Mike Leyba

Mike Leyba is a Director of communications at United for a Fair Economy. Formerly with Right to the City Alliance,

Originally from Los Angeles, I became an activist during the Campaign Against Prop 8. I've managed multiple political campaigns, both in Boston and Los Angeles. My primary areas of focus include social marketing, branding and creative communications. I've worked for amazing social-justice focused groups in Boston, building communications strategy and amplifying their amazing work to community residents, foundations, donors, media, and elected officials.^[1]

Education

Studied at Boston University Questrom.

Background

Mike Leyba, 31, an electoral strategist and organizer in Boston who sits on the LeftRoots National Coordinating Committee. It’s LeftRoots’ job “to zoom out and … see where our potential for really strategic action is.”

Leyba, who spent his formative years in Compton, Calif., became a political organizer in 2008, when he joined the fight against a California ballot proposal banning same-sex marriage. He joined LeftRoots in April 2016. For Leyba, LeftRoots has “really honed my political strategy around electoral work.” Since 2010, he has staffed or managed four local electoral campaigns in Massachusetts and California, including state house races and a Boston mayoral campaign.

“If I weren’t a part of LeftRoots, I probably would be much more cynical about working in electoral politics,” Leyba says. “If progressive candidates, once elected, don’t always deliver,” he says, the feeling becomes, “I worked so freaking hard for this person and they didn’t do shit for me or my people, and we’re still in crisis.”

But Leyba says LeftRoots helped him see that electoral campaigns can be a way to build a socialist base, regardless of the election’s outcome or how the official performs once elected. For example, Leyba “deep canvasses” Boston neighborhoods; rather than just reciting a candidate’s biography to potential voters, he now asks questions rooted in race and class, such as, “When was the last time you got a rent increase?” Those conversations can spin out into deeper discussions about rent control or funding public schools. He says “It’s putting an ear to the ground and seeing where people are at. Where are they feeling the squeeze? Where should we be focusing our energy? Where is the transformative potential?

“Now multiply this by tens of thousands of conversations. You’re able to see much bigger than any particular candidate. Whoever wins will have very real limits on their power. But there aren’t the same limits on social movements.”^[2]

LeftRoots

Mike Leyba is a member of LeftRoots, Boston Branch.

We replaced an establishment democrat with a progressive, socialist woman of color. The incumbent labeled himself as progressive, while actively standing in the way of fully-funded public schools and protections for immigrants in Massachusetts. Our campaign declared early that we wouldn't accept contributions from real estate developers or fossil fuel interests. We were outspent 3-to-1 in the most expensive House race in state history, and we won decisively.

Much of my contribution to the campaign was drawn from the lesson I’ve learned from the experiences–both in success and failure–of LeftRoots comrades doing similar work. It reinforced for me how key this kind of learning is to building the power we need to make deep and lasting change. That's why I'm working with other cadres to launch a new LeftRoots journal in February 2019. We'll release an issue twice a year, sharing our best thinking and lessons on liberatory strategy for the current moment from LeftRoots teams engaged in study, reflection, and joint practice. Keep an eye out for it!^[3]