ProtectTheHarvest

We celebrated a special day as Dwight and Steven Hammond were Pardoned by President Trump and freed from prison on July 10, 2018. We are proud to have played a key role in their release. Protect The Harvest, along with many other organizations, worked diligently with Congressman Greg Walden to inform Vice President Mike Pence and President Trump of this issue.. Justice was finally served on that day. Forrest Lucas was adamant that he needed to help them make their way home, so he did. With hundreds gathered to greet their plane, the Hammonds embraced their family members and happily waved at their friends and neighbors - eager to rejoin their community. Like many ranchers in the west, the Hammond’s are still under fire. The Hammond’s persecution by federal government officials is a twenty-year story. We have continued to work tirelessly to educate the public on the challenges ahead of the Hammond family and their ranch in Eastern Oregon. While their grazing permits were reinstated, those permits have come under attack by environmental extremist groups that have filed a lawsuit against the federal government to prevent the family from grazing their allotments. As a part of this effort to support both the Hammond family and other ranchers in the west, Protect The Harvest’s team members continued to explore the tactics environmental NGOs use to undermine agriculture and we found three more organizations worthy of exposing. The WildEarth Guardians, the Western Watershed Project and the Center for Biological Diversity all use and abuse the Equal Access to Justice Act and the Endangered Species Act to not only push an extremist agenda but also fundraise. They are exploiting these acts in order to entangle the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service in legal battles with the intent to settle and line their pockets. https://protecttheharvest.com/initiatives/the-hammonds/

We strive to provide information to the public that addresses the key issues and that is easy to understand. We created a series of articles and information to both expose the activities of these groups, and to educate the public about ranching in the west and grazing and water rights. Our Ranching in The West Article, “Setting The Record Straight” has garnered national attention and we have been asked by several groups - governmental and otherwise the use of our information to train lawmakers. These requests have truly been an honor. https://protecttheharvest.com/news/ranching-in-the-west-setting-the-record-straight/

As time has passed and our organization has grown, we have become a trusted source for information. In the coming year we hope to continue to provide factual and relevant information to the public, especially when it involves farming, ranching, animal ownership, property rights and so on. We will continue to provide support to those who need it. We will continue to educate the public using our social media presence, educational materials and by attending industry relevant events. We hope to one day soon share our college and high school programs with the public. These programs will offer educational materials for student-run clubs on campus to learn more about the work Protect The Harvest is doing to maintain animal industries. Our goal is to ensure that generations after us will be able to enjoy animals as we do today, for decades to come. Learn more about Protect The Harvest: ProtectTheHarvest.com

Our team works hard every day to protect and support our heritage and traditions by fighting back against the ideology of animal rights extremists and other groups. We help to educate and inform about threats to our way of life including agriculture, farming, ranching, land use, and animal ownership. But we can't do it alone. Together we can preserve our American heritage and way of life. We feed a nation, we are neighbors and friends, we hunt, and we fish, and we pass along a generational legacy down to the next. Unfortunately, misinformed extremist groups threaten our heritage. We, as hunters, food producers, and animal owners, need to stand up and Protect The Harvest. Learn more: https://protecttheharvest.com/what-you-need-to-know/consumers/

Our Mission: Inform. Protect. Respond. • INFORM and EDUCATE Americans about the activities of animal rights groups, anti-agriculture groups and other non-governmental organizations that threaten agriculture, animal welfare, our traditions, and way of life. • PROTECT our freedoms and way of life by supporting agriculture, land use, hunting and fishing, animal ownership, and animal welfare. • RESPOND to laws, regulations, or misinformation that would negatively impact animal welfare, animal ownership, restrict our rights, and limit our freedoms. Why Protect The Harvest was Founded Protect The Harvest was created to defend and preserve American freedoms and to support farmers, ranchers, outdoor enthusiasts, and animal owners. Most Americans are unaware that there are special interest groups in America that have evolved into a wealthy and well-organized movement that is determined to change our way of life. These groups are aiming to control agriculture, land and water use, and eliminate human-animal interaction as well as hunting and fishing. Their approach is to reach their goal incrementally via influencing public opinion with misinformation and writing, funding and marketing legislation and regulations to suit their agenda. The end result is an America that is less free and less prosperous, the elimination of animal ownership and human-animal interaction, the elimination of our ability to provide affordable food for our families and the ability to enjoy traditional past times.

Dale Ludwig, Protect The Harvest Board President, discusses animal extremist groups with Darryl Anderson of Farm to Fork Radio. Farm to Fork is a nationally-syndicated radio program dedicated to the agriculture and food sectors and to the people who are connected with them. F2F airs on more than 195 radio stations across the United States, making it one of the larger ag broadcast channels in the country.

We visit with World Champion Horsewoman, Sandy Collier, at Art of the Cowgirl to discuss animal and land stewardship and the right to do so granted by our Constitution. Collier supports Protect The Harvest's mission to preserve our ability to own, raise and enjoy animals.

Protect The Harvest at Art of the Cowgirl - Ranching Life and the Brewer Family

In January 2020, we visited with Carmen Buckingham a rancher from Idaho who also raises and shows horses. During the interview, she shares that she "supports Protect The Harvest because she supports this country's livestock producers."

We visit with Taylor Van Zelle of Paradise Carriage Horses during her time at Art of the Cowgirl in Arizona. To learn more about Art of the Cowgirl: https://artofthecowgirl.com/

When we were at Art of The Cowgirl, we visited with Laura Stimatze from Mackville, Kansas. Laura and her husband Joe breed and train stock dogs.

Thank you South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem for attending the Protect The Harvest Denim & Diamonds Fundraiser. Her support for our nation's farmers and ranchers is a great template for all in leadership positions to follow. Thank you for showing your support for Protect The Harvest, as well.

Project Counterglow is a website developed by animal extremists that shows an interactive map with the physical addresses and gps coordinates of more than 27,500 large modern farms, animal agriculture, dog breeding, horse racing, rodeo and research facilities. Kecia Doolittle, a member of Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) which is an animal extremist group we have written about in the past is responsible for its creation and implementation. Direct Action Everywhere, or DxE, is known for their “right to rescue” principles. By posting these addresses on a non-membership site that anyone can access, the group is endangering any facility involved in animal enterprise such as animal agriculture, zoos, research facilities and beyond. Since the satellite imagery is from 2011-2013, the Project Counterglow team recommends that users double check with Google Maps There are 5812 of locations identified (and more being added every day) using satellite imagery and many of these locations do not appear in public records. The map “pins” show farms with dairy, meat, poultry (meat and eggs), pigs, processing plants (some of which are cultural and ethnic plants), fur, zoos, horse facilities, and medical research facilities throughout the U.S. Anyone can add locations or post Wiki’s with or without an account. The Project Counterglow website explains its goal is to offer a platform where “animal rights activists can communicate, collaborate, and network with one another to be as effective as possible in their work towards animal liberation... " By publishing these addresses, the map puts owners and employees of these facilities in danger as well as violates their right to privacy. Project Counterglow’s website should concern anyone who owns and loves animals. We, at Protect The Harvest, wanted to give you a head’s up and introduce this latest weapon offered by animal extremist groups.