Born November 7, 1949
Baltimore, Maryland
Died March 2, 1997
Willits, California

Environmentalist, labor organizer, and peace activist

Judi Bari devoted her final ten years to the campaign to save California’s ancient redwood trees. As a member of the militant environmental organization Earth First! she advocated a nonviolent, direct-action approach to protecting old-growth forests. Bari made it clear that timber company executives—not workers in the forests—were the parties responsible for the plunder of the forests. She attempted to build alliances with loggers, recognizing that their livelihood was also affected by the irresponsible actions of the timber company executives.

Bari’s effectiveness as an organizer and dedication to her cause gained her the respect of environmentalists and the ire of logging interests and law enforcement agencies. In 1990 Bari was permanently crippled by a bomb that exploded under her seat as she drove her car...