Industrial design profession has developed continuingly throughout the twentieth century, cultivated, and became prevalent. Over the course of time, industrial design has also had some negative ramifications for people and the environment, caused by socio-economic and political developments such as industrialization and globalization. Nevertheless, industrial designers have not disregarded these developments, and their consequences, instead they have been searching to find some solutions to the negative outcomes within their own profession. This endeavour has created a concentrated thread of action, which can be defined as “design activism” as an aggregate term. The renowned examples of design activism discourse first appeared in the early 1970s. Passing through various phases, it has eventually become a major subject that attracts considerable attention from design profession. Design activism is commonly addressed as an approach or a viewpoint. However, this study postulates design activism as a movement; it has been influenced by social events and movements in conjunction with socio-economic and political developments and consequently, it has evolved into a movement within the industrial design profession. This study critically analyses design activism discourse over a group of publications which constitutes the core of the discourse, both in its historical context and cumulatively. The critical analysis of the discourse discloses the ideology of design activism, its relationship with other domains and subjects, its content and context, the objectives of design activism, and the course of action that is supposed to achieve the objectives. This analysis also allows me to identify the deficiencies of design activism movement. The study is concluded with a plausible roadmap which can be followed in the near future to achieve the objectives of design activism movement.