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Activism In If A Tree Falls

Decent Essays

The films If a Tree Falls, Bidder 70, and Trinkets and Beads all exhibit some form of environmental activism that goes against the generalized position on how the environment ought to be controlled and dominated. For Daniel McGowan, his method was monkeywrenching; Tim De Christopher’s—monkeywrenching and civil disobedience; Moi and the Huaorani—holding to tradition. Activism comes in all forms and these are just three examples. However, their activism points to a greater issue.
In If a Tree Falls, we are introduced to the story of Daniel McGowan—a member of the Earth Liberation Front. Daniel started out as a regular guy growing up, but became radicalized through the Wetlands Environmental Center. During this time, he became involved in the Earth Liberation Front and had gained the alias “the Disgruntled One” because of his attitude. As he continued to change and advance in the environmental movement, he became more accepting of the concept of monkeywrenching. Dave Foreman says that monkeywrenching “can be safe, it can be easy, it can be fun… but it must be strategic, it must be thoughtful, it must be deliberate in order to succeed” (Foreman 192). For Edward Abbey, monkeywrenching references any act that seeks to preserve the wilderness, and this included sabotage, activism, and law-making. In Daniel’s case, he and a group of others conducted several arsons on various properties across the Pacific-Northwest. As a result, he and others whom were involved in the arsons were

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