Diary of Actions & Chronology
1999
December 31, 1999.
Arson of the offices of Catherine Ives, Room 324, Agriculture Hall at
Michigan State University. The offices were doused with
gasoline and set afire. ELF said the fire was set in response to the work
being done to force developing nations in Asia, Latin America and Africa to
switch from natural crop plants to gentically engineered sweet potatoes, corn,
bananas and pineapples. Monsanto and USAID are major funders of the
research and promotional work being done through Michigan State University.
According to local newspapers, the fire caused some $900,000 in
damage. "Cremate Monsanto, Long live the E.L.F. On to the next GE target!"
December 25, 1999. Monmouth, Oregon.
Fire destroyed the Boise Cascade main office.
ELF claimed responsibility in a communique. - $1,000,000 fire
1998
December 26, 1998, Medford, Oregon
US Forest Industries suffered damages estimated between $700,000 in damages
from a three-alarm fire, which gutted their offices in.
The target located at 2611 Whittle Ave. served as
the corporate headquarters for four mills; a White City veneer mill
and a Grants Pass plywood mill in Oregon, a sawmill in Florida and a
stud mill in Colorado.
"Just like in Ireland, everybody jumps up to take responsibility for
these things, but nobody knows if they really did them or not," said
Jerry L. Bramwell, president of US Forest Industries. He seamed to be
the only one in denial after the E.L.F. sent the below communique
claiming responsibility for the action and clearly stating details of
how the fire was set.
October 26, 1998. Menominee County, MI, USA
While the Vail fires were still making the headlines the Earth
Liberation Front hit yet another target, the Upper Peninsula Pipkorn
Mink Farm in Menominee County, Michigan.
"Five thousand animals had a chance to literally run for their lives,"
said Katie Fedor, spokeswoman for the Animal Liberation Front who was
one of the recipients of the anonymous communique claiming
responsibility by the Earth Liberation Front.
"This act was not done in front of us, in daylight hours, but rather
during one of the darkest, foggiest nights of the year. These
criminals had stealthily cased our property using airplanes and
scouting techniques," said Carol Pipkorn. The E.L.F. had cut seven
holes in her farm's perimeter fence, opened a large gate, and
proceeded to open cages, liberating 5,000 animals.
"As corporate destroyers burn in the west, wildlife nations will be liberated in the north."
The farm held captive many different breeds of mink... many were seen
leaving the compound and entering the surrounding woods as the liberators left."
October 19, 1998. Vail, CO, USA
On Wednesday, October 21st 1998 the Earth Liberation Front released
the a communique to the Sheriff's Department, the Owners of Vail
Inc. and various media allegedly from an anonymous Massachusetts
Institution of Technology internet address claiming responsibility
for what became known as the "largest act of eco-terrorism in US
history."
About 100 miles west of Denver, Colorado stands the Nation's busiest
ski resort, Vail. As Vail sees it, being the largest ski resort in
North America isn't good enough, so, despite an extensive campaign
from local environmentalists and the strong opposition of %90 of the
community , they decided to expand 885 acres into the nation's last
threatened Lynx habitat.
On Friday, October 16th after extensive legal campaigns to stop the
expansion, and a failed suit by environmentalists, Vail proceeded to
erect fences and begin clearcutting.
On the night of Sunday, October 18th the Earth Liberation Front took
direct action to stop Vail's expansion by setting fire to three
buildings and four ski lifts at Vail Inc. The luxurious (500 seat,
33,000 square foot) Two Elk restaurant, the Ski Patrol Headquarters
and the Camp One picnic area, as well as the four ski lifts were all
reduced to ashes causing damage estimated between 12-24 million
dollars.
Because of the caliber of this action much more was done than cause
economic damage to Vail Inc. The term "Earth Liberation Front" went
from a little known extremist group to a household name literally
overnight. It put the concepts of economic sabotage and covert direct
action to protect the environment in the minds of billions. Many of
those who felt the earth was defenseless against the capitalistic
drive to destroy it now felt hope, and many of those who felt
unstoppable in their pursuits for profit at the expense of the natural
environment began shaking in their boots.
"This was a surprise because it was so bold." Ron Arnold, vice
president of the Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise, "They've
stepped over a line they've never crossed before. Now they no longer
care what the public thinks. They're also getting more professional.
That troubles me a lot."
"This could be the beginning, sadly, of this kind of protest
movement." said Richard Dekmekin, a political science professor at the
University of Southern California in Los Angeles who studies
terrorism, "This is quite nasty, and massive."
Paul Witt, spokesman for Vail Inc. told ABC News exactly why Vail had
become a target of the E.L.F. "We go in and cut down trees. We make
roads. We put in utilities.... There are people who see us as the bad
guys, as greedy corporate bastards, and all we want to do is squeeze
the last dime out of this valley."
