Alcoholics Anonymous is an international fellowship of men and women who have had a drinking problem. It is nonprofessional, self-supporting, multiracial, apolitical, and available almost everywhere. There are no age or education requirements. Membership is open to anyone who wants to do something about his or her drinking problem. Visit our About AA page
This structure is how A.A. groups work together to make decisions and carry out Twelfth Step work that’s too big for one group alone. It’s designed to let the collective voice (or “conscience”) of all A.A. members be heard.
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Your Group’s Voice: Your A.A. group elects a General Service Representative (GSR). The GSR attends District Meetings to share your group’s ideas, concerns, and needs.
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The Link: The District Committee Member (DCM) leads the District Meetings and acts as the crucial link. The DCM listens to all the GSRs and carries the District’s collective voice up to the Area level.
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Area and Beyond: The Area level holds assemblies where a Delegate is chosen. This Delegate then represents your entire Area’s conscience at the annual General Service Conference for the U.S. and Canada, where major decisions affecting A.A. as a whole are made.
In short: The structure moves your group’s ideas from your local meeting, through the GSR and DCM, up to the people who make big decisions for A.A. worldwide. It also creates a team to do large-scale A.A. service work.