Ann Hansen
Encyclopedia
Ann Hansen is a Canadian
anarchist
and former member of Direct Action
, a guerrilla
organization famous for the 1982 bombing of a Litton Industries
plant, which made components for American cruise missile
s. She was sentenced to life in prison, but was released after eight years. Hansen wrote of her experiences in her 2002 book, Direct Action: Memoirs Of An Urban Guerrilla
. She now works as a freelance writer in Ontario
.
, a rural town outside Toronto
, by working-class Danish
immigrants. Her father worked as a produce manager at a local grocery store while her mother stayed at home to look after Ann and her four siblings.
Hansen describes herself as having been a "nature-loving tomboy who gladly helped around the house, hoed weeds in the evergreens on weekends, and did well in school." She attributes her idyllic childhood with having heightened her sensitivity to the negative aspects of society which she encountered as she grew older. Her life abruptly changed when her father died suddenly of cancer when she was 16.
counter-culture and clashed sharply with her family over values and social issues. In high school, she admired the Front de libération du Québec
.
At the University of Waterloo
, Hansen began to fully develop her political consciousness. She studied political theory and briefly worked on The Chevron, a Marxist-Leninist
dominated school paper, before becoming disillusioned with Marxism
. In 1979, she traveled to Europe for six months to study urban guerrilla groups such as the Red Army Faction
as part of the university's Integrated Studies Department. While in France
Hansen was influenced by the Autonomists, anarchists who lived largely outside of mainstream society and were well known for violently clashing with the authorities.
After she returned from Europe, Hansen was involved with the prison abolition movement and Bulldozer, a prisoners' support newsletter in Toronto
.
where she reconnected with Brent Taylor
whom she had met previously and his friend Doug Stewart. The three identified both politically and strategically. Soon they decided to form their own guerrilla organization, later named Direct Action, with the addition of Julie Belmas and Gerry Hannah
, local fixtures of Vancouver's punk
scene.
For more information on Direct Action (later dubbed The Squamish Five by Canadian press), see Squamish Five
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
anarchist
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
and former member of Direct Action
Squamish Five
The Squamish Five were a group of self-styled "urban guerrillas" active in Canada during the early 1980s. Their chosen name was Direct Action....
, a guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
organization famous for the 1982 bombing of a Litton Industries
Litton Industries
Named after inventor Charles Litton, Sr., Litton Industries was a large defense contractor in the United States, bought by the Northrop Grumman Corporation in 2001.-History:...
plant, which made components for American cruise missile
Cruise missile
A cruise missile is a guided missile that carries an explosive payload and is propelled, usually by a jet engine, towards a land-based or sea-based target. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a large warhead over long distances with high accuracy...
s. She was sentenced to life in prison, but was released after eight years. Hansen wrote of her experiences in her 2002 book, Direct Action: Memoirs Of An Urban Guerrilla
Direct Action: Memoirs Of An Urban Guerrilla
Direct Action: Memoirs of an Urban Guerrilla is a book written by the Canadian anarchist Ann Hansen after she had been incarcerated for eight years for the bombing of the Litton Industries about the urban guerrilla Direct Action...
. She now works as a freelance writer in Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
.
Early years
Ann Hansen was born on July 16, 1953 and was raised in ConcordConcord, Ontario
Concord is an unincorporated suburban industrial community in the City of Vaughan in York Region, located north of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. According to the 2001 Census, the community has 8,255 residents ....
, a rural town outside Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, by working-class Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
immigrants. Her father worked as a produce manager at a local grocery store while her mother stayed at home to look after Ann and her four siblings.
Hansen describes herself as having been a "nature-loving tomboy who gladly helped around the house, hoed weeds in the evergreens on weekends, and did well in school." She attributes her idyllic childhood with having heightened her sensitivity to the negative aspects of society which she encountered as she grew older. Her life abruptly changed when her father died suddenly of cancer when she was 16.
Radicalization
By the time she entered her teens, Hansen had begun to strongly identify with the hippieHippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
counter-culture and clashed sharply with her family over values and social issues. In high school, she admired the Front de libération du Québec
Front de libération du Québec
The Front de libération du Québec was a left-wing Quebecois nationalist and Marxist-Leninist paramilitary group in Quebec, Canada. It was active between 1963 and 1970, and was regarded as a terrorist organization for its violent methods of action...
.
At the University of Waterloo
University of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
, Hansen began to fully develop her political consciousness. She studied political theory and briefly worked on The Chevron, a Marxist-Leninist
Marxism-Leninism
Marxism–Leninism is a communist ideology, officially based upon the theories of Marxism and Vladimir Lenin, that promotes the development and creation of a international communist society through the leadership of a vanguard party over a revolutionary socialist state that represents a dictatorship...
dominated school paper, before becoming disillusioned with Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
. In 1979, she traveled to Europe for six months to study urban guerrilla groups such as the Red Army Faction
Red Army Faction
The radicalized were, like many in the New Left, influenced by:* Sociological developments, pressure within the educational system in and outside Europe and the U.S...
as part of the university's Integrated Studies Department. While in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Hansen was influenced by the Autonomists, anarchists who lived largely outside of mainstream society and were well known for violently clashing with the authorities.
After she returned from Europe, Hansen was involved with the prison abolition movement and Bulldozer, a prisoners' support newsletter in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
.
Direct Action
In 1980, Ann Hansen traveled to VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
where she reconnected with Brent Taylor
Brent Taylor (activist)
Considered the "intellectual leader" of the Squamish Five, Brent Taylor was sentenced to 9 years in prison for his role in the group's 1982 bombing of the Litton Industries weapons plant, to be served concurrently with 22 years for conspiracy to rob an armoured bank truck, weapons offenses, break...
whom she had met previously and his friend Doug Stewart. The three identified both politically and strategically. Soon they decided to form their own guerrilla organization, later named Direct Action, with the addition of Julie Belmas and Gerry Hannah
Gerry Hannah
Gerald Richard Hannah is the bass player for the punk rock group The Subhumans and was also a member of the militant environmental group Direct Action, also known as the Squamish Five and the Vancouver Five .Squamish Five carried out a political campaign of "direct actions", including the Litton...
, local fixtures of Vancouver's punk
Punk subculture
The punk subculture includes a diverse array of ideologies, and forms of expression, including fashion, visual art, dance, literature, and film, which grew out of punk rock.-History:...
scene.
For more information on Direct Action (later dubbed The Squamish Five by Canadian press), see Squamish Five
Squamish Five
The Squamish Five were a group of self-styled "urban guerrillas" active in Canada during the early 1980s. Their chosen name was Direct Action....
.
External links
- Excerpt of Direct Action: Memoirs Of An Urban Guerilla (mp3)
- This Is Not A Love Story: Armed Struggle Against The Institutions Of Patriarchy at The Anarchist Library (co-written by Julie Belmas & Ann Hansen)