Founded in 1995, the Democratic Way considers itself to be a continuation of the Moroccan Marxist-Leninist Movement (MMLM), and in particular its main component, the illegal organisation Ila Al Amame (“Forward”).
Thousands of members of the MMLM, founded in the early 1970s, have been imprisoned, and many, including Abdellatif Zeroual, one of the founders of Ila Al Amame, have died or disappeared in torture centres or, like Saïda Menebhi, during prison hunger strikes.
Members of the Democratic Way are involved in Morocco’s two main trade unions, the Union Marocaine du Travail (UMT) and the Confédération Démocratique du Travail (CDT), as well as in associations such as the Association Marocaine des Droits Humains (AMDH), Attac-Maroc and the Association nationale des Diplômés Chômeurs au Maroc (ANDCM).
The first congress of the Democratic Way was held on 16, 17 and 18 July 2004 and the congress of the youth organisation on 22, 23 and 24 December 2006.
The Democratic Way, a member of CIPOML, was renamed the Democratic Labour Way at its fifth congress in 2022.