{"id":16015,"date":"2026-03-03T09:45:19","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T17:45:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/animalliberationpressoffice.org\/NAALPO\/?p=16015"},"modified":"2026-03-15T09:51:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T17:51:20","slug":"i-interviewed-a-convicted-eco-terrorist-heres-what-i-learned","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/animalliberationpressoffice.org\/NAALPO\/2026\/03\/03\/i-interviewed-a-convicted-eco-terrorist-heres-what-i-learned\/","title":{"rendered":"I interviewed a convicted eco-terrorist. Here\u2019s what I learned."},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The Kent Stater<\/p>\n

\n
Tanner Smith<\/a><\/span>,\u00a0Columnist<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
March 3, 2026<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\n

The\u00a0Animal Liberation Front<\/a>\u00a0(ALF) is classified as an extremist movement that, in its own words, works \u201coutside the law\u201d by \u201cbreaking into buildings, rescuing animals, and destroying property of animal abusers.\u201d<\/p>\n

The group has caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to various facilities, with some of its actions documented by Peter Young, a convicted terrorist turned author and entrepreneur.\u00a0I spoke with Young to understand why he joined ALF and how he ended up serving time in prison, labeled a terrorist.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t ever remember a time when I didn\u2019t have compassion for animals,\u201d he told me. Young was introduced to animal liberation through the punk rock music scene. \u201cThis was the first time I realized you could build a purpose around helping animals,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"\"
A masked indivdual from the ALF breaks in to Miller Hall, an animal research lab, and rescue rabbits in 1999. (Peter Young)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Through that scene, he was invited into the underground movement. \u201cI knew nothing\u2026I walked into the meeting, and they were planning a civil disobedience action at the Seattle Fur Exchange,\u201d he recalled.\u00a0After buying a magazine about the North American ALF and reading about their laboratory raids, he decided to get involved.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

When asked about direct action by another person at the meeting, Young said, \u201cI think that is what is most effective, I think that is what I want to do, direct action,\u201d and was immediately invited to participate.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t ever remember a time when I didn\u2019t think that going to prison was part of the package deal with being an activist,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

After some small actions, Young became emboldened by a speech from a member of the band Earth Crisis promoting animal liberation and veganism over supporting the meat industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember finding out for the first time that not only were there slaughterhouses near me, but there was one just outside,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

After breaking in, causing some damage, and rescuing three abused chickens, a switch flipped.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I\u2019m going to go to prison, I want to go for actually saving animals,\u201d Young remembered thinking.<\/p>\n

One of the worst facilities he recalled breaking into was an egg farm.\u00a0Even products labeled \u201chumane\u201d or \u201ccage-free\u201d are produced under deplorable conditions.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s crazy to me that a lot of people still don\u2019t even know where their eggs are coming from,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Animals were packed together, unable to move, watching others be killed as they awaited their same fate.\u00a0Over the years, Young and the ALF targeted fur farms, testing facilities, and slaughterhouses, liberating animals and inflicting damage while avoiding harm to any humans, in line with their principles.<\/p>\n

Addressing those who might call him an extremist, Young said:<\/p>\n

\"\"
Two masked individuals from the ALF with some of the 82 beagles liberated from Cambridge in 1990. (Peter Young)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cLabor hard to put yourselves in the animals\u2019 shoes\u2026and ask what you would want humans to do if you were subject to these conditions, experiencing this suffering, on these farms, living inside these laboratories, living inside these cages; would you want someone outside waving a sign? You would want to be rescued.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cIt is not necessarily personal toward their tormentors, but their rights are not much of a concern when you are being tormented in every possible way for your entire life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do Peter Young and the ALF deserve to be labeled terrorists? And if so, does the meat industry deserve a different label for how they treat animals that feel pain and experience life? Watch the full interview\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Tanner Smith is a columnist. Contact him at\u00a0<\/i>tsmit299@kent.edu<\/i><\/a>.\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Kent Stater Tanner Smith,\u00a0Columnist March 3, 2026 The\u00a0Animal Liberation Front\u00a0(ALF) is classified as an extremist movement that, in its own words, works \u201coutside the law\u201d by \u201cbreaking into buildings, rescuing animals, and destroying property of animal abusers.\u201d The group has caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to various facilities, with some of … <\/p>\n

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