Sixteen people were arrested in God's Valley today when they crossed the line into the "safety zone" around current logging operations in Area II of the Acey Line timber sale. They were protesting the recent attacks on other activists in the past three days, as well as the October 3rd commencement of cutting by Christian Futures (a logging company) that the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) allowed. These 16 join three others in jail who were arrested on Thursday. This direct action represents the first of its kind in an Oregon state forest, and was called by the Cascadia Forest Alliance (CFA) and the Hard Rain Alliance, which recently worked together to set up treesits in the same area after surprise logging of dubious legality began in Area III in August. Of the 60+ people who showed up, about half were local residents, making this a cooperative effort between urban and rural forest activists.

The law enforcement response to those engaging in completely peaceful civil disobedience was violent, and would have been surprising had it not followed two days of serious intimidation techniques against other activists in the zone and what many would term "attempted murder" on one particular protester in a tree.

Reporters from Portland Indymedia were on the scene, and they called in up-to-the-minute cell phone reports throughout the action. KBOO community radio, Portland Cable Access, and KMUN radio were the only other media organizations at the action. If any local television stations or newspapers present stories on the day's events, they will not be based on eye-witness reports, but only on official statements from the Clatsop County Sherriff's Department, which were delivered in an entirely different part of the forest, a ten minute drive and half an hour's walk away.

Those arrested are facing charges of interfering with a police officer, criminal trespass 2, and intent to commit a crime. Some have also been charged with resisting arrest, as well. All are practicing jail solidarity, and refusing to give their names.

Newswire reports: [ "Peaceful civil disobedience met with violence in God's Valley" | Photographs | "account from Gods Valley" ]

Background: [ Portland Indymedia's Forest Activism feature | Cascadia Forest Alliance website | The Oregon Department of Forestry's Tillamook State Forest webpage ]