The following article first appeared in Fur Farm Letter, November / December 2003, published by Fur Commission USA, and is reproduced with permission.
The Sierra Club's New Club
Paul Watson, Inventor of Tree-Spiking and "Voice of Fiery Anger"
Paul Watson of the violent Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has announced that he and other extreme animal liberationists are targeting the Sierra Club for takeover.
"One of the reasons I'm on the Sierra Club board of directors right now is to try and change it. ... we're only three directors away from controlling that board. ... once we get three more directors elected, the Sierra Club will no longer be pro-hunting and pro-trapping and we can use the resources of the $95-million-a-year budget to address some of these issues," explained Watson to the Animal Rights 2003 conference in Los Angeles this August. (1)
Watson has been arrested in so many countries, we've lost count. He's a prolific writer and his angry and violent views are well known. He's proudly claimed guilt for inventing tree spiking and attacking resource providers working legally under government-supervised management programs.
Watson explained his vision for the Sierra Club in his candidate statement.
"I have been in the trees to stop the clear-cuts. I have snowshoed down frozen rivers to disrupt wolf kills in Alaska and the Yukon. I have spent my time ramming illegal whaling ships, confiscating drift nets and long lines, and chasing trawlers off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. ... I want the Sierra Club to use its muscle to aggressively fight for what is left. ... I want it to be a voice of fiery anger when it comes to dealing with the politicians and corporations that are systematically destroying the natural infrastructure around all of us."
The Watson election debacle forced the Sierra Club to issue a statement on September 8, stating that they have "always been unambiguous in denouncing all acts of violence in the name of the environment. ... No leader at any level of the organization has the authority or credibility to deviate from those policies while representing the organization publicly."
So we read the Sierra Club bylaws and, sure enough, they allow for removal of any member involved in violent and/or unlawful actions, EXCEPT if that member is a Director.
It appears Paul Watson will be able to continue business as usual as a "voice of fiery anger" while a Director with Sierra Club.
NOTES:
(1) Sources: "Sierra Club: Ever More Radical," by the Center for Consumer Freedom, Sept. 4, 2003. The Outdoor Wire.