Thanks to the monumental efforts of animal advocates, two of the six sea lions trapped last week have survived. It seems the State did not have the nerve to kill Sanctuary Sam, after advocates named him for the NOAA mascot. I guess NOAA decided that it might be bad for their image to authorize the execution of their own mascot.
Willy, another sea lion whose life was in the balance last week, has also been spared due to the willingness of sea lion advocates to fight tooth and nail for him. Willy is a sea lion whose flesh bears the scars of his branding - C657. Last week, ODFW officials mistakenly believed they had the authority to kill Willy. However, SLD bridadiers pointed out to them that C657, Willy, is not actually on their hit list, and therefore they do not have the authority to kill him. Chagrined by the news that animal advocates are keeping a closer eye on these sea lions than they are, the ODFW refused to acknowledge the error and instead claimed that he was a completely different animal, B127.

On the Columbia river, between Oregon and Washington, State wildlife "management" agencies are brutally executing sea lions in an effort to appease fishermen, who claim that the sea lions are eating all the salmon. (These fishermen want to "save" the salmon ...for their nets.)

It will take heroic efforts to save the sea lions.

An animal rights activist was arrested tonight, April 2, 2009, in Baltimore. He was legally and peacefully protesting the treatment of animals at Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus, which is showing at the 1st Mariner Arena. Adam Ortberg arrived to join other leafleters in front of the arena, and was met by a plain-clothed police officer who is always seen at Baltimore Ringling shows. The officer told Adam that he was a "marked man" and that if he stepped over an imaginary line that they designated as a "no leaflet zone" (on public sidewalk), that he was going to jail for 18 months.

Only a week ago, sea lion defenders named him Sanctuary Sam (read more). Before that, the public knew him, if they knew him at all, as just a number. C586. But some of us knew him better.

Sam has been present on the Columbia for several years, at least. I've watched him thrill tourists in Astoria with his powerful voice and his friendly manner. He routinely sits on the dock there, with his head leaned back in the classic "circus seal" pose, basking in the sun. But when people call out to him, he cocks his head to the side, opens his huge eyes, and looks at them curiously. If they continue to talk to him, he eventually opens his mouth and barks chattily back. He's always been extremely gregarious that way.

I've also seen this guy swirling through the waters near St Helens, often happily laying on his back with his flippers in the air, talking to anyone who will listen. Many of us on the river know him. He belongs out here. And he deserves to live a free and wild life, as do all of the Columbia river sea lions.

If this neighbor of ours is executed by the State, I do not think I can ever forgive the fishermen who clog the waterways and kill all the salmon, whose voices have called for this to happen.

Don't forget this (other) great event this weekend. Thanks for the support....

For the past 30 years, anonymous members of the Animal Liberation Front have carried out over 1,000 covert actions around the world in the name of animal liberation. Working outside of the confines of the law, these activists achieve results not by traditional methods of leafleting and protesting, but by freeing animals from cages, disassembling machinery used in the exploitation of animals and destroying inhumane facilities used to house animals for commercial use. Peter Young is an animal rights activists and former animal liberation prisoner. Sentenced to 2 years in prison for the release and conspiracy to release thousands of mink from fur farms across the Midwest, Young brings life to stories of animal liberation, political repression and sacrifice in the name of animal liberation.

The Anatomy of High Impact Direct Action presentation featuring Peter Young will be held on March 29, 2009, at 2p.m. at Portland State University in Room 238 of the Smith Memorial Union Building. Admission is free.

Three amazing PDX benefits are planned for 6 activists charged under the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA). Your support is needed.
[BACKGROUND:]
-CALIFORNIA 4 Arrests: On February 19th and 20th, four animal rights activists from California were arrested on charges for their alleged involvement in "terrorist" activity relating to a long running campaign against University of California research facilities. Illuminating yet another dark chapter in what has been termed the "Green Scare," their case represents a sustained FBI mission to criminalize political dissent. Protesting, chalking slogans, and producing leaflets are among the "terrorist" activity of which these activists are being accused. Each of their charges hold 5 year penalties.

-UTAH - 2 Arrests: On Thursday March 5th the witch hunt expanded when two Utah activists were also arrested under AETA...[who] are being accused for their alleged participation raid of a South Jordan, UT mink farm in August, and the alleged attempted raid of a second mink farm in October.

SHOW YOUR SOLIDARITY: Strong community fundraising and support are need to help pay for the enormous legal bills of all of the AETA defendants. Three great benefits are planned for the next week and the AETA defendants need your help. Come out and show your solidarity!

