Nonviolence and Its Violent Consequences (2000, Gualala, CA.)
There are some debates that will rage forever without a conclusion: dogs vs. cats, West Coast vs. East Coast, tastes great vs. less filling… At the end of the day the answer to these questions means very little to the way that we live our lives and forge new, more just societies. There are, of course, angry divisions which, although equally unresolvable, play a major role in the world that we live in and hope to create. Most notable is the chasm between those who advocate strict Non-Violence and those who see the need for other tools to be used. This argument has been taking place for a very long time and will continue to be a weapon in the hands of our oppressors. It guarantees that they will see much of our energy wasted on horizontal conflict, and that our actions will be slowed by the constant need to justify every move we make in the struggle against global capitalism, industrialism, and anthropocentrism.
Still, there are times when people on both sides of this debate make errors that must be confronted. Recently a media and electronics group within Occupy Denver worked to discover the identities of people who had thrown water bottles at cops during an Occupy event. They claim that they are doing this to fight “violence,” and somehow they have magically ignored the much greater violence that sparked the throwing of plastic bottles to begin with- the Denver PD pepper spraying and firing pepper balls at protestors whose only crime was setting up tents in a public square.
Back in the 1990’s pacifism and it’s sister dogma, “Non-Violence,” had paralyzed the once thriving Earth First! movement. It was argued that cooperation with the authorities was somehow not violent (Despite those same authorities carrying weapons and working for a state with a nuclear arsenal) but sabotaging machinery made one akin to a mass murderer. Tackling and attempting to citizens arrest people breaking the windows of Nike town was not violent, but harming the property of people who own slave-run factories abroad was “just as bad” as owning those factories yourself. Many books and pamphlets were written at the time to counter this nonsensical, non-strategic, non-resistance movement, most famously Ward Churchill’s Pacifism as Pathology. Still, for it’s conciseness and applicability to wilderness defense (and offense!) movements, nothing beats William Meyers “Nonviolence and Its Violent Consequences.” Given the current rhetoric of many in the Occupy movement who see sabotage as violence, while working within the system as somehow not violent, this booklet has suddenly become a must read once more.
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The Black Cat Sabotage Handbook, 3rd edition (1996, Eugene, OR.)
When I was a kid the world didn’t have the sort of instant gratification now expected for all transactions, and thank goodness. You can really appreciate the value of something more once you’ve clipped five proof of purchases, put them into an envelope, mailed them away, and waited 6 to 8 weeks for your Zartan action figure to arrive. Distribution for the Black Cat Sabotage book worked the same way – you clipped an ad out of a zine and mailed it in along with concealed cash. A few months later a copy showed up in a nondescript envelope. I still remember when mine was delivered…
My first copy of Black Cat left me feeling like I was involved in some sort of conspiracy just turning the pages. Sure, most of it was reprints that I had already seen before, but the layout, the graphics, and the text all seemed to carry the message that action was urgent and that the enemy was watching. (Of course, we were all sending envelopes with our return addresses to the same damn PO Box in Eugene, so if anyone was watching they already knew who we were!) At the time I didn’t know who was publishing or distributing it, but rumors eventually surfaced in the mid 2000’s that the book was compiled by Bill Rogers, an accused Earth Liberation Front member who took his own life behind bars in 2005. In his suicide note he said that his death was a “Jail break,” and as he slowly suffocated himself with a plastic bag he gripped one hand into a fist, and with the other, extended his middle finger.
I only met Bill one or two times and did not get to know him well, but since his death I have heard many complicated things about him. From what I gather he was at times heroic, but had some serious, perhaps unforgivable flaws that should not be ignored. In that respect he is like the book that he was rumored to have clipped together and sent out anonymously. The Black Cat Sabotage Handbook contains some good bits of information, some serious inspiration, and some decent arguments for the use of sabotage and even violence. Likewise, it also contains some foolhardy nonsense that could get someone jailed or killed for little positive gain. The cover shouts, “BEWARE!” and smart readers will heed that advice.
