Michael Lighty

Michael Lighty

Template:TOCnestleft Michael (Mike) Lighty, a transplanted Californian, Michael Lighty, became the national organizational director of the Democratic Socialists of America July 1, 1990.

Lighty, who joined the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee in 1980 and DSA when DSOC and the New American Movement merged in 1983,began doing campus organizing with the Youth Section chapter at Stanford University. During college, he served on the Youth Section's executive committee and did labor support work as well as antidraft, anti-intervention, and antiracism organizing.

Lighty served as business agent for the National Association of Broadcast Engineers and Technicians ,Local 15/San Francisco, Local531 in Hollywood, and Local 15/NewYork.

Lighty was an organizer of the successful Harry Britt campaign for San Francisco Supervisor. Since coming to New York in 1988, Mike became chair of the New York DSA Labor Task Force.

DSA Conference delegate

In 1983 Mike Lighty was a San Francisco, California delegate to the Democratic Socialists of America conference in New York City, October 14-16, 1983

Socialist Scholars Conference

Michael Lighty, Democratic Socialists of America and Shari Ellis were speakers on the Reports from the Front: The State of the Struggle for National Health Care panel sponsored by Democratic Socialists of America at the Tenth Annual Socialist Scholars Conference. The conference was held April 24-26, 1992 at the Borough of Manhattan Community College, New York City.

Lighty also spoke alongside Wayne Sing-Wai, CUNY; Stanley Aronowitz, CUNY, Charlene Mitchell, Committees of Correspondence, Aldyn McKean, ACT UP and Lynne Chancer were speakers on the What road for the Left? panel.

Democratic Left

In 1991, Lighty was managing editor of Democratic Left, the journal of Democratic Socialists of America.

DSA Racial Diversity Task Force

In 1992 Michael Lighty was a member of the Democratic Socialists of America Racial Diversity Task Force - charged with finding ways of recruiting (and retaining) more "people of color" into the organization.

Socialist International

The Democratic Socialists of America delegation to the 1992 Socialist International conference in Berlin, included Bogdan Denitch, (chair), Christine Riddiough, (VP Socialist International Women), Motl Zelmanowicz, Jose LaLuz, Michael Lighty, Jo-Ann Mort and Penny Schantz.

California DSA “Key” list

In 1993 Michael Lighty of New York, New York, was on a list of “Key’ California Democratic Socialists of America contacts.

DSA Organizing Institute

Over fifty people attended the 1993 DSA Organizing Institute, which was held at Drew University in Madison, New Jersey during the weekend of June 25-27. The centerpiece of the weekend was an intensive series of training sessions, led by Steve Max, Deepak Pateriya, and Christine Riddiough, for DSA activists and organizers. These training sessions, which were based on the organizing methods developed by the Midwest Academy, helped build DSA local and national leaders' skills in developing political strategy, recruiting activists into DSA, and working in coalitions.

The Institute's training sessions were framed by two plenary discussions about DSA's mission. On Friday evening, DSA Honorary Chair Barbara Ehrenreich and DSA Vice Chairs Steve Max and Frances Fox Piven discussed the contemporary political climate and the most effective roles for a democratic socialist organization. On Sunday morning, National Political Committee member Jack Clark, DSA Youth Organizer Ginny Coughlin, and DSA National Director Michael Lighty spoke more concretely about how DSA can work to become a highly visible organization projecting a compelling political vision.

DSA

In 1994 Lighty was a member of the Democratic Socialists of America Steering Committee.

Michael Lighty, San Francisco DSA, elected to the Democratic Socialists of America National Political Committee, at the November 1997 DSA National Convention in Columbus Ohio.

In 2007 Michael Lighty, a former National Director of DSA, was Director of Public Policy for the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee.

Healthcare-Now!

In 2009 Michael Lighty, Director of Public Policy, California Nurses Association served on the board of directors of Healthcare-Now! .

"Single - payer" movement

According to Michael Lighty, a former National Director of Democratic Socialists of America, and Director of Public Policy for the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, writing in DSA's Democratic Left, Winter 2007/2008 .

There’s a growing movement for single-payer universal healthcare. The movement is led by activists in Healthcare-Now!, doctors in the Physicians for a National Health Program, nurses in the California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, leaders in labor unions such as United Steelworkers of America and Communication Workers of America, activists in the Progressive Democrats of America, and Congressman John Conyers, with the support for HR 676 by 300 union locals, 75 Central Labor Councils, and 25 state Federations of Labor, and hundreds of clergy and faith-based organizations, as well as civil rights, women’s and healthcare advocacy groups in the Leadership Conference for Guaranteed Healthcare.

The policy proposals developed by Beltway think tanks and the principles for reform adopted by the AFL-CIO confer support for single-payer while allowing for private insurance-based approaches as well. Other bills in Congress, notably sponsored by Ted Kennedy and John Dingell and “Americare” introduced by Pete Stark, seek to incrementally establish a single-payer system.

Progressive Democrats of America

In 2012, Michael Lighty served on the Advisory Board of Progressive Democrats of America.

References

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