June/ July 2001
Welcome to the June/July 2001 issue of Spirit of Freedom.
There has been so much going on around the country and in
our lives lately. Actions are increasing at a frenzied pace and
government lackeys are trying hard to pass sweeping “hate
crime” laws to stymie the dissent. Fortunately, it doesn't look
like it is having any effect so far. We are finishing the
newsletter just days after our friend Free (Jeff Luers) was
sentenced to 22 % years in prison for the arson of Romania
Chevrolets and attempted arson of Tyree Oil last year.

In addition to publishing this bi-monthly newsletter/update, we
distribute a prisoner resource directory that includes a
comprehensive listing of prisoner support groups, books to
prisoner programs and zines to write to (available free to
prisoners). We also distribute “Pushing a Better Pencil’- a
quide that can help prisoners write better grievance forms.

Spirit of Freedom is free to prisoners and two 33-cent stamps
to anyone else. We will trade for zines we are interested in,
especially ones related to prisoner support

Thank you to everyone that wrote us in the last three months
and offered support, advice, funds and information and to the
prisoners who submitted writings this issue. This newsletter
couldn't have come out without the help of our local copy
connection (still a secret) who helped us print most of our
newsletters and Pendleton Vandiveer, who booked the
benefit show for us last month.

Never a Word, My Friend

Our enemy has realized that they can never totally destroy
us, but over the years we have learned that we have one
weakness: the interrogation of our untrained comrades by the
police.

They arrest us in droves, shove us into small cells without
toilet facilities, starve us and systematically torture us. Their
intention s to break our spirits so that we will tell them
everything they want to know; details of direct actions, of any
The Legal Defense Committee asks for your continuing
support of Free and Critter and other Prisoners of War. Make
no mistake...a war is being waged o the Earth and all ts
creatures. Do not participate in the State's campaign to
marginalize and incapacitate those who take radical action in
defense of the Earth. Failure to support our political prisoners
is tantamount to sanctioning repression by the State.

For now, letters can be mailed to both Free and Critter c/o the
Legal Defense Committee at PO Box 50263, Eugene, OR
97404. Free's new address will soon be available. Checks
and money orders to assist with Free's appeal

can still be sent to FCLDF, c/o OUR Credit Union, PO Box
11192, Eugene, OR 97440. Our website is

www.efn.org/~eugpeace/freecritter

Thanks to all our steadfast supporters. Your help has been
inspiring and ireplaceable.

Howl for Free and Critter. Howl for all political prisoners. They
will hear you. I .

SantaCruz2 —

Peter Schnell and Matt Whyte have a hearing on September
26 where the judge will decide if there is to be an evidentiary
hearing. To keep abreast of their situation, contact them at:
Santa Cruz 2 Defense Fund, POB 917 Santa Cruz, CA 95060

Mark Sands

Mark Sands of Phoenix, Arizona was indicted last week on
22-count relating to eight arsons at homes in Phoenix and
suburban Scottsdale.

Sands was arrested in April after pigs said he was seen
scrawiing the letters "CSP" on a sign at a home under
construction near the Phoenix Mountain Preserve. He was
later released because prosecutors did not meet a deadiine
for filing charges after his arrest.

"CSP" is said to stand for "Coalition to Save the Preserves."
The'acronym was found in notes at some of the arson sites
and in letters sent to the media.

Since 1998, 11 fires at upscale homes under construction
near mountain recreation areas have been attributed to
arson. 9 were near the Phoenix Mountain Preserve, a scenic
stretch of mountains running through the middle of Phoenix;
two were next to a mountain preserve in suburban
Scottsdale. This arrest occurred one day after four partly built
luxury homes were burned down in Tucson.

Rob “Los Ricos” Thaxton Moved!

Rob Thaxton has been moved yet again. This time, the
Oregon Prison Department moved him shortly after an
attempt by the FBI to interview him about “Eugene
Anarchists”. After they found out that Rob never lived in
Eugene, they ended the interview and told him he would be
transferred the next day. Rob is now back at his former
address at:

Robert Thaxton
#12112716

OsP

2605 State Street
Salem, OR 97310
sentence: lowered to 5 % years!

We have just found out that Nikos Maziotis had his sentence
reduced from 15 to 5 % years in a hearing two months ago.

New Prisoners
In England, Dave Blenkinsop has been jailed for “causing

grievous bodily harm” to the managing director of
Huntingdon Life Sciences.

Prisoners Released!
In Europe, Charlotte Lewis, Jonathan Elliot, Mark Kulsdom,
Robert Molenaar have all been released.

Frank Ambrose

Frank's pre-trial, set for April 5", was postponed because of
protests held at Federal buildings that day. Coincidentally,
this was the same day that the North American ELF press
office in Portland was raided by the FBI.

