Bud’s Bulletin – February 2025

What We’ve Been Up To:
Earlier last month, several of our members volunteered at Room and the Inn to help them check in some unhoused friends as the city braced for severe winter storms. Stay tuned for upcoming volunteer opportunities!
On January 18, we proudly cosponsored the People’s Rally here in Columbia where many speakers, including our own Kenzie Ortiz, spoke about the need to organize on multiple fronts–from trans rights to economic equality–in the wake of a second Trump term.
Just a couple weeks ago, a few of our members got to attend the Columbia Values Diversity Awards to help cheer on Mizzou YDSA and Missouri Jobs with Justice, who were both nominated!
What We’ll Be Doing:
Our next General Meeting will take place at 6:30 PM on Tuesday, February 11 at Daniel Boone Regional Library. This month we will be discussing our canvassing campaign for city workers, options for our medical debt elimination campaign, and the upcoming city council elections. All dues-paying DSA members and everyone else interested in learning more about DSA are welcome! RSVP here or use this link to join us virtually
Want to learn more about DSA or interested in getting more involved? Have an idea for something you think DSA should be doing in the community? Just want to grab coffee and chat with some fellow lefty folks? Join us at 2:00 on Sunday, February 16 for our monthly DSA Office Hours at Shortwave on 9th. RSVP here
The Columbia Ceasefire Coalition is holding weekly marches to demand that Columbia city officials call for a ceasefire in Gaza. Those interested in attending should meet at Speaker’s Circle before 2 PM every Saturday to join the march to City Hall.
If you like our newsletter and the work we’re doing in the community, please consider becoming a dues-paying member of DSA. Socialists believe in one struggle: the struggle of working people against domination by the powerful few. Workers fighting for their fair share of the profits, women and LGBTQ+ folks fighting for bodily autonomy, protestors fighting for a free Palestine, BIPOC activists fighting to end white supremacy, renters fighting for affordable housing, environmentalists fighting to combat climate change, and organizers fighting to end mass incarceration are all engaged in this same struggle. To win these fights, we must stand in solidarity. Mid-Missouri DSA shows up for local workers demanding a fair union contract. We march every Saturday to end the bloodshed in Gaza. We gather signatures and knock doors to raise the minimum wage, guarantee paid sick leave, and restore the right to reproductive freedom. We fought to make Columbia an LGBTQ+ Safe Haven and expand access to Plan B. Around the country, DSA works to advance the fight for justice at home–winning things like historic tenant protections and climate investments–and abroad–joining campaigns like the Uncommitted Movement. DSA electeds like AOC and Rashida Tlaib have lead the charge for Medicare-for-All, a Green New Dealstudent debt cancellationunion rights, and a ceasefire in Gaza. We are committed to engaging in this one struggle, standing side-by-side with one another to organize and fight for a better world. Will you join us?
What Our Friends Are Doing:
For the past several months, Mid-Missouri Peaceworks have been holding daily peace vigils in support of the people of Gaza from 12:15-12:45 PM by the City Hall Keyhole. All are welcome to join any day you can!
The Boone County Community Bail Fund provides essential services to low-level offenders who would otherwise be held in jail simply because they cannot afford to post bail. The Bail Fund posts bails of up to $3,000 for Boone County residents and arranges reminders and rides to help them appear at subsequent court dates. You can support them by making a one time or recurring donation or by contacting them at comobailfund@gmail.com to volunteer to answer phones, provide rides, help with fundraising, or otherwise get involved!
CoMo Mobile Aid Collective provide direct aid and immediate assistance to unsheltered friends here in Columbia. Their street teams proudly serve 200+ meals every week throughout the year, their mobile medical clinic of qualified nurses, EMTs, and medical students have a variety of assistance available, and they partner with Unchained Melodies Dog Rescue to ensure beloved pets have access to food, flea and tick treatment, first aid, vet appointments as needed, and lots of treats. You can support their efforts by making a one-time donation or becoming a monthly donor!
Abortion Help Mo can help you find an abortion care provider and help you pay for your care. You can go to their website or text Right By You‘s confidential and anonymous helpline at 855-458-0866 for assistance. You can also donate to the Missouri Abortion Fund, which provides financial assistance to Missouri residents who cannot afford the full cost or abortion care.
Have you been mistreated by your employer or landlord? You’re not alone! Contact the Columbia Solidarity Network to see if they can help! Call or text (573) 246-0646 or emailcolumbiasolidarity@gmail.com.
What We’re Reading, Watching, and Listening To:
Columbia must prioritize affordable and accessible housing – Columbia Missourian
Beware big money in politics – Columbia Missourian 
Missouri Republicans are trying to overturn Kansas City’s ban on housing discrimination – KCUR
Bayer urged Missouri lawmakers to pass bill critics say shields it from Roundup lawsuits – Missouri Independent 
Religion, gender identity and elections: Missouri K-12 education bills to watch in 2025 – The Beacon 
A Forged Viral Post Has Made Pro-Palestine Students in Missouri Live in Fear – truthout
‘Contempt is a dangerous way to lead a country’: here is the sermon that enraged Donald Trump – The Guardian
The Dubious History of America’s Most Famous Monarchist – The New York Times
Elon Must Wants To Get Operational Control of the Treasury’s Payment System. This Could Not Possibly Be More Dangerous – Notes on the Crisis 
What Happened Here – Unpopular Front
Wrecking ball: Trump’s war on ‘woke’ marks US society’s plunge into ‘dark times’ – The Guardian
Staying Woke in Trump’s America – Tyler Ludwig
Here’s a New Year’s resolution for Trump’s America: no snitching – The Guardian
ICE Watch Programs Can Protect Immigrants in Your Neighborhood — Here’s What to Know – Teen Vogue
We Only Have Ourselves: The How-Tos and DOs and DON’Ts of Mutual Aid – Literary Hub
Going into battle despite great odds – Welcome to Hell World
56 Small Tasks to Be Proactive Against Book Censorship in 2025 and Beyond – Bookriot
Choose Democracy Resources – DSA North Star
DSA Electeds Must Lead The Resistance to Trump – Reform & Revolution 
How Labor Can Fight Back Against Trump’s Mass Deportation Agenda – Labor Notes
Amazon Strike by the Numbers – Labor Notes
Donald Trump’s Anti-Union Offensive and How We Stop It – Jacobin 
Cranking Up the Labor Upsurge – The Call REI Sells the Great Outdoors While Workers Breathe Chemicals in a Windowless Basement – The Nation 
To resist the climate crisis, we must resist the billionaire class – The Guardian
Rashida Tlaib: Politicians should not be allowed to profit from war – Detroit Free Press
We Have a Ceasefire Deal, but This Isn’t the End – The Nation
What the reopening of the Gaza border means for humanitarian aid – Missouri Independent
A Year of Empty Threats and a “Smokescreen” Policy: How the State Department Let Israel Get Away With Horrors in Gaza – ProPublica 
The Boomerang Comes Back – Boston Review
We Aren’t Powerless in the Face of Trump’s Outrageous, Anti-Trans Edicts – truthout
Misinformation Against Trans Healthcare – Liberal Currents
Pride and Prejudice – Dissent
The Case for a Liberal Socialism – Jacobin
“Bipartisanship” as High-Minded Rhetorical Cover for Pushing Rightwing Policies – Citations Needed
Z for Zohran – Chapo Trap House
“Complete Chaos”: Medicaid, Meals on Wheels & More on Chopping Block as Trump Freezes Trillions – Democracy Now!
“Shock and Awe:” ICE Raids Begin as Judge Halts Unconstitutional Birthright Citizenship Order – Democracy Now!
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