I’ve been hearing two types of responses to the recent raids against peace activists in Minneapolis and Chicago. They sound something like this:

1. OMG! This is outrageous! I can’t believe this is taking place in a free country! This must be a mistake.
2. The FBI has always done this. Remember COINTELPRO? Spying on MLK? Nothing will ever change.

For those who have never heard about the Green Scare, it is tempting to view recent events as a News of the Weird story: an anomaly wholly separate and distinct from any broader political climate. Viewing government conduct in this way makes it easier to laugh at Keystone Kops antics (which is healthy) and believe government statements that these examples are isolated (which is not).

For those who know about the government’s history of surveilling, harassing and disrupting social movements, news of further misconduct is dismissed in another fashion: business as usual. At best, it is met with deadpan statements about the frequency of such harassment, at worst the FBI visits and raids are viewed as badges of honor. To be very clear, I think it is imperative we place everything going on now in a historical context.

But here’s the thing:

What is taking place now is not an isolated instance, nor is it inevitable. It is the work of real human beings, making real choices, and their actions are dependent on the ignorance–either orchestrated or willful–of the general public.

Through this work I have had the fortune of speaking with people from a variety of backgrounds who aren’t “activists.” I have seen that, time and again, when people learn about what’s going on they are not very surprised. There is a growing, deep-seated distrust of corporate influence and abuses of political power. What people don’t seem to realize is that behind these general feelings of unease are specific campaigns to destroy social movements.

Most people do not sympathize with the financial interests of gas companies, and if they knew, they would be outraged that the Pennsylvania Department of Homeland Security is protecting business interests. Most people know that being a peace activist does not mean you are a terrorist, and if they knew about these raids they would be disgusted. It’s up to us to show them.

We can’t do this, though, if we are only going to pull people from one extreme, of ignorance, to another, of hyper-aware paralysis. If activist communities are going to survive this repression and move forward, and if we are going to welcome others to join us, we must lay claim to a space between the extremes of patriotic naiveté and hopelessness.

If that space does not exist we must create it, and then show others that social change is not about “faith” or “hope,” and it is also not impossible. We can’t turn to presidents and we can’t turn to hopelessness. We can only turn to each other.

The recent raids of the homes and office of peace activists in Chicago and Minneapolis reflect a new front in the expanding war on dissent in this country. Readers of this site know that FBI raids and harassment of animal rights activists and environmental activists are systemic problems. What’s significant about the latest raids in the Midwest is that the government is blurring the lines between its domestic and international War(s) on Terrorism, conflating peace activists with foreign “terrorist organizations.”

In prior cases, particularly regarding “eco-terrorism” and “animal enterprise terrorism,” the FBI has frequently justified using terrorism resources to target political activists because they allegedly have some connection to property crimes. Recently in Pennsylvania, for instance, the Department of Homeland Security used this mantra to justify the monitoring of film screenings and protests.

With the peace groups in question in Minneapolis and Chicago, there is no alleged link to any underground activity. There is no spraypainting, no broken windows. These are above-ground activists, many of whom have been involved in social struggles for decades. The flimsy pretext that has been a fallback excuse for much of the FBI’s “terrorism” crackdowns are simply not relevant. Instead, the FBI is alleging that these groups may have ties to foreign terrorist organizations.

Photo from The Uptake.

Some of the groups listed in the search warrants include the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The subpoena also requested “items relating to trips to Colombia, Jordan, Syria, the Palestinian territories of Israel.”

These raids come on the heels of a report by the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General. The Inspector General’s report criticized the FBI’s spying on animal rights and environmental activists, including PETA and Greenpeace. The report said there was “little or no basis” for the terrorism investigations, and that they were “unreasonable and inconsistent with FBI policy.” And at about this time, the DHS intelligence bulletin from Pennsylvania showed the utter absurdity of these terrorism priorities.

Pressure is mounting on the FBI, DHS and other government agencies to justify their use of federal terrorism resources on domestic groups.

What we’re seeing in the Midwest must be put in this context. The “number one domestic terrorism threat” is slowly being exposed as a fraud, a waste of resources and a threat to basic First Amendment rights. Now, the FBI is attempting to connect domestic groups to international threats in order to justify the campaigns of harassment and intimidation.

It is imperative for activists of all movements to recognize that these tactics are expanding. They are spreading. For years I have heard replies from liberals justifying attacks on activists as “terrorists.” “Oh, those activists supported the Earth Liberation Front,” some say, or “Well, they did release mink from fur farms.” The government is abandoning those feeble excuses. And all social justice movements must do the same.

