WHAT IS (AETA) THE ANIMAL ENTERPRISE TERRORISM ACT?

The Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA) is a bill which seeks to amend the 1992 Animal Enterprise Protection Act (AEPA - PL 102-346), a section under Title 18 of the criminal code which protects animal enterprises from illegal acts comitted by animal activists.

The AETA bill (S 3880) recently passed in the Senate on Sept. 30th, 2006, was introduced by Mr. Inhofe (R-OK), Mrs. Feinstein (D-CA), Mr. Thune (R-SD), and Mr. Isakson (R-GA).

Its counter-part is currently pending in the House (H.R. 4239) and will be voted on sometime in November after congress reconvenes from recess on November 9th.

WHY AETA IS NOT GOOD FOR US

• AETA risks having a chilling effect on First Amendment protected speech for everyone including law abiding citizens, who risk being tarnished a terrorist even if wrongfully charged. On the chance that a law-abiding citizen wins his/her case, the damage to their reputation will already be done. Appeals often take years.

• Anyone engaging in non-violent civil
disobedience causing at least $10,000 profit loss, will be considered a terrorist. If this were law at the turn of the 20th century, the suffragettes, notably Susan B. Anthony, as well as, civil rights leaders including Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, and Mahatma Ghandi, may have been labelled terrorists.

• AETA risks punishing content based speech.

• AETA would foster a slippery slope and a precedent by which to target other content-based speech as terrorism or target any unfavorable group as terrorists.

• AETA risks singling out animal advocates for
penalties that are harsher than for other felonies.

• Laws penalizing tort, harassment, etc. already exist and the bills' additional penalties are unnecessary.

• The bills' exemptions would not be an adequate defense against being wrongfully arrested or charged, and do not resolve ambiguities in the bills or the chilling effect on protected free speech.

• AETA risks further frustrating protected free speech rights that calls attention to the government's failure to enforce the Animal Welfare Act. There are no similarly harsh penalties against animal enterprises that are in gross violation of the AWA, or that act with depraved indifference or with intent to do harm.

SUMMARY

We believe that the true purpose of AETA , is to severely chill AR activism by intimidating those who would legally protest, and as such attempts to prevent the loss of profit to corporations and businesses -special interest groups (who see the ever swelling tsunami of Animal Rights and Animal Welfare consciousness) heading right their way.

We further believe that there are sufficient laws already on the books to accomodate any and all illegal activist activities. As an example, Surely, we do not advocate threat, vandalism, and bodily injury, but why should any sector of society receive special treatment and consideration under the law from threat, vandalism and bodily harm moreso than any other sector?

The justice system has already successfully prosecuted cases using existing law and we maintain that AETA isnot only uneccessary but will have a stigmatic and chilling effect on our first amendment rights to free speech, preventing individuals from exercising their right to protest, under the constitution, for fear of being unjustly labeled and prosecuted as a terrorist.

The Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act is in all likelihood not constitutional and needs to be stopped now before it becomes law. The Senate passed S 3880 in the 'wee hours' of 09/30/06 and the House is next in line to vote sometime after November 9th.

Don't sell out your rights to corporate America! Let your voice be heard!

Send a message to Congress
stop aeta
go here to read the bill and/or download it: aeta bill