This collection reflects the activities and political sentiments of the Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee, which began in 1973 and merged with the New American Movement in 1982 to form the Democratic Socialists of America. It comprises periodicals, pamphlets, and one Convention Journal from the Committee's Fifth National Convention, in addition to pamphlets published by the Democratic Socialists of America.

The Democratic Socialist Organizing Committee (DSOC) was a socialist organization active from 1973 until 1982, when it merged with the New American Movement to form the Democratic Socialists of America. The committee was founded by writer and socialist Michael Harrington, who led a caucus within the Social Democrats, USA (SD, USA) at the 1972 Young People's Socialist League (YPSL) National Convention that dissented against the organization's shift towards a mainstream Democratic paradigm and away from Socialist ideology. The SD, USA was originally named the Socialist Party Democratic Socialist Federation (SPDSF) and was a product of the merging of the Socialist Party, USA and the Democratic Socialist Federation. The SPDSF endorsed George McGovern, the Democratic nominee for the 1972 presidential election who campaigned on a platform advocating for American withdrawal from the Vietnam War. During the 1972 The Young People's Socialist League (YPSL) National Convention, Michael Harrington dissented against the SD, USA's support of McGovern, claiming that although McGovern supported their goals of ending the Vietnam War, endorsing a Democratic candidate did not uphold the organization's Socialist ideology. This schism between the Democratic-leaning members of the SD, USA and those more aligned with socialist ideology led Harrington to form the DSOC. The DSOC advocated for a Socialist presence in American politics and comprised a network trade unionists, civil rights and feminist activists, and left-leaning Democrats, in addition to a Youth Section that was primarily based on college campuses.

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