Gabriel Haaland, Betty-Jeanne Ruters-Ward, Mel Baiser, Nisha Anand, Mimi Thi Nguyen, Becki Winchel, T. Gonzales, Rahula S. Janowski, Dani Burlison, Harjit Singh Gill, Leah Jo Carnine, Karly Safar, Emily Han Zimmerman, Alicia Garza, Sistufara W. Muhammad, Pamela Jean McMichael, Caitlin Elly Breedlove, Kate Kanelstein, Mei-ying Williams, James Tracy, Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson, Shannon Garth-Rhodes and Cindy Jeanne.

Oakland Rising 5 year birthday party

June 2013 Oakland Rising poster; ·

Our 5 year birthday party is just 10 days away! Do you have your ticket yet? — with Richard Raya, Nikki Fortunato Bas, Pamela Drake, Jahmese Kathleen Myres, Michael Riemenschneider, Andy Katz, Mimi Ho, Igor Tregub, Andy Kelley, Steven Pitts, Melanie Cervantes, Nicole Derse, Lailan Sandra Huen, Kim Carter Martinez, Nwamaka Agbo, Brooke Anderson, Mary Thomas, Kate O'Hara, Timmy Lu, Peggy Moore, Dani McClain, EO Okiwelu, Lanese Martin, Marc Philpart, Rebecca Saltzman, Alex T. Tom, Jose A. Dorado, Rachel Richman, Tonya Love, Sheryl Walton, Andrea Lee, Aimee Allison, Sharon Rose, Rebecca Kaplan, Esperanza Tervalon-Garrett, Cole B. Cole, Jessamyn Sabbag, Malcolm Amado Uno, Phil Hutchings, Michelle Matos and Maria Poblet.

LeftRoots

In 2014, N'Tanya Lee, Cinthya Munoz, Maria Poblet, Josh Warren-White, and Steve Williams were members of the LeftRoots Coordinating Committee.

LeftRoots HangOut with Willie Baptist

Please join LeftRoots Friday August 15th (2014) for our next HangOut with Willie Baptist about the importance of leadership, leadership development and understanding who the ruling class is and what their strategies are.

On May 1, 1990, the National Union of the Homeless (NUH) launched a nationally coordinated campaign taking over federally-owned houses in eight cities across the country. Willie Baptist, our guest on the next LeftRoots HangOut, was one of the organizers of the NUH.

Founded in 1985 by formerly homeless people, the Union was on the move in the late 1980s. At its height, the Homeless Union counted on 25 chapters with as many as 15,000 members. Then, through a combination of drugs, prison-sentencing and co-optation, the ruling class mounted a concerted effort to break the Union. The organization dissolved by 1993.

Willie Baptist is one of the best examples of a movement intellectual. Willie is a formerly homeless father who came out of the Watts Uprisings, the Black Student Movement and has been an organizer with the United Steelworkers as well as the National Union of the Homeless and the Kensington Welfare Rights Union. Today, Willie is the Scholar-in-Residence with the Poverty Initiative.

The LeftRoots CC: Alex Tom, Alicia Garza, Cinthya Munoz, Josh Warren-White, Maria Poblet, N'Tanya Lee, Steve Williams and Timmy Lu.

LeftRoots connection

LeftRoots shared a video. April 30, 2016 ·

In April 2016 Francesca Fiorentini of Al Jazeera interviewed LeftRoots members Maria Poblet, Carlos Martinez (educator), and Ying-sun Ho (musician) on socialism over brunch. Academic Jamie McCallum was part of the group.

Ear to the Ground Project

Ear to the Ground Project;

We would like to express our deep respect and appreciation for everyone who took the time to talk with us, and the organizations that generously hosted us during our travels. Interviews were confidential, but the following people have agreed to have their names listed for this publication:

Most of those listed were connected to Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

Maria Poblet was among those on the list.

