Term	Definition
501(c)3	A nonprofit entity recognized by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as exempt from federal income tax under Internal Revenue Code Section 501. These organizations usually operate for charitable, religious, or educational purposes. Donations are generally tax-deductible. These organizations are prohibited from supporting or opposing political candidates and can only engage in limited lobbying.
501(c)4	A type of tax-exempt nonprofit organization under the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. They are often referred to as "social welfare organizations" and can also include civic leagues and local associations of employees. Donations are generally not tax-deductible. Organizational activities can include advocating for public policy changes, educating and mobilizing the public, and providing social benefits to communities.
AAC	Anti-Abortion Center: aka "crisis pregnancy centers" or "pregnancy resource centers", are typically managed and funded by religious nonprofits that oppose abortion in any and all circumstances. They often use abortion stigma, medical disinformation, and deceptive practices as a way to dissuade people from accessing abortion care.
Abolition	The road to socialism. Abolition is destroying the weapons of the white ruling class. Prisons and police are weapons of the white ruling class. Just like we can’t fight capitalism with Black capitalism, we can’t fight the white ruling class with the white ruling class’s weapons. We gotta destroy their weapons. We gotta destroy prisons, police, patriarchy, poverty, and all the other parts of white supremacy completely to build a better world.
AN	Action Network: The online organizing tool used within DSA to send newsletters, host events, and track invites & RSVPs.
Association	A group of members organized around a shared interest.
Base building	A labor and tenant organizing strategy which emphasizes the creation of organized groups of workers and tenants capable of forming a "base" for socialist politics (not necessarily mutually exclusive with other labor approaches on this list).
BDS	Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions: Inspired by the South African anti-apartheid movement, BDS is a Palestinian-led, international movement for freedom, justice and equality. It is a submovement within the broader movement for Palestinian liberation. BDS aims to dismantle Israeli apartheid and decolonize Palestine by boycotting and divesting from institutions that are complicit in Israeli apartheid and campaigning for sanctions against Israel until it complies with international law and meets three (3) demands: 1.) An end to the illegal occupation. 2.) Equal rights for Palestinian citizens of Israel. 3.) The Right of Return for Palestinian Refugees as stipulated by UN Resolution 194.
Bodily Autonomy	The right to make decisions about your own body, life, and future, without coercion or violence. This political value prioritizes agency over one's body.
Boot Licker	A pejorative term for an oppressed individual who defends their oppressor. In Marxist theory, this is known as "false consciousness." Current examples of this are supporters of "Blue Lives Matter" and trad wife influencers.
Bourgeoisie	Consists of the "middle class". This term was popularized by Karl Marx, who defined the bourgeoisie class as business owners and the wealthy. They came to own the means of production after the industrial revolution. They rely on the exploitation of the working class.
Cadre	A group of people trained for a specific purpose or job and able to train others. Within leftist political theory, a cadre consists of a group of people who are well-educated in and committed to the beliefs and activities of a group, party, or movement and also promote and support those beliefs and activities.
Calling-forward	An alternative to the calling-in/calling-out model, which invites individuals to assume actions come from a place of care, concern, and love, meaning any harm was unintentional. Additionally, resolution to conflict is centered around an ideal shared by all parties to work towards.
Calling-in	Calling-in is a practice used within groups of people who have a shared purpose when a member of the group takes an action that does not reflect the values of the group or breaks the named guidelines of group participation. The call-in is usually a one to one conversation in which a supportive member of the group reminds their fellow member that the group has shared values and guidelines.
Calling-out	Calling-out is a practice most often, and most effectively used to publicly name the harmful behaviors of people with institutional or systemic power or cultural influence and may include demands for specific behavior change and redress. The call-out can be used to draw attention to harmful behaviors and increase public pressure on the person with power and normally involves the use of shame.
Campaign	A series of efforts to bring about a desired result. In DSA, campaigns are groups that are working together to achieve one specific goal.
