44 Arrested at the L-P Mill

By Staff - Earth First! Journal, Lughnasadh (August 1), 1990

California Earth First! forced a partial shutdown of Louisiana-Pacific’s lumber mill in the coastal town of Samoa, CA, on June 20. Their action kicked off the campaign to save the world’s last unprotected stands of old growth redwood. 44 activists were ar­rested at the demonstration, which was attended by over 750 activists and 200 members of the press, in what the Santa Rosa Press Democrat called “a perfect protest.”

While lumber company PR types and the corpo­rate press were whipping up a frenzy of anticipation over the likelihood of violence, Redwood Summer organizers held meetings with timber companies, mill workers and law enforcement agencies, defusing tension and educating them about nonviolence. The result was a peaceful and powerful demonstration that brought together a wide spectrum of people ranging from loggers and mill workers to Veterans for Peace, students and activists from all over the country. Speakers included columnist Alexander Cockburn, Oakland bombing victim Darryl Cherney, Earth Day organizer Dennis Hayes and Rainforest Action Network director Randy Hayes. A solar-powered sound system filled the air with reggae music by Clan Dyken, accompanied by Cherney.

After the speeches, rally participants walked into the four-lane access road that also serviced L-P’s giant pulp mill lumber dock and the Simpson timber and pulp mills. Police in riot gear were on hand from every law enforcement agency with juris­diction in Humboldt County.

The police, who initially anticipated a massive rush through the main gate, were the first to block the entrance to the mill. Soon hundreds of activists were in the road, some sitting and some dancing to the rhythms of a highly energetic drum ensemble. Vehicles were slowly let through the blockade until a log truck arrived. A large affinity group linked arms in a circle directly in front, blocking its passage. People hung banners and danced on top of the truck. As the drums beat on, police eventually broke up the blockade and arrested 44 people. All were charged with obstructing a public place, un-lawful assembly, and refusing to disperse. Log trucks were backed up for eight miles as nearly a thousand people danced and swayed on the highway to the music on a warm sunny day.[1] 

The Samoa action proved that EF! could mobilize the support needed to make Redwood Summer a reality, and could organize a peaceful nonviolent protest in a community currently under the grip of a timber industry terror campaign. Media coverage was international and included articles in Newsweek, Time and the New York Times.

Of the women and men who ensured the success of the Samoa action by placing their bodies on the line, 11 remained in jail until the following Friday. 26 pleaded “no contest”, and received a 180-day suspended sentence, one year of probation, and fines ranging from $325 to $550. This means that if they are arrested again within the next year, they must spend six months in jail. The remaining 18 defendants plead not guilty. They will have the opportunity to state their case and motives in front of a jury, and to protest the harsh sentence of the others. They will probably use the “necessity defense,” and state that they had an ethical responsibility to act.

Notes:

[1] Bruce Anderson elaborates in the “Here and There” section of the June 27, 1990 edition of the Anderson Valley Advertiser, that “The determined young man pried off the log truck in Samoa, a primo bit of clumsy police brutality shown on network television later that evening, is Ian Baitz. A chubby, weak Humboldt County deputy by the name of Lawson was sent up on the truck to clear it of demonstrators. The deputy twisted Baitz’ head while a couple of other cops, McCallister and Burkhart, tweaked his limbs. Finally, utterly frustrated with Baitz’ wiry, Spiderman clinging ability, Deputy Chubs maced the kid in the face. The mace should have been used first if it was necessary to us it at all. Altogether 35 men and 9 women were hauled off to the Humboldt County Jail, among them Lisa Henry, the daughter of Liz Henry, Mendocino County’s 4th District Supervisor. Many of the arrested gave their names as ‘Judi Bari,’ which prolonged their stays in jail. The New York Times put the Samoa rally crowd at 350. Jane Kay of the San Francisco Examiner had it at 700 plus. The Anderson Valley Advertiser guessed between 7 and 800. Shep Tucker, L-P’s crude paid liar, said the demo ‘fizzled.’ It didn’t, as Shep will learn for sure July 21st. Demo vets claimed afterwards that Samoa was the most effective rally they’d ever seen, an opinion that is unanim­ously shared by everyone who was there. Oh, and one more little tidbit from Samoa for you:  At the office where more than one hundred press credentials were passed out to the nation’s media on hand for the demo, L-P was handing out industry press pack­ets that contained the joke photos of Judi Bari holding a gun. The photo was not identified as a joke. They don’t make PR people any slimier than Shep Tucker.”