Mapping Socialist Strategies

Mapping Socialist Strategies was convened from August 1-4 in Briarcliff Manor, NY, by the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung—New York Office. It brang together 100 influential progressives and leftists from across the United States, Canada, and Europe for an “un-conference” on socialist strategies.

Attendees included Maria Poblet - Causa Justa/Just Cause Executive Director.

Sandra Moran tour

Shaun Grogan-Brown June 5, 2014 ·

"We Feminists Say: This is my body, this is my land, this is my territory. And we defend our territory." - Sandra Moran, World March of Women leader on Grassroots Global Justice Alliance national tour June 18-July 3: Reclaming Feminisms at the Grassroots! #ReclaimFeminisms http://ggjalliance.org/ReclaimingFeminisms2014 — with Marjorie Childress, Monica Cordova, Lindsay Marisol Archuleta, Andrea Mercado, Maria Huerta de Reyes, Sandra Moran, Tammy Bang Luu, Andrea Plaza, Jaron Browne, Jessica O. Guerrero, Helena Wong, Claudia Reyes, Marcia Olivo, Maria Poblet, Monserrat A. Matehuala, Mei-ying Williams, Cindy Wiesner, FuerzaUnida Mujeres, Steve Williams, Rukiya Dillahunt and Denise Perry.

"Claim No Easy Victories"

The Center for Political Education April 17, 2014.

APRIL 28th! Join the The Center for Political Education, LeftRoots, and SFSU's Race and Resistance Studies for "Claim No Easy Victories: The Legacy of Amilcar Cabral" Book Talk w/ Bill Fletcher, Jr., Maria Poblet, Walter Turner and N'Tanya Lee.

At 518 Valencia: The Eric Quezada Center for Culture and Politics! — with Michelle Foy, Fernando Marti, Jason Ferreira, Carolina Morales, Camilo Sol Zamora, Kalexa Hella Zapantista, Walter Turner, N'Tanya Lee, Bill Fletcher, Jr., La More Rivas, Mari Posa, Jason Chipsnguac, Steve Williams, Maria Poblet and Yeiber Cano.

Causa Justa board members

As of 2015 the board of Causa Justa/Just Cause included;

• Boona Cheema
• Michelle Foy
• Maria Elena Guillén
• Gilda Haas
• N'Tanya Lee
• Gordon Mar
• Maria Poblet
• Julie Quiroz

Bay Area Rising!

Chelsea Boilard March 20, 2015 ·

Bay Area Rising! #building #wearethechange — with Robbie Clark, Christine Tervalon-Garrett, Esperanza Tervalon-Garrett, Jahmese Kathleen Myres, Jessamyn Sabbag, Adam Gold, Fabiana Ochoa, Neva Walker, N'Tanya Lee, Antonio Diaz, Maria Poblet, Emily Ja-ming Lee, Ayoka Turner, Timmy Lu, Linda Lee and Mario Yedidia.

Grassroots Global Justice Alliance Coordinating Committee

Grassroots Global Justice Alliance Coordinating Committee, as of 2015;

• Asian Pacific Environmental Network (Mei-ying Williams, Miya Yoshitani
• Black Workers for Justice (Ajamu Dillahunt, Angaza Laughinghouse)
• Causa Justa/Just Cause (Maria Poblet)
• Community to Community Development (Tara Villalba, Edgar Franks)
• East Michigan Environmental Action Council (Diana Copeland, William Copeland)
• Indigenous Environmental Network (Kandi Mossett, Tom Goldtooth)
• Just Transition Alliance (Jose Bravo)
• Miami Workers Center (Marcia Olivo, Trenise Bryant)
• Southwest Workers Union (Diana Lopez)
• Vermont Workers Center (Kate Kanelstein, James Haslam)

Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity Advisory Board/2015

• Ron Chisom, The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond
• Gihan Perera, New Florida Majority
• Richard Healey, Grassroots Policy Project
• Kalpana Krishnamurthy, RACE Program, Western States Center
• Marisa Franco, Director and Co-Creator Not1More Deportation Campaign; Mijente
• John A. Powell, Haas Diversity Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley
• Julie Quiroz-Martínez, Movement Strategy Center
• Rinku Sen, Applied Research Center/ColorLines Magazine
• Makani Themba-Nixon, The Praxis Project
• Keith Lawrence, Aspen Institute Roundtable on Community Change
• Kien Lee, Community Science
• Martha McCoy, The Paul J. Aicher Foundation/Everyday Democracy
• Denise Perry, Director, Black Organizing for Leadership and Dignity (BOLD)
• Glenn Harris, President Center for Social Inclusion
• Maria Poblet, Executive Director Causa Justa/Just Cause

World March of Women

October 23, 2015 The 4th Americas Regional meeting of the World March of Women opened in Cajamarca, Peru. There were 4 reps from the WMW US/ Grassroots Global Justice Alliance chapter there reclaiming feminisms from the grassroots. Two co-chairs: Maria Poblet and Jessica O. Guerrero, along with Emma Sandoval and staff Helena Wong.

Feminist Training School

#FOS2016 Planning Team (from l to r): Emma Sandoval, Marisol Archuleta, Helena Wong, Beva Sanchez, Maria Poblet, Jessica O. Guerrero, Cynthia Oka, Cindy Wiesner, Emily Lee)

Grassroots Global Justice Alliance and the SouthWest Organizing Project (SWOP) co-hosted our very first Feminist Organizing School (FOS2016) in Albuquerque, NM from May 20-24th 2016. Over 40 people from 17 organizations around the country participated in the school, grounded in the spirit of slain indigenous feminist environmental activist, Berta Caaceres.

"Languague justice"

August 24, 2016, Cazembe Jackson, National Organizer of Freedom Road Socialist Organization sent a Spanish version of Freedom Road's 20016 election strategy on Facebook to several "language justice" activists, including Rosa Ponce, Hermalinda Cortes, Xochitl Bervera, Tristan Call, Salem Acuna, Maria Poblet, Marisa Franco, and Brenda Perez.

Dump Trump

DUMP TRUMP, DEFEAT RACISM AND MISOGYNY, BUILD THE LEFT was an open letter to the left from 47 grassroots organizers. October 17, 2016.

A lot of us see something really clearly, but few of us—radical and revolutionary organizers—are willing to say it out loud.

So we’re going to say it. Defeating Trump in the presidential election is a top priority for the left. And at a minimum, that means mobilizing voters for Hillary Clinton in swing states even if you vote for another candidate in a safe state. We’ve got to beat Trump and Trumpism while building movements that will fight, resist and disrupt a Clinton administration that will be militaristic and pro-corporate...

As we mentioned at the beginning, defeating Trump is not enough. We need movements strong enough to fight a Clinton administration on several fronts—whether Israel/Palestine, free trade agreements, climate change, a $15 minimum wage, or the prison-industrial complex. And neutralizing the appeal of the far right means we need to both strengthen our movements for racial justice and win over white workers to a progressive class politics as an alternative to Trump’s racist economic nationalism. Finally, we need to build a left that can help anchor a visionary alternative to corporate Democrats. It won’t be easy, but we’ve come this far. Let’s defend what we’ve got in this election, and keep our eye on collective liberation.

Signatories included Maria Poblet, executive director, Causa Justa/Just Cause.

Revolutionary Strategies to Beat the Rising Right Wing

Revolutionary Strategies to Beat the Rising Right Wing, was a nationwide conference call organized by Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Sunday October 30, 2016.

What's the nature of this right-wing threat? What has this election cycle changed about the political terrain we're fighting on? How do we need to prepare for whats coming after the election? Hear about these crucial questions from our panel of top political strategists, including Nelini Stamp, Bill Fletcher, Jr., Linda Burnham, and Sendolo Diaminah.

Those invited, on Facebook included Maria Poblet.