Sparrow Media has a list of cities holding protests against the raids. Please get involved.

Scott DeMuth pleaded guilty today to a misdemeanor conspiracy charge for releasing ferrets from a Minnesota farm. As part of the deal, he will no longer be charged with conspiracy to commit “animal enterprise terrorism” in relation to a University of Iowa Animal Liberation Front raid.

DeMuth had previously resisted a grand jury fishing expedition, and been labeled an “anarchist” and “domestic terrorist” by the government. His faculty advisor at the University of Minnesota has also been harassed by the FBI.

As part of the deal, he will not be forced to cooperate with the government. He faces approximately six months in prison for the misdemeanor charge.

The plea agreement comes as DeMuth was set to begin trial Tuesday. From the start, DeMuth has maintained his innocence in relation to the University of Iowa case. Prosecutor Cliff Cronk has re-indicted DeMuth twice, in response to arguments by defense attorneys that the government’s case is thin and vindictive: the second superseding indictment added an allegation of a raid at Lakeside Ferret, in Minnesota.

The government seems to have taken whatever it can get in this case: a lesser charge in lieu of “terrorism” charges, which fell apart. The terrorism investigation of the University of Iowa ALF raid, is likely not over, however. Recent FBI raids in other states have been part of that investigation, as have visits by FBI agents to local activists.

Peter Young’s home was raided the FBI this week, and the search warrant repeatedly mentions his name in relation to “animal enterprise terrorism.” In the last article we looked at how this Utah raid is, ostensibly, related to the investigation of an Animal Liberation Front raid at the University of Iowa.

As with all of these cases, though, it’s important to put this in a bigger political context. Few attempts have been made to connect Young to Iowa (the government argued in court that Young was an “associate” of Scott DeMuth, the defendant in the Iowa case, because DeMuth identified someone in his journal as ‘P’).
Young says he has never met DeMuth, a graduate student whose research has included radical social movements.

However, attempts have been made to repeatedly label Young a “terrorist” not for underground crimes like raiding fur farms (which he was convicted of years ago) but for lawful, aboveground, First Amendment activity. For instance, he published The Blueprint, a listing of fur farms in the United States.

Young wrote in the introduction:

While past fur industry investigations focused on the treatment of animals, this one sought something else: names and addresses. Of all forms of animal rights outreach, the dissemination of “names and addresses” is at once among the most overlooked, and most potent…

The fur industry is among the most vulnerable targets in our sights. We rented a car, and set out to create the roadmap to its collapse.

Fur farmers responded by labeling this document, which is listing of public information obtained lawfully and disseminated lawfully, a “terrorist handbook.”

Multiple newspapers in Utah and Wisconsin published stories with industry soundbites along these lines. The Park Record in Utah reported:

“‘The Blueprint’ is a little disturbing. Basically, what ‘The Blueprint’ is, is a terrorist handbook,” a mink rancher in Coalville told The Park Record on Wednesday.

The man, who is in his 20s, spoke to the newspaper at his ranch on the condition of anonymity.

“All this is is domestic terrorism, and I have a target on my back,” he said in the interview. “They’re out there calling death threats in to ranchers. We spend many sleepless nights on the ranch.”

Most times he is armed, the rancher added.

All of this has the effect of increasing fear of animal rights activists as “terrorists,” and legitimizing any subsequent actions such as FBI raids of activists’ homes. As in all of these Green Scare cases, these media campaigns and this raid are, above all else, about instilling fear.

FBI raid of Salt Lake City house of animal rights activists. Photo by Jordan Halliday.

FBI agents and law enforcement from multiple agencies have raided a well-known activist group house in Salt Lake City, Utah, today in connection with an investigation of Animal Liberation Front crimes in Iowa.

I just got off the phone with multiple housemates who were there witnessing the raid, and who were able to read the warrant. Details about all of this are still emerging, but at this point it is clear that the warrant was issued by the Southern District of Iowa, and authorizes the seizure of any books, pamphlets, computers and other materials tied to “animal enterprise terrorism.” [UPDATE: Here is copy of the warrant.]

Some background: In Minnesota, a graduate student named Scott DeMuth has been indicted on conspiracy charges under the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act. The charges are related to a 2004 raid by the Animal Liberation Front at the University of Iowa.

Another Minnesota activist, Carrie Feldman, has been jailed for refusing to testify about her political beliefs and political associations before a grand jury. Feldman was a teenager at the time of the ALF crime, and says the grand jury is clearly an attempt to harass and intimidate the activist community.

