ELEVEN CHICKENS LIBERATED FROM AN EGG FARM (1998) – ALFRIDAYS

Video originally published on Peter Young’s YouTube channel.

On this ALFridays we bring you some obscure footage from a raid at an egg farm in Broadview Farms in Burlington, Washington, from 1998. Whilst there is lots of footage from chicken farm raids, we thought this was an interesting clip. After putting eleven hens in their carriers, ALF activists documented the horrible conditions in the farm and left a few messages for the humans to read, ensuring that the owner would know his business was no longer safe.

You can read their communique here:

“In the early morning hours of Sept 19th, 1998 the Animal Liberation Front liberated 11 chickens from the Broadview Egg Farms in Burlington, WA.

We entered the premises by cutting away a perimeter fence. We then made our way to one of the four massive barns. We used a crowbar and mallet to dismantle the locks and entered the barn.

There we found 11” x 17” cages holding untold 1000’s of chickens, 4 to 5 to a cage. We immediately filled 11 birds into our carriers, where they sat anxiously awaiting their departure. We quickly documented a hellish concentration camp for egg laying chickens. These living, feeling creatures are kept in horrifying, intense confinement in small wire cages. Video footage was taken of the nightmarish condition the imprisoned chickens are forced to endure for their entire lives. We left various messages; “freed by ALF”, “torture will end”, “murder” & “ALF”.

As we left our hearts sank knowing the countless numbers we left behind. We then placed the 11 birds into loving and safe homes to enjoy the freedom they have never known.

The meat, dairy, & egg industries are responsible for suffering and murder on an epic scale. Veganism is the answer to end this holocaust. Unfortunately, education of the public is a slow process, and the animals confined for our greed do not have time.

The Animal Liberation Front rises to their call to end their suffering and save their lives. Animal abuse industries wish to keep the public ignorant to the suffering involved in their products…

THERE IS NOWHERE TO HIDE. ANIMAL MURDERERS BEWARE. THERE IS JUSTICE COMING…

A.L.F.”

THREE RABBITS LIBERATED FROM A FACTORY FARM (2011)

In 2011, the Animal Liberation Front broke into a farm in the outskirts of Barcelona to document the conditions of the rabbits, living in raised battery cages and destined to be killed for their meat.

They took three rabbits away from the farm as they struggled to find more suitable homes, but the footage they released was horrendous. Rows and rows of wire cages with barely any space to move, without ever seeing the sun and without any hay or suitable feed.

They dedicated the action to the memory of Barry Horne, but also in solidarity with Osmar Evcan, who at the time of the liberation was on hunger strike in a Turkish prison, demanding vegan food.

The video is not perfect and the anonymous activists did not have the latest technology at their disposal, but they ensured to show how the action worked and how the rabbits were living before their liberation, which is always an amazing plus on a report.

You can read their whole report here:

“On November 9, well into the night, total liberation activists entered a rabbit farm in a town near Barcelona to once again collect images of how animals are abused and confined; this time it was rabbits, and we took the opportunity to give freedom to some of them.

On this occasion there were three individuals who we liberated and who are now in a safe place where they can enjoy the rest of their days according to their needs. It was a difficult task since this time we had to suppress our desire for freedom and limit ourselves to only a few of the hundreds who were in the farm.

This liberation is dedicated in part to the memory of Barry Horne which pushes us to keep fighting and in part because we want to show solidarity with Osmar Evcan, who at the time of the liberation was on hunger strike in a Turkish prison demanding something as basic as vegan food within those walls of misery and loneliness.

For these and for the many other prisoners who fight against this shitty system, all our rebellious love and rage.

ALF”

THE WEST ‘ANTI HUNTING’

Hunt sabotage has happened for a very long time, and whilst there is a lot of noise from the HSA and hunt sab groups in the UK, the UK is not the only country that has seen organised anti-hunting sabotage.

In this clip from The West, released in the 90s, we can see different groups fighting against hunting in the USA. They mention the use of anti-mating spray and bear sprays to try and keep the hunters’ dogs from bear scents.

Of course, the hunt lobbyists are seen using the same tired excuses to justify hunting; the management of wildlife and the conservation of habitat.

Jonathan Paul, giving an interview, also makes a big point about what they are doing. Whilst stopping them from killing a single individual is very important, it is equally as important to show the establishment that there are people out there who do not agree and are not comfortable with the senseless murder of the wild and with the business that surrounds that murder.