Campist	Campism is a framework for understanding political and military conflict that calls for publicly aligning with one of two opposing political blocs. Campists are people who have picked a side. Defining these 2 words can be controversial because the term “campist” is regularly used online as a pejorative, synonymous with other derogatory terms. But within the left, campists are those who support, whether critically or uncritically, the governments and people who oppose the USA and/or the West, whether critically or uncritically. They’re distinct from third campists, who choose not to align with either political bloc
Canvass	Activism that seeks to obtain political support for something in a specific population. This requires outreach, typically by going in person to districts and neighborhoods and speaking to the residents.
Capitalism	A way of running the economy, where a few people in the nation own the stores, transportation systems, services, finance, and business and the majority of the people work for those owners. The few capitalists make large amounts of money by selling what the rest of the people make – like housing, technology, services, cars, or oil. This is called profit. The final outcome of capitalism is the destruction of the land and the planet’s ecosystems.
Cardinal Points	Name of the Triangle DSA's newsletter. Contains chapter announcements on activities like meetings, events, canvasses, and other information relevant to the general body. Events and information can be added through a comms request.
Caucus	A group or autonomous body organized around specific identities or political interests. Caucuses within the DSA aim to connect with relevant social movements and provide a platform for members to mobilize around particular issues
CAUSE	Carolina Amazonians United for Solidarity and Empowerment: A movement of Amazon workers seeking collective bargaining power for Amazon workers across North Carolina. They organize locally in the triangle at RDU1, seeking improved pay, benefits, and working conditions compatible with a dignified livelihood for all workers.
Characteristics of White Supremacy Culture	An intersectional framework developed by author Tema Okun, describing a list of 14 white supremacy characteristics that define and express white & owning class values and norms. The characteristics are: Either or Thinking, Worship of the Written Word, Objectivity, Individualism, Quantity over Quality, Power Hoarding, Fear of Open Conflict, A Sense of Urgency, Defensiveness, Paternalism, Progress is Bigger, Belief in One Right Way, Right to Comfort, and Perfectionism. White supremacy culture is inextricably linked to all the other oppressions - capitalism, sexism, class and gender oppression, ableism, ageism, and Christian hegemony.
Class	The social group that an individual belongs to, all of whom make their living the same way. For instance, working people make their living by working for someone. The petty bourgeois make their living by working for themselves as well as making money off of other people’s labor. The bourgeois make their money only off of the labor of everyone else, which we call exploitation. The bourgeois don’t work at all. They make others work and call that work. The white ruling class in the United States is bourgeois.
Class Reductionism	The belief that all forms of oppression will be resolved through the achievement of a worker-dominated state. This political perspective asserts that acknowledging any other forms of identity or oppression outside of class is oppositional or somehow separate from class struggle.
Clean Break	An electoral strategy of leaving the Democratic party now and only running candidates as independents or under a DSA ballot line.
Collective Bargaining	The process where employees, typically through their union, negotiate with their employer to determine the terms and conditions of their employment. This includes wages, benefits, working hours, and other aspects of the workplace.
Committee	A group within the Local Chapter that is tasked with carrying out an internal function for the chapter. We have three established committees dedicated to communications, membership, and health and safety.
Comms Request	A form for any member that wants to promote activities like meetings, events, canvasses, or announcements. These activities will be announced in the Cardinal Points newsletter.
Communism	Political ideology derived by Karl Marx. It is a form of socialism that it is characterized by common ownership of the means of production rather than private property.
Consent Agenda	A grouping of resolutions ostensibly selected because they would be expected to pass and can therefore be expedited in a single vote to conserve the body's time. Inclusion or exclusion of items in the consent agenda may become a matter of contention.
Controlled Opposition	A party or group that stands as a placeholder for the opposition, but who are completely ineffective and therefore the entire political environment is "controlled" by the ruling parties. This is a purported oppositional party that the ruling party actually uses as a hegemonic tool to serve as a pressure valve to constituents.