So how did the FBI end up in Utah? One of the housemates, Peter Young, is repeatedly mentioned by name in the warrant. Young was one of the first people prosecuted for “animal enterprise terrorism” in connection to fur farm raids in the late 90s. (His co-defendant Justin Samuel is also mentioned in the warrant). He served two years in prison, and has been living in Salt Lake City, speaking at colleges, and writing on his website, Voice of the Voiceless. He is among the most vocal, public supporters of the ALF and direct action.

The only connection I can decipher between Young and the Iowa investigation is this: in an emergency motion filed against Scott DeMuth, to keep him in jail, the government calls DeMuth an “anarchist” and “domestic terrorist.” As evidence of this, they say he is an “associate” of Peter Young. As DeMuth’s faculty advisor has publicly explained, this is tied to his research as a graduate student.

There are about nine people living at the activist group house in Salt Lake. At least 15 computers were taken by the FBI, along with boxes of documents, notebooks, files, and address books. The house is well-known in the area as a gathering space for animal rights and other activists. No arrests have been made, and at this point it seems Iowa is being used as a pretext for a continued campaign of harassment and intimidation.

Among the items taken from the FBI’s terrorism raid: a postcard for Iowa 80, “the world’s largest truck stop.”

I’ll continue to update as this story develops. In the meantime, this is a good opportunity to plug the National Lawyers Guild hotline, 1-888-NLG-ECOL. Also, please write Carrie Feldman a letter as she continues to resist the grand jury witch hunt. Carolyn Feldman,
770 Iowa St., Dubuque, IA 52001.

After the recent bombings in California–which the press, industry groups and FBI recklessly rushed to attribute to animal rights activists—I reported that the Humane Society of the United States donated money to the “eco-terrorist” witch hunt. That didn’t sit well with many people, even those who oppose direct action. Now, HSUS’ Wayne Pacelle has come out to not only defend the donation, but endorse California’s version of the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act.

Much of Pacelle’s blog post is standard rhetoric condemning illegal activity. But what truly surprised me is that Pacelle acknowledges that nobody even knows if animal rights activists were involved in the attack.

So, if the perpetrators of the Santa Cruz attacks turn out to be agents hostile to animal protection, it would not surprise me, because this is a tactic that malicious forces have used in the past to discredit many good causes. I’d feel especially good if our reward money helped to catch an infiltrator and exposed this person to the harsh glare of public opinion.

Huh? So let’s get this straight: HSUS gave money to this Green Scare witch hunt and condemned “extremists,” without even knowing if animal activists were involved. But if they were involved, this donation would help oust infiltrators?

Fat chance. HSUS’ actions will never help reveal an infiltrator, in part because the FBI are the ones doing the infiltrating (remember Eric McDavid’s case?). And besides, the damage has been done. The FBI, corporations and even animal groups have blamed this on animal activists, and those parties won’t be coming out and saying, “Oops, we were wrong.” Why? Because, at best, they don’t care that they’re wrong, and, at worst, they know it and are recklessly smearing animal activists anyway.

Pacelle writes as if the actions of HSUS exist in a political vacuum, and completely ignores the larger political climate. It’s bad enough that some groups are remaining silent about all of this “eco-terrorism” rhetoric, but for the largest animal protection organization in the country to come out and support it… that’s another story entirely. It lets law enforcement know that their actions can proceed unchecked and unquestioned by the few groups in the country who are actually paying attention.

The government and corporations have responded to this endorsement accordingly:

• “Eco-terrorism” legislation. Surprise surprise, corporations used the bombings to rush through “eco-terrorism” legislation called the California Animal Enterprise Protection Act (here’s a critical look at the CA AEPA). And, disturbingly, here’s Pacelle applauding the legislation (in its original, even-more-absurd form, no less).
• Police raids. FBI Joint Terrorism Task Forces have raided a college activist house and an anarchist bookstore. The bookstore, the Longhaul Infoshop, is also a community space, with public computers (14 were seized by the police).
• Frivolous arrest. One activist, Nathan Pope, who lives in the raided house, was arrested for felony perjury. He is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail. What was Nathan Pope’s crime? Investigators said Knoerl [Pope] checked the ‘no’ box in response to the questions ‘have you applied for a driver’s license or identification card in California or another state/country using a different name within the past 10 years?’” The police acknowledge the arrest was “”unconnected with what we were searching for,” and had nothing to do with the crimes. They still have no suspects in the bombing cases.

It’s clear that HSUS needs to distance itself as much as possible from the firebombing because of the pending factory farming ballot initiative in November. It’s already going to be a dirty fight: the egg industry admits Proposition 2 would be a “major blow”. But guess what: the loyalty oaths and condemnations haven’t protected HSUS from “extremist” and “terrorist” smear campaigns.

