Monkeywrenching
Monkeywrenching refers to direct-action tactics employed by radical environmentalists to disrupt activities perceived as harmful to the environment. The term originated in the early 20th century, describing acts of sabotage against factory machinery, and was popularized by Edward Abbey in his 1975 novel *The Monkey Wrench Gang*, which tells the story of activists taking extreme measures to protect wilderness areas. While some environmentalists criticize monkeywrenching for risking public support for broader conservation efforts, proponents view it as a necessary response to environmental degradation.
Popular tactics include tree spiking, where large nails are driven into trees to hinder logging, and tree sitting, where activists occupy trees to prevent them from being cut down. Groups like Earth First! and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society have adopted these methods to defend ecosystems against industrial exploitation. The philosophy underpinning monkeywrenching is rooted in deep ecology, advocating for a biocentric worldview that values all living beings equally. This perspective drives activists to act in defense of the environment, often leading to repeated arrests and a commitment to their cause despite legal repercussions.
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Monkeywrenching
DEFINITION: Direct-action tactics used by radical environmentalists to disrupt activities they believe degrade the environment
The activities known as monkeywrenching are the source of considerable controversy. Many environmentalists see such radical tactics as damaging to their work to gain the support of the public for government policies and regulations aimed at preserving and protecting the environment.
The term “monkeywrenching” was first used in 1904 to refer to the sabotaging of factory machinery by throwing a monkey wrench, or a spanner with a movable jaw, into the works. Such acts were preceded in early nineteenth century England by the actions of Luddites and machine breakers who protested the mechanization of workplaces during the Industrial Revolution. The term was appropriated later by environmentalist and author Edward Abbey in his 1975 novel The Monkey Wrench Gang, which details the exploits of three men and one woman who take the law into their own hands to defend the wilderness from excavation. They perform acts of sabotage, or ecotage, on road-building equipment and entertain visions of blowing up Arizona’s Glen Canyon Dam.
The radical environmental group Earth First!, founded in 1980, has used civil disobedience and monkeywrenching tactics to defend wilderness areas from developers. The general idea behind monkeywrenching is to create a stir, delay or halt projects, and gain publicity for the cause. Dave Foreman, one of the founders of Earth First!, published Ecodefense: A Field Guide to Monkeywrenching in 1985 and Confessions of an Eco-Warrior in 1991. He credits Abbey’s book as a major motivation and inspiration. In 1990 Earth First! promoted the Redwood Summer, a ten-week campaign to slow the logging of redwoods. Among the tactics used during the campaign was tree spiking, in which large, long nails are driven into trees to dissuade loggers. Because the nails can potentially shatter chain saws and thus hurt loggers, Foreman, in Ecodefense, advised monkeywrenchers to warn loggers when an area has been spiked. Incidents have occurred, however, in which no notice of spiking was given.
Another tactic used by monkeywrenchers is tree sitting, in which activists physically occupy trees to prevent their being cut down. In 1998 a California woman lived for many months in a tree to prevent logging of a particular grove. Earth First! activists have also been known to knock down billboards and to destroy heavy equipment used for land clearing and development. The self-proclaimed “navy of Earth First!’s army” is the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, directed by Paul Watson, who published Ocean Warrior in 1994. This group uses direct action to prevent whaling ships and others from killing and capturing marine mammals.
Monkeywrenchers tend to be determined and not easily reformed by the experience of incarceration; many activists have been detained multiple times. The ideological viewpoint of those supporting monkeywrenching is strongly preservationist. Although monkeywrenchers are often influenced by the writings of such early preservationists as John Muir and Henry David Thoreau, they are far more militant in their activities.
The theory behind monkeywrenching stems from a field of thought known as deep ecology, the core tenet of which is biocentrism, a belief that the human species is just one member of a biological in which all species have equal standing. This view places humans on the same level as every other living thing. Followers of this philosophy feel that human conduct should proceed from an understanding that all forms of life, no matter how big or small, have an equal right to exist. Therefore, they claim to fight for organisms that cannot defend themselves against industrial intrusion.
Bibliography
Andrews, Candice Gaukel. "Eco-Avengers: Just Monkeywrenching or Ecoterrorism?" World Wildlife Foundation, 26 Apr. 2016, www.nathab.com/blog/eco-avengers-just-monkeywrenching-or-ecoterrorism/. Accessed 18 July 2024.
Foreman, Dave, and Bill Haywood, eds. Ecodefense: A Field Guide to Monkeywrenching. 3d ed. Chico, Calif.: Abbzug Press, 2002.
Scarce, Rik. Eco-Warriors: Understanding the Radical Environmental Movement. Updated ed. Walnut Creek, Calif.: Left Coast Press, 2006.
Yoder, Kate. "Radical Eco-Activists Have Made It Into Mainstream Fiction. Is Reality Next?" Grist, 3 Apr. 2023, grist.org/culture/radical-environmentalist-novels-sabotage-activism-birnam-wood/. Accessed 18 July 2024.