The Publication Editorial Board is an organizational unit of, and reports to, the Socialist COVID-19 Organizing, Resistance, and Education organization.
The purpose of this platform is to substantively discuss political strategy, science, tactics, and perspectives in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. We aim to raise awareness of the harms caused by the pandemic, particularly the intersection of those harms with the myriad oppressions rooted in the capitalist system, and related topics including political education, disability justice, and racial justice.
Our position is working-class with a deep commitment to anti-colonialism, anti-racism, anti-ableism, and the liberation of all oppressed persons. Through an open and strategic dialogue within the bounds of our shared values, focused on controlling, combating, and surviving COVID-19, we call for a comprehensive counter-attack against the normalization of SARS-CoV-2 transmission and tacit acceptance of preventative early death and lifelong disability. We stand with our comrades globally in resisting this consequence of global capitalism.
What sets us apart from similar platforms is our distinctive emphasis on the comprehensive, interconnected material harms inflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Our publication centers the most vulnerable among us and in our communities, especially in the context of the fight to end all forms of oppression and exploitation once and for all. We are a community offering a systemic, socialist perspective of the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
Most of the anti-COVID discourse is highly disconnected from organizing theories and practice. Additionally, press access on this issue is limited, even within socialist media.
The anti-COVID-19 movement is fractured and only starting to coalesce. Major activist organizations are not giving the issue sufficient attention despite its gravity. The ongoing pandemic will determine the trajectory of society for the foreseeable future. There is a divergence, though not complete, between people and organizations that are literate in hard science and socialist politics. Very few organizations are both explicitly socialist and are attacking the issue directly. Most COVID-19 activism fails to recognize the deep interconnections within the tactics of the capitalist system. Additionally, most COVID-19 activism takes place online due to a number of factors.
Through this publication, SCORE intends to elevate the political discussion around COVID-19 and make it far-reaching in political-economic scope, increasingly strategic, organizer-focused, and with open press access for a broader section of principled, well-grounded socialist creatives.
While the accounts may be kept separately, the treasurer will be the SCORE treasurer.
People who are friendly to our project and can help us think through what needs to be done. The editorial board may designate one or more people as a “Special Advisor” which may appear on publication materials as a credit. Special Advisors do not have voting rights on the editorial board.
The editorial board will consist of up to 5 editors.
Editors must be drawn from SCORE membership. If an editor is no longer a SCORE member, they cannot continue in their role as editor.
Editors are elected during a regular election synced to the election of the Steering Committee. The method of election will be Single Transferable Vote. Outside of regular elections, editors may be appointed by the Steering Committee if a special election would be non-competitive. If a special election would be competitive, the steering committee may only hold a special election.
There may only be two Steering Committee members on the editorial board if there are sufficient non-steering committee candidates to fill the other three positions. In an election, the top two Steering Committee members will take those seats. Outside of an election, if the situation cannot be decided amicably, the Steering Committee and existing editorial board members will vote on which Steering Committee member to replace.
Any editor can approve an article, but all editors can place a hold on an article in order to have a majority vote by the editorial board. The Communications Officer of SCORE may provide a tie-breaking vote if they are not an editor. If the Communications Officer of SCORE is an editor or otherwise indisposed, the Steering Committee of SCORE may vote to break the tie.
SCORE members should be generally preferenced in their submissions.
Editors can be recalled by a majority vote of the general membership of SCORE.
Editors can also be removed by a 50%+1 vote of the other editors. The Communications Officer of SCORE may provide a tie-breaking vote if they are not an editor. If there is no Communications Officer, one of the co-Chairs may provide the tie-breaking vote if they are not an editor.
Articles shall adhere to the values agreed upon in the SCORE Points of Unity for SCORE members and roughly adhered to for non-members.
When appropriate to the article, editors may require pieces to increase their emphasis on political strategy and/or action, even if only in the concluding paragraph. We don’t want to contribute to a debilitating sense of doom, though that should never obstruct recognition of reality. Our publication should generally be informative, analytic, and inspiring to action.
On controversial questions, e.g. Lab Leak vs. Zoonosis, we will require the piece to make a novel contribution that is well founded. Editors will keep in mind that missing information from outside the given interpretive frame may reverse the conclusions of such articles.
Editors will: review submitted pieces, approve or reject them, manage the publication, and will report progress at the SCORE general meeting at least once a month.
Decisions may be made by a majority vote of the Active Editors. Quorum is the minimum number of people required to make a decision. Quorum consists of 50% of active editors present with the exception of when there are only two Active Editors, in which case both editors constitute quorum (see table below). The Communications Officer of SCORE may provide a tie-breaking vote if they are not an editor. If the Communications Officer is an editor or otherwise indisposed, the SCORE Steering Committee may vote to break the tie.
| Active Editors | Quorum |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1 |
| 2 | 2 |
| 3 | 2 |
| 4 | 2 |
| 5 | 3 |
If an editor goes out of communication or does not fulfill any of their assigned responsibilities for over one month, they may be considered inactive. Inactive editors will not count towards quorum. Active status is restored if the editor returns to their duties.
Editors that are inactive for three months without giving a valid reason may be removed.
Minutes will be kept of editorial board meetings and made available to SCORE membership.
The editorial board will maintain and adhere to the SCORE Publication Standards and Practices document. In this document, attention is paid to ensuring the publication’s output is high quality, readable, trustworthy, discloses conflicts of interest, and avoids perpetuating oppressive practices which include but are not limited to ableist, racist, sexist, transphobic, homophobic, xenophobic, classist, or colonial attitudes.
Statements passed by the SCORE Steering Committee or passed by SCORE general membership that are indicated for inclusion in the publication must be published in a timely fashion with an indication of their provenance.
The Editorial Board is authorized to establish a contributor payment policy in coordination with the SCORE Treasurer. These payments may not be drawn from the SCORE general fund unless authorized by membership. Payment funds may (for example) be drawn from donations or subscriptions to the publication.
Policies that will result in fees over $100 over the course of a year being paid to editors or SCORE Officers that are not merely expense reimbursement must be approved by the general membership. Reimbursements over $100 must be approved by the treasurer.
This charter was adopted on March 7, 2024 by a vote of 16-0-22.
This charter may be amended by a majority vote of the general membership of SCORE.
At General Body Meeting of June 9, 2024, we amended the third paragraph to substitute the word "comprehensive" and insert the word "preventative" by unanimous vote.