From Earth First! to the Earth Liberation Front
The 1970s saw an explosion of interest in environmental issues, in part simply because of growing awareness, and in part because of the establishment in the 1970s of Earth Day, which united various environmentally related issues under one larger umbrella.
As environmental awareness increased, new environmental groups formed all over the United States and in Europe.
Before too long, members of the movement became frustrated with the failures of traditional protest and legislative action and turned to more radical methods to have their voices heard. Earth First! (the exclamation point is part of the group's proper name) grew out of the desire on the part of many individuals to take environmental action into their own hands. These people saw other environmental groups' tactics as not effective or radical enough. Earth First! relied on sabotage and property damage (sometimes called "ecotage") and participated in acts ranging from monkey-wrenching logging equipment to defacing billboards and tree-spiking, an act that involves driving metal spikes into the trunks of trees designated for removal. By the 1990s, the group was under increasing pressure from the FBI, and state and federal laws had been passed in an effort to stop the acts. Around this time the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) began surfacing in the United Kingdom and Jake Ferguson and friends committed the first ELF arsons in the United States at two Oregon ranger stations.
ELF is more of a grassroots movement or philosophy than a centralized group, and its origins are not easily traced. Like the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), the ELF employs a "leaderless resistance" structure. Designed to reduce risk of infiltration by law enforcement, leaderless resistance eschews centralized authority and chain of command. The ELF has found that "this cell structure has been extremely effective in ensuring the continuation of the organization with minimal arrests."
In an effort to reduce a sense of hierarchy, cells are linked only by shared ideology. The only way to "join" a group with a leaderless resistance structure is to form a cell and, in the case of the ALF and the ELF, launch a direct action against a corporation or organization that acts in a way that is in conflict with the group's core values. The American branch of the ELF was itself formed in this way, when a group committed arson against a U.S. Forest Service truck in Oregon's Willamette National Forest in 1996. Once a cell's action has been completed, the cell may dissolve completely.
While many ELF supporters consider such actions to be in the revolutionary tradition of the Boston Tea Party (symbolic property destruction designed to draw public attention to important issues), they also recognize the danger and unanticipated consequences of arson. As a member of the ELF, Daniel McGowan took part in two multimillion dollar fires in Oregon -- one against Superior Lumber, a timber company engaged in old-growth logging, and the other aimed at the Jefferson Poplar tree farm, which he believed (incorrectly) was involved in genetic engineering projects. After that second fire, McGowan began to question the use of arson as a tactic.
Other notable actions mentioned in If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front include arsons targeting the Oakridge Ranger Station, the Cavel West plant, a Bureau of Land Management office, a $12 million ski lodge in Vail, Colorado, a biology lab at the University of Minnesota, the Center for Urban Horticulture at the University of Washington and the Joe Romania truck center.
Photo caption: Protestors rally against the Cavel West Plant
Credit: Photo still from If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Sources:
» Best, Steven and Anthony J. Nocella II. Igniting a Revolution: Voices in Defense of the Earth. Oakland: AK Press, 2006.
» Earth Liberation Front Website
» Leader, Stefan H., and Peter Probst. "The Earth Liberation Front and Environmental Terrorism." Terrorism and Political Violence 15 no. 4 (Winter 2003).
» Lloyd, Jeremy. "Redneck for Wilderness: Earth First! Cofounder Dave Foreman on Being a True Conservative." The Sun, December 2005.
» Parson, S. M. "Eco-Anarchism Rising: The Earth Liberation Front and the Formation of Revolutionary Ecology." Paper presented at the annual meeting for the Western Political Science Association, Las Vegas, Nevada, March 8, 2007.
» Schiffman, Howard S., ed. Green Issues and Debates: An A-to-Z Guide. London: Sage, 2011.
The term "eco-terrorism," defined as a "crime committed to save nature," is widely understood to have been coined in 1983 by Ron Arnold. Five years later, the term appeared in congressional testimony in relation to radical environmental activists.