When a hunter giving an interview gets asked about the possibility of someone being hurt if the protests continue, his answer is certain: “Yes, someone will get hurt, and as I see it, probably won’t be a hunter”.

SIXTEEN HENS AND FOUR TURKEYS LIBERATED FOR CHRISTMAS – ALFRIDAYS (2014)

Christmas has always been a busy time for direct action. There are meant reasons, from people wanting to catch the eye during the holidays, to the obvious distraction by authorities dealing with parties, fireworks and crowds. It only takes a few minutes to find many reports of actions during Christmas throughout the years.

In 2014, a report from Austria by the Association Against Animal Factories explained how someone dressed as an angel and someone dressed as Santa broke into a turkey farm to liberate four birds and then rescued another sixteen hens from an egg farm.

The visuals are interesting, with the Santa costume sporting an almost scary face mask, but it hits a point that attracts many. The costumes, the time to celebrate, the will to give gifts and the spirit of helping directed towards direct action.

You can read the report, copied from BiteBack, just below:

reported by the Association Against Animal Factories (translation):

“The greatest gift is freedom – a Christmas story with a difference:During this visit, unfortunately, only 16 hens and 4 turkeys could be saved. For these creatures, however, now begins a new life in freedom with animal-loving people.”

It is hard to predict what the holidays will bring, but remember that Saint Nicholas is the patron of thieves and he breaks into houses in December after watching people all year round.

May you bring the spirit of freedom to all around you.

PS: Sorry for the shit music, we did not choose it.

70- 100 DEER HELPED TO FREEDOM – UNDERGROUND BADGER SYNDICATE (4th June 2019)

On the 4th June, 2019, @undergroundbadgersyndicate reported that after cutting the fencing off a deer farm in Germany they had managed to release up to 100 deer into the wild.

In the same report they mentioned multiple hunting towers and huts being destroyed as well as trail cameras stolen from hunters.

The anti hunting action comes in multitude of flavours and over the years has proven to be quite a good link between animal liberation folks, eco struggle people and the non activist folks who still want the wild to be left alone.

The struggle against hunting unites folks from many different ways of life whilst pushing a big majority of them to take direct action, regardless of them being seasoned activists or just locals against the injustice of hunting.

From Hunt Saboteur groups to teams fighting the badger cull in the UK, folks who stop the duck shoots in Australia, anti bear hunt activists in the USA or the infamous female-led Akashinga group in Zimbabwe, direct action against hunting is a prevalent force to allow the wild to remain wild.

You can read the report that was released with the video below:

“WE ARE BACK AND KICKING HARD – 100 DEER LIBERATED FROM A BREEDING FARM, MULTIPLE TOWERS AND HUNTING EQUIPMENT DESTROYED.

Whilst out and about in Germany, we received a tip-off that made our stomachs turn. Within a national park, the licensed hunter that murders wildlife in the name of conservation has a side gig. He is breeding fallow deer in an enclosure and shooting them from a tower inside. He is also leaving the dead corpses and bones scattered around the enclosure, the sick fuck.

We didn’t waste any time and got to work quickly. After cutting a sufficient hole in the perimeter fence we herded them out. Not an easy task when deer seemed to have been conditioned to stay in, making them struggle to see they could now run to freedom. In the end, in between 70 and 100 deer were freed into the wild.

After running around in the field to show them the way, we headed to the nearest shooting towers and either made them fall or made them unsafe.

On our expedition, we found trail cams connected to a SIM card and disconnected them from the network before taking them with us. They will prove useful during the badger cull. It was quite a good surprise to see footage of the dickhead in his own home, trying the camera out before setting it up in the woods. He truly is a piece of shit, the footage shows multiple stuffed dead animals in his living room including deer heads, a bear and a stoat.

A second team visited the area the day after with an angle grinder and a chain saw to make sure the remaining towers were completely destroyed.

Let this be a reminder that no one is safe -wherever the fuck they are – if they are fucking with wildlife.

Fuck hunters wherever the fuck they are.

FOR THE WILD

UBS.”

50 DUCKS LIBERATED IN UK (4TH MARCH, 2017) – ALFRIDAYS.

In March 2017, the ALF liberated fifty ducks from a factory farm, destined to become meat and sold in supermarkets. 

Whilst many of the ALF actions during that year were not tied to any specific campaign, the Animal Liberation Front reported 213 actions worldwide, ranging from arson and sabotage to the liberation of thousands of animals from farms, slaughterhouses and even laboratories.

