DxE started in 2013 by Wayne Hsiung and a group of individuals who decided to bring environmental and animals right's protests inside stores and restaurants as opposed to boycotting outside.
From there, DxE has organized many restaurant sit-ins, die-ins, and international marches such as "The Earthlings March" which took place in over 40 cities internationally, They have since grown to over 80 different cities.
DxE has also taken on an open rescue approach to animal rights activism in which they actively investigate different farms following alleged claims that certain groups that have been marketed as humane are not actually truthful.
DxE now has internationally coordinated monthly days of action and have targeted grocery stores, restaurants, clothing stores, zoos, circuses, and labs in search for animal rights. Their activism has taken on many different forms including not only nonviolent direct action, but also open rescue and community building and education.
The leadership of DxE stems from their SF Bay Core which is the elected body of leadership for the entire organization. They include Wayne Hsiung (the founder and the Lead Organizer) as well as other members of the board. This Core then directly oversees the DxE Global Steering Committee which offers strategic guidance and oversees the entire DxE network and encourages the development of new chapters internationally.
DxE does not have individual members but rather has chapters and communities with which these members are a part. As a result, this open platform approach allows DxE to be open to anybody who desires to participate as long as they share the same ideals as DxE. They seek to create a community based on the following principles of Emergent Leadership, Integrity, Responsibility, Empathy, and Inclusiveness.