Organizing Upgrade Bloggers

As of December 23, 2017, Bloggers on the Organizing Upgrade website were;

• Kamau Franklin
• Maria Poblet
• Malkia Cyril
• Bill Fletcher, Jr.
• Subhash Kateel
• Marisa Franco
• B. Loewe
• Leftist at Work
• Rachel Parsons
• Eric Mann

Amandla Training

Sendolo Diaminah February 1 2018

Hey Black organizers & those who love us: BOLD has re-opened our application period for Amandla, our organizer training program. We have just a few more slots we wanted to make available, so now is your chance if you missed the deadline!

Alicia Garza, Ajamu Dillahunt, Aaron Gamal, Whitney Maxey, Hashim Benford, Ociele Hawkins, Bryan Proffitt, Bennett D. Carpenter, Courtney Sebring, Cazembe Murphy Jackson, Reece Chenault, Charlene Carruthers, Chanelle Croxton, D’atra Jackson, Dove Kent, Fresco Steez DeLaflyy, Maria C. Fernandez, Aiden Riley Graham, Kaji Reyes, Laila Nur, Theo Luebke, Maria Poblet, N’Tanya Lee, Taliba O Njeri, Orisanmi Burton, Quinton Harper, Roberto Tijerina, Mary Hooks, Serena Sebring, Adaku Utah, Vanessa Moses, Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson, Thomas Wayne Walker, Jayanni Elizabeth, Jayda Rasberry, Amber Evans, Dara Cooper, Yotam Marom.

OU Editorial Advisors

The Organizing Upgrade Editorial Advisors, April 2020:

Calvin Cheung-Miaw, Stina Janssen, Bob Wing, Kim Diehl, Harmony Goldberg, Maria Poblet, Eric Robertson.

OU Editoral Collective

Organizing Upgrade Editoral Collective, 2018;

• Rishi Awatramani
• Calvin Cheung-Miaw
• Kim Diehl
• Max Elbaum
• Harmony Goldberg
• Maria Poblet
• Bob Wing

Strategy team

LeftRoots strategy team, October 2017.

Back left Toussaint Losier, Milena Velis, Soya Jung, Steve Meacham, Rapheal Randall, Front left Maria Poblet, Hannah Jones, N’Tanya Lee, Merle Ratner, Steve Williams

LeftRoots Strategy Lab Advance Team

LeftRoots Strategy Lab Advance Team, 2019.

• “The Germinator”
• M “Iron Chef”
• Merle “The Marxist Personal Trainer” Ratner
• Milena “The Architect” Velis
• Rapheal “The Warrior Heart” Randall
• Steve “The Bard” and “The Mechanic” Meacham
• S “The Bat with the Bad Knees”
• Steve “Lighter of Paths” Williams
• Toussaint “The Revolutionary Excavator” Losier

10 year celebrations

Right to the City Alliance September 25, 2017

With Dawn Phillips, Carla De Paz, Leticia Arce, Gilda Haas, Robbie Clark, Maria Poblet, Alma Blackwell, Tony Samara, Camilo Sol Zamora, Tony Romano and Vanessa Moses.

Left Inside/Outside Project phone conference

On May 23, 2018 the Left Inside/Outside Project hosted a call that brought together representatives of the Communist Party USA, Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism, Democratic Socialists of America, Freedom Road Socialist Organization, and LeftRoots. The call focused on approaches to electoral politics of these organizations. It also provided an opportunity to explore potential for political alignment among the part of the left that broadly agrees with the strategy of building power inside and outside of electoral politics, and inside and outside of the Democratic Party.

Although there are significant differences among (and within) these organizations, generally they see electoral politics as a crucial one for the left to engage in. While engaging in electoral politics has its limitations, it presents huge opportunities, which the experiences of these organizations demonstrate, including a path to governing. In the U.S. today, where the fight against the far right must utilize all possible methods, it is also a necessity.