In closing, here is to Bill. He was a man I can best respect by keeping off a pedestal. I can not deny that many of the stories about him are disconcerting, but I also can not deny the beauty of his attempts to spark a revolution against industrialism. As his friends sat shivering and complaining in a car, it was Bill who trekked alone through snow, uphill and burdened with the weight of gallons of fuel to set a fire that would announce to millions the existence of the Earth Liberation Front. That speaks volumes about his fighting spirit, and his wild drive to right the wrongs our species has perpetrated. His death saddens me, but something tells me that someone so intent on freeing others would not have done well spending decades behind bars- perhaps in that sense his “jail break” really was a form of escape. He will be remembered as a warrior.
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This Is The A.L.F. (1990, New Zealand)
This Is The A.L.F. is a brief snapshot of the radical animal liberation movement in New Zealand pre-1990. In 90’s newspaper clipping style and coming in at a whopping 8 pages, the information inside is by no means crucial. Most tactical advice inside is either now irrelevant or admittedly “common sense.” As a historical record however, the short booklet is an important part of New Zealand history and the Diary of Actions is impressive for a country of this size. Firebombings in Christchurch in 1985, Lab Raids and Fake Bombs in Auckland in 1986, a string of Arsons in Wellington in 1986 and a much more.
This Is The A.L.F. is a must have for New Zealanders and a crucial record for those trying to track the full reach of radical animal liberation in the 1980’s.
We are hoping to track down more publications from New Zealand and if anyone has tips on This Is The A.L.F. #2, Liberate!, Animal Info, or any other radical animal or earth liberation publications from New Zealand, please contact us at conflictgypsy (at) gmail (dot) com
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Action For Animals Newsletter #1-3 (1985 – 1986. Queensland, Australia.)
Agitator #1 (1987. Eltham, Australia.)
Action Reports #1 (1987. Eltham, Australia.)
Direct Action for Animal Rights Newsletter #5-6 (1985 – 1986. Lutwyche, Australia.)
Despite his denouncement of most forms of illegal direct action, Peter Singer has played an interesting and unintended role in the history of the underground in his native Australia. After the success of his seminal utilitarian philosophy book, Animal Liberation, he founded a group by the same name in the land down under. This left some activists with an interesting question: should they continue using the name “Animal Liberation Front?” Many cells decided to forgo the confusion of a nearly identical moniker and instead acted under the banner of Action for Animals and Direct Action for Animal Rights.
Australia was one of the first countries outside of England to see resistance movements dedicated to non-humans. As raids and economic sabotage became more frequent, above ground supporters started small press publications to publicize the tactics and activities of these Aussie warriors. Later, as arrests began to mount, these publications also served to raise defense funds and promote acts of solidarity with animal rights prisoners.
Conflict Gypsy is hoping to track down complete sets of all the magazines featured in this post. If you can help us find them, please contact us at conflictgypsy (at) gmail (dot) com
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Earth First! Direct Action Manual 1st Edition (1997, Eugene, OR. USA)
As the militant environmental movement entered the mid 90’s it was mired in internal conflict about tactics, the relevance of other causes to wilderness defense, and whether or not violence was justifiable in solidarity with wild creatures and ecosystems. Despite this infighting groups like Earth First! managed to win some sizable campaigns using blockading and civil disobedience techniques.
As word spread about new tactics developing in the forests of Oregon and northern California, there was a sudden clamor from other activist groups to build their own lockboxes, barrels, tripods, and “black bears.” The DAM Collective answered this demand by printing the Earth First! Direct Action manual, a nicely illustrated and bound book containing how-to instructions on scouting, security, dealing with police, and setting up voluntary arrest scenarios utilizing “lock downs.”
But the Direct Action manual was more than that. It also contained short articles about Critical Mass, The Animal Liberation Front, varying theories on non-violence as an ethic vs. a tactical choice, and plenty of discussion of practical security measures for activists. It not only put the power of blockades into the hands of the masses, it also put minds into motion to consider the best ways forward for the radical environmental movement.
Conflict Gypsy has obtained a copy of the first edition of the Direct Action Manual (Commonly referred to at the time as the D.A.M.) for posting on the site, but would love to also post a copy of the second edition. Please contact us at conflictgypsy (at) gmail (dot) com if you can loan us one for scanning!
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The Animal Liberation Front Supporters Group Newsletter #17 (1985, London, England.)
(Editors note: The complete set of SG newsletters is now available HERE.)
