From Hit and Sit to Hit and Run — Expanding Our Toolbox of Nonviolent Strategies

The cops have us figured out. Protests, soft blockades, tripods, lockboxes. Sure, all these tactics can be effective in certain situations. But when we consider the scale of the problem, they are lacking. These tactics do not generally lead to decisive outcomes. They can shape conditions and help lead to victory, but alone they are almost never sufficient. We have trouble shutting stuff down permanently. Decisive actions, on the other hand, can directly achieve our goal. Our goal is to stop the global industrial economy that is killing the planet. As such, a prime consideration is attrition—on our side. When people are arrested with every action, our losses—time, money, energy—add up quickly. People get burned out. ...

August 23, 2017 Â· 3 min Â· norris

We Are Not This Culture

Michelle Jones / Deep Green Resistance We are not this culture. We are not this society. The culture has hijacked us. This society has imprisoned what we really are. We are water, and land. We are the space between the trees. We are the wind and the leaves. We are sound. We are the energy between glances of animals, running, chasing, hiding, playing. We are animals, laying on soil, sitting in soil, walking on soil. The soil informing us of what ground is. What our bodies are. ...

December 3, 2016 Â· 1 min Â· norris

On the road to home from Standing Rock

Jennifer Murnan / Deep Green Resistance Colorado Thin Blue Line Flagged two times Curious? “The Line is what police officers protect, the barrier between anarchy and a civilized society, between order and chaos, between respect for decency and lawlessness.” Blue line Slap down Smack down Dogs dripping blood Mace Tear gas Pepper spray Pushing Violating your way Breaking past Red and Black and Brown and Even White Protectors Faces Bodies ...

November 16, 2016 Â· 1 min Â· norris

With Hope for the Environment Crushed, What Can We Do?

It’s time to stop hoping lobbying will ever convince those in power to stop burning fossil fuels, polluting our air and water, and destroying nature. For decades, even “lesser of two evils” political leaders have permitted accelerated attacks on our environment. A few have put band-aids in place; none have acted to reverse our course. With Trump and other reactionaries gaining power around the world, policies will only get worse. ...

November 10, 2016 Â· 3 min Â· norris

Ecological Special Forces: A Proposal

The planet needs commandos It wasn’t until the 1940’s that what we think of as the “commando” or special forces units were standardized by the British Army. With the goal of disrupting German forces in western France and later in the Mediterranean and North Africa, the first commando units were modeled on small groups of Arab fighters who had great success pinning down much larger British Army units during the uprisings in Palestine in the 1930’s. ...

August 23, 2016 Â· 5 min Â· norris

Deep Green Resistance excerpt: The Triumph of the Pornographers

Lierre Keith / Excerpt from Chapter 4, “Culture of Resistance,” of Deep Green Resistance The triumph of the pornographers is a victory of power over justice, cruelty over empathy, and profits over human rights. I could make that statement about Walmart or McDonalds and progressives would eagerly agree. We all understand that Walmart destroys local economies, a relentless impoverishing of communities across the US that is now almost complete. It also depends on near-slave conditions for workers in China to produce the mountains of cheap crap that Walmart sells. And ultimately the endless growth model of capitalism is destroying the world. Nobody on the left claims that the cheap crap that Walmart produces equals freedom. Nobody defends Walmart by saying that the workers, American or Chinese, want to work there. Leftists understand that people do what they have to for survival, that any job is better than no job, and that minimum wage and no benefits are cause for a revolution, not a defense of those very conditions. Likewise McDonalds. No one defends what McDonalds does to animals, to the earth, to workers, to human health and human community by pointing out that the people standing over the boiling grease consented to sweat all day or that hog farmers voluntarily signed contracts that barely return a living. The issue does not turn on consent, but on the social impacts of injustice and hierarchy, on how corporations are essentially weapons of mass destruction. Focusing on the moment of individual choice will get us nowhere. ...

June 10, 2016 Â· 8 min Â· norris

March Against Monsanto this Saturday

Anita Stewart / Deep Green Resistance Florida The latest news reports on glyphosate, the active ingredient in the popular weed-killer Roundup, indicate that it is present in California wines, Quaker Oats and even in the urine of elected officials in Europe. Roundup is manufactured by Monsanto ― the same Monsanto that produced Agent Orange (notoriously contaminated with dioxin) responsible for the ongoing, horrific birth defects in Viet Nam where it was widely used as a defoliant and sprayed from planes into the bush and over remote villages. These chemicals also affect the US children of those active duty military and veterans that were exposed. What is chilling is the fact that these chemicals have also been either stored or used here in the United States. ...

May 19, 2016 Â· 4 min Â· norris

River, I am Listening Now

Years ago, a Deep Green Resistance member hosted the RAGE podcast: Radio Against Global Ecocide. We have posted an archive page of the audio episodes, and we wanted to repost this episode from August 12, 2010. Host Seymour Lyphe holds his first interview with a non-human: the kisiskāciwani-sīpiy (Saskatchewan River) near his home. Listen to this episode, or read Seymour’s original post: I used to believe I was fairly good at being in touch with nature. When I walked though the forest I would walk around spider webs, careful not to step on mushrooms. Even in town I would step over ants on the sidewalk, which is tricky because ants are not very linear. I talk with chickadees, crows, and magpies; any bird that will hang around for a chat. I stop walking so a squirrel will not see me and can safely cross the road. I talk with plants and, yes, have even hugged a few trees, which gives a very calming feeling. ...

March 26, 2016 Â· 5 min Â· norris

Trending David Bowie: a cultural disaster

Julian Langer / Deep Green Resistance UK I woke up this morning to find my social media feed awash with David Bowie mourners, with too many articles on the subject to count. His death also featured on TV stations and the airwaves. Bowie is an icon within the industry of 20th and 21st century capitalism, arguably unmatched in terms of following, creativity and cultural impact. He undeniably had great talent. But, how can this culture place such disproportionate emphasis on the death of one man, relative to far more pressing issues? ...

January 14, 2016 Â· 2 min Â· norris

Unlearning alienation: a crucial component of a revolutionary movement

Michael Regenfuss / Deep Green Resistance Bay Area Michael gave a talk at this year’s annual DGR conference on the subject of overcoming alienation, quoting some pertinent passages from The Sorcerer of Bolinas Reef by Charles Reich. He elaborates on those thoughts here. What is alienation, how did we become afflicted with it, and how do we unlearn it? Alienation is created when you are being systematically undervalued, abused, and traumatized. We have all been undervalued from the day we were born. We are taught not only to expect less out of ourselves, but to expect less out of other people and also to undervalue the non-human part of nature. ...

December 28, 2015 Â· 2 min Â· norris