PEACEFUL PROTEST - FROM PROTECT THE WILD—

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Protesters punished harsher than those who brutally kill wildlife PROTECT THE WILD FEB 8 READ IN APP Last week, three activists were found guilty of criminal damage for a peaceful visual protest. Their offence was painting the windows of an elite hunting and shooting shop in central London during the March for Love and Resistance in 2022, using temporary green paint to draw flowers, trees, and words like love and liberate. Each activist was fined just over £1,000 and given 100 hours of community service. Three years on, the legal process is over. The verdict is in. What it exposes is not just the punishment of protest, but the priorities of the justice system itself. We’ve set up a fundraiser for anyone who wants to support these brave activists for daring to stand up to the cruel hunting and shooting industries. And in the below video, I sit down with two of them to ask why they did what they did, what it’s cost them, and why they still believe it was worth it. Support the protestors Contrast this with wildlife crime Just weeks ago, gamekeeper Racster Dingwall pleaded guilty to conspiracy to kill a hen harrier on the Conistone and Grassington Estate in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. Hen harriers are among the UK’s most persecuted birds of prey and are legally protected. Their illegal killing has pushed them close to extinction across large areas of suitable habitat, particularly on grouse moors where they are targeted to protect birds bred and shot for sport. Dingwall pleaded guilty to two offences. He was fined £400 for each offence, plus a £320 victim surcharge and £400 in costs, bringing the total penalty to £1,520 for conspiring to kill a protected species. This is not an isolated case. On 30 March 2024, an RSPB covert camera recorded a gamekeeper beating a buzzard to death inside a cage trap on a pheasant shoot near Hovingham, North Yorkshire. On 12 January 2026, Thomas Munday pleaded guilty to killing a protected species and was fined £1,215. Taken together, these cases show how wildlife crime is treated in practice. The deliberate persecution of protected birds of prey routinely results in modest fines, while those who peacefully challenge the industries responsible face harsher consequences. What are we supposed to conclude from this? Painting the windows of a shop that sells high-end firearms for killing animals resulted in a £1,000 fine for each activist. Conspiring to kill a protected bird of prey in a national park resulted in a total financial penalty of £1,520. One act involved temporary paint and no harm to life. The other involved an attempt to kill a protected wild animal in one of the UK’s most iconic landscapes. Yet the penalties sit in roughly the same bracket. Support the protestors A system that punishes challenge more than cruelty Wildlife crime in the UK is routinely under-punished. Fines are low. Custodial sentences are rare. Deterrence is minimal. By contrast, peaceful protest, especially protest that challenges elite industries, is increasingly treated as a serious threat to order. This is not accidental. Hunting and shooting are not fringe pastimes. They are politically connected industries, wrapped in tradition, wealth, and influence. Their crimes are framed as unfortunate exceptions. Challenges to them are framed as disruption. The law reflects that imbalance. Standing with people who act from conscience The three activists in this case did not profit from their action. They did not harm anyone. They acted publicly, visibly, and with the intention of drawing attention to cruelty that is otherwise hidden behind shopfronts, estates, and elite respectability. They have now been fined for that decision. We have set up a fundraiser for anyone who wishes to help cover their legal costs and fines, and to show solidarity with people willing to take personal risks to challenge injustice. There is no obligation to donate. If you believe that peaceful protest should not be punished more harshly than wildlife persecution, you may wish to stand with them. Support the protestors Any additional funds raised will support ongoing work exposing the bird shooting industry and pushing for real accountability for wildlife crime. SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing