Elect Socialists to City Council!

Basis for Unity

Constructive, Communal, Principled, Direct

While the Municipal Socialist Alliance (MSA) was formed by revolutionary socialists, anti-poverty organizers, and disability-justice organizers as an electoral alliance, our primary goal remains radical transformation of society rather than electoral success. In running an electoral campaign, we seek to build up our community-based power in order to tear down oppressive systems and institutions and replace status quo corporate domination with a government run by and for the working class and the oppressed. We do not sacrifice the basic principles of liberation and justice for all in order to win elections. We participate in elections to challenge entrenched power and to re-orient discussion towards the fundamental societal transformation needed for the masses to live comfortably and in harmony with our neighbours and nature. 

The Municipal Socialist Alliance does not tolerate xenophobia, racism, sexism and gender-based violence, homophobia, bi-phobia, queer-phobia, poly-phobia, transphobia, able-ism, ageism, Islamophobia, Antisemitism, or classism.

The Municipal Socialist Alliance supports Indigenous Land Back and Indigenous self-determination, disbanding the police and carceral institutions, free public transit, expansion of public services, and immediate action on climate change. 

The Municipal Socialist Alliance seeks to dismantle the systems of capitalism, imperialism, colonialism, hetero-normative patriarchy, and white supremacy. 

Five Pillars of a Municipal Socialist Alliance Electoral Campaign

1. Direct Democracy — Any individual or organization who agrees with our founding principles is welcome to join the MSA. We seek to engage communities directly in formulating demands, program, policy, and tactics.

2. Public Education — The struggle to radically transform society requires widespread education on the failures of capitalism, imperialism, and colonialism to meet human needs and on the necessity for a government led by workers and oppressed people. To this end, we commit to holding public forums and town hall meetings to amplify the voices of organizers leading the struggle against oppression and exploitation.

3. Direct Action — Transformation of society cannot be achieved solely through parliamentary means. History shows that all significant advances in human liberation are won through the mass mobilization of people. The MSA recognizes the blockade of roads and infrastructure as an important form of democracy. Founding members of the MSA regularly participate in and organize direct action to advance our demands, and we do not plan to stop!

4. Mutual Aid — The pandemic highlighted once again the human tendency towards mutual assistance. While the city repeatedly failed to keep its inhabitants safe, and police brutalized the most vulnerable amongst us, we stepped up. We keep us safe! The MSA will organize mutual aid, not because it canl succeed in meeting all unmet needs, but because we strive to elevate our ability to keep our communities safe into political power.

5. Program and Policy — The transformative vision we advance for the people living in our city needs to be made clear in program and policy. The crystallization of our general demands into a concrete plan will show that socialism not only better meets the needs of people but in many cases, will cost workers and oppressed people less. What we need to do, to begin, is to get rid of the food scalpers, housing profiteers, and parasitic oligarchs!