MIT YDSA’s first meeting attracts students, Cambridge politicians, and GSU
MIT joins four other Massachusetts universities in forming Young Democratic Socialists of America chapters
MIT YDSA
On Tuesday, Nov. 11, MIT Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA) held its first general meeting in Room 56-154. MIT is now the fifth Massachusetts college to have a YDSA chapter, joining Amherst College, Boston University, Northeastern University, and University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
“MIT YDSA is a socialist organization, and we seek to advance an explicitly working class politics,” co-chair Anton Perez ’27 wrote to The Tech. According to Perez, the group hopes to empower students and workers to communicate their needs to MIT’s administration. In particular, YDSA aims to preserve protections for international students and prevent MIT from acceding to demands from the federal government, such as the deputization of local officers for ICE (United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement).
Perez said that MIT YDSA plans on collaborating with other progressive student activist groups, including MIT Divest and the MIT Coalition for Palestine, whenever their goals align. However, he believes that the focuses of these groups, such as climate change, Gaza, and affordability, are all symptoms of underlying problems with capitalism that can be addressed via a shift to socialism. Furthermore, unlike some other student groups, MIT YDSA explicitly focuses on class in their analysis of society.
Perez stated the chapter ultimately wants to fight for a “sanctuary campus” where the MIT community is free to work and live without fear. According to Perez, YDSA plans on applying pressure to MIT on multiple fronts, including the Starbucks Workers United strike and the renegotiation of MIT’s Payment in Lieu of Taxes program. To accomplish this, they hope to coordinate with the Cambridge Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and other Massachusetts YDSAs, along with DSA-endorsed local politicians like Cambridge City Councilor Jivan Sobrinho-Wheeler and Councilor-Elect Ayah Al-Zubi.
On Nov. 11, more than 50 participants — mostly MIT undergraduates — filled the classroom as the chapter presented an overview of their purpose and current campaigns. Also in attendance were two students from Northeastern YDSA, along with MIT Graduate Student Union (GSU) president Lauren Chua G and Councilor Sobrinho-Wheeler.
The meeting started with an introduction of MIT YDSA’s steering committee — co-chairs Perez and Eda Lozada ’27, treasurer Ace Chun ’28, parliamentarian Graciela León ’27, communications chair Victor Dominguez ’27, and political education chair Richard Solomon G, a Ph.D. student at the MIT Department of Political Science. According to Perez, the steering committee evolved from an original organizing committee focused on laying the foundation for a chapter. Some committee members come from “the broader Boston DSA scene” or are involved in other activist organizations, including pro-Palestine groups at MIT.
The conversation then turned to socialism and YDSA’s broader campaign goals, during which Sobrinho-Wheeler and Chua both gave brief speeches. The councilor described his policy goals and accomplishments, emphasizing the housing crisis in Cambridge and his support of “municipal socialism,” which aims to expand public services and public ownership on the level of local government. Sobrinho-Wheeler said he was excited to collaborate with YDSA on socialist policies in Cambridge.
Chua highlighted upcoming contract disputes that would affect graduate students in the spring and expressed a desire to collaborate with MIT YDSA. She did not respond to The Tech’s request for comment at the time of publication. “[As] labor organizing is one of the most direct avenues of class struggle,” Perez wrote, “our support for the GSU follows naturally from this understanding.”
The interest meeting exceeded the expectations of Semai Ralph ’29, who intends on joining YDSA. Having studied similar political movements from a young age, Ralph found himself sympathizing with revolutions that promoted wealth redistribution and improved social institutions in opposition to dictatorships. He believes there is a “new kind of dictatorship on the rise” and that the YDSA has many “like-minded people who want to do something about it.”
Ralph’s main hope for YDSA’s campaigning is that it grows and changes with the times. The failure of many activist clubs across campuses, Ralph wrote to The Tech, stems from a reluctance to “shift gears once met with heavy confrontation.”
According to Ralph, YDSA differs from other political organizations on campus because it has broader goals to organize and empower youth interested in socialism, feminism, and anti-colonialism. “[MIT YDSA]’s core mission lies in wanting to effect change for the collective, rather than just the promotion of the individual,” he wrote.