• Saturday, March 28th: Red and Black Cafe, 400 SE 12th
• Sunday, March 29th Liberty Hall, 311 N Ivy
• Thursday, April 2nd Three Course Vegan Meal at Portobello - Yum!

~See You There!
aeta4.org

Have a little free time during the week and want to spend it on the Columbia river? Sea Lion Defense Brigade are seeking volunteers to record any hazing, trapping, or killing of sea lions on the river. Any video recorded could go to protecting these creatures, if you're interested, this would be the time to help.

Sea Lion Defense Brigade is looking for people to monitor the government trapping sites intended to trap, relocate a few, and kill dozens of sea lions. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) and the Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) do not want people to witness or record these events.

The situation currently:
Fishermen and government employees are violently hazing the sea lions at the Bonneville Dam (40 miles east of Portland on I84) everyday. Two traps are set up by the dam and are visible from the Washington side of the Columbia River. Two California sea lions have already been put to death by lethal injection and another 83 are on the list of execution. Another trapping and branding site is in Astoria, OR.

homepage:  http://sealiondefensebrigade.org

On the first day of Spring, local members of the Portland In Defense of Animals organization provided a free feast for anyone who happened to be at Pioneer Square in downtown Portland. The lunch was provided by Sweet Pea Baking Company, a local vegan bakery.

The group also placed a television screen which showed video of the meat industry inhuman treatment of pigs, chickens and beef. Many passers by gathered and watched the video, surprised and appalled by what one young man referred to as a holocaust."

At 6:30 PM at Ringling Bro's show at the Verizon Center,two different animal rights groups showed up to protest the routine abuse of animals there. One was PETA, the other was the local crew that deals with Huntingdon Life Sciences targets.

In Defense of Animals (IDA) will be at Pioneer Courthouse Square for a lunchtime outreach to share vegan food samples and let people taste just how yummy compassion can be. Activists will hand out free Lightlife "Smart Dogs" veggie dogs and cupcakes from Sweet Pea Baking Company, a local vegan bakery, during this upbeat event aimed at helping people kick the meat habit. [ Read More | Meatout.org | In Defense of Animals ]

What: Great American Meatout
Where: Pioneer Courthouse Square, corner of SW Yamhill and Broadway
When: Friday, March 20, 2009 - 11:00am to 1:00pm

With the 4 from CA, plus these 2 from UT, that makes a total of 6 (so far) [who have been arrested and charged under the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA)]...

Two Local Utah Animal Rights Activists; William "BJ" Veihl and Alex Jason Hall, were arrested Thursday March 5th for an alleged raid of a South Jordan, UT mink farm in August, and the alleged attempted raid of a second mink farm in October. Both are being held in Salt Lake County Metro Jail on charges of Animal Enterprise Terrorism... they had an arraignment hearing in which both pleaded "NOT GUILTY". They are scheduled for a Bail Hearing on Tuesday, as of right now they are both being held on Felony 3 retainers with NO BAIL.

At this time it looks like each could face up to 6 years in prison and $350,000 in fines if found guilty. Please send them a letter of support during these first very difficult days behind bars... Read More | FBI Press Release | benefits for the Aeta defendants | Civil Liberties Defense Center | Animal Defense League of Salt Lake City

On Sunday March 15th, 2009, 11:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. people, activists, organizers, and others [were] gathering at Pioneer Court House Square at the corner of s.w. Yamhill and s.w. Broadway to educate, flyer, and protest about the 300,000 Canadian Baby Seals that are scheduled to be slaughtered in just 13 days. The Canadian Seal hunt is the Largest Slaughter of Marine Mammals on Earth. More than one million baby seals have been killed for their fur during the past 4 years. You can help Stop this atrocity.

PETA members join Seal Slaughter demonstration

All the brass from the ODFW, WDFW, and Army Corps of Engineers are out at the dam at this very moment, frantically attempting to do advance damage control over possible public reaction to the news that the trapping and killing program has begun. So far, at least two sea lions are in state custody. It could be more, since officials are trying to be very tight lipped about this. But they've admitted to two. Given that more than 50 percent of the sea lions in their custody died last year, BEFORE they had permission to actually kill them, things are not looking good.

