Statements | MCYD

In Gratitude to President Joseph Biden, and

Endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris

as Candidate for President of the United States

The Marin County Young Democrats, with deep gratitude toward President Biden for his lifetime of invaluable service to the United States, and his administration's many accomplishments in office, including on creating American jobs; protecting Social Security, Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act; lowering the cost of prescription drug care, particularly insulin; lowering child poverty through the child tax credit; and fostering energy independence; applaud his momentous and extraordinary act of humility in stepping down from his candidacy, and the keeping of his promise to be "a bridge" to a new generation of Democratic leadership.

With an eye toward the continued safeguarding of American democracy; further progress on climate change; on protecting reproductive and LGBTQ+ rights, and the protection of ethnic-minority communities; and with an eye toward unity in both the Democratic Party and the nation as a whole; enthusiastically endorse Vice President Kamala Harris to the Democratic candidacy for President, and will proudly work toward her election to that high office.

22 July 2024

A Resolution Toward Cessation of

Hostilities in Gaza

As the conflict in Gaza continues, We, the Marin County Young Democrats, CONDEMN…

The deaths of approximately 1,200 Israeli civilians and foreign nationals on October 7, those wounded and taken hostage, and the grief suffered as a of Hamas’ attack,

The loss of over 30,000 Palestinian civilians in Gaza and the ongoing humanitarian crisis,

Any actions, resulting in the reckless and needless endangerment of and harm to civilians and noncombatants,

All military action and barriers to aid delivery in Gaza that results in needless loss of civilian Palestinian lives, particularly those of women and children,

Anti-Semitism, anti-Palestinianism, and all forms of religious, ethnic, and gender-based violence,

Any and all actions which result in, or approach, genocide.

We, the Marin County Young Democrats, RECOGNIZE…

The complex history of the region, arising conflicts, and tensions both historic and ongoing,

The civilian harm and immediate humanitarian crisis caused by Benjamin Netanyahu's government and by Hamas's militant leadership,

The importance of commitment to long-lasting diplomatic solutions to peace.

We, the Marin County Young Democrats, CALL FOR…

A sustainable ceasefire of hostilities in Gaza,

All parties to swiftly ensure immediate release of all civilian hostages and prisoners,

The timely and increased direction of humanitarian resources to alleviating civilian suffering at scale, including food, medical, and provisions, in accordance with international law,

All parties to renew and enforce their commitments to international law and oversight, including thorough and timely investigations of individual and government war crimes, with consequences in accordance with international law,

The warring parties to direct their goals in this conflict towards sustainable, negotiated peace,

Steps to be taken toward a peaceful co-existence of Palestinian and Israeli civilians and a sustainable political solution of mutual safety,

US Congressman Jared Huffman and US Senator Laphonza Butler to initiate and vote for the same.

In the event that these points are not quickly and sufficiently met, we call on the government of the United States to decisively condition its aide to the warring governments.

We, the Marin County Young Democrats, WILL ACT BY...

Donating $500 to be divided between the Red Cross and the International Rescue Committee

7 July 2024

In Support of Rent Control and Renter Protection Ordinances

The Marin County Young Democrats support Rent Control and Renter Protection ordinances like the ones passed in Fairfax last year.

Rent controls are necessary to keeping youth in Marin. The median age of Marin residents is already 10 years above the median for California residents, due to the high cost of housing relative to the wages of young and working-class people. A survey of 50 rooms for rent on Craigslist, Redfin and Zillow conducted on 24 July, 2023 showed that the median rent for a room in Marin is $2,247.50. In order for a renter to not be “rent-burdened” (that is, not spending more than 30% of their income on rent) a renter working full-time, with no time off, would need to be earning $46.82/hour.

Few young people are earning that wage, and few restaurants, grocery stores, or other amenities can afford to raise their wages to that level. Indeed, the minimum wage is $15.50/hour. As a result, Marin has few young people, and many businesses must import their labor from neighboring counties, contributing to Marin’s traffic problems and the ongoing ecological crisis.

For the above reasons, we believe that rent control is needed for Marin County.

We also find the common rebuttal arguments against rent control to be unconvincing. While California has a rent control law, but it allows increases of up to 10% annually, which does little to stop rising rents and the emigration of young people from Marin. While the “supply and demand” argument may be valid, new construction in Marin is slow and often frustrated by the development’s neighbors; it is also unclear exactly how much housing would need to be built in order for the average young person, working for $25/hour, to be able to afford housing; suffice to say, that amount is unlikely to be built in our lifetimes. Moreover, there is little reason to believe that new housing will be any more affordable than current housing, as evidenced by the rental schedules for “low-income” housing in the proposed Northgate development in San Rafael starting around a $38/hour wage for affordability.

Renter protections must go hand-in-hand with rent controls to prevent unjust evictions of tenants by landlords who seek to exploit loopholes in laws to raise rents. We understand that the renter protection ordinances are complex, and trust that local and county councils can craft ordinances to satisfy the need for balance between protecting good renters and allowing landlords to evict disruptive tenants, as were recently advocated for in Fairfax and adopted by the Fairfax town council.

September 2023