The term "eco-terrorism" is widely understood to have been coined by Ron Arnold, executive vice president of the Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise, an education and research organization affiliated with the mining and timber industries. Sometimes referred to as the "father of the wise use movement," Arnold has gained recognition as a fighter for individual liberties, property rights and limited government. In a 1983 article in Reason magazine, Arnold first used the term "eco-terrorism" and defined it as a "crime committed to save nature"; five years later, the term appeared in congressional testimony in relation to radical environmental activists. In 1997, Arnold published a book titled "Ecoterror: The Violent Agenda to Save Nature -- The World of the Unabomber."
In 2002, The FBI's domestic terrorism section chief, James F. Jarboe, said in congressional testimony that the animal-rights and environmental movements had increasingly turned to vandalism and "terrorist activity" to further their causes. Such acts, said Jarboe, constituted "eco-terrorism," a form of action he traced back to 1977, when members of Greenpeace formed the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and attacked commercial fishing operations by cutting drift nets.
Around the time of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society attack, the American branch of the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) formed, and it soon began to launch protests against fur companies, mink farms, restaurants and animal research laboratories in the form of illegal acts that have led to its classification as a terrorist group by the FBI. In the 1990s, the Earth Liberation Front (touting a mission similar to ALF's) was formed, in part by former Earth First! activists, and embraced radical tactics to call attention to environmental issues.
In 2008, the FBI estimated damage from previous "eco-terrorist" attacks at well over $100 million and listed 180 ongoing investigations into "eco-terrorist" crimes.
There has been some debate even within law-enforcement circles about the use of the term "terrorist" to describe the sorts of acts carried out by the ALF and the ELF, and about whether crimes that typically target property rather than people are best handled under the counterterrorism program. No one has ever been hurt in an ELF arson, and some critics believe the term "domestic terrorism" is used by law enforcement in an effort to receive more funding and press attention.
In a 2003 recommendation, the office of the inspector general suggested that such cases be relocated from the counterterrorism to the criminal investigative division in order to free up counterterrorism resources for international targets, such as Al Qaeda. The FBI responded by saying that the counterterrorism unit is best suited for such work, as organizations like the ELF and the ALF are organized along the same lines as terrorist cells.
McGowan feels that "terrorism" has become a term that people use to win public relations battles against their political opponents. His sister points out that she witnessed the violence and devastation of 9/11 first hand, and it's hard to see the same word used to characterize the actions of both Al Qaeda and her brother, who took care to make sure that no one was hurt by his actions. Still, the victims of his arsons did feel terrorized by the fires, and one prosecutor says, "You don't have to be Bonnie and Clyde to be a bank robber, and you don't have to be Al Qaeda to be a terrorist."
Photo caption: The ELF leaves its mark on the shed of Jefferson Poplar Farms after an arson
Credit: Photo still from If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Sources:
» Anderson, John. "Activist or Terrorist, Rendered in Red, White and Green." The New York Times, June 8, 2011
» Arnold, Ron. "Ecoterrorism: A Darker Shade of Green - What Happens When a Commitment to Save Nature Results in Crime?" BlueRibbon Magazine, March 1998.
» Bernton, Hal. "Is Ecosabotage Terrorism?" The Seattle Times, May 16, 2006.
» Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise. "Staff and Advisors."
» The Conservative Monitor. "Interview with Ron Arnold, March 1998."
» FBI. "Testimony of James F. Jarboe, Domestic Terrorism Section Chief, Counterterrorism Division, FBI Before the House Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health, February 12, 2002: 'The Threat of Eco-Terrorism.'"
» FoxNews.com. "FBI: Eco-Terrorism Remains No. 1 Domestic Terror Threat."
» Government Printing Office. "Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act."
» Knickerbocker, Brad. "'Ecoterrorism' Case Stirs Debate in US." The Christian Science Monitor, May 18, 2007.
» Sale, Kirkpatrick. The Green Revolution: The American Environmental Movement, 1962-1999. New York: Hill and Wang, 1993.
» Shoot, Brittany. "Why Does the Govt. Treat Peaceful Enviro Activists More Harshly Than Extremists Who Aim to Kill?" Alternet, May 13, 2011.
» Smith, Rebecca K. "'Ecoterrorism'? A Critical Analysis of the Vilification of Radical Environmental Activists as Terrorists." Lewis & Clark Law School's Environmental Law 38, no. 2.
The USA PATRIOT Act amended the list of federal crimes of terrorism contained in the U.S. Code of laws (section 2331 of title 18) and provided new and enhanced laws to prosecute terrorism.
