Direct Social Action

Direct social action (DSA) is a form of collective action that is structurally part of the repertoire of contention, and refers to forms of collective actions that do not primarily focus upon claiming something from the state or other power holders, but that instead focus upon directly transforming some specific aspects of society by means of the very action itself as part of everyday politics. The concept of DSA brings together practices that are different from one another, such as solidarity actions, mutual-aid initiatives, political consumerism, alternative finance, social clinics, food cooperatives, community-supported agriculture, housing occupations, self-management, social kitchens, free legal advice, and medical services, to mention just a few. Despite being different, these practices are used for some common purposes: they are direct as they aim to have a nonmediated impact on their object, and they are social as they address society, or at least some parts of it, rather than the state.