You can read the report submitted to BiteBack Magazine about that specific action below:
received anonymously:

“Saturday 4th March, North West UK, ALF liberates 50 ducks from a factory farm.

Eight days old ducks liberated from factory farm in the North West, UK. Upon arrival, many showed burned skin and loss of feathers, probably due to the lack of humidity in the sheds and the 24hrs cycle of light and heat. All 50 of them now safely rehomed.

It is time to get up. It is time to show our teeth. ALF is watching you.”

100 HENS LIBERATED IN MEMORY OF BARRY HORNE (2017)

The 5th of November 2017, the Animal Liberation Front liberated one hundred egg laying chickens from a farm in the UK. As well as taking the hens out, the activists destroyed conveyor belts, desinfecting machinery and a whole pallet of eggs.

They dedicated this action to Barry Horne, who died the 5th of November 2001 after enduring a hunger strike whilst serving time in prison for his involvement in arson attacks against vivisection related businesses. On the walls of the barn the activists sent a clear message: “BARRY LIVES IN THOSE WHO FIGHT”

Today it is the 20th anniversary of his death so we thought it was a good day to bring back this action video, not only as a reminder of Barry’s legacy, but also because folks should remember that the fight is not over.

In Barry’s own words: “For some of us animal liberation IS a war that we intend to win… the tears are real, our hearts really do break and we ARE prepared to die for it, not just chant for it.”

You can read the anonymous report from the action here:

Received anonymously:

“Under the International Week of Action Against Speciesism, an egg-laying chicken farm in the north UK was sabotaged. Owned by James Potter, this farm supplies to main supermarkets around the country telling the fallacy of ‘free range’ as somewhat ‘not cruel’.

One hundred chickens were freed from their slavery, the machinery and disinfectants were sabotaged, all the eggs smashed and graffiti on the walls was sprayed on reading ‘EAT YOUR OWN EGGS’, ‘FUCK THE EGG INDUSTRY’, ‘BARRY HORNE, A LOVE WARRIOR’ and ‘BARRY LIVES IN THOSE WHO ACT’.

All hens are now safe and will live a life of freedom away from the exploitation of humans.

With this action, we would like to remember and give power to Barry. We do not forget and we do not give up. The Animal Liberation Front is only growing. We will fight against speciesism and we will extend our love and power to anyone oppressed by this system.

For a truly anarchist revolution,

against all hierarchies,

against animals being used as commodities.

ALF”

HIGHGATE FARM, ALF CAMPAIGN AGAINST A VIVISECTION RABBIT BREEDER

Last week we talked about a vivisection guinea pig breeder that was successfully shut down in Newchurch, UK, and we said we would carry on our ALFRIDAYS looking at other campaigns that targeted vivisection breeders. 



This time we don’t bring you a whole campaign history, but a single ALF action. We will talk about Highgate as a historical target in a different article. 



In January 2008 ALF volunteers accessed Highgate Farm, a vivisection breeder selling rabbits to laboratories. They had to pull a section of the roof to avoid the alarm system, and at the end of the night, they had managed to liberate 129 rabbits. Once finished with the animals, they targeted a quad, a lawnmower, a van and a sports car and sabotaged them all, causing around £100,000 worth of damage.

The action effectively convinced Geoff Douglas, owner of Highgate, to stop trading. Sadly he was later convinced by the police to resume his business, and in April 2009 it was reported that a £60,000 security system had been installed on the farm to deter animal liberation activists.

To this day, Highgate Farm is still operating in the quiet village of Normanby By Spital, Lincolnshire, and it is claimed to be one of the only standalone, -not connected to a lab or university – vivisection breeders in the UK (although that remains to be proven). 



A single activist was arrested, he refused to turn informant and was sent to prison accused of taking part in the raid. You can read his publication about it here:

https://insidethecages.noblogs.org/post/2014/10/21/inside-the-cages/

Although this single action did not shut down that farm and although rabbits are still being bred to be tortured in Highgate, there is something to be said about the diversity of tactics during campaigning and how strong the concept of direct action has been to tackle vivisection.

Direct action against vivisection didn’t just achieve its primary focus of liberating and causing damage to an animal experimentation business but also aided to give a choice to animal abusing scum. Either talk to the above-ground campaigners and turn your business around or face the wrath of the underground movement. 



Below is the report that was sent to BiteBack after the ALF action. The video attached to it is the footage obtained by activists inside the farm whilst liberating the rabbits.



