Direct Action Everywhere (DxE)

Lobbying Advocacy

San Francisco Fur Sale ban

In 2018 Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) successfully advocated for a ban on the sale of animal fur in the city of San Francisco. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and In Defense of Animals assisted in lobbying the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to enact the ban. ²

Funding for “Animal Liberation” Activism Centers

DxE was involved in the formation of the Berkley Animal Rights Center, an organization that focuses on direct “animal-liberation” activism. DxE claims the Berkley Animal Rights Center is “the first community animal rights center” in the United States. ³

Animal Liberation Conference

The Animal Liberation Conference, an annual animal liberation conference, was created by ExE. ³ In 2020 the conference’s Facebook page advertised a conversation on black liberation and animal rights. ⁴

Criminal Activity

Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) regularly engages in acts of civil disobedience to allegedly reveal evidence of animal abuse in industrial animal farming facilities and to “force a debate” by disrupting “the normal functioning of society.”  ⁵ Several members of the organization have faced criminal charges related to these actions. In 2023, co-founder Wayne Hsiung was convicted of felony trespassing and sentenced to 90 days in jail following two incidents in which activists entered poultry farms to remove animals. ⁶ According to court records, participants chained themselves to fixtures, caused property damage, and temporarily halted farm operations. Another DxE activist charged with similar offenses at a chicken farm defended her conduct, stating that she did not consider rescuing animals to be a crime. ⁷

Leadership

Wayne Hsiung is the former president and co-founder of Direct Action Everywhere. Prior to founding Direct Action Everywhere, Hsiung was an attorney at the Democrat Party-affiliated law firm DLA Piper. Hsiung, as well as other members of Direct Action Everywhere, have previously been charged with felony and misdemeanor counts for burglary, conspiracy, and trespassing. In 2023, Hsiung stepped down from all roles at DxE. ^{8 9 10}

Finances

In 2023 Direct Action Everywhere reported $894,401 in revenue, with $853,886 of which coming from contributions and grants. ¹¹

Direction Action has received funding from the American Online Giving Foundation, Paypal Charitable Gift Fund, Network for Good, Vanguard Charitable Gift Fund, and Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund. ¹²

Friends of DxE is an activist group that serves as a “pass-through” vehicle for donations intended for DxE and can allegedly be re-routed to similar environmentalist organizations. In 2023, Friends of DxE received $1,550,447 in contributions and grants. ¹³ Between 2023 and 2024, Friends of DxE received $2,596,900 from Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program. ^{14 15}