Section 802 of the USA PATRIOT Act expands the type of conduct the government can investigate when investigating "terrorism" and provides a definition of "domestic terrorism." According to section 802, "A person engages in domestic terrorism if they do an act 'dangerous to human life' that is a violation of the criminal laws of a state or the United States, if the act appears to be intended to: (i) intimidate or coerce a civilian population; (ii) influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination or kidnapping. Additionally, the acts have to occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States and if they do not, may be regarded as international terrorism."
Still, there is no one universal definition of terrorism. Different wording is used by federal agencies from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to the U.S. State Department to the FBI itself, and the United Nations has struggled to define terrorism for decades.
Photo caption: ELF fire at Superior Lumber
Credit: Courtesy of Roy Milburn
Sources:
» Abramson, Larry and Maria Godoy. "The Patriot Act: Key Controversies." NPR, February 14, 2006.
» American Civil Liberties Union. "How the USA PATRIOT Act Redefines 'Domestic Terrorism.'"
» Anderson, John. "Activist or Terrorist, Rendered in Red, White and Green." The New York Times, June 8, 2011
» Arnold, Ron. "Ecoterrorism: A Darker Shade of Green - What Happens When a Commitment to Save Nature Results in Crime?" BlueRibbon Magazine, March 1998.
» Bartosiewicz, Petra. "To Catch A Terrorist." Harper's Magazine, August 2011.
» Bernton, Hal. "Is Ecosabotage Terrorism?" The Seattle Times, May 16, 2006.
» Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise. "Staff and Advisors."
» The Conservative Monitor. "Interview with Ron Arnold, March 1998."
» FBI. "Domestic Terrorism in the Post 9-11 Era."
» FBI. "A New Era of National Security, 2001-2008."
» FBI. "Protecting America from Terrorist Attack: Our Joint Terrorism Task Forces."
» FBI. "Testimony of James F. Jarboe, Domestic Terrorism Section Chief, Counterterrorism Division, FBI Before the House Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health, February 12, 2002: 'The Threat of Eco-Terrorism.'"
» FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin 76, no. 12 (2007).
» Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. "USA PATRIOT Act."
» FoxNews.com. "FBI: Eco-Terrorism Remains No. 1 Domestic Terror Threat."
» Government Printing Office. "Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act."
» Knickerbocker, Brad. "'Ecoterrorism' Case Stirs Debate in US." The Christian Science Monitor, May 18, 2007.
» Office of the Law Revision Counsel. "United States Code."
» PBS NewsHour. "Lesson Plan: Homegrown Terrorism -- a Major Domestic Security Problem."
» Priest, Dana, and William M. Arkin. "Monitoring America." The Washington Post, December 20, 2010.
» RAND Corporation. "Domestic Terrorism."
» Sale, Kirkpatrick. The Green Revolution: The American Environmental Movement, 1962-1999. New York: Hill and Wang, 1993.
» Shoot, Brittany. "Why Does the Govt. Treat Peaceful Enviro Activists More Harshly Than Extremists Who Aim to Kill?" Alternet, May 13, 2011.
» Smith, Rebecca K. "'Ecoterrorism'? A Critical Analysis of the Vilification of Radical Environmental Activists as Terrorists." Lewis & Clark Law School's Environmental Law 38, no. 2.
» The White House. "National Security Strategy, May 2010."
At the helm of the domestic counterterrorism effort is the FBI, which works closely with state, local and other federal agencies to gather, archive and analyze massive amounts of information on U.S. citizens and residents reported by law enforcement officers or fellow citizens to be acting suspiciously.
While the initial charges that triggered potential terror enhancements for McGowan were derived from laws written in the wake of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, 9/11 has emboldened domestic law enforcement personnel, who have received increased funding and resources to pursue cases.
Days after the 9/11 attacks, then-recently appointed FBI director Robert Mueller sent his field offices a memo that made prevention of any future terrorist attacks the FBI's "one set of priorities." According to the FBI's website, the FBI "needed to become more adept at preventing terrorist attacks, not just investigating them after the fact." The key to actualizing these priorities, said Mueller, was intelligence. In November 2001, the U.S. Department of Justice began conducting investigations, seeking individuals whose intentions, rather than actions, constituted a threat. This precedent has since been institutionalized as a permanent law enforcement priority.
