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For the special operations use of the term, see Direct action (military)
For the Canadian urban guerrilla group "Direct Action," see Squamish Five. In the context of military Special operations, direct action (DA consists of"Short-duration strikes and other small-scale offensive actions conducted asa special operation Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Urban guerrilla redirects here For the Hawkwind song see Urban Guerrilla. The Squamish Five (sometimes referred to as the Vancouver Five) were a group of self-styled " Urban guerrillas quot active in Canada during the
For the Indonesian Army's use of the term, see Kopassus

Direct action is a form of political activism which seeks immediate remedy for perceived ills, as opposed to indirect actions such as electing representatives who promise to provide remedy at some later date. Kopassus, abbreviation for Komando Pasukan Khusus (Army Special Force Command is an Indonesian Army Special forces group that conducts Special Activism, in a general sense can be described as intentional action to bring about social or political change An election is a Decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold formal office A legislator (or lawmaker) is a person who writes and passes laws especially someone who is a member of a Legislature. Direct action can include nonviolent and violent activities, with a blurred intermediate area of attacks on properties. Nonviolent activities include strikes, workplace occupations, sit-ins, demonstrations, sabotage, vandalism and graffiti. Strike action, often simply called a strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal by Employees to perform work. Worker self-management (or autogestion) is a form of workplace decision-making in which the workers themselves agree on choices (for issues like customer care general production A sit-in or sit-down is a form of direct action that involves one or more persons nonviolently occupying an area for a Protest, often to promote political social A demonstration is an historically and geographically common form of Nonviolent action by groups of people Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening an enemy oppressor or employer through subversion obstruction disruption and/or destruction Vandalism is the behaviour attributed to the Vandals in respect of Culture: ruthless Destruction or spoiling of anything beautiful or Venerable Graffiti (singular graffito; the plural is used as a Mass noun) is the name for images or lettering scratched scrawled painted or marked in any manner on property More violent actions include revolutionary/guerrilla warfare. A revolution (from the Latin revolutio, "a turnaround" is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc Direct actions are often (but not always) a form of civil disobedience and thus often violate criminal law. Civil disobedience is the active refusal to obey certain Laws demands and commands of a Government, or of an occupying power, without resorting to physical The term criminal law, sometimes called penal law, refers to any of various bodies of rules in different Jurisdictions whose common characteristic is the potential For example, vandalism is illegal, while demonstrations are usually not illegal in most constitutional democracies. Less confrontational forms of this definition of direct action include establishing radical social centers, and performing street theatre. Social Centers are Community spaces They are buildings which are used for a range of disparate activities which can be linked only by virtue of being Not-for-profit Street theatre is a form of theatrical Performance and presentation in outdoor Public spaces without a specific paying Audience.

Utilizing resources within their power, direct action participants aim to either:

Some direct action participants engage in "indirect actions" (voting in elections, targeted boycotts) as part of larger campaigns. An election is a Decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold formal office A boycott is a form of Consumer activism involving the act of voluntarily abstaining from using buying or dealing with someone or some other organization as an expression of

Contents

History

Direct action tactics have been around for as long as conflicts have existed, but the theory of direct action developed primarily in the context of labor struggles. In his 1920 book, Direct Action, William Mellor placed direct action firmly in the struggle between worker and employer for control "over the economic life of society. William Mellor (1888&ndash1942 was a Left-wing British journalist " Mellor defined direct action "as the use of some form of economic power for securing of ends desired by those who possess that power. Power is a measure of a person's ability to control the environment around them including the behavior of other people " Mellor considered direct action a tool of both owners and workers and for this reason he included within his definition lockouts and cartels, as well as strikes and sabotage. A lockout is a Work stoppage in which an Employer prevents employees from working A cartel is a formal (explicit agreement among firms Cartels usually occur in an oligopolistic industry, where there is a small number of sellers and usually involve However, by this time the American anarchist and feminist Voltairine de Cleyre had already given a strong defense of direct action, linking it with struggles for civil rights:

". Voltairine de Cleyre ( November 17 1866 June 20 1912) was according to Emma Goldman, "the most gifted and brilliant . . the Salvation Army, which was started by a gentleman named Bob Luker was vigorously practising direct action in the maintenance of the freedom of its members to speak, assemble, and pray. The Salvation Army is a Christian charity and church that is internally organised like a military service. Over and over they were arrested, fined, and imprisoned . . . till they finally compelled their persecutors to let them alone. " (de Cleyre, undated)

By the middle of the 20th century, the sphere of direct action had undoubtedly expanded, though the meaning of the term had perhaps contracted. The twentieth century of the Common Era began on Most campaigns for social change—notably those seeking suffrage, improved working conditions, civil rights, abortion rights, an end to gentrification,and environmental protection—employ at least some types of violent or nonviolent direct action. Suffrage (from the Latin suffragium, meaning "voting tablet" and figuratively "right to vote" probably from suffrago "hough" and originally An

The anti-nuclear movement used direct action, particularly during the 1980s. Nuclear disarmament is the proposed dismantling of Nuclear weapons. The 1980s was the decade spanning from January 1 1980 to December 31 1989. Groups opposing the introduction of cruise missiles into the United Kingdom employed tactics such as breaking into and occupying United States air bases, and blocking roads to prevent the movement of military convoys and disrupt military projects. A cruise missile is a guided Missile that carries an explosive payload and uses a lifting wing and a propulsion system usually a Jet engine, to allow The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The United States of America —commonly referred to as the In the U. S. , mass protests opposed nuclear energy, weapons, and military intervention throughout the decade, resulting in thousands of arrests. Many groups also set up semi-permanent "peace camps" outside air bases such as Molesworth and Greenham Common, and at the Nevada Test Site. Peace camps are a form of physical Protest camp that is focused on Anti-war activity The Nevada Test Site is a United States Department of Energy reservation located in Nye County, Nevada, about 65 miles (105 km northwest of the City of

Anti-globalization activists made headlines around the world in 1999, when they forced the Seattle WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999 to end early with direct action tactics such as blocking traffic and destroying property. " Anti-globalization " is a term that encompasses a number of related ideas The WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999 was a meeting of the World Trade Organization, convened at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center in Seattle

One of the largest direct actions in recent years took place in San Francisco the day after the Iraq War began in 2003. The Iraq War, also known as the Second Gulf War, the Occupation of Iraq, or the War in Iraq, is an ongoing Military campaign Twenty-thousand people occupied the streets and over 2,000 people were arrested in affinity group actions throughout downtown San Francisco, home to military-related corporations such as Bechtel. An affinity group is usually a small group of left-wing political Activists (usually from 3-20 who work together on Direct action. Bechtel Corporation ( Bechtel Group) is the largest Engineering company in the United States, ranking as the 9th-largest privately owned company in the (See March 20, 2003 anti-war protest). On March 20, 2003, the day after the invasion of Iraq had begun thousands of Protests and demonstrations were held around the world in opposition

Direct action has also been used on a smaller scale. Refugee Salim Rambo was saved from being flown from the UK back to the Democratic Republic of the Congo when one person stood up on his flight and refused to sit down. Salim Rambo is a Refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (République démocratique du Congo often referred to as DR Congo, DRC or RDC, and formerly known or referred to After a two hour delay the man was arrested, but the pilot refused to fly with Rambo on board. Salim Rambo was ultimately released from state custody and remains free today.

Nonviolent direct action

Nonviolent direct action is any form of direct action that does not rely on violent tactics. Nonviolence is a philosophy and strategy for social change that rejects the use of physical Violence. Mahatma Gandhi's teachings of Satyagraha (or truth force) have inspired many practitioners of nonviolent direct action (NVDA), although the use of nonviolence does not always imply an ideological commitment to pacifism. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi ( Gujarati: મોહનદાસ કરમચંદ ગાંધી moɦən̪d̪äs kəɾəmʧən̪d̪ gän̪d̪ʱi (2 October 1869 – 30 January Satyagraha ( Sanskrit: सत्याग्रह satyāgraha) is a philosophy and practice of Nonviolent resistance developed by Mohandas In 1963, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. described the goal of NVDA in his Letter from Birmingham Jail: "Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. Year 1963 ( MCMLXIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Martin Luther King Jr ( January 15, 1929 April 4, 1968) was an American clergyman, Activist and prominent leader The Letter from Birmingham Jail or Letter from Birmingham City Jail, is an Open letter written on April 16, 1963, by Martin Luther It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. "

