DSA rejects an economic order based solely on private profit,
alienated labor, gross inequalities of wealth and power, discrimination
of any kind, and brutality and violence in defense of the status quo.
DSA envisions a humane social order based on popular control of
resources, production, and economic planning, equitable distribution,
gender, racial, and all other forms of equality, and non-oppressive
relationships.
Our conception of socialism is a profoundly democratic one. It is
rooted in the belief that human beings should be free to develop to
their fullest potential, that public policies should be determined not
by wealth but by popular participation, and that individual liberties
should be carefully safeguarded. It is committed to a freedom of speech
that does not recoil from dissent, to a freedom to organize independent
trade unions, women’s groups, political parties, and other formations —
recognizing these as essential bulwarks against the dangers of an
intrusive state. It is committed to a freedom of religion that
acknowledges the rights of those for whom spiritual concerns are
central.
We are socialists because we are developing a concrete strategy for achieving that vision. In the present, we are building a visible socialist presence within the broad democratic Left. In the long run, we hope to build a majority movement capable of making democratic socialism a reality in the United States. Our strategy acknowledges the class structure of the U.S. society. This class structure means that there is a basic conflict of interest between those sectors with enormous economic power and the vast majority of the population.