According to a 2010 investigation by The Washington Post, there are currently 3,984 federal, state and local organizations working on domestic counterterrorism. Of those, 934 have been created since the 9/11 attacks. Since 2003, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has awarded $31 billion in grants to state and local governments to improve their ability to find and protect against terrorists.
After the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act was passed by Congress in 2006, the law extended the range of legal prosecution of activists, making it a criminal offense to interfere with not only "animal enterprises" but with any property of a person or entity having a connection to, relationship with or transactions with an animal enterprise (food or fiber production, zoos, pet stores, clothing stores and medical research, among others). Tying prison terms and fines to tiers of 'economic damage' experienced by victims, the law criminalizes actions that intentionally damage property, cause profit loss and/or place a person in "reasonable fear" of death or serious bodily injury by a course of conduct that does not necessarily have to include physical violence -- but involve any two of the following actions: "threats, acts of vandalism, property damage, criminal trespass, harassment or intimidation."
In 2008, FBI special agent Richard Kolko said that special-interest extremism "remains what we would probably consider the number one domestic terrorism threat."
Read the full Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act »
View a searchable transcript from United States v. Thurston, in which government attorneys seek "terrorism enhancement" for Daniel McGowan and other activists.
Photo caption: Aerial view of a prison in Marion, Illinois which contains an ultra restrictive facility for convicted terrorists
Credit: Photo still from If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Sources:
» Abramson, Larry and Maria Godoy. "The Patriot Act: Key Controversies." NPR, February 14, 2006.
» American Civil Liberties Union. "How the USA PATRIOT Act Redefines 'Domestic Terrorism.'"
» Anderson, John. "Activist or Terrorist, Rendered in Red, White and Green." The New York Times, June 8, 2011
» Arnold, Ron. "Ecoterrorism: A Darker Shade of Green - What Happens When a Commitment to Save Nature Results in Crime?" BlueRibbon Magazine, March 1998.
» Bartosiewicz, Petra. "To Catch A Terrorist." Harper's Magazine, August 2011.
» Bernton, Hal. "Is Ecosabotage Terrorism?" The Seattle Times, May 16, 2006.
» Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise. "Staff and Advisors."
» The Conservative Monitor. "Interview with Ron Arnold, March 1998."
» FBI. "Domestic Terrorism in the Post 9-11 Era."
» FBI. "A New Era of National Security, 2001-2008."
» FBI. "Protecting America from Terrorist Attack: Our Joint Terrorism Task Forces."
» FBI. "Testimony of James F. Jarboe, Domestic Terrorism Section Chief, Counterterrorism Division, FBI Before the House Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health, February 12, 2002: 'The Threat of Eco-Terrorism.'"
» FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin 76, no. 12 (2007).
» Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. "USA PATRIOT Act."
» FoxNews.com. "FBI: Eco-Terrorism Remains No. 1 Domestic Terror Threat."
» Government Printing Office. "Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act."
» Knickerbocker, Brad. "'Ecoterrorism' Case Stirs Debate in US." The Christian Science Monitor, May 18, 2007.
» Office of the Law Revision Counsel. "United States Code."
» PBS NewsHour. "Lesson Plan: Homegrown Terrorism -- a Major Domestic Security Problem."
» Priest, Dana, and William M. Arkin. "Monitoring America." The Washington Post, December 20, 2010.
» RAND Corporation. "Domestic Terrorism."
» Sale, Kirkpatrick. The Green Revolution: The American Environmental Movement, 1962-1999. New York: Hill and Wang, 1993.
» Shoot, Brittany. "Why Does the Govt. Treat Peaceful Enviro Activists More Harshly Than Extremists Who Aim to Kill?" Alternet, May 13, 2011.
» Smith, Rebecca K. "'Ecoterrorism'? A Critical Analysis of the Vilification of Radical Environmental Activists as Terrorists." Lewis & Clark Law School's Environmental Law 38, no. 2.
» The White House. "National Security Strategy, May 2010."
In the wake of the events of September 11, 2001, the USA PATRIOT Act was passed on December 6, 2002. The act reduces restrictions on law-enforcement officials' ability to gather and share information on suspected terrorists.