The Responsibility For Repression

“Why is it when faced with potentially severe
repression we go all fucking liberal?"—Do or Die #9

Over the past few years, state repression against
those who question the current social order has
intensified. This can be traced to two significant
factors: changes in social relationships that have
made it unnecessary for the democratic state to
disguise its repressive nature and a growing
resistance that is increasingly using methods of
direct attack rather than petition and negotiation

In the United States, these attacks against the
projects of capital have been largely centered on
projects that infringe upon and destroy wild areas,
exploit animals or involve the development of
genetically engineered organisms. The methods used in
these attacks are generally fairly simple, using
materials easily accessible to anyone, and are

applicable to a wide variety of situations. It should,
therefore come us no surprise that the state would try
to suppress this tendency through criminalization and
repression

Itis in this context that two bills before the Oregon
state legislature can be understood. One of these
bills would apply racketeering and organized crime
laws to acts of sabotage against logging activities,
animal research and the like if passed. The other
would apply hate crime laws to illegal actions taken
against environmental destruction or capitalism. If
these laws are passed it would be possible for a
person convicted of breaking a window, spiking a tree,
sabotaging a piece of equipment or liberating animals
from a laboratory to as much as 25 years in prison as
a racketeering hate criminal.

This is also the context in which a recent raid on a
punk house party in Portland, Oregon and the
subsequent police harassment against punks on the
streets, in which cops will question those stopped
about their relationship to anarchism, can be
understand. If anyone who might consider acting
against the horrors of this society can be frightened
into submission through harassment, it makes the job
of the state easier.

When repression starts to hit close to home, itis
easy to forget who is responsible for it. We have been
well trained to see those that the state labels as
criminals as such, and so it is easy to make the
mistake of blaming those who have taken the path of
illegal revolt for the repression we experience. But
those who revolt are never to blame for repression.
The state, and only the state, holds this
responsibility. The aim of state repression is
precisely to frighten people away from active revolt.
If we succumb before repression, holding ourselves

back and calling on others to hold back out of fear,
the state has succeeded. In the face of state
repression, it is necessary to attack more
intelligently and more fiercely.

FROM “ Willful Disobedience” #7
41 Sutter St., Suite 1661, San Francisco CA 94104

Untitled

As | sit here in my cell looking out at the night | feel as if I'm
somewhere else

But the sky isn't right

I'm thinking of some of the beautiful places I've been where
the sky isn't orange

And the grass is still green.

You see, here all | smell is the stench of a city's waste Lock
away societies problems

With prejudice and distaste

The sky that | see is a sodium haze

| would almost imagine the world was ablaze

Not like my dreams where | breathe fresh air
But sights so green are increasingly rare

So | need to get out to protect what's left
Cause the thought of the shitty city leave me bereth of hope
and spirit, this place bleeds me dry

Acellin a prison in a city

The cities are the real prisons

Where everyone is trapped

And the use of TV for Visions

This can be changed

By simple things that we do

Please believe me cause I'm not sure | do.

DEATH SAYS...
Glory tothe D.o.T Because they brash and kill for me
Praise be to the W.T.0

Because of them there few barriers to go

Little fish, big fish are all caught in my net But my money
grabbing friends | shant forget Aid a revolution fund and start
awar

I don't care about politics

I'm not keeping score

You rape and kill the land

So Karma Geddon is now at hand

Aplace in hell is reserved for them

As they trash this spherical gem

With G.M crops, wars and words

My friend poison the land

And kill the birds

Men, animals, ideals all sold for profit

To line the sides of their blood smeared pockets

So glory to those who love money

It's better than these taste of sugar or honey

Just one speck in the cosmos

For commercial gain s it such a loss?

Lee Himlin

The Importance Of Prisoner Support
By Michael Collins (Mayday 2000 prisoner)

Prison is a weapon used by the state to crush individuals who
step out of line: To isolate them; to punish them and their
loved ones; to threaten; to make an example of; 1o, as Ali
Khalid Abdullah said: "humiliate, dominate, control, destroy."

Since all effective political opposition has been criminalized, if
you are working for political change and not breaking the law,
well, you aren't doing it right. And since the government has
made it clear that it intends to send more criminals to prison
on longer sentences, then we can expect more political
prisoners. So it is essential that we build a strong and
effective prisoner support network.
I've been inside for 8 months and I've had wonderful support
from a small group of individuals who regularly write to me.
Earth Liberation Prisoners support group and Brighton ABC
have been great. Sometimes a single letter has changed a
day of despair into a day of hope. I've made contact with a
fair few individuals and groups in this country and abroad

Some exchanges of letters have helped me think through
certain aspects of my politics. I've received a lot of cards just
saying "you are not forgotten, the struggle continues". Some
people just write chatty letters about going to the pub or
whatever, which is great. | mean, no one wants to talk
politics all the time. One regular correspondent likes to keep
me up to date with the latest news of Buffy the Vampire
Slayer for some reason, bless ‘er. So if you ever think of
writing to a prisoner, and then never get around to it because
you can't think of anything to write, well, it doesn't have to be
along, interesting intellectual letter. A short message of
support will do, maybe a postcard to brighten the cell

