Interview with Josh Harper (SHAC 7, Wayward Cafe)
(via The Vegan Police)
First off, how many pushups can you do?
While listening to Earth Crisis or while listening to Kelly Clarkson? Either way I guess the answer is, “Not many.”
I love your article, “Facing the Agents of Omnicide: Hope In A Dark Time” that comes fromIgniting a Revolution: Voices in Defense of the Earth. You finished the article with this call, “The government can jail some of us, but they can not stop the phenomenon of compassion. It reached me as a boy on my way to school, and with each new action it has the chance of inspiring others to take sides. So long as I know that new warriors join the fight, and that old veterans refuse to bow, I will have hope that our small uprising will save the world. Stay safe, keep fighting as long as you have a breath left in your body, and victory may yet be ours.” Revisiting those words now, I am wondering how you feel about those “new warriors” and the “old veterans.”
Ouch. I wish I had a more positive answer for this question. I guess the most concise way of putting it is that many of those old vets faded away, and sadly that’s left the newer generation of activists without many role models. I see plenty of young folks and newcomers endlessly repeating the same mistakes that I was making in the 90’s, and it frustrates me that so many people who could be showing them a better way have long since disappeared. Activism is hard- especially effective activism. The realities we have to stare at day after day are depressing, and also easy to escape. But when we choose comfort over struggle we abandon the hope of ever having a multi-generational movement, and thus we abandon the animals by choosing to see a movement too weak to liberate them from our species. Longevity is rare in activists, but crucial.
Some of the evidence used against you in the SHAC 7 case came from talks you had given to small groups of people in Arkansas and the University of Washington. How has that effected you when it comes to speaking publicly about animal rights and activism? Do you feel “muzzled”?
The short answer is that is has effected me in a predictable manner and the one prosecutors intended – I am frightened to speak about tactics and even historical fact because I know we do not have free speech in this country. Yes, I absolutely feel muzzled.
The SHAC 7 petition for a rehearing was just recently denied without comment. As more SHAC defendants finish their sentences and communities regroup, what positives, if any, have you seen come out of the case?
Politically, I have seen nothing positive come out of this case. It actually started a negative momentum that we have yet to see the end of. On a personal level, my mom went vegan while I was on house arrest awaiting the start of my prison sentence, and I got to read lots of books while I was behind bars. That’s really about it as far as positives go.
After months of telling myself I would do it, I finally sat down the other day and wrote to some Animal Rights activists who are currently imprisoned. How important was it for you to get those letters and what were some of the best letters you ever received?
Those letters made my life worth living, plain and simple. Other than visits there was nothing I looked forward to more than mail call, and those days where nothing arrives are brutal. The best letters I received were from Emiko Badillo of Food Fight fame. Funny, distracting, long, full of drawings, and just all around wonderful. I miss you, Emiko!
The Animal Rights and Anarchist movements have had some events this year that have tapped into some growing tension, with the Leirre Keith pieing and a cop being escorted out of the Red and Black restaurant. As a someone who identifies as a Vegan and an Anarchist, how can we move forward from these events with a narrative that doesn’t pit the anarchist community against the vegan community and vice versa?
Here is the thing: anarchism is broad. Think of how many varieties pro-statism people come in; democrats, republicans, libertarians, socialists, greens, communists, democratic socialists, nationalists, etc, etc. Anarchism is the same way, lots of different ideas and philosophies with the only connection being a rejection of hierarchy. Of course we are going to occasionally have conflict with people who would like an alternative to coercion and authority. I am not sure we can move forward in every instance, but we can certainly stop imagining the situation as anarchists vs. vegans. That’s simply a gross overstatement of the facts.
You marked your one year release from prison just the other day. I am wondering if you could talk a bit about your experience.
The short version is that prison was awful. I hated being there with all my heart and I’m glad to be out.
Activist Recap: If you could revisit your activist career knowing what you know now, what would you change? What would you never consider changing?
I am not sure I have time to list all the stuff I would change! The main thing I would do different is not use macho rhetoric. Holy shit, how embarrassing all that militant posturing is! Don’t get me wrong, I love actions that save animals, move our culture towards a more compassionate one, or financially harm that portion of our society that harms animals. What I don’t love is kids who’ve never so much as held a gun talking about “this is a war,” and posting pictures of ski masks and bolt cutters all over their Facebook pages. How corny and insincere can you get? If you want to contribute, contribute. If you want to look like a poser, do all that other stuff. Those of us who aren’t faking the funk can see right through you though. The truth is that the world we are trying to create would be much gentler than this one. We might not be able to get there without scrambling some tofu, but tough actions go better with soft, intelligent words. Stay away from that “The hammer of vegan justice falls,” idiocy.
What I would never change is a willingness to make mistakes. There are no classes to learn the skill-set necessary to spark a mass movement against animal slavery, we need to learn from trial and error. I sure messed up plenty of times, but I’m proud I chose to risk failure instead of pursuing a safe and ultimately impotent path.
You and a friend Rex Ray have started a podcast Vegan Threat. I am wondering what got you into podcasting and what plans you have for the show.
I think beer got me into podcasting, and my plans for the show are to hopefully sound less and less stupid with each new recording. For those of you who aren’t afraid to chuckle at the awkwardness of others, please check us out at www.veganthreat.com – new episode launching shortly!
I am in Seattle. It is a Tuesday afternoon. It’s raining outside and I am still bitter that the Super Sonics moved. I stop in at Wayward Cafe, what should I get to eat?
Anything but the Quinoa Bowl, oatmeal, or a side of greens. Seriously, you can get health food almost anywhere, why would you ruin an opportunity to eat deep fried diner-style goodness? If you want breakfast, go for the Farmer’s Hash or the French Toast Griddle Combo. If you want lunch, the steak burrito, the Warlock, the Wizard, or the BBQ sub are all amazing. The vegan omelets are pretty rad too. Shit, so is the Biscuits Maximus. Really, anything on the menu is going to be good.
Crucial Youth vs. Born Against
If Crucial Youth didn’t have a lyric the went, “MEAT! Get your protein! Makes you big and strong,” they might have a chance in this fight, but they do, so I’m going with Born Against.
Tempeh vs. Tofu vs. Seitan
Seitan. It isn’t as versatile as tofu, but the name is more evil, and it doesn’t make me feel like a hippie the way that tempeh does.
Almond Milk vs. Rice Milk vs. Hemp Milk vs. Soy Milk
You can tell by my manly physique that I am going with the fattiest of these options- Almond.
Dungeons and Dragons vs. Dungeons and Dragons
I haven’t played Dungeons and Dragons since I got out of prison. It was way more fascinating to sit in a fart filled cell with a bunch of violent criminals pretending to be elves than it is to sit in a fart filled basement with a bunch of nerds pretending to be elves.