One of the provisions provided by the act is the sharing of information between intelligence and criminal investigators, which expands the scope of investigations and cooperation between departments. Additionally, in terrorism investigations, federal judges now have the authority to grant search warrants outside their districts, including providing access to electronic sources such as emails, and the authority to issue "sneak and peek" warrants, which authorities may use to search homes or businesses before notifying the suspects. "Roving wiretaps" now permit investigators to follow suspects continuously through various devices, including cell phones, Blackberry devices and computers, without requiring separate court authorization for each. The group of people the FBI can pursue has also expanded to include those who support terrorist organizations by providing them material resources.
Among the newer initiatives of the USA PATRIOT Act was the establishment of the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), which the FBI defines as "small cells of highly trained, locally based, passionately committed investigators, analysts, linguists, SWAT experts and other specialists from dozens of U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies. It is a multi-agency effort led by the Justice Department and FBI designed to combine the resources of federal, state and local law enforcement."
Critics of the USA PATRIOT Act maintain that such provisions lack the transparency to prevent abuses, allowing the government to access and amass information about, as well as search the property of, non-criminal citizens. The FBI defends its change in practices against public criticism of its constitutionality. In a 2004 statement, FBI director Robert Mueller said, "Many of our counterterrorism successes, in fact, are the direct results of provisions included in the Act . . . Without them, the FBI could be forced back into pre-September 11 practices, attempting to fight the war on terrorism with one hand tied behind our backs."
On May 27, 2011, President Obama signed into law a four-year extension of the USA PATRIOT Act.
Photo caption: Daniel McGowan
Credit: Photo still from If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Sources:
» Abramson, Larry and Maria Godoy. "The Patriot Act: Key Controversies." NPR, February 14, 2006.
» American Civil Liberties Union. "How the USA PATRIOT Act Redefines 'Domestic Terrorism.'"
» Anderson, John. "Activist or Terrorist, Rendered in Red, White and Green." The New York Times, June 8, 2011
» Arnold, Ron. "Ecoterrorism: A Darker Shade of Green - What Happens When a Commitment to Save Nature Results in Crime?" BlueRibbon Magazine, March 1998.
» Bartosiewicz, Petra. "To Catch A Terrorist." Harper's Magazine, August 2011.
» Bernton, Hal. "Is Ecosabotage Terrorism?" The Seattle Times, May 16, 2006.
» Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise. "Staff and Advisors."
» The Conservative Monitor. "Interview with Ron Arnold, March 1998."
» FBI. "Domestic Terrorism in the Post 9-11 Era."
» FBI. "A New Era of National Security, 2001-2008."
» FBI. "Protecting America from Terrorist Attack: Our Joint Terrorism Task Forces."
» FBI. "Testimony of James F. Jarboe, Domestic Terrorism Section Chief, Counterterrorism Division, FBI Before the House Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health, February 12, 2002: 'The Threat of Eco-Terrorism.'"
» FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin 76, no. 12 (2007).
» Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. "USA PATRIOT Act."
» FoxNews.com. "FBI: Eco-Terrorism Remains No. 1 Domestic Terror Threat."
» Government Printing Office. "Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act."
» Knickerbocker, Brad. "'Ecoterrorism' Case Stirs Debate in US." The Christian Science Monitor, May 18, 2007.
» Office of the Law Revision Counsel. "United States Code."
» PBS NewsHour. "Lesson Plan: Homegrown Terrorism -- a Major Domestic Security Problem."
» Priest, Dana, and William M. Arkin. "Monitoring America." The Washington Post, December 20, 2010.
» RAND Corporation. "Domestic Terrorism."
» Sale, Kirkpatrick. The Green Revolution: The American Environmental Movement, 1962-1999. New York: Hill and Wang, 1993.
» Shoot, Brittany. "Why Does the Govt. Treat Peaceful Enviro Activists More Harshly Than Extremists Who Aim to Kill?" Alternet, May 13, 2011.
» Smith, Rebecca K. "'Ecoterrorism'? A Critical Analysis of the Vilification of Radical Environmental Activists as Terrorists." Lewis & Clark Law School's Environmental Law 38, no. 2.
» The White House. "National Security Strategy, May 2010."