Beyond letters - practical support. Letters of solidarity go a
long way to making prison more bearable, but money and
other stuff can help a lot. Every prisoner gets a minimum of
£2.50 "unemployment benefit" a week, and if you work you
can ear between 50p and a couple of quid a day. On top of
that you are allowed an amount from your private cash each
week, usually £10.00. A lot of money is spent on phone
cards. The food is prison is crap, so | trend to buy stuff from
the canteen to supplement my diet - vitamins, peanut butter,
museli. Basically we are all pretty skint, and even with
money in our private accounts, we can't spend much each
week. So find out what a prisoner is allowed to have sent in -
it differs from prison to prison. For example at Wandsworth
people sent me music tapes, art materials, envelopes, writing
paper, magazines. Here at Eimley ' only allowed stamps.
books and some magazines. Other prisons don't even allow
stamps. Ask prisoners what is allowed, and if there is
anything they need. If they need cash, ask your mates for a
couple of quid each, the price of a pint, and sent off a postal
order - registers mail, unless you want it to go towards the
Screws Xmas party.
But if you're skint, don't worry, just write. | can't emphasize
enough just how important it is to have this contact with the
outside world. When you're banged-up in a small cell 23
hours a day, feeling bored or angry or scared or depressed, a
letter does more than just cheer you up, it keeps you sane.
Solidarity is our only defense in this situation.

I said that I've had great support, but it has been from a
handful of hard-working individuals. ELP and Brighton ABC
are not massive organizations co-coordinating support for
prisoners. More people need to get involved, and if you are
serious about a struggle for political change, that means you!

Michael Collins
FR6303
HMP Elmley
Eastchurch
Kent, ME12 4AY
England

In 1978 Standing Deer, an Oneida/Choctaw American Indian
exposed a government plot to assassinate American Indian
Movement (AIM) leader Leonard Peltier in Marion federal
penitentiary. This bizarre case has been documented in
several books including "I the Spirit of Crazy Horse" by
Peter Matthiessen. In 1984 Standing Deer, Leonard Peltier,
and Albert Garza fasted for 42 days to draw worldwide
attention to the deplorable conditions at USP Marion, the
Super Maximum Security federal prison

In his Marion Death Fast statement Standing Deer wrote in
part: "All of the above things | could probably learn to live with
because | realize that Marion is America's #1 gulag for
political prisoners, and | know that my brothers, friends and
comrades in here are suffering the same indignities. But there
is one outrage that | can no longer tolerate. | will no longer
allow the united states to continue to deny me the right to
practice my religion. For 491 years the religion of my people
has been trampled on and disrespected by the sea pirates
and many of their descendents who invaded my shores so
long ago. For those of us who today wish to follow the religion
and teachings of our grandfathers, the road is rocky and the

struggle is hard even under conditions in the so-called "free
world." But for American Indians in Marion federal prison, we
have been cast into a spiritual wastebasket where every
aspect of our religion is denied.

“Leonard and me enter into this fast not out of despair or
depression but with a joyful commitment of total love and *
dedication to our people. We must have our Pipe, drum,
sweat lodge and access to our outside spiritual people. We
will fast until we are either granted our constitutional right to
practice our religion or until we return to our Creator. If the
united states does not wish us to die they have but to obey
their own laws. If we do die, the united states' total disregard
for human rights will be our murderers.”

In retaliation for the 42-day fast, the government held these
three men in solitary isolation for 15 months with nothing in
their cages except a steel bunk and toilet. The door to their
cage was never opened unless their hands were handcuffed
behind their backs and four guards with clubs were present to
supervise their every move (what the Marion Control Unit
calls "a four man order".) After a year of these hideous terms
of confinement attorney Margaret G. Gold filed a million dollar
lawsuit against the Federal Bureau of Prisons that succeeded
in having each of them transferred to separate maximum
security prisons where they were allowed to practice their
religion. In the summer of 1985 Peltier went to USP
Leavenworth (where he remains to this day); Garza went to
USP Lewisburg; and Standing Deer to USP Lompoc.

Two months after arriving at Lompoc, Standing Deer was
accused of leading 30 Indian brothers in a protest over issues
of religious denial.
Once again, Margaret Gold filed a lawsuit
styled Standing Deer v Carlson, but before trial he was
thrown in the hole and held incommunicado for seven days.
He was then taken to the airport in the middle of the night
wearing nothing but chains and boxer shorts, and flown in a
small plane with five FBI agents and tumed over to McAlester
prison in Oklahoma, the prison from which he had escaped

ten years earlier. He had been kicked out of the federal
prison system without even completing his federal sentence,
prompting him to quip, "I've been kicked out of places before,
but never a whole prison system!"

Standing Deer's new prison was a Control Unit just like
Marion - a cesspool of sadistic mistreatment. Ben Carnes, a
young Choctaw brother, filed a lawsuit against the system for
the denial of the right to practice Indian religion. Once again
Margaret Gold dropped everything and rushed from New
York to Oklahoma to conduct a trial along with two focal
attorneys. The lawsuit was successful in gaining exemptions
from forced haircutting for the brothers who hold their hair to
be sacred.

In 1992, after seven years in the McAlester supermax
Standing Deer discharged his Oklahoma sentence and was
extradited to Texas where he faced a life sentence. He was
immediately thrown in the hole at the Ells prison in Huntsville
which had the reputation as the toughest prison in Texas.

In spite of the wretched prison conditions and failing health
Standing Deer continues to do all he can in the struggle to
free Leonard Peltier and save Mumia Abu-Jamal. The Texas
prison system has locked him in the hole for telling the truth
in his political writings, but he continues to fight for human
dignity and religious freedom for imprisoned American
Indians.

