Our labor working group turned out with community allies to support the USW local 7-1 union in their fight for a dignified contract. There was music, chanting, and people power. Solidarity with all workers!

More pictures below.

Unionized Starbucks Workers are on strike across the country and here in the Chicagoland area in Des Plaines (Lee and Oakton store) and Geneva (3rd and State), with the Aurora store (Kirk and Butterfield) joining the strike this Thursday 11/20/25.

West Suburban IL DSA is calling on community members to support Starbucks Workers United by doing the following:

1. Sign the No Contract, No Coffee Pledge
2. Show up at the picket line to support the baristas (pick dates below on form!)
3. Donate to the Regional Strike Fund to support SBWU workers directly while they are out on strike
4. Post about the strike on social media
5. Collect and distribute non-perishable foods and home essentials for striking workers
6. Prepare breakfast or lunch and bring it to the picket line

Fill out the survey below and let us know how you can help support!

On Wednesday night, voting closed for our October endorsements. And today, the results are in! The members of West Suburban IL Democratic Socialists of America have voted to endorse Ben McAdams for IL state senate in the 24th district. We have already scheduled canvassing events to help support our endorsed candidates on the ground. Check out our event calendar and RSVP today to join the fight against corporate interests and ensure our candidates win!

We are proud to endorse West Suburban IL Democratic Socialists of America member, Ben McAdams in the 24th district.

Ben is a lifelong resident of Illinois and the Chicagoland area. Growing up in Lombard, Ben attended College of DuPage before transferring to Elmhurst University (then college) where he double majored in Finance and Economics. While in college Ben became involved with local activism and went on to become a community organizer after graduation. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Ben began law school at DePaul University’s College of Law. In law school he focused his studies on Public Interest Law, becoming a member of the school’s Society for Asylum and Immigration Law (SAIL), and earning an award for the highest grade in his Civil Rights Law class. While at DePaul Ben worked for several legal non-profit organizations including the National Immigrant Justice Center, and Citizen Advocacy Center.

Ben believes in creating an Illinois where all residents can afford the basic necessities of life, such as healthcare and housing, without feeling economic anxiety. He believes in creating communities where everyone can live safe and fulfilling lives regardless of where they were born or where they come from.

This weekend, Illinois legislators failed to pass reform or funding for Chicagoland public transit. Our critical transit infrastructure is a key part of what makes Chicago great, but it has too-long been hamstrung by fragmentation, inequitable coverage, party politics, farebox funding, and Springfield’s inattention. Optimistic transit activists saw the approaching fiscal cliff as an opportunity for both funding and reform. We are disappointed to see that the Illinois General Assembly (ILGA) has elected to drive off the cliff full-speed with neither.

A flawed bill was passed by the Illinois Senate at the last minute. This “Northern Illinois Transit Authority” (NITA) bill would have renamed and empowered the Regional Transit Authority (RTA), established unified fares, established both a transit police force and transit ambassador program, and filled the fiscal gap partially through a $1.50 tax on food and package deliveries. The House never voted on the NITA bill.

NITA does not provide for the systemic overhaul needed to fix Illinois transit for good. Nor is policing and incarceration the key to safety. Nor is a delivery tax the progressive funding mechanism Illinois needs (this session, congressional moderates rejected progressive funding solutions like a digital advertisement tax). However, the alternative – transit service cuts and layoffs – is disastrous for the working class.

Shame on the ILGA for failing to prioritize working-class transportation needs, progressive funding, and our shared planet.