Timber protest: Was it worth Golden Gate gridlock?

Monday, Nov. 25, 1996 | 11:59 a.m.

Did environmental activists prove their point Saturday in scaling the bridge's north tower and unfurling a banner critical of a recent federal government deal to buy a grove of ancient redwood trees?

Or did the activists' efforts backfire, succeeding only in riling up a medley of tourists, joggers, and bicyclists who were stranded when the famed span was all but shut down for five hours?

"When the chips are down, you play a trump card," said Jim Ace, an organizer of the protest that led to arrest of nine people, including actor Woody Harrelson. All were released from jail late Saturday, but face misdemeanor charges of trespassing and creating a public nuisance, and possible fines of up to $10,000.

"I think it was a huge success," Ace said Sunday, "and we'll see this in the next week. There will be a ripple effect. We've sent a clear message not only to (Charles) Hurwitz and (U.S. Sen.) Dianne Feinstein, but to people all over the country. The message is: Redwoods are still falling, and something needs to be done, and it needs to be done now."

Ace, and other activists, contend that a deal brokered by state and federal officials to save 7,500 acres of Northern California's Headwaters Forest is a sham laced with loopholes. It allows Pacific Lumber Co., which owns the forest and is headed by Hurwitz, to back out if and when it wants, they claim, and also leaves thousands of acres of redwoods unprotected.

A banner unfurled on the bridge Saturday read: "Hurwitz, aren't redwoods more precious than gold?"

Strain was evident on the faces of motorists, who endured a miles-long traffic backup and crawled over the bridge at about 10 miles per hour. Many shouted obscenities as they passed beneath Harrelson and eight others dangling from the bridge tower with rock-climbing gear.

As for Harrelson, the 35-year-old actor said he was "bummed out" when he saw traffic at a crawl beneath him.

"Amen, I know it's a major drag to be slowed up like that. But at least it brought some attention to us, to what's really going on," he said Sunday morning.

A longtime activist in efforts to legalize hemp for industrial uses, Harrelson said this was his first "direct action." His role, he said, was similar to that of "a hood ornament on the front of a car."

"For better or worse, hopefully better, someone like me brings more attention to an issue like this," said Harrelson, best known for his roles as a bumbling bartender on the television series "Cheers" and a serial killer in the film, "Natural Born Killers."