April 6, 2001 marks Standing Deer's twenty-fifth year of
continuous confinement in some of the worst prisons this
country has to offer. At 68 his health is very bad. Texas has
given him five parole hearings since 1993 but all were denied
in spite of the pleas of his family, children and grandchildren.
unsolved crimes; the names of other comrades; even the
names of friends and family. It is your duty to tell them

absolutely nothing and to make their investigation harder by
refusing to cooperate with them.

If you are arrested on suspicion of committing illegal acts ,
the laws in most states say that you can be held for up to 72
hours (holidays and weekends not included) before being
charged or released. Throughout those 72 hours (or more),
the police will question, repeating your interrogation in shifts
to wear you down mentally and physically, trying to catch you
in a lie so that they can break you. They will also try to lure
you, bribe you, and make false promises. Succumb to none
of these!

The 5th Amendment supposedly “protects” us from self-
incrimination, but cops NEVER play by any rules so don't
expect them to. And to dispel the myth, cops don't have to
read you any Miranda rights (whatever those are!). Ever
heard the term "No Comment” ? It's a saying that would be
wise to use when the arresting officers ask anything. They
will try to engage into talking about mundane things if you
refuse their direct questioning, but this is only another ploy.

The only time you should reveal any personal information
(name & address) is when you are being booked into jail. (A
successful sabotage tactic when arrested in a group is to
refuse to be allowed to be booked. The cops really hate that.)
When you are asked questions about your connection with
any crimes, all you are required to say is “l want to consult
with a lawyer", but these are not magic words to make you
immune from any reprisals and should not be considered as
such. While you are in their custody, you are at their mercy;
and it is extremely hard to prove that the cops coerced a
confession out of you.

You may be put into a cell by yourself or with another
occupant. Nine chances out of ten your cellmate is a snitch in
service to the police to wheedle you out of information so

s/he can get paid or receive a lighter sentence. To him/her all
that should be said is: “l don’t know why I'm here. I've never
committed a crime in my life". And leave it at that.

When your interrogation begins, they will usually rouse you
out of bed early in the momning, before you have eaten and
cleaned yourself up. This is done to have an advantage over
you. What you should do is be constantly ready but well-
Tested at the same time. The interrogator will not like seeing
you as well-groomed as he is. Never look down at the floor
and never appear nervous or frightened. Always keep your
head up and look them straight in the eye as though you are
memorizing their features for identification later. Doing so will
scare them.

During your session you may feel the urge to relieve yourself.
But more than likely, your interrogator will refuse you the
opportunity. After all, millions of confessions have been
successfully obtained by refusing to let people use the toilet,
because your concentration deteriorates quickly if you can't’
relieve yourself. Simply pull down your pants and shit in front
of them. If you're handcuffed, shit or piss your pants. It's their
fault and they know it, and so they will have to deal with it.

If they are particularly interested in what you may know, they
will eventually begin beating you. When this happens: hit
back! Give them everything you've got and beat the shit out
of them. Don't be afraid to hit back. The harder they hit you,
the harder you should hit back. If one cop holds you while
another cop beats you, try to curl up into a ball on the floor.
They'll kick the shit put of you but that's when you've got
them by the balls. Afterwards, demand to see your own
personal doctor or one that isn't employed by the police, and
that you want to contact your lawyer. Tell them that you
refuse to see anyone else because their doctors wil hide any
damage they've done.

You should do your best to stay healthy during your visit;
exercise by walking in your cell, push-ups, sit-ups, whatever.
Stay alert. Sleep and eat whenever you can. When you're

offered food, sit down and enjoy it. They will serve foods at
different times to try to screw up your body’s natural clock
The food will sustain your energy to help you resist the
interrogation. Some activists have refused to eat their food
out of fear that it is drugged or as a rebellious effort, but that
i sheer stupidity. Without food you become weak and
susceptible to their methods.

You should never appear to be sleepy o sick. Never let them
see that you might be weakening or vulnerable, but show
them that you have a resolve like cold, forged steel.
Remember: i's 72 hours to 72 months. Maybe even more.
Never a word, my friend.

7
Court Updates

Free Sentenced to 23 Years!
Free and Critter Legal Defense Committee

On June 11th, Jeffrey "Free" Luers was sentenced to nearly
23 years on 11 charges ranging from Arson | to Attempted
Criminal Mischief stemming from two incidents last year in
Eugene, Oregon
Free had admitted to criminal mischief regarding a truck fire
at Romania Chevrolet last summer. At the sentencing he
read a statement taking accountability for the Romania fire,
and emphasizing the care he took to ensure no one would be
injured. He said:

“It cannot be said that | am unfeeling or uncaring. My heart is
filled with love and compassion. | fight to protect Ife...all lfe.
Not to take it. It's not an exaggeration to say that we're
experiencing a period of extinction equal to that of the
dinosaurs. 40,000 species go extinct each year, yet we
continue to pollute and exploit the natural world...

1 will not ask this court to grant me leniency. Al | ask is that
you believe the sincerity of my words, and that you believe
that my actions, whether or not you believe them to be
misguided, stem from the love | have in my heart.”

