monkey-wrencher

plural monkey-wrenchers · alternative monkey wrencher · alternative monkeywrencher

1. slangAn activist who sabotages operations perceived as harmful to the natural environment.

   Howie Wolke, an Earth First! founder and frequent monkey-wrencher, thought "conventional tactics" and "non-violent direct action" were worthwhile techniques for environmentalists.

   1989, Roderick Frazier Nash, The Rights of Nature: A History of Environmental Ethics, University of Wisconsin Press, →ISBN, page 196

   1 more example

   In reality, says one of his closest friends and an active monkey wrencher who prefers anonymity, “Ed was reporting what he saw around him. Truth be told, monkey wrenching is not even controversial in many areas of the Southwest.[…]

   2010, James Bishop, Epitaph For A Desert Anarchist: The Life And Legacy Of Edward Abbey, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 132