Vail's plan was to expand into 2,000 acres of rocky mountain
wilderness, including 12 miles of roads, restrooms, patrol outpost, a
warming building and eventually a 20,000 square-foot restaurant (see
diagram). Now, even after facing $12 - $26 million in damage they
still plan to go through with the expansion, once they've beefed up
the security of coarse.
The federal investigation into the Vail arson fires gave birth to a
grand jury which subpoenaed a number of the local activists who were
working through legal routes, including civil disobedience, to try to
stop the section III expansion at Vail. Even the individuals
subpoenaed who felt the Vail arson was bad for the environmental cause
for the most part they resisted the grand jury, which eventually
dissolved with no indictments.
When their 'more than 200 leads' failed to turn up any suspects
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (A.T.F.) offered $50,000 for
information leading to a conviction in the case, and Crime Stoppers of
Eagle County offered $2,000. The case remains unsolved.
October 10, 1998. Rock Springs, WY, USA
Release of approximately 100 wild horses from the
BLM's wild-horse corrals in Rock Springs. A planned arson on
government office buildings and vehicles was scrapped leaving
incendiary dewvices next to a pickup truck and a building. Joint claim by Animal
Liberation Front and Earth Liberation Front.
July 3, 1998. Middleton, WI, USA.
"Independence Day for Fur Farm Prisoners" was painted at the United
Vaccines laboratory during a daylight raid jointly
claimed by the Earth Liberation Front and the Animal Liberation Front where holes in
the fence were cut and 310 ferrets and mink were released. Equipment
and windows were also destroyed with damages estimated "easily over
$10,000." The action wasn't discovered until about 1:00 AM the next
morning.
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June 28, 1998. Boston, MA, WA, USA
Just one week after the action in Olympia, on the opposite shore of
the continent, another action was claimed by the still largely unheard
of Earth Liberation Front. At the Mexican Consulate in Boston, MA the
E.L.F. painted blood red had prints on the walls, spilled pools of red
paint on the ground and painted "VIVA E.Z.L.N." on the entrance to the
building. A communique was sent
anonymously and received by various media facilities claiming responsibility
for the action.
The war against the environment is also the war against the people
who live sustainably with-in it. Indigenous cultures have been living
in harmony with the environment for thousands of years, we should be
looking to them to better understand how humans can live on the earth
without destroying it, but instead we murder them.<
BR>
The Zapatistas are an armed indigenous resistance centered in the
resource-rich yet largely poor, indigenous community of Chiapas,
Mexico. Land and business owners, and the Mexican government which
protects their economic interests have been trying to eliminate the
indigenous population in order to strip the area of it's vast
resources; coffee, corn, cocoa, timber, cattle ranching,
hydro-electric power and especially oil. Along these lines they
engaged in genocidal development practices for years where countless
numbers of indigenous people have been murdered.
Zapatistas insist that the further privatization of land means the
death of indigenous cultures, and have engaged in an armed struggle
for work, land, housing, food, health care, education, independence,
liberty, democracy, justice, peace, culture, information, security,
combating corruption and protection of the environment.
June 21, 1998. Olympia, WA, USA
In the early morning hours of June 21st, the Earth Liberation Front (E.L.F.)
and the Animal Liberation Front (A.L.F.) claimed joint responsibility for the
destruction of two U.S.D.A. (U.S. Department of Agriculture)
Animal Damage Control Buildings. An estimated $1.5 million in research, along with
$400,000 in structural damages were lost due to intentionally set fires.
The E.L.F. and the A.L.F. had not surprisingly found common cause
against a government agency, which both destroys the natural
environment and murders the earth's creatures for profit and progress.
Shortly before the release of this communique Josh Ellerman, who had
turned himself in to authorities on June 29th, 1998 fled Utah to avoid
sentencing from indictments on 16 federal counts including charges
relating to building and possession of pipe bombs (a mandatory
sentence of 30 years) . These charges stem from the firebombing of the
Utah Fur Breeders Co-op in Sandy, Utah which caused over $1 million in
damages and was part of the A.L.F.'s "Operation Bite Back."
Soon after Ellerman surfaced and was sentenced on September 10th,
1998 to only seven years after allegedly agreeing to cooperate with
prosecutors. Ten days later five other Utah activists were indicted on
federal charges relating to radical animal liberation direct actions.
At that point the North American Animal Liberation Front Supporters
Group banished Ellerman from their political prisoner support network
for giving the authorities information leading to the indictments of
the others to lessen his sentence. The other Utah activists were never
convicted.
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