“06.01.2008, Highgate Rabbit Farm, Highgate, Normanby-by-Spital, Lincolnshire, UK.

During the midnight hours of 6th January 2008, A.L.F volunteers gained entry to a rabbit breeder who provides animals to suffer and die in the miserable vivisection industry. Customers of this breeder include HLS and several UK Universities.

A ventilation fan was forcibly removed to evade the alarm systems on the doors. Inside rabbits were lined in barren cages breathing in the stench of shit and urea, waiting to be tortured to death in animal testing labs. But tonight, the activists had a more compassionate fate for them. A total of 129 rabbits were loaded in friendship groups into bags and taken immediately to safety. Never will they have to know or experience an experimental facility or university lab. Some of the rabbits were visibly excited when they reached their new lives, playing in the straw and eating carrots happily.

We couldn’t leave without saying a proper good bye! On site we found a quad bike with trailer plus a lawnmower. All tyres were popped, locks glued, expanding foam in the exhaust, and were paintstripped. Next, we found a large white van obviously used as part of the sickening business. We redecorated it with nice new paint work, paintstripper, glued locks, popped tyres, and expanding foam up the exhaust. We also found a rather posh sports car parked outside the house which also had a little makeover just like the van.

2008 – TIME TO SMASH VIVISECTION INTO OBLIVION”

THE SIEGE OF DARLEY OAKS, SAVE THE NEWCHURCH GUINEA PIGS (2005)

Like the current campaign to Free the MBR Beagles, Britain’s animal liberation movement has seen a few other campaigns to shut down places that were breeding animals for vivisection. In future ALFridays we will have a look at farms targeted for breeding monkeys or rabbits, but we thought Newchurch Guineapig Farm was an interesting case study for folks to learn about.

In 1999, the ALF liberated around six hundred guinea pigs from a farm in Newchurch, Staffordshire, and released a video investigation of the condition inside the sheds. The video would spark a campaign lasting six years with the only aim to Save the Newchurch Guinea Pigs.

Very loud demonstrations were common in Darley Oaks, with folks attending from all around the country to keep pressure on the farm owner. Those demos would not always consist of folks with banners and drums, and in many occasions people would attempt to breach through and break into the farms, even granting police helicopters to stop them.

Slow and steady, many secondary targets gave up their involvement with Mr Hall, who would have to give up any income he was producing by breeding turkeys for the meat industry, dairy and even his crops. Interestingly he probably would’ve been left alone if he had given up the guinea pig enterprise and carried on exploiting animals in other ways, but his firm conviction to keep producing animals for vivisection would ultimately translate in the total collapse of his business.

During a period of two years, the police logged in more than 450 separate ‘criminal’ acts related to the campaign. From telephone and electricity poles cut around the farm to paint stripper and graffiti over worker’s cars, anonymous people made clear their frustration about the breeding of guinea pigs for vivisection. Twelve workers ended up quitting because of the targeted campaign, with many others installing security systems, CCTV and even metal shutters in their private homes.

In October 2004, the remains of Christopher Hall’s mother-in-law were dug up and removed. Many groups organising for the campaign publicly spoke up against the action.

By August 2005, Mr Hall announced that due to that last action he was going to shut down the farm for good.

Whilst not everybody would agree with all the factions of the campaign (underground or overground), there is no doubt that Save the Newchurch Guinea Pigs, piggybacking of other campaigns like Shamrock, Consort and Hillgrove did a fantastic job at stopping that vile family from breeding for vivisection.

IT’S A DOGS LIFE. A DOCUMENTARY THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING

WARNING: THIS VIDEO CONTAINS DISTRESSING IMAGES OF VIVISECTION.

It’s a Dogs Life is a documentary produced during the 1990s in the UK by a main TV Channel where a journalist goes undercover at a testing facility, filming the day to day of a testing facility for Beagle Dogs.

This documentary would be a huge catalyser in the anti vivisection movement in the UK, resulting in SHAC becoming a world wide campaign.

It is interesting to think that whilst the documentary had no aim to discredit vivisection, it fuelled such a reaction that a massive campaign would grow out of it, with thousands of people fighting against vivisection and state repression becoming so tangible that laws were specifically tailored to stop SHAC from carrying on.

With anti vivisection campaigning growing fast once again, we felt that this documentary was a very appropriate watch as a reminder of what animals go through in the “name of science”.