Emerge is a multi-tendency communist caucus of DSA members

Emerge has gone national – applications are open!

Emerge is a communist DSA caucus founded in 2018 that was specific to New York City until expanding nationally in 2025. We are multi-tendency, staking our unity in abolition, anti-imperialism, and supporting working class self-organization. We support democratic, big tent socialist organizing both inside DSA and coalitionally in the broader movement. We favor curiosity and deliberation over rigid dogma, working towards an emergent strategy that adapts to meet the moment. We aim towards equity by actively structuring our caucus to have racial and gender parity.

Since its original launch, Emerge has prioritized work within the DSA International Committee; racial justice, immigrant justice, socialist feminist, and anti-war working groups; the Red Rabbits; and local mutual aid/grassroots organizing. Our membership, which has ties to the anti-Zionist, abolitionist, and immigrant justice street movements, views these projects not as secondary concerns but as the terrains of day-to-day struggle between working class communities and the forces of international racial capitalism.  

While we support electoral and legislative campaigns that engage in class struggle, Emerge emphasizes that electoralism is only one part of politicizing all aspects of life. We advocate for our Socialists in Office to lead through both taking strong stances and engaging their constituents with independent working class organizations. We aim to build an organized community base that can support them through a party-like organization for the working class, but see that as a separate question from creating new ballot lines.

We support the rank-and-file labor strategy, but believe it is only one aspect of a vibrant labor revitalization. We must also expand labor struggles towards greater international solidarity and to include workers not sufficiently represented by unions or labor laws (eg: street vendors and sex workers).

Nationally, Emerge has been represented by three members of the National Political Committee and by two co-chairs of the International Committee. Our caucus publication is Partisan Magazine. 

Our Points of Unity are not a line, but our organizing principles: a democratically determined political vision that will act as the basis for the projects we undertake, the practice we build, and the way we will engage both internally and externally to DSA. If they speak to you and your hopes for our movement, we ask you to join us.