The judge responded by saying that he "never doubted
Free's sincerity". He stated that Free's political beliefs would
not influence the sentencing, that he would be sentenced
"solely on the severity of the crimes”. Yet Free

received a sentence harsher than that of many murderers
and rapists. We are not so naive as to say we're surprised
with the sentence, but an analogy | shared with Free on the
phone yesterday is that we've had someone with

a clenched fist standing in front of us for a year saying "I'm
going to punch you." Even though we were expecting it, it still
took our breath away. The judge made many comments
during the trial that indicated he'd already

decided the outcome. He was often seen completely ignoring
the testimony, typing on his laptop instead of listening. An
appeal is already underway.

Frustratingly, throughout the past year, Free had been forced
to remain silent about his actions at Romania Chevrolet, due
to the fact that the State insisted on linking the two incidents,
Romania and Tyree Oil Company, together. The judge
denied many motions to separate the two. Free has

stated and maintains that he had no involvement in the
attempted arson at Tyree Oil.
Silvano Pellissero, Com. Mastrolierto, Via Ferrerinoli
no2, Sanponso, 10080 Torino, Italy. Serving 6 years 8
months for allegedly sabotaging a rail line construction site in
the Northern Italian Alps. Silvano can read Spanish, ltalian
and French but not English.

Animal Liberation

Mel Broughton DJ8216, HMP The Mount, Molyneaux
Avenue, Bovingdon, Hemel Hempstead, HP3 ONZ, England.
Serving 4 years for conspiracy to cause explosions.

Barry Horne VC2141, HMP Belmarsh, Western Way,
Thamesmead, London SE28 OEB, England. Serving 18
years for various anti-vivisection arsons.

Dave Blenkinsop, H.M.Prison, Bedford, MK40 1HG, England.
On remand for allegedly causing grievous bodily

harm to the managing director of Huntingdon Life Sciences
(HLS is one of the largest European companies torturing
animals under the guise of scientific research).

June 18"/ N30 /Mayday...

Robert Thaxton #12112716, 2605 State Street, Salem, OR
97310. Rob threw a rock at a cop in self-defense at

the 1999 Eugene J18 RTS and received a severe seven
year sentence as part of a “mandatory minimum’
sentence.

Michael Collins, FR6303, HMP Elmley, Church Road,
Eastchurch, Sheerness, Kent, ME12 4AY, UK Serving 2
years to a number of charges including "Affray" and "Arson’".

Ggrfield Gabbard, FT9062, HMP Camp Hill, Newport, Isle of
Wight, PO30 5PB,England. Serving 18 months for setting fire
to a police van during the N30 demonstrations.
Indigenous

Eric Wildcat Hall, #BL-5355, Unit /A 10745 Route 18,
Albion, PA 16475-0002 Serving 35-75 years for helping
ship arms to Central American resisters

Leonard Peltier #89637-132, PO Box 1000, Leavenworth,
KS 66048. An American Indian Movement (AIM) activist,
serving two Life sentences, having been framed for the
murder of two FBI agents

Robert Wilson #640289 Estelle Prison, 264 FM 3478,
Huntsville, TX 77320-3322, USA. In 1978 Robert (a.k.a.
Standing Deer) exposed a government plot to assassinate
Leonard Peltier. The US government punished him with life in
prison.

Lenny Chavez, PO Box 28703, Oakland CA 94694 . An AIM
activist who defended himself & his family from an

armed racist. Lenny disarmed his attacked by stabbing

him with a penknife. Lenny was jailed for attempted

murder. (We are not sure if this is the correct address and we
are working on confirming it).

MOVE

Debbie Simms Africa (006307), Janet Holloway Africa
(006308), Janine Philips Africa (006309 SCI Cambridge
Springs, 451 Fullerton Ave, Cambridge Springs, PA
16403-1238

Michael Davis Africa (AM4973), Charles Simms Africa
(AM4975),SCI Grateford, PO Box 244, Grateford, PA
19426-0244,

Edward Goodman Africa (AM4974) SCI Camp Hill, PA
17011-0200

William Philips Africa (AM4984), Delbert Orr Africa
(AM4985) SCI Dallas Drawer K, Dallas, PA 18612.
Prisoner Support Groups/ Useful Contacts

North American Earth Liberation Front Press
Office/Resistance Magazine Contact: Craig Rosebraugh
Leslie James POB 4783, Portland, OR 97208 503-478-0902

elfpress@tao.ca

North American Animal Liberation Front Press Office
Contact: David Barbarash POB 3673, Courtenay, BC VON

7P1250-703-6312 paalfpo@tao.ca

UK Earth Liberation Prisoners Support Network c/o
Cornerstone Resource Center, Leeds, LS7 3HB

earthlibprisoner@mail.com

UKELP
c/o BM Box 2407, London, WC1N 3XX, England

animalearthliberation@bigfoot.com
Bloomington Defense Committee POB 3503, Bloomington,

IN 47402 defensecommittee@yahoo.com 812-333-0173

Santa Cruz 2 Defense Fund, POB 917 Santa Cruz, CA
95060 railpirate@apexmail.com

Free and Critter Support Committee 454 Willamette
Street, Suite 205, Eugene OR 97401 541-343-8548
http://www.efn.org/~eugpeace/freecritter

Connor Cash Support c/o Long Island Animal Defense
League (ADL) PO Box 1117, Huntington, NY 11743
(631)340-4708 freeconnorcash@yahoo.com
longislandadi@excite.com

Leonard Peltier Defense Committee, POB 583, Lawrence
KS 66044; 913-842-5774

Anarchist Prisoner Legal Aid Network (APLAN) 818 SW
3rd Avenue, PMB 354, Portland, OR 97204 aplan@tao.ca

Northwest Anarchist Prisoner Support Network, POB

11331, Eugene, OR 97440. Distributes Free

and Critter's zine, “Fuck the System, Rob Thaxton's “Rob the
Rich” and “Fuck you Bearden" for $2 donation.

