We are active and retired labor union organizers and activists who are also DSA members. We have worked closely with Danny Fetonte over the years and view him as an outstanding organizer and a lifelong advocate for workers’ rights, racial justice, women’s rights, LGBTQ rights, and democratic socialism.

We urge the DSA National Political Committee to stand by the results of our organization’s elections and the clear choice of our members as expressed in the vote at the convention. Danny must be allowed to take his rightful place on the NPC as a duly-elected member of this governing body for these reasons:

Any effort to remove Danny from the NPC now undermines the democratic structures of our organization. DSA has no requirements for disclosure of any kind by NPC candidates. Danny disclosed more of his employment history than most other candidates. Most labor organizers work with an array of workers too numerous to mention on a candidacy statement. Moreover, some of us, like Danny, have organized law enforcement personnel, including police and correctional workers, for which we refuse to apologize. DSA has never had a policy barring these workers from its membership or leadership. The Interim Steering Committee of the NPC is imposing a vague, retroactive requirement that candidates must have disclosed anything about their past employment that some DSA members might find objectionable. Danny was democratically elected to the NPC under the rules that existed at the time the election was held. The logic of excluding police from DSA could easily be extended to exclude every union staff person or member who has ever worked with or been a part of the same union as members of law enforcement. This would exclude from DSA millions of workers in CWA, AFT, SEIU, NEA, AFSCME, AFGE, NTEU, and other unions. Danny is arguably responsible for signing up more members into DSA than any other individual member in the history of the organization. Many of us were ourselves signed up into DSA by Danny. Danny has been an exemplary defender of the rights of workers, African Americans, immigrants, Muslims, women, the disabled, and the LGBTQ community his entire life. He demonstrated that commitment when he worked to organize law enforcement in a more progressive direction and courageously confronted their prejudices head-on. Most recently, he was arrested for sitting in at the Texas governor’s office to oppose Texas’ anti-sanctuary cities law in May. Danny has not been given the opportunity to publicly defend himself. He is currently being tried on the basis of false information and wild assumptions on social media. This hardly constitutes due process. The failure so far to seat Danny on the NPC brings into question DSA’s image as a “big tent” that does not seek to impose stringent ideological litmus tests on its members. The argument that an NPC decision to seat Danny would antagonize our organizational allies should be subordinate to doing the right thing by giving justice to a member who has selflessly dedicated his retirement to building DSA.

In socialist struggle,

Travis Donoho, organizer, CWA 6186, CWA 6086, Education Austin (AFT/NEA) (retired); NAM and DSA member since 1974, for a combined total of 43 years

Seth Hutchinson, Vice President CWA 6186, DSA member 15 years, National Political Committee member 2009–2011

Brooks Sunkett, CWA Public, Health Care, and Education Workers National Vice President, DSA member 1 year

Steve Early, Freelancers Unit, Pacific Media Workers Guild/CWA and former CWA organizer and representative in New England, member of DSA since DSOC-NAM merger

Debbie Goldman, CWA Research Department, 1992–2017 and CWA Local 6186 member, 1992–2017, NAM member 1978–1982, DSA member 1982–2017

Paul Garver, Organizer and Staff Representative, SEIU Local 585 Pittsburgh, 1974–1990, Global Union Coordinator and Organizer, Food and Drinks Sector, International Union of Food Workers (IUF), 1990–2007, Member New American Movement, Pittsburgh Chapter, 1971–1982, Member DSA 1982–92 and 2006–2017, four time member of NPC, Member, Swiss Socialist Party, 1993 to 2006

Jeff Lacher, GSEU/CWA Local 1188, NY, VASE/CWA Local 2201, VA, CWA Local 1031, NJ CWA District 1, Nurses United/CWA Local 1168, NY, CWA District 4, CWA District 7, DSA member since 1987, founded Youth Section chapters in SUNY Geneseo, and SUNY Albany

Katie Romich, CWA staff representative, district 7, DSA member 23 years

Glenn Scott, retired NNU & AFT/NEA organizer, member OPEIU L 298; founding member DSA, NPC 1983–1985, member NAM 1975–1983

Judy Lugo, President CWA 6186, DSA member

Myko Gedutis, lead organizer CWA 6186, DSA member 1 year

Taylor Jones, organizer CWA 6186, DSA member 3 years, founding co-chair Austin DSA Queer Coalition

Missy Benavidez, organizer CWA 6186, DSA member 1 year

Joe Montemayor, assistant organizing coordinator CWA 6186, UFCW member, DSA member 3 years

Robert Gibbons, AFT member (retired), DSA member 5 years

Evana Treviño, CWA 6186 member, DSA member 3 months

Yolanda Delgado, CWA 6186 member- retired, DSA member 3 years

Judy Graves, CWA District 6 Director of Organizing, DSA member 6 years

Keith Stenson, CWA 6186 organizer, GMP 201 steward, DSA member 3 years

Anitra Patterson, CWA 6186 organizer, DSA member 6 months

Janice Zitelman, CWA 6186 member, DSA member 2 years

James Nauls, CWA 6186 Vice President (retired), DSA member 1 year

Will Rogers, CWA 6186 member (retired), DSA member 8 months

Ron Day, lead organizer CWA 6186, DSA member 3 years

John Behr, IT coordinator CWA 6186, DSA member 3 years

Samm Almaguer, Executive Board member CWA 6186, DSA member 6 months

Kathryn Kenefick, CWA 6186 member, DSA member 10 months

Judy Holloway, CWA 6186 member, DSA member 10 months

Mike Gross, CWA District 6 organizing coordinator, DSA member 2 years

Arthur Valdez, Executive Board member CWA 6186, DSA member 1 year

Marlon Duran, CWA 6186 member, DSA member

Harrison Hiner, UAW lead organizer, DSA member 3 years

Chris Knapp, CWA 6186 publications, DSA member 3 years

Amy Mashberg, CWA 6186 member, DSA member 6 months

Alex Moir, organizer CWA 6186, Education Austin (AFT/NEA), DSA member 1 year

Kris Raab, CWA District 6 staff, DSA member 10 years

Bob Cash, member LIUNA, UNITE, USW, AFSCME, CWA, OPEIU; staffer at Seafarers, UMW; DSA member 3 years

Jim Pearson, founding member CWA 6186, DSA member 1 year

Tom Anderson, founding member and past president UCW-CWA Local 3865, DSA member 1 year

Dave Rathke, 33 years IEA (NEA) staff, Textile Workers, UFW, DSOC/DSA 40 years; 20 years Board In These Times

Nicholas Kiersey, AAUP member, DSA member 9 months

Gillian Talwar, CPSA elected official and TUC elected delegate 1975–1978 and 1982–1983, member NATFHE 1981–1982, member NALGO 1991–1992 (U.K.), Attorney representing public sector unions in Michigan 2000–2014, DSA member 13 years

Siobhan Burke, CWA 7901 local rank and file member, SEIU 503 staff, DSA member 2 years

Ned Burke, Statewide Nursing Home Bargaining Director, SEIU 2015, DSA member 19 years

Chris Talwar, member MSF/ TASS/ DATA (AUEW) 1976–1998 (UK), DSA member 13 years

Originally published via Google Drive.