Copaganda	The use of media, including news, entertainment, and public relations, to promote a positive image of the police and their activities while minimizing their abuse of power. Examples of this range from Law & Order, The Marvel Cinematic Universe, and Paw Patrol.
Culture War	Hot-button issues, or divisive political issues selected and further designed by corporate-funded media to increase social division and political polarization. These involve fundamental disagreements about morality, values, and social norms between ideologies. Examples of this include trans athletes, "late-term" abortions, and book bans.
Degrowth	An international movement that recognizes the impossibility of infinite economic growth on a finite planet and seeks to reorganize society and the economy to reflect this reality. Policies commonly associated with degrowth include abandoning yearly GDP growth as the primary measure of economic success in favor of other metrics, dramatically scaling down highly destructive industries, ending planned obsolescence, establishing universal basic services, and fighting for shorter working hours. Degrowth is an intentionally provocative term to prevent its co-opting by capitalists, as was "sustainability" and "eco-friendly".
Demands	A term used in campaign strategy. This is what you want to win or the outcome desired- the more specific the better.
Democracy	A system of government where laws, leaders, and policies are decided by the people. America is not a democracy, since the general population does not ultimately have a say in political decisions.
Democratic Centralism	A practice in which political decisions reached by voting processes are binding upon all members of the political party. DSA bylaws allow for the expulsion of a member "under the discipline of any self-defined democratic-centralist organization." This seems to have been against destructive entryism, but could in theory apply to some Leninist caucuses in DSA, though it has never been enforced. As a result, several caucuses have suggested enforcing or deleting this clause (depending on their politics).
Dialectic Materialism	A term popularized by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels that describes the impact of material conditions, particularly economic factors, being the primary drivers of social and cultural change.
Dialectics	Dialogue between people of two opposing viewpoints who wish to arrive at a common truth through reasoned argument.
Dirty Break	An electoral strategy of working within the Democratic Party for now while building the capacity to break from the party at a later date and form an independent party at that time. Caucuses that support a dirty break may also be partyist in the sense that the formation of a party is a medium-term goal
Dirty Stay	A description of the current situation in DSA where we use Democratic Party ballot lines without seeking to transform the party’s institutional structures nor making concrete steps to create a new party. Not supported by any faction. People prefer clean or dirty breaks, partyist or party surrogate, or realignment strategies. Presently there's no consensus on which to follow going forward.
Disaster Capitalism	Describes how governments and corporations exploit vulnerable countries and cities in times of crisis to push for policies that benefit the wealthy, often at the expense of the general population.
Economism	A reduction of political or cultural phenomena and struggles to purely economic issues.
Electoralism	A political tactic which encompasses many strategies centered around voting and elections, from running socialist candidates to “consciousness raising” and exerting pressure on other candidates. The degree to which socialists and their allies ought to do electoralist work is a common debate among leftists
Entryism	A political tactic in which an organization or state encourages its members or supporters to join another, usually larger, organization in an attempt to expand influence and expand their ideas and program. If the organization being "entered" is hostile to entrism, the entrists may engage in a degree of subterfuge and subversion to hide the fact that they are an organization in their own right.
EWOC	Emergency Workplace Organizing Committee: A coalition of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) to provide a grassroots organizing program, informed by socialist guiding principles supporting workers organizing at the workplace.
Fascism	Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian ultranationalist political ideology and movement characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition, and strong regimentation of society and the economy.
HGO	Harrassment and Grievance Officer: A member empowered by their chapter and trained to handle reports of harassment in accordance with DSA’s Harassment Policy.
ICE	Immigration and Customs Enforcement: Operates as a repressive arm of the state, targeting marginalized migrants through raids, detention camps, and deportations. Its actions disrupt families, fuel racial terror, and reinforce capitalist exploitation by maintaining a vulnerable, undocumented workforce that employers can underpay and abuse. By collaborating with private prisons, militarizing borders, and violating human rights, ICE upholds a system of oppression that benefits corporations and the ruling class while harming working-class communities.