South Chicago ABC POB 721, Homewood, IL 60430
Publishes the zine, Thought Bombs and distributes a
load of other zines.

Friends of MOVE, POB 19709, Philadelphia, PA 19143

Onward publishes a quarterly magazine and does a load of
prisoner support. To order, send $2 ($3 if outside the US)
well-concealed cash, check or money order made out to
ONWARD to the address below The Onward Collective

PO Box 2671 Gainesville FL 32602-2671
theonwardcollective@hotmail.com

No Compromise P.O. Box 1440, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
831-425-3007 NoComp@waste.org
Standing Deer's words from his prison cell: "I will continue to
struggle In Total Resistance whether in here or out there until
the day | cross over to the Spirit World. To all of you who

struggle in unity to make our Mother Earth a sweeter nesting

place for our children and our generations yet unborn |
extend the left hand of my left arm which is closest to my
heart. My love, Strength and prayers are with you. In the
Spirit of Crazy Horse. FREE PELTIER-SAVE MUMIA!"

Profile on Connor Cash

Connor Cash is 19 year old human rights and environmental
activist and a role model for his Long Island peers. Residing
in Sound Beach Long Island, NY, Connor co-founded Long
Island Food Not Bombs! a hunger relief program in Port
Jefferson Station, in the Spring of 1999. Food Not Bombs! is
afeeding program set up so that people who are homeless,
hungry or needy can get a hot meal when area soup kitchens
are closed (every weekend). Connor and Food Not Bombs!
helped to provide some of Port Jefferson Station's more
economically deprived and needy residents with hot food,
produce, clothing, and most of all dignity. Today, only 3 years
later, chapters of Food Not Bombs/ exist in not only Port
Jefferson, but also Mastic, Patchogue, Hempstead, and
Bayshore Long Island, providing much needed food in those
economically depressed towns.

In addition to Connor's work with Food Not Bombs! he is also
amember and outspoken organizer of the Modern Times
Collective (MTC), an autonomous youth activist network,
which works on a wide array of issues ranging from raising
awareness on sweatshop issues to counsel sessions for af
risk or suicidal teens.. In addition to his organizational work in
MTC and Food Not Bombs. Connor also volunteered on
various other environmental justice, social justice and animal
Tights campaigns. As other's respect and admiration of
Connor as an activist grew, there was an unfortunate
drawback, Connor became a target of a national probe into
activist collectives by federal authorities.
By the summer of 1999 Federal and State authorities began
to investigate the Long Island Chapter of the Animal Defense
League (ADL). Local and Federal authorities began to probe
the ADL searching for leads pertaining to the militant direct
action group the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), a group who
partakes in liberations of animals from places of abuse and
acts of economic sabotage against industries cruel to
animals. ADL members often fell victim to arrests, beatings,
trumped up charges, and even imprisonment for their
unwillingness to cooperate with an activist witch hunt. The
level of political repression and intimidation the animal rights
activist would continue to rise throughout 1999 and into 2000,
when after the summer of 2000 when the witch hunt was
broadened to include environmental activists, anti-
globalization activists, and even advocates for the homeless
and hungry. By December or 2000 Connor became such
target, as a result of his involvement in Food Not Bombs! and
The Modern Times Collective.

When media outlets began to report that actions being taken
by radical factions of the environmental and animal liberation
movements were intensifying, authorities responded by
intensifying their investigations.

In January 2001 Connor and other youth activists were
approached at their homes by federal agents asking them to
divulge any information they could provide to help shed light
on their stagnating investigations. Federal agents made both
verbal and physical threats to activists trying to coerce them
into providing information pertaining to their case. One
financially burdened activist was offered a bribe of many
thousands of dollars in hopes that the activist would infiltrate
the ADL, another was told he would be charged with crimes if
he did not cooperate, and Connor too was approached and
threatened by agents stating, "it's going to be your ass if you
do not cooperate. At that moment Connor contacted Attorney
Fred Brewington, acclaimed for his civil rights cases and
hired him. From the day Connor refused to cooperate and
implicate other activists until February 15th, he and friends
were followed by photographers and videographers.
On February 15th Connor was arrested by FBI agents and
indicted on the charge of arson conspiracy. Three other teens
were arrested in the days prior to Connor’s arrest, the three
teens each plead guilty to one count of arson conspiracy in
an agreement that they would cooperate with federal
investigators. The agreement made by the three teens
cleared them of being prosecuted of many other severe
felony crimes. It is not known as of yet as to the nature of
Connor’s indictment, but it is assumed that one of the three
teens purged testimony implicating Connor during a closed
grand jury proceeding as part of his plea bargain agreement
The three teens all face up to 40 years imprisonment, but if
they implicate others they could end up serving less than 5
years. Unlike the other three teens Connor has entered a
plea of innocent, and had bail set at the amount of $250,000.
Connor's family put a lean on their home as a form of
collateral to attain Connor's release from custody. Connor is
currently free pending future trial dates and is in desperate
need of your help in order to prove that he is truly innocent!

