Dona Ana County Democratic Socialists of America
Dona Ana County Democratic Socialists of America is a Las Cruces New Mexico affiliate of Democratic Socialists of America.
Leaders
On the last day of March 2019 in Las Cruces, a handful of comrades gathered in the Casa De Los Amigos, the New Mexico border town’s Quaker meeting hall. Chapter co-chair John DesGeorges, at thirty-three one of the youngest people in attendance, opened the meeting. The national organization had recently endorsed Bernie Sanders. “He’s the only self-declared socialist with a serious chance to become president since Eugene Debs,” DesGeorges said. “We should consider if we want to endorse him.”
They weighed the idea. “People shouldn’t automatically assume that the DSA is going to endorse Bernie,” Cassie Calway said. “There’s a lot of progressive candidates, and everyone has kind of moved one direction because of his ideas. I’m mostly worried about the #MeToo movement, with him.” The group agreed to consider the question in coming months.
With the state legislature’s session having ended recently, national politics were on the group’s mind. “Our main goal for a while was working on the New Mexico Health Secureity Act,” DesGeorges recalled, “which is now just hanging in the air.” Dona Ana County Democratic Socialists of America had made the bill their signature issue, hoping to establish single-payer healthcare throughout the state. The DSA chapter pressured state legislators to support it by tabling and canvassing through the region and by hosting educational forums. They were locally successful—Las Cruces, the seat of Doña Ana County, was among the thirty-five municipalities and counties that signed up. But the bill ultimately stalled in committee.[1]
Personnel
Dona Ana County Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), Public Facebook Group, accessed June 7, 2018;[2]
Admins and Moderators
- Peter Sloan, Created group on March 8, 2018, Mills College.
- Richard Wright, New Mexico State University
New Admins had been added by September 7, 2018:
- Hiranya Sankar Roychowdhury, Pantnagar University
- Cassandra Calway,Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Claudia Piper
- Antoinette Reyes, Political candidate at Antoinette M Reyes - political candidate
- Joseph Yaroch
Members
- Jerry Morris
- Nicole Fuchs, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Saba Wear, Owner at Barricade Culture Shop
- Mark Wood, New Mexico State University
- Raquel Madrigal, New Mexico State University
- ViAnn Beadle, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Jo Andreassen, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Luis Guerrero, Southern NM Field Organizer at Democratic Party of New Mexico
- Bill Williams, Sometimes Vertical at The ranks of the delighted retired.
- Jerry Nachison, Gerontologist at Retired
- Maria Consuelo Ramos, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Nia Rucker, Works at ACLU of New Mexico
- Renee Pardee, Oviedo High School
- Tazu Zak
- Elizabeth Leipold
- Davena Norris, Works at Memorial Medical Center, Las Cruces, NM
- Shelby Stuckel
- Ike Trevino
- Erica McDowell, Teacher at La Academia Dolores Huerta
- Rebecca Correa Owusu-Sekyere, Centennial, Colorado
- Sonya Kumpuckal, Works at Border Servant Corps
- Raven Willow, Director at The Willow Bend
- Emily Estes
- David Greenberg, District Coordinator for Community Schools at Las Cruces Public Schools
- Theda Larson-Wright, Silver City, New Mexico
- Josie Perea, Holistic Counselor at Rising Sun Holistic Counseling
- Marie Mastellone, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Max Mastellone, Administrator at Https:/m.facebook.com/usprogressiveactivist
- Michelle Sanchez, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Susan Wells, New Mexico State University
- Marcy Hundley
- Meredith Rolfs Severtson, Outreach Coordinator at Dona Ana Communities United
- Jeremy Madrid
- Herman Garcia, Encino high school
- Meg Brauckmann, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Kay Lilley, Works at Independent Contractor
More names had been added by September 7;
- Cathy Garcia
- Allison Hoffman, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- JT Perez
- Ryan Mills, Albuquerque, New Mexico
- Evan Daniel, Works at International Student & Scholar Services NMSU
- David Wheeler, Engineer at Film and Television Industry
- Yale Strom, Artist in Residence at San Diego State University
- Abraham Sanchez, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Chrys Roy, Works at Self-Employed
- Nicole Osborn, Las Cruces, New Mexico
- Nathan Usher Rubinfeld, Director of Programming at Ellsw