Editing Earth First! (section)

=== Direct action ===
After 1987, Earth First became primarily associated with [[direct action]] to prevent [[logging]], building of [[dam]]s, and other forms of [[Subdivision (land)|development]] which may cause severe destruction of [[wildlife]] [[habitat (ecology)|habitats]] or the despoliation of wild places. The change in direction attracted many new members to Earth First, some of whom came from a [[leftist]] or [[anarchist]] political background or were involved in the [[counterculture]].{{Citation needed|date=November 2010}}  Dave Foreman has suggested that this led to the introduction of activities such as a "[[puke]]-in" at a shopping mall, a [[flag burning]], the heckling of Edward Abbey at the 1987 Earth First rendezvous, and back-and-forth debates in the ''Earth First! Journal'' on topics such as anarchism, with which Foreman and other Earth First members did not wish to be associated.  Most of the group's older members, including Dave Foreman, Howie Wolke, Bart Koehler, Christopher Manes, George Wuerthner, and ''Earth First! Journal'' editor John Davis, became increasingly uncomfortable with this new direction. This tension reportedly led several of the founders to sever their ties to Earth First in 1990.  Many of them went on to launch the magazine, ''[[Wild Earth]]'', as well as the environmental group, the [[Wildlands Project]]. On the other hand, Roselle, along with activists such as [[Judi Bari]], welcomed the new direct-action tactics and leftist direction of Earth First.

Starting in the mid-1980s, Earth First increasingly promoted and identified with "[[deep ecology]]", a philosophy put forth by [[Arne Næss]], Bill Devall, and George Sessions, which holds that all forms of [[life|life on Earth]] have equal value in and of themselves, without regard for their utility to [[human being]]s.