Recently, I talked to some of the defendants in this suit to ask them two questions, specifically: A) What effect the lawsuit had had on their personal lives, and B) If, given the SLAPP, they would participate in direct action again.
Here are their responses:
Person #1
A) "It's been ridiculous, a bore and an annoyance. The only thing I really own is this piece of property; it's my life savings. I've been amazed that L-P would threaten to take my home. For a symbolic statement they'd take my home?! No - though I don't believe we can get justice through the legal system - I still think there's enough reality in the world that I wouldn't lose my property." B) "I'd do less symbolic stuff. I'd change my approach and wouldn't be public. I'd be more undercover."
Person #2
A) "I had no idea my protest would end up taking this much of my time. It's caused me to spend many hours re-evaluating how our society works. There are so few people working at a realistic management of our society's property; the dynamic needed to avoid losing the entire planet is fuzzier than I thought." B) "Yes. Watching my watershed destroyed was painful. It set me up for a change of consciousness. Once you get in, you can't get out."
Person #3
A) "It's given me a legal education. I've become a jail house lawyer who's gotten my degree at the L-P law school. I've gotten to hang out with people I like. All in all, it's been positive; it's made our direct action campaign more effective and sophisticated. We've handled what's been thrown at us." B) "Without hesitation."
Person #4
A) "The in-fighting in the group has made me sad. The added level of stress, the diversion of our energy, the sapping of our financial resources have been hard. I think it's had a big effect on the community at large in making them fearful, but not so much of an effect on the activists themselves." B) "Once you've done direct action, something powerful happens to you and your sense of commitment. It's hard not to do direct action again."
Person #5
A) "It's definitely been a damper on my life. My children could have lost their future security because of this." B) "I believe in direct action, wouldn't stop doing or supporting it, but I'd be more clandestine."
Person #6
A) "It's shown me how corporations keep people at bay, keeps them from making challenges to the corporation's effects on a community. When people protest, the corporations run to the courts and use the letter of the law to stop them. I think their tactic is effective in tying up money and resources." B) "Yes, but I wouldn't get caught next time. I'd try to stop the corporations, but I'd try not to impose on the workers. I really respect workers for working so hard for their money while the bullshit artists (owners, executives) make all the money."
Person #7
A) "Since direct action is what I do, the SLAPP has kept me from that." B) "I'd do again what I did."
Person #8
A) "It's had a tremendous impact emotionally; it's been about 50% responsible for an acute depression I've suffered for over a year. I've felt a lot of anger, frustration and helplessness. Anyone involved in political action against the status quo knows the system, including the legal system, is there to protect the status quo. I really felt the pressure of it hanging over me. On the financial level, it doesn't really bother me." B) "I think I would, but I don't know how much I could take, how long I would last. I've reached the point where I'm asking myself if the only change can come from a real fight, a revolution. I have to face that at some point there has to be an end to waiting for change. Does nonviolence work?"
Person #9
A) "It's affected me positively and deeply; the camaraderie of my brothers and sisters, knowing what we are doing is for the future, the wonder that people have put their homes and their lives on the line, the thankfulness that I was able to make a contribution to the effort have all pulled me more deeply into my deep California feelings; that I'm in for the long haul. I've felt no fear, but a quiet joy." B) "Yes. Again and again and again - times a dozen - plus, plus!"
Person #10
A) "It's made me very popular with my L.A. friends. They are impressed with my efforts to save the forests." B) "Yes, I'd do it again."
Person #11
A) "The down-side has been that it's been a boring complication. Well, overall maybe it's been rather stimulating because of the way the group has handled it. The upside is that it has forged greater unity. I'm proud of us regardless. It's had a fairly minimal effect on me personally." B) "Certainly I'd participate again."
Person #12
A) "It's completely derailed my business; the energy and time I've put into the suit - and money - have all affected my business." B) "Yes, but I'd be much more careful. In fact, I wouldn't do things that would make me liable to being SLAPPed. I'm more aware of the liabilities now. Of course, I never did anything in the first place to be sued for."
Person #13
A) "It's had a positive effect on my life; it's strengthened my commitment to environmental work. If you put the SLAPP in the context of who L-P is and what they do; I mean, here they've overcut their timber, closed mills, laid off workers, moved facilities to other countries, lied to the EPA about their plant emissions and been fined - what, $11 million? - filed something like 70,000 acres of exemption plans in Mendocino where they're literally scraping up the forest floor with no public notice or monitoring. And all the while making record profits. I hardly have a pot to pee in and with this SLAPP they want that too! Now that's greed! Anyway, it's forced us to stay together, become better organized. Even with the in-fighting, I think we've learned a lot and come to a better level of understanding of one another, how to work together better. It's been an education on a lot of levels. Every legal meeting, every fundraiser, I've seen, not as a diversion of our resources, but as an opportunity to strengthen our alliance." B) "Oh, yeah, I'd do it again."
Person #14
A) "It's been very disruptive of my family life, but it's only reaffirmed my feelings that what we did was right." B) "Regardless, I don't intend to stop the work. This makes me dig in deeper. I'm not going to stop, especially when someone tries to intimidate me."
Person #15
A) "It's diverted attention from my family and business, taken every minute of my time. I faced the threat of losing all because of the actions of an unknown number of people. I think any decision taken in this suit is an important one, that we have a responsibility in this suit to activists all over the state." B) "I would do again everything that I did. I did some of my best work then."
Person #16
A) "I certainly haven't lost any sleep. It's forced me to get to know people in my community I didn't know before and created a whole new circle of friends and acquaintances for me. And it's been an education in civil law." B) "Oh, yeah! I wouldn't miss the opportunity; that was the opportunity of a lifetime. I'll never regret my participation."
Copyright Mendocino Environmental Center 2004
Permission granted to excerpt or use this article if source is cited