Direct Action (Canada)

Not to be confused with Action Directe in France or the concept of Direct Action

Direct Action was a group of insurrectionary anarchists committed to anti-imperialism, feminism and environmentalism who took out three bombings against corporations in Canada in 1982 before their arrest in January 1983.

Members

• Ann Hansen - Now a freelance writer
• Brent Taylor - Considered the "intellectual leader"
• Juliet Caroline Belmas - Now a filmmaker who focuses on prisons
• Doug Stewart
• Gerry Hannah - Later became a punk musician in the 2000s

Actions

Early Actions

The first actions associated with the group included vandalizing the headquarters of Amax, a mining company which had been granted a special exemption from environmental laws, and offices of the British Columbia Ministry of Environment.

After these actions, the group dispersed. Belmas and Hannah retreated to the Rocky Mountains, and Hansen, Taylor, and Stewart moved underground together, becoming more militant. They began training with stolen weapons in a deserted area north of Vancouver, and stole a large cache of dynamite used for construction work. They supported themselves through various forms of fraud and theft.

Cheekye-Dunsmuir bombing

On the 30th of May 1982, Hansen, Taylor, and Stewart traveled to Vancouver Island and set off a large bomb at the Dunsmuir BC Hydro substation causing $5 million in damages. Four transformers were damaged beyond repair, but no one was injured. The hydroelectric project had been criticized by some as environmentally unsound and contributing to the destruction of wilderness on the Island.

Litton Industries bombing

In October, 1982, the five filled a stolen pick-up truck with 550 kg (1,210 lb) of dynamite and drove from Vancouver to Toronto. Their target was Litton Industries, a company producing guidance components for the controversial American cruise missiles many feared would increase the risk of nuclear war. The bomb was detonated on the 14th of October, 1982, and was intended to cause only property destruction. The van was parked in full view of corporate security, with an elaborate "warning box" duct taped to the hood, displaying a message, a digital clock counting down, and a single stick of dynamite to draw attention to the danger.

Belmas called the security desk and warned them of the explosion, giving instructions on exactly what to do and where the danger area was. The security personnel, however, suspected a hoax, and did not respond quickly enough to evacuate the facility before the explosion. The evacuation was just getting started when the bomb detonated minutes ahead of schedule, injuring ten people. Meanwhile, at the back of the factory, where the guidance system was being produced, no damage was done. The only damage was to a storage area where parts were kept prior to production, and the offices above and around the storage area.

Red Hot Video firebombing

The bombers fled Toronto for Vancouver and ceased their activities as they moved underground together. On the 22nd of November, 1982, they re-emerged as part of a larger group under the name "Wimmin's Fire Brigade". They subsequently firebombed three franchises of Red Hot Video, a chain of video pornography stores which had attracted the attention of feminist activists and was accused of selling snuff films. The majority of the stores either closed or changed names. Ann Hansen alleges in her memoirs that the police had them under surveillance at the time of the Red Hot Video action, which would mean the police broke the law in order to get the evidence needed to proceed with the charges on the earlier bombings.

Arrest

The nature of the high-profile crimes had attracted major police attention and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) closed in. On the morning of the 20th of January, 1983, all five were captured on the road to their training area by an RCMP tactical unit disguised as a road crew. Upon hearing her sentence for life, Ann Hansen threw a tomato at the judge. All are now out of prison.

References

Squamish Five at Wikipedia