It is not usually our habit to put up a single issue of a serialized publication as we prefer to post an entire year, or run of magazines, in a single post. However, we must make an exception for the ALF SG Newsletter #17, which contains a fantastic investigation of the Band of Mercy and comes complete with an image of their first press statement from November of 1973. The significance of that image, the very first communique from an underground group fighting on behalf of other species, can not be understated.
When one considers how entrenched animal exploitation is in our culture, the idea that a tiny band of revolutionaries could push back against that social tide by burning down an animal laboratory under construction is a watershed moment. The arson attacks and raids carried out by the Band of Mercy were pivotal in the creation of the animal rights movement.
This issue has much more in store for readers. The second communique from the Animal Rights Militia is presented in it’s entirety, and although it provides a myopic examination of the role of liberatory violence it is none the less a fascinating read for lovers of animal rights history. The story of the famous Ecclesfield Beagle raid is presented by one of it’s participants, Roger Yates has a long letter explaining his feelings on the uselessness of national groups, and funny pseudonyms abound! If you thought Earth First!ers had funny names, wait till you get a load of Captain Kirk, Martial Rose, and Black Vixen!
If you look carefully you may notice that this issue is missing some pages. We do not know if this is because they were removed by their original owner, or if this is one of the issues of the SG rumored to have been “edited” by the British government as it left post offices on it’s way to subscribers.
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Do Or Die #5 (1995, Brighton, England)
The story of Earth First! in the United States is well documented and frequently repeated, and someday it will certainly make it’s way to digital distribution here on Conflict Gypsy. (Scanning those hundreds of copies of EF! Journal is going to put our volunteers into early graves if we are not careful, so don’t expect to see a full set anytime soon!) Until that time it is our pleasure to delve into the history of Earth First! elsewhere in the world, starting in England and the other places still under colonial rule known as the “United Kingdom.”
Beginning in 1991 there was an explosion in activism across the pond. Wilderness, urban environmental, anti-road, alternative transportation, animal liberation, anarchist, squatters rights, and other specialized, single issue activist realms began to coalesce into an exciting new mass. The origins of this widespread movement had broad roots. Some trace its beginnings to the poll tax riots, others say it was government crack downs on raves, squats, and social centers. Where ever it came from, it grew within a few short years into a spectacular and inspiring mess for the status quo!
From encampments protecting wild areas, to sabotage, to street protests that took over whole city centers, the UK suddenly seemed alive with resistance. While never reaching a size that threatened the powers that be, these outbursts of love and aggression were never the less refreshing to those of us in the United States longing for a similar explosion in revolutionary zeal. Suddenly, Do Or Die became the must read publication that no-one could quite seem to get their hands on!
Professionally bound and book sized, each issue of DoD contained news, research and analysis about the exploits of radical activists worldwide. Conflict Gypsy will be posting a full set of these journal format prizes as they become available to us. The earliest issue in our collection, #5, contains lengthy articles on the live export protests that eventually ended with the death of Jill Phipps, the NO M65 campaign, and virtually everything else worth noticing in Europe in 1995. If you have earlier editions of DoD, please contact us at conflictgypsy (at) gmail (dot) com
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Keep Fighting: Three Interviews with Britain’s Animal Liberation Front Press Officers (1996, Minneapolis, MN. USA.)
“In two buildings you have a number of dogs, and these dogs are being cruelly treated by humans. Another team of humans sledge hammer the doors down, go in, rescue the dogs, and take them to safety. In the first instance it is an old house and it’s an illegal dogfight and the team who sledge hammered the door are members of the RSPCA special investigation department and the local police…
In the second scenario, it’s a research laboratory and the dogs are beagles, and the humans who sledge hammered the door down are ALF activists….
Now I or someone else can argue until doomsday the rights and wrongs of legislation, but what it boils down to is until someone can explain the difference in the law to the dogs themselves, either both actions are morally right or both actions are morally wrong.”
-Robin Webb
Before Freeman Wicklund denounced tactics declared off limits by the state, he produced this fantastic little zine containing three highly influential interviews with Robin Webb, Ronnie Lee, and Robin Lane. Upon its release in 1996 copies of Keep Fighting were everywhere, and there was a noticeable increase in the quality of discourse on illegal direct action.
The arguments made in this booklet are convincing, and easily comprehensible but not simplistic. Your average, caring person without a masters degree or years of familiarity with activist verbiage can readily take the ideas discussed and share them with others, and many people did. We are happy that the face of underground resistance presented in Keep Fighting- intelligence, compassion, and a willingness to take risks for the benefit of others- is now accessible again for a new generation to read and share.