_ See the Contacts section for information on now to help
Connor Cash.

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Anarchist Nikos Maziotis on hunger strike in
solidarity with the struggle of political
prisoners in Turkey against the white-cells.

His letter from prison is the following:

"Despising death, Turkish and Kurdish imprisoned
comrades continue their struggle against the new

isolation cells. While the capitalist "democracies” of the West,
including the greek state which imposes an
antiterrorist law under the pressure of the USA, are all
naturally the accomplices in the crimes of the turkish state, at
the same time many revolutionary prisoners in Europe, such
as from PCE(r) and GRAPO in Spain, from Action Directe
in France and from the Combating Communists Cells in
Belgium, have expressed their solidarity with the

Turkish and Kurdish comrades, by making few-days
hunger strikes by turns, starting from April until

today. After the 5-days symbolic hunger strike | made in
December 2000, this time | participate from June 9 to

13 in this international movement of hunger strikes in
solidarity with the Turkish and Kurdish comrades.

Because prisons, isolations, tortures, antiterrorist

laws, repression, are implemented by all states and by

all governments. Because Revolt against the State, the
Capital and the New Order is Just. Because Solidarity

is our Weapon."

9 June 2001

Nikos Maziotis,

Koridallos Prison

Athens, Greece
The Earth First! Journal has moved to Tucson
with a new collective but is still offering free
prisoner subscriptions. The latest issue looks

great. Contact them at: EF1J, PO Box 3023, Tucson,
AZ 85702,520-620-6900
collective@earthfirstjournal.org
Fascist Legislation in the Works:
The State’s response to the growing
effectiveness of the radical environmental

movement

Since the last issue of Spirit of Freedom, the Oregon State
government has used increased resistance in the Northwest
as further justification to pass their hate crime bills. On June
2, just a day after log trucks were burnt near Eagle Creek and
on the same day that the ELF communiqué regarding the
UW/Clatskanie fires came out, government peons passed the
following legislation:

House Bill 2344 and HB2385. They expand Oregon's
racketeering statutes to include crimes against research,
|i\{esl0|:k and agricultural facilities and make “interference
with agricultural research" a new crime.

Washington State Update

Not o be outdone, Washington State is also proposing new
laws targeting direct actionists in the wake of the recent ELF
fires at the University of Washington and Jefferson Polar
Farms. Mink farmer Harvey Beck has this to say at a hearing
for this new bill:

"Peaceful protests and civil discourse are
welcome, " Beck said. "But we must find out how

we as a society can stop an intemational crime
spree driven by a pooriy conceived and
fundamentally flawed philosophy, the sad and
confused philosophy of (the) Animal and Earth
Liberation (Fronts)."”

Washington state's sabotage law was written in 1903 in
response to local anarchist groups, and it needs to be
updated to include new targets, such as university
researchers. The legislator who proposed this bill had this to
say: "They need some reassurance that we're taking notice
and will respond appropriately and that we're concerned
about terrorist activities.”

Hands off our Kids?

House of Reps bill 1847 IH has been put forth, subtitied the
“Hands off our Kids Bill “(no, really). This worthless bill
“requires the Attorney General to identify organizations that
recruit juveniles to participate in violent and illegal activities
related to the environment or to animal rights”. The reality is
that there's no need for groups like Earth First ! or the Earth
Liberation Front to recruit amongst the young ; the youth of
today already realize that their planet and their future is being
stolen from them by power- crazed lunatics in three piece
suits and they'll continue to fight back regardless of how
many more laws the state passes.

NY State pushes for longer jail terms for anti-
genetic engineering activists

Prompted by last year's sabotage of genetically engineered
com at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (by the ELF) , state
lawmakers are pushing for prison terms of up to 7 Years for
eco-terrorists who destroy crops intended for research in the
burgeoning field of genetic engineering

Legislators in Albany say the threat posed by vandals to
genetic research is real enough to warrant tougher faws.

"It's not happening every other day. but it does happen.” said
State Sen. Carl Marcellino (R-Syosset), chairman of the
Senate Environmental Conservation Commitiee. "The
legislation I've developed is a result of damage done." There
is a parallel bill in the Assembly.

The move in the legislature to protect genetically engineered
crops coincides with efforts by Gov. George Pataki and
lawmakers to expand the state's biotechnology industry by
extending hundreds of millions of dollars in incentives to the
state's universities and companies. If the effort is successful,
it could mean many more potential targets in New York State.

Denny Henke, a spokesman for Genetix Alert Press Office, a
Memphis group that publicizes anti-genetic engineering
activism, said that continued attacks are warranted. "The real
vandalism and danger here is not destruction of genetically
engineered crops but the crops themselves. When you
manipulate an organism genetically, there's no

guarantee that it's going to stay put," Henke said.

