Peter Olney

Peter Olney

Peter Olney is a Los Angeles activist.

Structure of DSLC

The Democratic Socialist Labor Commission is headed by a twelve-person elected Steering Committee. 2020 Members of the current Steering Committee are:

• Damiana Dendy, Metro DC DSA
• Daniel Dominguez, Los Angeles DSA
• Jake Douglas, Denver DSA
• Anthony Downing, Lehigh Valley DSA
• Michael Ifeoma Esealuka, New Orleans DSA
• Laura Gabby, NYC DSA
• Rebecca Garelli, Phoenix DSA
• Mindy Isser, Philly DSA
• JP Kaderbek, Chicago DSA
• Peter Olney, San Francisco DSA
• Zachary Pattin, Tacoma DSA
• Ashley Payne, East Bay DSA

Seed the Vote

Mickey Jarvis connection

Peter Olney knew Mickey Jarvis well;

In all the working class organizing I have done over the last 30 years two phrases constantly serve as guideposts and measuring sticks: "A fucking concrete analysis of fucking concrete conditions" And "Time, place and condition."

I always associate these with comrade Mickey Jarvis and I thank him for his guidance and tutelage.

Peter Olney Organizing Director ILWU.

DSA meeting

On September 18, 1993 Peter Olney of the Service Employees International Union Local 399 addressed the Los Angeles Democratic Socialists of America local's fall membership meeting, on defending immigrant workers.

Socialists organize to "challenge for power" in Los Angeles

On March 11, 1998, Los Angeles Democratic Socialists of America leader Steve Tarzynski wrote an email to another Los Angeles DSA leader Harold Meyerson.

Tarzynski listed 25 people he thought should be on an "A-list" of "25 or so leaders/activists/intellectuals and/or "eminent persons" who would gather periodically to theorize/strategize about how to rebuild a progressive movement in our metropolitan area that could challenge for power."

Tarzynski listed himself, Harold Meyerson, Karen Bass, Sylvia Castillo, Gary Phillips, Joe Hicks, Richard Rothstein, Steve Cancian, Larry Frank, Torie Osborn, Rudy Acuna, Aris Anagnos, Abby Arnold, Carl Boggs, Blase Bonpane, Rick Brown, Stanley Sheinbaum, Alice Callahan, Jim Conn, Peter Dreier, Maria Elena Durazo, Miguel Contreras, Mike Davis, Bill Gallegos, Bob Gottlieb, Kent Wong, Russell Jacoby, Bong Hwan Kim, Paula Litt (and Barry Litt, with a question mark), Peter Olney, Derek Shearer, Clancy Sigal and Anthony Thigpenn.

Included in a suggested elected officials sub-group were Mark Ridley-Thomas, Gloria Romero, Jackie Goldberg, Gil Cedillo, Tom Hayden, Antonio Villaraigosa, Paul Rosenstein and Congressmen Xavier Becerra, Henry Waxman and Maxine Waters.

Tarzynski went on to write "I think we should limit the group to 25 max, otherwise group dynamics begins to break down....As i said, I would like this to take place in a nice place with good food and drink...it should properly be an all day event."

War Times

In January 2002, a group of San Francisco leftists, mainly involved with STORM or Committees of Correspondence, founded a national anti-Iraq War newspaper War Times.

Endorsers of the project included Peter Olney, Institute for Labor and Employment.

How Class Works

At the How Class Works - 2002 Conference, panels included; 6.2 Recent Strike Experiences

• Steve Early, Communications Workers of America Region 1

“ CWA and the Verizon Strike”

• Joel Ochoa, International Association of Machinists, California

“ The 1996 California Drywallers’ Strike”

• Peter Olney, UC Berkeley – Institute for Labor and Employment

“ Resurrecting the Strike as Labor’s Primary Weapon”

• Triana Silton, Service Employees International Union

“ Justice for Janitors in Los Angeles”

• Rand Wilson, Service Employees International Union

“ The Teamsters and UPS”

• Peter Olney, Chair

Sacramento Marxist School

On Oct 16 2003 Peter Olney lectured at the Sacramento Marxist School on Labor's Challenges on the Eve of Election 2004.

Open Letter to Obama on Iran

In 2008 Peter Olney of International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), San Francisco, CA signed an online petition “A Open Letter to Barack Obama on Iran”.

Free Mumia Abu-Jamal

In 2008 Peter Olney, San Francisco, CA signed a statement circulated by the Partisan Defense Committee calling for the release of convicted “cop-killer” Mumia Abu-Jamal.

UC Berkeley Labor Center

In 2009 Peter Olney of International Longshore and Warehouse Union served on the advisory board of UC Berkeley Labor Center.

Social Policy

The Editorial Advisory Group of the magazine Social Policy includes;

Noam Chomsky, Janice Fine, S. M. Miller, Peter Olney, Frances Fox Piven, Heather Booth, Peter Dreier, Maya Wiley, Robert Fisher, Ashutosh Saxena, Ken Grossinger

Support for Bernie Sanders

Peter Olney pledged support for Bernie Sanders through Labor for Bernie, a "nationwide network of labor activists, backing Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign."

Peter Olney, retired from serving the International Longshore and Warehouse Union as Organizing Director. ILWU has endorsed Bernie Sanders for President. Peter is now working with the Labor for Bernie organization.

Labor for Our Revolution leaders

Labor for Our Revolution April 6;

More than 50 union leaders participated in the Labor for Our Revolution national meeting in Chicago. — with Clem Balanoff, Gene Bruskin, Matthew Graham, David W. Campbell, David Duhalde, Peter Hart, Tony Flora, Brenda Bosworth Rodrigues, Carey Dall, Penelope Jennewein, Joe Lawrence, Gene Elk, Dana Simon, Mark Dudzic, Kenneth Zinn, Zachary Pattin, Mike Parker, Kyle Machado, Peter Knowlton, Donna DeWitt, Brian Skiffington, Peter Olney, Jared Hicks, Marcelle Grair, Steve Early, Al Cholger and Erin McKee.

Cisneros campaign

Peter Olney plans to spend September and October in Southern California working on the 39th Congressional campaign of Democrat Gil Cisneros. He is running to flip this Eastern LA County/Orange County seat, which Hilary carried by 8.5% points in the 2016 election. The incumbent Republican Ed Royce has resigned, but his former aid, Young Kim is running to replace him.