Identity Politics	This is a politic, developed by the Black Feminist group - the Combahee River Collective, where one's perspective is exclusively defined through social identities such as race, gender, or sexual orientation. While this term has been weaponized by both liberals and conservatives, the original purpose of this statement was to communicate and emphasize that "the most profound and potentially most radical politics come directly out of our own identity, as opposed to working to end somebody else's oppression".
Imperialism	The practice of a nation seeking to extend their power and dominance beyond their borders, usually through occupation. It can also be done indirectly by exerting political, economic, or military power over another territory.
Internationalism	Several political theories of internationalism exist. In a socialist or Marxist sense, it refers to seeing your country’s class struggle as part of the global struggle of the working classes against the ruling classes. There is some debate on how the DSA should demonstrate solidarity, or not, with other left wing organizations, both in the USA and around the world. (See the “Bowman vote to send weapons to Israel” section for an example of one major debate which spread across multiple conventions.)
Jargon Giraffe	A Community Agreement used to help people when they encounter jargon (as in subgroup-specific language). A person can say “jargon giraffe,” show the giraffe hand sign, or if online use the giraffe emoji. Then by convention whoever is talking does a quick aside to explain what the specific jargon means
Labor Union	Organized association of workers seeking to protect the workers from being exploited by ensuring workers' rights, higher salaries, and better benefits.
Liberalism	A political and philosophical view based on individual rights, liberty, consent of the governed, political equity, right to private property, and equality before the law. Liberals support private property and market economies, which is why this is not considered a leftist ideology.
Marxism-Leninism	One of the main ideologies of Communist parties around the world. 'Marxist-Leninist' can also refer to someone who subscribes to the ideas of Marxist-Leninism. The main tenets of Marxist-Leninism include [democratic centralism], [dialectic materialism], maintaining a [revolutionary horizon], understanding the role of the [vanguard] in organizing a revolution, using a [scientific approach to socialism] and more. You can read more about these ideas here and here
Material Conditions	The realities on the ground, outside of our own head, and how those things interact with one another. These are the details of how power works in society. Systems of oppression create material conditions.
Materialism	A philosophical approach to understanding the world according to the material conditions that shape people and societies. This is in contrast to idealism, where the world is understood through more spiritual forces or ideas.
Member leader	A subgroup of chapter membership engaged in leadership efforts related to chapter subbodies like campaigns and committees. Current rules state that member leaders should have 6 months of organizing experience and attend training dedicated to fostering organizing skills. This section of membership supports the connection between chapter leadership and the general body.
MIGS	Members In Good Standing: A status that allows members to vote, run for officer or delegate positions. Member dues payment or dues waivers are required to maintain good standing status.
Military Industrial Complex	Industrial complexes are systems where the supply and demand are both controlled by a single party, and profit is most effectively made through inefficiency. War is then mutually profitable to the ruling class by perpetuating war, imperialism, and the accumulation of capital.
Mutual Aid	An example of solidarity. Mutual aid is when people whose liberation is tied up come together to meet each other’s needs and to build cooperation with one another. Mutual aid isn’t new. It’s how our communities survived throughout history and how we will thrive in the future. Mutual aid is different from charity in that it is based on the fulfillment of specific requests (a bottom-up/horizontal approach) whereas charity will often just heave resources onto people who had no say in what they actually got, oftentimes with that decision resting in the hands of someone they've never even talked to before (a top-down, vertical approach).
NA4A	No Appetite For Apartheid: A campaign upholding DSA's commitment to anti-zionism and solidarity with the people of Palestine, whose goal is to remove products that are produced by or in support of the Palestinian occupation in local businesses. Campaign activities include canvassing of businesses seeking pledges to not import or sell Israeli food products, and pressure campaigns to ensure that businesses which use/sell Israeli food products cease doing so. This action functions in parallel to the Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions (BDS) movement.