One major debate is whether destruction of property can be included within the realm of nonviolence. This debate can be illustrated by the response to groups like the Earth Liberation Front and Animal Liberation Front, which use property destruction and sabotage as direct action tactics. The Earth Liberation Front ( ELF) also known as " Elves " or " The Elves " is the collective name for anonymous and autonomous For other uses of the term 'ALF' see ALF (disambiguation. The Animal Liberation Front (ALF is a name used internationally by animal liberation activists Although these types of actions are often viewed as a form of violence, supporters define violence as harm directed towards living things and not property.

In the U. S. , the term has come to signify civil disobedience, and protest in general, particularly where the organizers are not concerned with preventing violence. Civil disobedience is the active refusal to obey certain Laws demands and commands of a Government, or of an occupying power, without resorting to physical In the 1980s, a California direct action protest group called Livermore Action Group called its newspaper Direct Action. The paper ran for 25 issues, and covered hundreds of nonviolent actions around the world. The book Direct Action: An Historical Novel took its name from this paper, and records dozens of actions in the San Francisco Bay Area.

"Direct Action" has also served as the moniker of at least two groups: the French Action Directe as well as the Canadian group more popularly known as the Squamish Five. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Action directe (AD was a French armed group which committed a series of assassinations and violent attacks in France between 1979 and 1987. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The Squamish Five (sometimes referred to as the Vancouver Five) were a group of self-styled " Urban guerrillas quot active in Canada during the Direct Action was also the name of the magazine of the Australian Wobblies. The Industrial Workers of the World ( IWW or the Wobblies) is an international union currently headquartered in Cincinnati Ohio, USA The UK's Solidarity Federation currently publishes a magazine called Direct Action. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The Solidarity Federation (SolFed is a federation of Class struggle anarchists active in Britain.

Direct action and anarchism

As a principle, direct action is central to autonomism and many strands of anarchist theory, including anarcho-syndicalism, anarcho-communism, insurrectionary anarchism, green anarchism, anarcho-primitivism and anarcho-pacifism. Autonomism refers to a set of Left-wing political and social movements and theories close to the socialist movement. Anarchism is a Political philosophy encompassing theories and attitudes which support the elimination of all compulsory Government, i Anarcho-syndicalism is a branch of Anarchism which focuses on the labour movement. Insurrectionary anarchism is a revolutionary theory practice and tendency within the Anarchist movement which opposes formal anarchist organizations such as labor unions and Green anarchism is a school of thought within Anarchism which puts an emphasis on Environmental issues. Anarcho-primitivism is an anarchist critique of the origins and progress of Civilization. Anarcho-pacifism (also pacifist anarchism or anarchist pacifism) is a form of Anarchism which completely rejects the use of Violence in

United Kingdom

Main article: Environmental direct action in the United Kingdom

The Environmental direct action movement in the United Kingdom started in 1990 with the forming of the first UK Earth First! group. The environmental direct action movement in the United Kingdom started in 1990 with the forming of the first UK Earth First! group Environmentalism is a broad philosophy and Social movement centered on a concern for the conservation and improvement of the environment. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Earth First! is a radical environmental advocacy group that emerged in the Southwestern United States in 1979 The movement rapidly grew from the 1992 Twyford Down protests, culminating in 1997. Twyford Down is a small area of ancient chalk Downland lying directly to the southeast of Winchester, Hampshire, England.

See also

Some groups which employ direct action

References

External links

Dictionary

direct action

-noun

  1. A form of political activism, in which participants act directly, ignoring established political procedures. This is often (but not always) accomplished by means of strikes, workplace occupations, sabotage, sit-ins, squatting, revolutionary/guerrilla warfare, demonstrations, vandalism or graffiti.
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