Rise up and organize!

DRUM was founded in 2000 to build the power of South Asian and Indo-Caribbean low wage immigrant workers, youth, and families in New York City to win economic and educational justice, and civil and immigrant rights.

DRUM YouthPower! is looking for South Asian and Indo-Caribbean youth ages 14-21 for our 25th annual leadership development program this summer. Young people will build relationships and develop skills to make changes in our communities. With increasing attacks on immigrant communities and the defunding of essential resources (social programs for essential workers, housing, education, etc.) it's more important than ever for us to unite and organize.

Trump 2.0 is on the horizon. And we are committed Trump 2.0 is on the horizon. And we are committed to being brave, calm, and loving and protecting each other. We don’t yet know what the policies will look like under the incoming administration. What we do know is that the Right—the wealthy and corporate elites—gain and maintain power by dividing us and turning us against each other. For our November membership meetings, we discussed the anti-people culture of the Right, and how we will respond to attacks on working class and undocumented immigrant communities. At our meetings, we read the poem "First They Came" by Pastor Martin Niemoller about German society under the Nazis. First they came for the Communists And I did not speak out Because I was not a Communist Then they came for the Socialists And I did not speak out Because I was not a Socialist Then they came for the trade unionists And I did not speak out Because I was not a trade unionist Then they came for the Jews And I did not speak out Because I was not a Jew Then they came for me And there was no one left To speak out for me The Right will keep trying to create a culture of fear, mistrust, selfishness, and cruelty that keeps us as working people divided. We went through different skits of what it will look like if we are divided, silent, or panicked when we face immigration agents or the police. When the Right’s culture is dominant, we’re open to attacks and we get hurt. Solidarity and organizing are the antidote to division and powerlessness. In the past few weeks, members have been preparing themselves and our neighbors with critical Know Your Rights information and practices. We’re going to have to be different for each other in the coming period. Worry, anger, betrayal, and fear are all natural feelings to have in this moment. And in addition to all the feelings, we need clarity for how we will move forward and protect the majority, our people, whom the Right will keep targeting.
Do you want to be a part of a community that will Do you want to be a part of a community that will engage you politically? Do you want to support working class immigrant communities organizing to improve the material realities of everyday people? Get organized! Join DRUM as a volunteer or ally! Visit the link in our bio or go to drumnyc.org/volunteer The lived experiences of our members drive our work. The incoming administration will pass policies that will disproportionately impact our members. A political community offers you an opportunity to see NYC differently. You’ll understand how the current crises we’re living through impacts the working-class and most importantly, how we can fight for a better city and country rooted in doing the work of building grassroots power. A political community is a place to come together with people that you are down to struggle with. People you want to sharpen your skills with. People who will support you in figuring out how you can contribute to this movement and support the leadership of working-class youth and adults. Your friends will offer you support and an empathetic shoulder, but they cannot support your political growth the same way that movement organization can. You can engage with everyday people on an ad hoc basis but as an individual, there’s limits to what you can accomplish. When we come together to join an organization rooted in values of the world we want to build, we can grow and develop past what we thought was possible. A political community expands your skills and imagination. Seeing ordinary people do the most amazing things changes you on a fundamental level.
In October, members gathered to prepare for the po In October, members gathered to prepare for the potential outcomes of the November 5th election. Across our neighborhoods and within our membership, we aired our deep dissatisfaction with the Democrats and Harris. We also had to be real about the fact that many people we know and care about in our Indo Caribbean and South Asian working class and undocumented communities were moved by Trump in some way or another. Our people, the working class and immigrants, are not "stupid" or "bad" for getting swept up by the right wing. We might feel betrayed and enraged, but we also need to take time to understand the conditions and crises (both locally and internationally) that have led to this moment. The content of our October meetings were about preparing for the outcome of the election, but in essence we were having conversations that speak to our duty to build our power and level up our organizing so that we don’t get stuck with genocidal, anti-immigrant centrists or fascists. Members committed to talking to people in their lives about the elections and to actively work to become sources of reliable information for our communities. And that’s a commitment that goes beyond November, January, and the next four years. In the days since the election, we’ve been coming together in our bases to process our feelings and stay connected amidst the uncertainty. Many of us are scared about the impacts Trump’s presidency will have on our lives as undocumented immigrants, women, students, workers, LGBTQ+ people, tenants, Muslims, etc. We are already seeing friends, families, and members trying to assess the risks of the next few years. What we can offer right now is that we stay connected, resist the selfishness and meanness that the rise of fascism generated (but has impact across the spectrum), and emphasize solidarity and connection among working people. Reaffirm your commitment to our communities, come together to break the isolation, and get organized for the fights ahead.
With the November elections on the horizon, we ded With the November elections on the horizon, we dedicated our September membership meetings to going through potential scenarios our working class and undocumented immigrant communities would face under Trump and Harris each. Whether we can vote or not, and despite the fact that our votes in New York would not be decisive, we need to be able to assess and prepare for what’s to come leading up to and following the presidential election. Both candidates are opposed to our interests as working people, and also would represent different conditions for us to organize under. We came away from our September meetings with a better sense of how we can talk to our communities about the threats that the centrists and the fascists pose to our lives and the lives of those around the world. We talked about the concrete examples of attacks and threats that our movements faced under Trump. We remember that we were under a constant state of fending off or responding to attacks under the previous Trump administration that limited our ability to build power. We’re already seeing what a resurgence of Trumpist rhetoric has done to Haitian communities in Ohio. Under Harris, we can anticipate a continuation of Biden’s policies. Her commitment to the genocide in Gaza, to imperialist domination globally, and the defunding and abandonment of working people across the country would define her presidency. There is also the demobilizing effect that happens within our movements and communities when Democrats are in office. If Harris takes power, the fascist and far right forces would likely challenge the legitimacy of the election and violently retaliate against Black and brown communities. Compared to the fascists, Harris and the centrists pose the same dangers to the world globally, less of an existential and immediate threat to our people domestically, and a significant difference in conditions and our ability to organize and build power under. The outcome of the upcoming election feels grim. However, what we drew out in our meetings was that we need to be having these rigorous conversations about what the potential impacts of either presidency would be on our lives.

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