The call was moderated by Rishi Awatramani from LeftRoots. Speakers included Sendolo Diaminah from Freedom Road Socialist Organization, Rossana Cambron from the Communist Party USA, Christian Bowe from DSA, Maria (Maria Poblet?)from LeftRoots and Janet Tucker from the Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism.

Inside/Outside Project

From an article on Organizing Upgrade October 5, 2018 on the :Left Inside/Outside Project.

Fighting Trump and Building the Left, from the Left Inside/Outside Project

But it’s also an exciting time to be part of the U.S. left. We have momentum on all the levels we have to work on, and more energy for these efforts than we have seen in decades. We take the inspiration from the examples listed above, and recognize that our main challenge is bringing our work to scales that will be able to shift the balance of forces in the U.S. The Left Inside/Outside Project formed out of a common feeling that U.S. politics after Trump required both serious engagement with electoral politics and a left that could work collaboratively to build on our existing strengths. Twenty months later, we still believe this: our commitment is to work ever more closely together with this vision, to learn from one another, build on our most advanced experiences, and build a more unified and effective socialist movement that is in this fight for the long haul.

Signatories included Maria Poblet, LeftRoots.

DSA endorsed

According to an NPC Statement on 2018 Elections was issued November 7, 2018 by the Democratic Socialists of America DSA National Political Committee named Maria Poblet Rent Board Berkeley. as a locally endorsed DSA candidates.

Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner

Maria Poblet November 7 2018:

I am honored to have been elected by the people of Berkeley to serve as Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner! Thrilled that our whole progressive slate won, including the newbie to the board, Soli Alpert who is only 21 years old, a Cal student, and a democratic socialist. Rollin up my sleeves to build community-based solutions to the housing affordability crisis, with these smart, committed folks over the next four years! Pueblo que lucha gana!! Housing is a Human Right!! — with James Chang and Soli Alpert.

Attacking Biden

Organizing Upgrade "Sanders and Warren: The need for a progressive front" September 25, 2019 by The Organizing Upgrade Editorial Collective.

We urge all left-progressive forces to take seriously what will be required to create a united progressive front capable of defeating Biden and going on to expand its influence even as we unite in an even broader coalition to defeat Trump. And to remember that we not only need cooperation on the electoral battlefront, but cooperation at scale in building mass direct action, revitalizing the trade union movement, and organizing large numbers on a host of urgent issues. After all, even if Sanders or Warren wins the presidency and the GOP loses control of both houses of Congress, it will take massive pressure from below to win a Green New Deal, Medicare for All, end mass incarceration, close the border concentration camps, change US foreign policy and begin the new cycle of progressive advance that is an existential imperative for the world’s most vulnerable and the entire human race.

We have to quickly establish sufficient political unity to uphold a progressive front, so that we may develop the technical capacities and infrastructure to allow this progressive front to work together (regardless of whether they have endorsed Sanders or Warren). Though preserving space for constructive debate over left electoral strategy and tactics will be critical, we urge doing so in a way that does not detract from the important task of reaching outward, engaging the unconvinced and unorganized social forces we will need to win.

To that end, Organizing Upgrade will be publishing a number of pieces in the coming week from left organizers of varied perspectives that discuss the WFP endorsement, the DSA’s “Bernie or Bust” resolution, and other developments related to the 2020 elections. Our goal is to continue engaging left organizers in strategic dialogue during a pivotal moment in history and we welcome you to join the conversation. The stakes could not be higher.

The Organizing Upgrade Editorial Collective.

Rishi Awatramani, Calvin Cheung-Miaw, Julie Chinitz, Kim Diehl, Max Elbaum, Harmony Goldberg, Maria Poblet, Eric Robertson, Stina Rose Marie, Jacob Swenson-Lengyel, Claire Tran, and Bob Wing.

CPA 40th anniversary

Vanessa Moses, Robbie Clark, Maria Poblet.

Maria Poblet with Tiffany Ng.