NY Governor Proposes Tough Anti-Terrorism
Package: State Law Would Make Convicted
Terrorists Eligible for the Death Penalty
Gov. George Pataki of New York state recently proposed new
anti-terrorism legislation that officially would make “eco-
terrorism” (governmental doublespeak for what we would call
eco-defense) a crime in New York state and that included an
amendment that would make anyone convicted of “terrorism’
eligible for the death penalty.

Pataki said the increasing number of terrorist attacks
occurring in the state makes these new laws essential for
helping combat these crimes.

The initiative was unveiled as the ALF and ELF claimed credit
for string of vandalism at several banks on Long Island.

The governor proposed a legislation package, called the Anti-
Terrorism Act of 2001, that would establish six new
categories of crime for people who commit terrorist acts,
make terrorist threats, facilitate or provide material for
terrorist acts and hinder the prosecution of terrorists.

The toughest proposal in the package would amend the
death penalty statute to make a person who murders another
person an act of terrorism eligible for the death penatty.
Under current law, anyone convicted of such a crime

cannot be considered for the death penalty.

Since the state propaganda machine has spent millions of
dollars over the course of the last several years attempting to
vilify underground revolutionary movements like the Earth
Liberation Front, it shouldn't be difficult to predict where all
this is heading. Now that the ELF and ALF have proven that
the threat of longer and longer prison sentences is not
enough to quell the spirit of resistance, the State is falling
back on it's ultimate weapon of fear: legalized murder of
political dissidents.
House Bill 2947, includes technical clarifications to better
define crimes of research and animal interference and
interference with livestock production. Also classifies such
acts as Class C felonies if damage is 2,500 or more and as
Class A misdemeanors if damage is less than $2,500.
This sort of legislation is to be expected with an increase in
the US in attacks on agricultural, logging and other industries.
It doesn't seem to phase the underground as shown by the
actions that continue to happen in the northwest and beyond
as the bills are being proposed. These bills, in many ways,
are nothing more than a public relations scam. Faced with a
public kept in the dark by corporate media and campaigns by
wise use idiots like Ron Amold, the government burecrats
have to pretend they are making progress in stooping this
plague of “eco-terror”. Bills that do not do anything more than
extend already existing laws are the legislators way of getting
the heat off their back and thus, should ot be taken as
anything more than that. Nonetheless, the underground
needs our support. Timely letters to the Register Guard in
Eugene has led to people actually debating the attempted
conversion of direct action to organized crime status by the
FBI.

Please keep us updated about bills such as these being
proposed in your bioregion. Send us any press clippings or

ideas to our address.
e I

Prisoner Listings

Ecodefense

Jeremiah Rush Bowen. #108016, DCC, 1140 East 10 Road,
Delta, CO 81416. Serving two years for the arson of a
townhouse in Boulder, Colorado in the summer of 2000

Jefirey “Free” Luers. Recently sentenced to 22 % years for 11
charges relating to two arsons in Eugene, OR. Free is in an
inmate transfer station in Clackamas, OR right now and his
final destination is unknown at this time. For now, letters to
Free can be sent to POB 50263, Eugene, OR 97405.

Craig Marshall, PO Box 50263, Eugene, OR 97405. aka
Critter. Serving a five and a half year sentence for
conspiracy to commit arson and possession of unlawful
devices.

Ted Kaczynski (04475-046), US Pen - admin Max
Facility, PO Box 8500, Florence Colorado 81226.

Helen Woodson, 03231-045 FMC Carswell, POB 27137
Admin Max Unit, Fort Worth, TX 76127. Serving 27 years for
robbing a bank and then setting the money on fire

while reading out a statement denouncing greed,

capitalism and the destruction of the environment.

Lee Himlin EX7748 HMP Perry Road, Sherwood,
Nottingham, N65 3AG UK. Awaiting sentencing for
sabotaging quarrying equipment which is threatening a
protected National Park and the Nine Ladies stone circle.

Nikos Maziotis, c/o Dafni Vaganou, Ozortz 3, 10689
Athenes, Greece. Sentenced to 5% years for bombing the
Greek Ministry of Industry in protest of TVX-Gold's plans to
build a factory in Strymonikos Bay.
Vegan Resource Pack- available from PCRM, 5100
‘Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 404, Washington DC 20016 They
can send a packet about vegan nutrition to wardens and
prison dieticians

Frontline Information Service
http://www.animalliberation.net

Earth Liberation Front
http://www.earthliberationfront.com

NA ELPSN Recommends...

Resistance- Journal of the North American Earth Liberation
Front Press Office Volume two, Number one

This new issue of Resistance begins the second volume in a
new ‘'magazine’ format and a full-color cover. Contents
include a diary of actions from Fall of 2000 to Spring 2001,
updates on the legal situations in Portland, Bloomington and
Long Island and much more.

Copies of this issue are available at the following rates:
1 copy = $5 PPD in the US, $6 elsewhere

10 copies = $25 PPD in the US, $28 elsewhere

25 copies = $50 PPD in the US, $55 elsewhere

50 copies = $75 PPD in the US, $85 elsewhere

Subscriptions to the entirety of volume two of Resistance,
consisting of 4 issues, are available for $20 within the US,
$25 elsewhere.
Please make any checks or money orders out to
“Resistance". All proceeds go directly to the North American
Earth Liberation Front Press Office.

Resistance

PO BOX 4783
PDX, OR 97208
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503.478.0902
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