National Convention Delegate	Delegates for the convention are chosen by each chapter from among their membership. There’s no set process to select delegates but national DSA recommends Scottish STV. Each chapter gets 1 delegate for every 75 members and 1 alternate for every 10 delegates. Chapters with fewer than 75 members get one delegate and one alternate.
NGO	Non-Government Organization: A charity-based, non-profit entity that serves as an ineffective band-aid to the social and economic problems caused and maintained through capitalism. All NGOs are nonprofits, but not all nonprofits are NGOs. NGOs are typically larger, international, and advocacy-focused, while nonprofits can be any mission-driven organization, including small local groups.
NMO	New Member Orientation: regular sessions held for new or prospective members to learn more about DSA. Attending an NMO should be one of the first steps of any new member.
NPC	National Political Committee: the 16-member collective leadership and the highest decision-making body of the organization. They elects every 2 years and are required to meet 4 times a year.
NPO	Non-Profit Organization: NPO's establish private foundations as a legal way for the wealthy to avoid paying taxes on large chunks of their wealth through tax-deductible donations (lowering the amount of taxable income). Philanthropy is a system that allows rich people to maintain control of their wealth. Ultimately, these businesses are entirely beholden to those who fund them. All NGOs are nonprofits, but not all nonprofits are NGOs
Organize the Unorganized	A labor strategy that emphasizes the creation of new unions rather than working within existing unions. Additionally, "Organize the Unorganized" (1927) by William Z. Foster was a key Communist Party USA strategy urging labor unions to aggressively expand into ununionized industries, particularly among Black, immigrant, and low-wage workers, to build revolutionary class consciousness. Foster argued that militant industrial unionism, rather than craft-based unions, was essential for overthrowing capitalism and advancing socialist revolution in the U.S.(https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/tuel/17-Organize%20the%20Unorganized.pdf)
Organizing	A conscious thing we do. It doesn't happen automatically and it doesn’t happen alone. Organizing is getting lots of people doing the same thing towards the same goal. It’s how we win. Organizing is how we build, what we build, and who we build it with in order to get liberated. In our society, the white ruling class is well-organized and we are not. Hence, they have power and we need to build power. Organizing is how we build power.
Party Surrogate	An electoral strategy where DSA operates as a more-or-less formal faction within the Democratic party with disciplined candidates, an independent infrastructure, and a public persona while using the Dem ballot line.
Partyist	A view which holds that DSA should not work within the Democratic Party at all so as to maintain political independence, and should use the Democratic ballot line only tactically where it is possible to do so while maintaining this independence. Partyist caucuses tend to support "red lines" around issues like strikebreaking or internationalist positions, feeling that DSA's elected officials should not undermine other areas of work, such as labor organizing and/or anti-imperialist politics.
PEC	Political Education Committee: The subody in our chapter dedicated to ongoing education around Marxist theory, supporting the advancement of the socialist movement.
Petite Bourgeoisie	(aka “little bourgeoisie” and synonymous with “petty bourgeoisie”) depending on who you ask, it’s a semi-distinct class from the working class and bourgeoisie, with its own interests and social status, or within the same stratum as the bourgeoisie. Regardless, this socioeconomic class consists of “small time capitalists” like small shopkeepers, self-employed artisans, managers, and some types of “skilled professionals”; essentially people who work alongside laborers, but also employ them too. The ideological and moral basises of this class is often said to be a reflection of the “haute bourgeoisie” (or “high bourgeoisie”), which they wish to identify themselves with
Picket	A form of protest where workers and allies stand outside a business to prevent other workers from going in. This can also be done to draw public attention to a cause. Picketing is a way to pressure a target to meet the protesters' demands about a specific issue.
Planetary Boundaries	A framework developed by the Stockholm Resilience Institute to quantify the degree to which human activity affects nine processes critical to the stability of Earth's biosphere. A specific boundary for each process defines a safe and unsafe operating space for humanity. The nine critical processes include climate change, biosphere integrity, land-system change, freshwater use, biogeochemical flows, ocean acidification, atmospheric aerosol loading, stratospheric ozone depletion, and novel entities. As of 2023, 6 out of 9 planetary boundaries have been transgressed.