Although the public has been rather apathetic over the potential killings of sea lions thus far, officials know very well that once the killing starts, public shock and outrage are almost a certainty. So, in order to protect their own images as guardians of public interests and state wildlife, officials from ODFW, WDFW, and Army Corps of Engineers have refused to allow any media access to the trapped animals. They have banned cameras from the trapping location, have refused to alert the media when trapping or shooting will occur, and have not been forthcoming with any information about animals in their custody. A journalist with a (cough) prominent local paper requested permission to see the trapped animals in their cages, and was denied this request.

And if you care about these sea lions, get up to the dam. You can contact In Defense of Animals at 503-249-9996 or the Sea Lion Defense Brigade at  SeaLionDefenseBrigade@lists.riseup.net to co-ordinate with other people when you can be up near the dam to bear witness to what is happening to the sea lions. The killing can take place anywhere from the dam all the way down to Beacon Rock, so the more eyes and ears (and CAMERAS!) out there, the better.

Yesterday the injunction against killing sea lions, the stay of execution, ran out. Today, government officials commenced with efforts to trap and kill sea lions on the Columbia river. As they expected, they were met with resistance. And, as we expected, they ran like little babies. They mostly scurried away and hid from uncomfortable questions that members of the public might have for them.

A report released in February and authored by a group of researchers from various organizations supports concerns Californians have had about the aerial spraying of pesticides in the Monterey Bay area in 2007. The study shows the correlation of the unprecedented bird die off and red tide with the timing of the spraying of the pesticide Checkmate.

February 27, 2009 — Today, activists from the Sea Lion Defense Brigade and In Defense of Animals, along with several autonomous individuals, crashed a press conference held by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) at Bonneville Dam. The press conference was being held to pre-emptively curb public revulsion over the agencies' plans to kill sea lions on the river beginning next week. They actually gave us all hard hats and ID badges.

Activists were there to ask the hard questions that are not being asked by the corporate media. Questions like, "Haven't sea lions always co-existed with salmon on the Columbia river, without posing a threat to either species?" "Isn't it true that dams and over-fishing are causing salmon to go extinct, not sea lions?""Why are you not addressing the salmon crisis in a non-lethal, and far more effective, manner by curbing fishing?" .... Bizarrely, the corporate "reporters" stood mutely by while these questions were blatantly skirted by the people who organized this press conference. When one activist demanded answers regarding the raising of the fishing quotas at a time when salmon populations are imperiled, Diana Fredlund of the Army Corps of Engineers leapt between the questioner and the government "expert" who could not answer the question. Diana brusquely told the questioner that "we are not here to answer questions." ...At a press conference.

Since the passage of the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA), a sweeping new law labeling animal rights activists as “terrorists,” corporations and industry groups have been pushing the federal government to use their new powers. On February 19th and 20th, the Joint Terrorism Task Force of the FBI arrested four animal rights activists as “terrorists.” Details of the arrests and charges are still coming, but this is believed to be the most sweeping expansion of the War on Terrorism and the “Green Scare” to date.

Will Potter, a freelance reporter who focuses on how the War on Terrorism affects civil liberties, states, "At issue here is not the validity or morality of animal research, nor is it the efficacy of controversial tactics. Differences of opinion on those issues no longer matter. What’s at issue is whether the War on Terrorism should be used to target protesters as terrorists."

FBI Arrests 4 Activists as “Terrorists” for Chalking Slogans, Leafleting and Protesting | Federal Authorities Arrest Peaceful Protesters | Coalition to Abolish the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act | Will Potter on the Green Scare | 5 Reasons for Activists to Cover Their Faces at Protests

Portland Indymedia Coverage | | | Related: 3 Baltimore Animal Rights Activists Illegally Arrested | Animal Liberation Reading Group Starting in Worcester

Adriana Stumpo, 23, of Long Beach, California; Nathan Pope, 26, of Oceanside, California; Joseph Buddenberg, 25, of Berkeley, California; and Maryam Khajavi, 20, of Pinole, California have been arrested and charged with crimes related to actions at the University of California in Santa Cruz and Berkeley. They are being charged under the "Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act". Some of the charges relate to simple protest actions.

The group meets weekly from Feb 12, 2009 until Apr 2, 2009. We'll read 4 books and watch 2 films. Together these books, films and our discussion will paint a picture of this diverse social movement and place animal rights in the context of the social justice and environmental movement. Each meeting will have a free dinner and lots of good discussion.

The Radical Cheerleaders for Animal Rights performed today in front of Scamps store inside Lloyd Center Mall to bring attention to scamps history of selling puppies from puppy mills. After the performance, an activist is aggressively detained by mall security resulting in angry shoppers expressing their disgust with the security guards. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6Y29Bp3POU