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Out of the Cages #6 – 9 (1993-1994. Santa Cruz, CA. USA)
Out of the Cages is a wonderful magazine that filled an important niche in the pre-internet, pre-No Compromise 90s. As the main west coast publication of its time, it had a link to the 80s glory days that ran deep in the area it was printed. Santa Cruz had been the home of early US hunt saboteurs and the earliest cooperation between animal rights activists and Earth First! took place there. Rod Coronado, Jonathan Paul, and other early AR radicals called it home. This proximity to history gave the magazine a much different tone than Holocaust, or Dressed in Black, and unlike Militant Vegan, the group publishing OOTC were above ground liberationists, accessible for correspondence and submissions. This meant that the zine was always filled with fresh perspectives, letters, and debate, and that eventually groups from across the country got in touch to share ideas and announce their campaigns.
Conflict Gypsy would very much like a complete set of Out of the Cages. If you have any please contact us at conflictgypsy {{at}} gmail ((dot)) com
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Love and Anger, 1st and 2nd Editions (1980?, Westport, CT. USA)
“Animals have rights, interests, desires, and needs equal, within the context of their lives, to those of humans, and we have an obligation to recognize this, and act accordingly. Animal Rights is a philosophical orientation, and a practical necessity if creatures are to be spared the systematic cruelty to which they are currently subjected. But perhaps most importantly, the designation of and agitation for animal rights is part of a revolutionary process aimed at restructuring the major institutions of our society. Indeed, in struggling to change the way humans treat animals, and one another, we work towards nothing less than the transformation of the world.”
– Richard Morgan, from the introduction.
For the last several years, I have been trying to understand why the animal rights movement rode a wave of success in the early 80s, only to fall so sharply by the end of the decade. This inquiry has led me to read old books and magazines, to interview participants from that time period, and even to reading the history of other causes in an attempt to find parallels in their peaks and troughs. I still have not arrived at a conclusive answer to the question, and it appears that many factors played a part in our recession. What is more clear, though, is that one figure played a major role in our rise, only to be quickly forgotten. His name is Richard Morgan, and after working towards civil rights and an end to the war in Vietnam, he took up the cause of animal rights in the late 1970s.
Early figures in the movement speak of Morgan as a pioneer, and his group, Mobilization for Animals, planned some of the largest and most visible demonstrations of the time, drawing thousands of people to multiple locations across the United States. He introduced his organizing model in 1979 with the the first edition of Love and Anger, a book which many people in the fledgling animal rights community cited as their inspiration to start a local group.
Written in a style that blends 70s leftism with 80s self-help jargon, Love and Anger can, at times, be a frustrating read. Morgan certainly has a touch of the arrogant liberalism that repulsed the generation of activists that followed his into the 90s. Scattered throughout the book are unsupportable claims, like American pacifists ending the war in Vietnam with sit ins, and new-agey feel good calls for demonstrations to provide “spiritual nourishment.” Some of the book’s advice is remarkably egalitarian, including calls for work within a group to rotate and for everyone, even supposed leaders, to do “shit work.” But some of the book is strangely authoritarian, with calls for “marshals” at demonstrations to squelch the spontaneous actions of others present. If a reader can get past these snags this book also contains a lot of wisdom.
Written at a time when there was almost no movement to speak of in the United States, the author set out to make a handbook to teach people who had never held a sign before to grow a resistance from scratch. He was concerned about the personal and political development of each new member of this tiny cause, and wanted them to think big. Four years before the first civil disobedience action for animal rights (which took place in New York at the Macy’s Fur Department, not in Sacramento as widely reported elsewhere), Richard Morgan wrote about developing personal courage to face law enforcement and overcome private doubts about organizing ability. He gave practical advice on bringing out large numbers to demonstrations, making literature, contacting media and writing press releases, and other basics that helped make animal rights the breakout issue of the 1980s.
Richard Morgan disappeared from activism in the mid 80s. Attempts to track him down have been fruitless, and even his old friends don’t seem to know what happened to him. But, before he walked out of view, he left us with some powerful advice. I hope young activists will read this book with a critical eye, and consider how these words helped lay the foundation for the movement they participate in today.
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