Profiteering	The practice of making unreasonable profits on essential goods, especially during times of emergency.
Proletariat	Social class of wage-earners who have no ownership over the means of production. Their only means of subsistence is to sell their labor power.
Proposal	Written, formal document outlining the motivation and structure of an event, campaign, or other action to be taken by DSA members or groups of members.
Public Power	A system in which the electricity grid is owned and managed collectively by its customers and their elected representatives rather than by a corporation such as Duke Energy. Public power has taken several forms in US history, including but not limited to public municipal electric utilities, public power districts, and electricity cooperatives.
QTS	Queer Trans Solidarity: NCTDSA's local section dedicated to the struggle for queer and trans rights. National DSA's Trans Rights & Bodily Autonomy Campaign Commission is the largest hub for grassroots trans rights organizing in America.
Race	Designed a few centuries ago by the white ruling class to colonize the world. Races are social groups oppressed in different ways, categorized by the white ruling class to justify oppression. Physical characteristics are often used to justify racism in the USA. The ruling class racializes people at different times to maintain power. For example, Muslims were racialized within our lifetimes after the War on Terror started. The way we fight racism is with solidarity.
Reactionary	A position that forms in opposition to something, and does not stand on its own. For example, being anti-police violence but not pro-abolition.
Reformist	Trying to improve or change an existing system through the avenues that are set in place by the existing system. Reformists believe that ideally, enough change can be achieved within the current system to bring about an entirely new political system.
Resolution	A resolution is a formal proposal submitted for discussion and voting by a governing body or membership, often outlining a position, decision, or course of action. Any member in good standing may submit a resolution for a Chapter General Meeting vote, provided it is endorsed by at least five members and submitted to the Steering Committee at least one month in advance, though late submissions may be added with a two-thirds Steering Committee vote. Additional information on resolutions can be found in chapter bylaws.
Restorative Justice	A system of justice that focuses on repairing the harm caused by crime or conflict, rather than solely focusing on punishment.
Revolutionary Horizon	The ultimate goal of proletarian revolution: overthrowing capitalism and the establishment of a classless, communist society. It represents the long-term vision that guides revolutionary strategy, shaping tactics and organizing efforts toward systemic transformation rather than short-term reforms.
Roberts Rules	Parliamentary procedure that is used when conducting chapter business. Having a shared set of rules and expectations for how we interact with proposals and each other during meetings helps us practice democracy.
RUMAH	Raleigh United Mutual Aid Hub: A community center and volunteer collective based in Raleigh, North Carolina, providing access to space and resources and are funded almost entirely through community donations. This sober and accessible space implements community-led programs around harm reduction, education, and mutual aid.
Salting	"Salting the workplace" is a union organizing tactic where union organizers, known as "salts," seek employment at a non-union company with the intention of organizing the existing workforce.
SC	Steering Committee: A committee of 5 people elected by the NPC, as directed by the DSA Constitution & Bylaws. The SC takes responsibility for decision-making between meetings of the NPC, the supervision “of all offices and staff of the organization,” for “planning meetings and agendas for the NPC,” and also “for coordinating the work of the committees of the NPC.” SC members receive a small stipend for their work.
Scab	A derogatory term used to describe a worker who crosses the picket line and continues to work during a strike. This behavior undermines the collective bargaining power of the union by undermining the strike.
Scientific Socialism	The application of the scientific method and analysis of real economic and social conditions when organizing to overthrow capitalism. Scientific socialists study the examples of successful revolutions to learn from them.
Section	A group of members that associate due to a shared identity. Examples in our chapter include afrosocialists, caregivers, youth, and disabled individuals.
Socialism	An economic and political system where the means of production are owned and controlled, either publicly or collectively, rather than privately. The final outcome of socialism is the preservation of the land, the planet’s ecosystems, and the creation of communal society based on cooperation and care.