The Center for Consumer Freedom is waging a media campaign to wrap up mainstream, national organizations with underground saboteurs. The CCF’s David Martosko writes: “If law-enforcement agencies are serious about attacking the growing problem of animal rights violence, they should start looking for clues inside some of the better known animal-protection charities.” It looks like they should also start investigating the Wu-Tang Clan.

[On a bittersweet note, as this Green Scare continues in California, the California Senate is finally trying to gut Red Scare legislation: under this bill, membership in the communist party would no longer be a fireable offense. Geez. It's 2008. Kudos to lawmakers for their speedy, principled stand against the Red Scare.]

Wayne Pacelle’s blog doesn’t allow public comments. But he posted a few messagesthat he received, and whaddayouknow, every single one is supportive of HSUS’ donation to the witch hunt.

So I’ll open it up to you all for a more honest discussion: Is HSUS justified in donating money to the “eco-terrorist” witch hunt and supporting legislation against so-called “animal rights extremists,” in hopes of passing this ballot initiative? If not, what should HSUS have done?

I’ll be on Portland’s KBOO 90.7 FM this morning (8am Portland time, 11am DC time) to talk about the police state showing its true color in Minneapolis this week at the RNC. There’s live streaming on the previous link (click in the top right corner of the KBOO page).

Hmm, if ya’ll see this in time you could even post a comment as you’re listening, if there’s something you think should be discussed…

I’ve received a ton of emails the last 24 hours about the arrest of a longtime environmental activist in Cincinnati. At this stage, as is usually the case right after arrests, it’s hard to know exactly what’s going on. I think it’s important to get this information out, but also caution against speculation.

That being said, Marie Mason was arrest Monday morning, and at the same time FBI and the Department of Homeland Security searched her home and detained her 16-year-old daughter. A few months ago, Indymedia websites were buzzing with stories claiming that a GPS tracking device was placed on Mason’s car, and that she was detained at gun point.

Here’s an update:

We have confirmed Marie is being held in the Butler County jail (southwestern Ohio) pending transfer to Michigan. She is being held on suicide watch which we believe is just another tactic of the state to break her down and further isolate her from friends and family.

Federal agents are contacting people on Marie’s cell phone list claiming they are contacting folks on Marie’s behalf to pass along information. We want everyone to know this is bullshit. We were able to briefly speak with Marie, who despite the current situation is in good spirits. Marie is not asking the state to contact anyone on her behalf. Realize if you know/knew Marie your contact information was likely seized when they raided her house. Understand these are old-school COINTELPRO style tactics that have been historically used to disrupt and confuse support networks and activist circles. Stay focused, stay safe, and don’t talk to law enforcement no matter how innocent it may seem.

At this time there’s a lot we don’t know. Please understand speculation, rumors, and hearsay help no one. We will be forthcoming with confirmed information on Marie’s current situation as it becomes available.

From The Santa Cruz Sentinel:

Dozens of police cars surrounded a home on the 700 block of Riverside Avenue in Santa Cruz on Sunday night as a crowd of onlookers gathered to watch the events unfold.

According to Frank Male, the owner of the house, three UC Santa Cruz seniors live at the residence. Male said police contacted him earlier Sunday because they wanted to talk to the students about an ongoing investigation. Male said he later learned the students were animal rights activists.

Male said police told him they went to the house in the late afternoon to talk to the students, but the students slammed the door in their face and told them to get a search warrant…

Police on scene declined to say why they were there.

Santa Cruz has also been in the news for the recent tree sits.

I don’t have any more details on this right now. If you do, please post a comment…

This from the North American Animal Liberation Press Office, which is an organization run by above-ground activists to defend the illegal actions of underground activists:

Los Angeles- Search warrants were served on the residences Tuesday of two North American Animal Liberation Press Officers by the Santa Monica Police Department. No arrests were made, and no reason was given for the warrants, signed by Los Angeles Appellate Judge Paul Turner. Thousands of dollars worth of private items were taken with no explanation, confounding animal activists in the Los Angeles area, which has seen increasingly effective animal advocacy in the last several years. [emphasis added]

In a similar action in 2004, the same agency raided the home of Goldfinger lead guitarist John Feldman in Bellaire; no arrests were ever made, and Feldman was awarded $75,000 by the City of Santa Monica last year. ..

Despite the loss of several computers, the Press Officers, who claim they keep back-up data available at several locations, were unfazed and back at work within hours. Sgt. J. Moroso and Lt. Beautz of the Santa Monica Police Department did not return repeated calls.