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Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act

How Does It Affect Me?

First Amendment rights of the American people were sacrificed to further corporate interests when President Bush signed the federal Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA) into law on November 27, 2006. The bill had been pushed by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a lobbying group that is funded by big corporations, many of which have exorbitantly profited from animal use and abuse. AETA conjures public fear by labeling citizens engaged in animal welfare issues who take direct action as "terrorists," even though they have never harmed a single human or non’Äìhuman life. And now, not only does the government and its corporate alliances seek to label these Americans as "terrorists," but they face excessive punishments that exceed the 2005 federal guidelines for similar offenses. Furthermore, so long as the target corporations can claim that protestors are interfering with profit margins, the law's vague, broad language can criminalize people who are trying to expose the cruelty of businesses profiting from animal torture through public demonstrations, leafleting, undercover investigations, and boycotting. Clearly, holding peaceful protests are not forms of terrorism; rather, they are successful forms of activism and the foundations of our democracy. AETA was drafted, proposed, and pushed by industries in order to crush the revealing messages of grassroots animal activism that have proved to inhibit their economic interests.

AETA has a dark history that favors corporate interest over the 1st Amendment rights of the American people.

AETA does not require that an animal enterprise must be legal in order to receive the Act's protection, but instead AETA actually deters the investigation of animal enterprises which may be violating the law.

AETA exploits the public's fear of terrorism that surfaced in the wake of September 11th by utilizing rhetoric that demonizes animal rights activists despite the fact that they have never injured or taken a human life, and instead consistently advocate for respect for living beings. The prior version of the AETA was called the Animal Enterprise Protection Act, and never used the word "terrorism."

AETA detracts from federal investigations and prosecutions of real terrorist threats, such as anti-abortionists who have taken 7 lives since 1977, or white supremacists who took 5 lives in 2003 alone, or from other true external threats.
AETA is redundant and unnecessary because it prohibits activities that are already existing crimes, such as burglary, trespassing, etc. Further, the Animal Enterprise Protection Act (AEPA) of 1992 had already given further protection to animal enterprises.

AETA violates civil liberties protected under the 1st Amendment by deterring, or chilling, protected First Amendment activities such as demonstrations, leafleting, boycotts, and becoming a member of animal rights organizations. Even if AETA does not directly prohibit these activities, its inconsistent, vague, and broad language will scare people away from participating in these activities for fear of being associated with animal enterprise "terrorism."

AETA opens the door for similar laws that could target other legitimate environmental and social justice movements. Silencing dissent in this way is an undemocratic violation of the constitutional rights of all citizens.
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