Posted in Activists Arrested, Legal Issues on Jul 12th, 2010
A U.S. District Court has thrown out the indictment of four animal rights activists who were charged with violating the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act, because the government did not clearly explain what, exactly, the protesters did.
Posted in Terrorism Rhetoric on Jun 15th, 2010
An appellate court has refused to revisit the SHAC 7 case, and the lead prosecutor has compared animal rights activists to the Crips and Islamic “jihad.”
Posted in Terrorism Rhetoric on Mar 18th, 2010
Peter Young’s home was raided the FBI this week, and the search warrant repeatedly mentions his name in relation to “animal enterprise terrorism.” In the last article we looked at how this Utah raid is, ostensibly, related to the investigation of an Animal Liberation Front raid at the University of Iowa.
As with all of [...]
Posted in Terrorism Rhetoric on Jan 28th, 2010
A PETA activist pied the Fisheries Minister of Canada, as a publicity stunt to draw attention to Canada’s seal slaughter, and now a member of parliament says the pieing should be investigated as an act of terrorism.
The Globe and Mail reports that the member of parliament, Gerry Byrne, said:
“When someone actually coaches or conducts [...]
I recently interviewed with Dylan Powell about the AETA 4, Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty, Obama, mainstream media, and DC hardcore. I think it turned out to be one of the most interesting radio discussions I’ve been part of, because Dylan is so well-versed on these issues and we had a great conversation trying to pull [...]
Posted in Federal Terrorism Laws, Legislation, State Terrorism Laws on Dec 15th, 2009
The National Lawyers Guild has a new report on state-level versions of the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act that have been popping up around the country. As I’ve reported here previously, on laws such as the California Animal Enterprise Protection Act, they use sweeping, overly broad definitions of terrorism that are, in some cases, even worse [...]
Posted in Activists Arrested, Legal Issues on Dec 7th, 2009
The following is a guest essay written by David Naguib Pellow, a Professor of Sociology at the University of Minnesota and faculty advisor of Scott DeMuth:
On November 17, 2009, Scott DeMuth was jailed for contempt of court, since he refused to answer questions posed to him by a federal grand jury in Davenport, Iowa. They [...]
Posted in Activists Arrested, Legal Issues on Oct 14th, 2009
The conviction of the SHAC 7–animal rights activists hit with “terrorism” charges for publishing a website and vocally, unapologetically supporting direct action–has been upheld by a U.S. appellate court. It is a landmark free speech ruling that lowers the threshold of what types of conduct are protected by the First Amendment, and upholds a law [...]
Posted in Activism & Activists' Response, Federal Terrorism Laws, Legal Issues, Legislation, Opposition, Terrorism Definitions on Feb 24th, 2009
The recent FBI arrests of animal rights activists as “terrorists” for chalking sidewalks, protesting and making fliers marks a drastic turning point in the Green Scare, and in the history of this country. The government and corporations are clearly hoping to set a legal precedent for the sweeping power of the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act. [...]
Posted in Activists Arrested, Federal Terrorism Laws, Legal Issues, Legislation on Jan 19th, 2009
[This was published by Herbivore Magazine in one of their mini-books a while back. I realized I hadn't posted it here, and it's not available anywhere else online. Hope you enjoy it.]
"The World Takes? How corporations and politicians turned animal rights activists into terrorists," Herbivore, Volume 13, 26-48.
By WILL POTTER
On some days in [...]
The War on Terrorism has come home. Corporations and politicians are labeling activists "eco-terrorists" and national security threats. Think red-baiting, with a green twist. Here you'll find original reporting and analysis of the Green Scare, and history repeating itself.