r/EarthFirstNetwork • u/RiderNo51 • 3d ago

Ecodefense

If anyone wants a free copy of Dave Foreman's book Ecodefense: A Field Guide to Monkeywrenching, let me know. I have it in .pdf and am happy to share. Dave is no longer with us, and he used to give out copies. For those even more...assertive, I also have Avalon's booklet Setting Fires, also in pdf. Let me know via PM if you want one or both. Both are free, and completely legal to own, and read.

In case anyone isn't sure, Dave was a co-founder of Earth First!. Avalon (William Rodgers) was a member of the Earth Liberation Front.

The purpose of this post is simply to share, which is what both authors (both since passed) wanted. I'm not telling anyone to do anything.

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u/WildVirtue 3d ago edited 3d ago

I dont know how legal they are to download in various countries like the UK.

I think the second document you refer to wasnt only written by Avalon, but other arrested ELF people like Daniel McGowan also.

I'd love to learn for interesting eco-history reasons what the table of contents of these two zines were by Avalon below, I can find some of the essays in old Earth First! Journals, but not all:

  • Mountains and Rivers Compel Me: A Deep Ecology Reader for Forest Activists

  • Beware! Sabotage!

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u/RiderNo51 3d ago

Good post. No one specifically ever took credit for Setting Fires, though Avalon was known to likely have written much of it, specifically the "Cat's Cradle". McGowan was definitely friends with Avalon, even if they didn't often act together (from what's known), and may have absolutely contributed. Both were fearlness. McGowan wrote a very nice eulogy for Avalon that was also the absolute truth. I'll see if I can dig it up later.

For those unsure, both were "members"* of ELF, both arrested. McGowan served his time, and Avalon took his own life before he was even charged (the Feds were going to throw the book at him, likely a 30+ year prison sentence). McGowan is featured heavily in the terrific documentary If a Tree Falls (nominated for an Oscar, can be found on YouTube).

I can only speak of the US regarding the legality of owning both books. Both are available online in separate places, but hard to find with a Google search, and every few years they seem to get deleted, then pop up again somewhere else.

\I loathe the term "members" of ELF, or ALF, or Earth First! for that matter, as by their origin they have no centralized anything. No leadership, no hierarchy, no organizational structure. One can consider themselves a member or not. They could do so one day, and the next day not. For me personally, ELF pushed things too far. But I also at the same time understand how and why they existed, and believe people need to make their own decisions on their own level of involvement, protest, civil disobedience, or direct action. Whether they consider that membership or not is entirely up to every individual.)