This file contains a copy of the Spring/Summer 1997 issue of The Abolitionist, a newsletter published by the animal rights group Compassion Over Killing (COK). That organization was co-founded (and its newsletter was co-edited) by Paul Shapiro and Miyun Park. Shapiro would later go on to lead the Humane Society of the United States's farm-animal programs. Park was hired away to HSUS at the same time as Shapiro, served as a vice-president, and then moved on to lead the Global Animal Partnership.
This issue of The Abolitionist included a two-page photo spread (pages 10-11 of the PDF) titled "The ALF Strikes Again ... and Again ... and Again ..." The images are of Animal Liberation Front (ALF) crimes (mostly vandalism) committed against fur retailers in the District of Columbia.
In addition, COK used this issue to offer the sale of videos glorifying the ALF. For $5 and a blank VHS tape, readers could receive copies of two films about the underground organization, which has been designated a "terrorist group" by the FBI and many foreign governments.
Download “The Abolitionist,” Spring/Summer 1997
This file contains a copy of the Winter 1997 issue of The Abolitionist, a newsletter published by the animal rights group Compassion Over Killing (COK). That organization was co-founded (and its newsletter was co-edited) by Paul Shapiro and Miyun Park. Shapiro would later go on to lead the Humane Society of the United States's farm-animal programs. Park was hired away to HSUS at the same time as Shapiro, served as a vice-president, and then moved on to lead the Global Animal Partnership.
In this issue of The Abolitionist, COK openly recruited readers to join a local segment of the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) targeting a Washington, DC-based fur retailer named Miller's Furs. The ALF is an FBI-designated domestic terrorism group responsible for animal rights-related crimes including attempted murder and (literally) dozens of arsons.
Under Shapiro's leadership, COK appeared to play both sides of the legal fence: The group published accounts and photos of several crimes (mostly vandalism) while also running a forked-tongue disclaimer stating that it "does not endorse (nor condemn) and illegal acts."
Shapiro himself is pictures on page 6 of the PDF, holding a protest bullhorn. The photo is captioned: "Shut Miller's Down, Run 'Em Out of Town."
Download “The Abolitionist,” Winter 1997
In this editorial essay from 1997, HSUS Chief Operating Officer Michael Markarian waxed philosophical about arift between grassroots animal-rights groups and larger national organizations like those that employed him. At the time, he worked for the Fund For Animals as its Director of Campaigns and Media.
In one part of the essay, Markarian draws distinctions among four types of animal activists, providing examples of "effective" and "ineffective" versions of each. Along the way, he appears to defend illegal activity in the name of “animal liberation,” a position that HSUS has takengreat pains to publicly avoid:
While the “citizen” activist says “YES” to that which is right, the “rebel” activist says “NO” to that which is wrong. Direct action, civil disobedience, hunt sabotages, and Animal Liberation Front activities all fall under this category. Activists purposely breaking laws that are unjust, such as hunter harassment laws, or committing acts of civil disobedience to help animals, are effective rebels because they tie the movement’s issues together with First Amendment, freedom of speech, and civil liberties issues. A perfect example of effective rebellion is an Animal Liberation Front raid on a laboratory that frees puppies from its confines and exposes video footage of the researchers torturing the animals. Sure, the activists broke the law, but all of their activities focused directly on saving animals and exposing cruelty. (emphasis added)
This essay was published in The Abolitionist, the quarterly newsletter of a Washington, DC-based animal rights group called Compassion Over Killing. Humane Society of the United States CEO Wayne Pacelle later hired three of that organization's leaders.
Download 1997 Editorial by Michael Markarian, published in “The Abolitionist”
This is the Form 990 tax return that the Center for Respect of Life & Environment filed with the IRS for fiscal year 1997.
Download 1997 CRLE Form 990
This is the tax return Form 990 that HSUS filed with the IRS for FY1997.
Download 1997 HSUS Form 990
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