Igniting a Revolution: Voices in Defense of the Earth

by Steven Best (Editor), Anthony J. Nocella II (Editor)

“Before his 1969 assassination, Chairman Fred Hampton of the Black Panther Party in Chicago famously remarked that, ‘When one of us falls, 1000 will take his place.’ This book proves Fred’s point. No matter the degree of repression visited upon it, the spirit of revolution cannot be quelled.”—Ward Churchill, author of On the Justice of Roosting Chickens

As the destruction of nature reaches new extremes, resistance becomes ever more militant. Radical environmental groups are front page news. From laboratory bombings to the destruction of ski resorts, this emerging new militancy has been steadily upping the political ante. Authorities have responded in kind, handing down unprecedented heavy prison sentences for acts of property destruction. Congressional committees have been convened, the FBI has put revolutionary environmentalists at the top of their domestic terrorism list, and the "terrorists" themselves promise bigger and more spectacular assaults in the future. This anthology features a range of voices—from academics to armed revolutionaries—that explore this new form of political struggle. The first book of it’s kind on this increasingly important topic!

Steven Best, PhD, is chair of the department of philosophy at the University of Texas, El Paso. He has published numerous books and articles on philosophy, cultural criticism, social theory and animal rights, and is frequently interviewed by national print and radio media.

Anthony J. Nocella II is a peace activist who teaches workshops on mediating and negotiating in revolutionary environments.

Genres: Nonfiction, Activism, Politics, Ecology, Environment, Nature, Essays

450 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2006

About the author

Steven Best is an American animal rights advocate, author, and associate professor of philosophy at the University of Texas at El Paso. A writer for The Chronicle of Higher Education described him in 2005 as "one of the leading scholarly voices on animal rights."

Best is co-founder of the Institute for Critical Animal Studies (ICAS), formerly known as the Center on Animal Liberation Affairs (CALA). His academic interests are continental philosophy, postmodernism, and environmental philosophy. He is known for his post-structuralist notions of revolution, based equally in animal rights and sexual liberation. He is the editor, with Anthony J. Nocella, of Terrorists or Freedom Fighters? Reflections on the Liberation of Animals (2004), which has a foreword by Ward Churchill, and the companion volume on revolutionary environmentalism, Igniting a Revolution: Voices in Defense of the Earth (2006).

In December 2004, Best co-founded the North American Animal Liberation Press Office, which acts as a media office for a number of animal rights groups, including the Animal Liberation Front (ALF), though he has said that he is not himself an ALF activist. He came to public attention in 2005, when the British Home Office told him it intended to use counter-terrorist measures adopted in light of the July 2005 London bombings to prevent him from addressing an animal rights rally in the UK. Best responded by alleging that Britain was becoming a police state.

Excerpted from Wikipedia.

Reviews

[Bart · Rating 3 out of 5]

Radical solidarity with non-human animal eco-warriors (!), the heroic ideal as patriarchal nonesense, eco-feminism based on identity politics rather, and "What makes our movements white?" Igniting a Revolution at its best. While informative at times, the many of the other essays embody the heroic ideal; I support Marti Kheel's critique. Also, this anthology has one section of seven devoted to anarcho-primitivism, an ideology that is inherently able-bodied and tran-unfriendly (at least to trans folks who choose to take hormones or have surgery/ies).

[Jeremy Citazen Serwer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good place to start when wanting to get a good sampling of ELF and ALF history. A wide variety of differing views which I found refreshing and informative. The Book was put out in 2006 so some major changes in activism on all fronts especially the prosecuting aspect. I suggest Will Potters Green Is The New Red for a good update on the way the justice system views and pursues Eco-Activists. Truly frightening!

[Spicy T AKA Mr. Tea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book and many (not all) of the essays in it. Some of it got a little tired and it didn't seem as well put together as Terrorists or Freedom Fighters?: Reflections on the Liberation of Animals. A great resource nonetheless for earth liberation and radical environmentalism documentation and argumentation. I would recommend this book.

[Rhys · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some gems in this collection of essays related to revolutionary environmentalism.

Favourite line, from L.J. Pickering: "You want to change the world? You want to save the Earth? You want to break free? Then get the f**k off your knees. You don't break free by begging."

[Eleanors Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent anthology with some essays with unique ideas. If you care about animals and the planet, you should take a look at this book.

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

As one of the endorsements on the back cover says, it's impossible to agree with everything in this book (because even the contributors don't agree with each other). Like other anthologies, some essays are smarter than others (some are great!) and there's a ton of repetition as each writer starts with nearly identical summaries of the world's problems. I definitely appreciate the attempt at creating solidarity between groups who have plenty to agree on. In my opinion it's not realistic to see all of these as compatible though. How can anti-civ rewilders support people who want to "green" cities and make hunting and wearing fur and leather illegal? What's the point of working to improve safety conditions and increase pay for industries that you don't want to exist? How likely is anyone to try dismantling something after working so hard to create it? Also some of the revisionist history lessons from hardcore vegans and feminists get really annoying. One writer tries using the Bible as justification for forcing humans to be herbivores. It's been a while since I've been in a church but I'm pretty sure last time I checked Jesus was a shepherd. Another claims "humans began as a species of plant foragers-- in anthropological terms, we have only recently adopting [sic] hunting and gathering as a means to provide food." I mean, really?! I guess we can just ignore the fact that our two closest ape relatives both hunt and eat other animals and that there isn't a single example anywhere of early humans who eat only plants. If you want to make a case that forgoing animal products won't kill you then fine but it's really not ok to keep calling people murderers for acting as natural omnivores. Plus, sustainable food production requires mimicking ecosystems and all ecosystems include animals. Factory farms and vivisection labs are horrible but our diets aren't what cause them, and releasing hundreds of these diseased animals into the nearby woods probably isn't the best way to deal with it by the way. Too many people are getting away with claiming that changing our diets and cramming ourselves into cities are the top priorities. It's absolute nonsense and there's no way I can support groups who'd rather focus on these things than the big picture issues.

[Scott · Rating 1 out of 5]

To be honest I did not get past the first chapter. Best's description of the Boston Tea Party was incorrect, a product of bad research that I can only believe came from a website or a history textbook from the 1960s. Maybe it gets better, but who cares? Sloppy!