Solidarity	Supporting one another and other groups because your liberation is tied up with theirs. It’s not just expressing support, it’s doing support. It’s not just posting on social media, it’s showing up in whatever way you can at your capacity. It’s organizing together. It’s supporting each other’s organizing.
SRA	Socialist Rifle Association: A not-for-profit organization, incorporated in Wichita Kansas and filing as a 501(c)(4) social welfare organization federally. They are an organization dedicated to educating on and advocating for all aspects of self and community defense. SRA recognizes all aspects of self and community defense to include topics such as firearms, disaster relief, medicine, logistics, agriculture, general survival skills, and other pursuits necessary to unify and strengthen communities against the hardships of life under capitalism.
Stack	A method of determining an order of speakers during meetings or conducting business, where a member will place themselves next into a queue of speakers by announcing "stack".
Target	A term used in campaign strategy. This is the person or party with the power to give you what you want. A change in their use of power will deliver the outcomes desired from the campaign.
Tea Party	A political movement and cacus within the Republican Party that emerged in 2009 in the United States, opposing taxation and government intervention in the private sector while supporting stronger immigration controls.
TERF	Trans exclusionary radical feminist: A bioessentialist feminist movement that is built on cis supremacy by rejecting trans identities and reinforcing the so-called gender binary.
Transformation	Transformation occurs when the two people or parties start out seeing their point of view as in opposition to or incompatible with the other. The two people or parties go through a process that shifts their perspective and allows them to come to a new understanding about what each party needs and how each party might be able to get their needs met. In conflict transformation, the relationship between the two people or parties is where the change happens allowing for shifts in power dynamics, new ways of communicating, or new shared understanding of what the conflict is about.
Transformative Justice	A framework for addressing harm and violence that prioritizes healing, accountability, and community safety without relying on the state or reinforcing violence. It seeks to address the root causes of harm, rather than just punishing individuals, and aims to create lasting change within communities.
TTU	Triangle Tenant Union: A local union organizing tenants in the Triangle, building power for tenants and against landlords. (https://triangletenantunion.org/)
ULP	Unfair Labor Practices: Actions by employers or unions that violate employee rights or labor laws, such as interfering with union organizing or discriminating against employees for union activities. These practices are prohibited under laws like the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and can lead to investigations and legal action by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). (https://www.flra.gov/cases/unfair-labor-practice)
Vanguard	The vanguard, or vanguard party, is something which is defined in [Marxist-Leninism] as the body which helps lead and guard the working class before, during, and after the revolution. This party is made up of people from the working class who are well educated in Communist theory and who understand that their main duty is to serve the interests of the working class (aka, vanguard party members are '[cadre]').
Wastelanding	The process by which certain landscapes and the peoples that inhabit them are disproportionately exposed to environmental harm ("wastelanded") to support advanced industrial lifeways in other parts of the world. First coined by Tracey Voyles to describe the environmental racism involved in uranium mining on the Navajo reservation in the US.
WG	Working Group: A Working Group is a selection of members devoted through to specific issues like electoral work, tenant organizing, political education, etc.
White Feminism	A type of feminism that focuses exclusively on middle & upper-class, white, able-bodied women, also known as "girlboss feminism". It excludes and functions at the cost of women of color, working-class women, and disabled women. The success of this form of feminism is attributable to white supremacist capitalist patriarchy (as defined by bell hooks) because it defines success through wealth and superiority to others. An example of this is pick-me culture and measuring the success of the feminist movement through the number of women-CEOS.
Wildcat Strike	A labor strike initiated by workers without the approval or authorization of their union leadership. It is an unofficial form of industrial action, often characterized by its spontaneity and lack of formal organization.
YDSA	Young DSA. The branch of the DSA for college and high school students.
Zionism	The ideology demanding the forced establishment of a Jewish colonial ethnostate in the Middle East. Movement largely led by evangelicals and big corporations looking to profit off of cheap labor and natural resources.