Corporate Right Wing Extremism Drives AETA Law

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http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2009/12/14-8

 

Dec.14, 2009

2:02 PM

 

 

~NATIONAL LAWYERS GUILD RELEASES POLICY PAPER ON HOW CORPORATE INTERESTS

INFLUENCE STATE TERRORISM LEGISLATION~

 

 

NEW YORK - December 14 - The National Lawyers Guild has issued a policy paper

showing the influence of model legislation drafted by the American Legislative

Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative group of state legislators, on state

legislation around the country.

 

Federal legislation passed in 2006, the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA),

was largely drafted by ALEC and has drawn a great deal of attention and

criticism from animal rights and environmental activists. The Act which purports

to protect animal enterprises from so-called " eco-terrorists, " is a vague and

unnecessarily broad law that has already been used to restrict First Amendment

rights. The Guild's policy paper, Beyond AETA: How Corporate-Crafted Legislation

Brands Activists as Terrorists, explains that AETA is not unique in this

respect. Similar bills have been introduced in several state legislatures over

the last few years, and most of them stem from the model bill produced by ALEC.

 

ALEC's model legislation:

 

- Suggests adding the phrase " politically motivated " to the definition of an

" animal or ecological terrorist organization, " which clearly shows that the bill

is designed to suppress speech based on its content. - Defines illegal activity

so broadly that anyone using the Internet or email to plan (or even express

support for) an act of " animal or ecological terrorism " can be charged. -

Creates a " terrorist registry " - an online database open to the public which

contains names, addresses and photos of everyone convicted of " animal or

ecological terrorism. "

 

NLG Executive Director Heidi Boghosian said: " Although many states considered

and outright rejected the ALEC bill soon after its release, there are still

signs that parts of the legislation are being incorporated in some states' laws

that equate animal rights activists with domestic terrorism. The Guild remains

vigilant in tracking the development of such overly-broad legislation. "

 

 

 

Read the policy paper at www.nlg.org.

 

 

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The National Lawyers Guild was founded in 1937 and is the oldest and largest

public interest/human rights bar organization in the United States. Its

headquarters are in New York and it has chapters in every state.

 

The National Lawyers Guild is dedicated to the need for basic and progressive

change in the structure of our political and economic system. Through its

members--lawyers, law students, jailhouse lawyers and legal workers united in

chapters and committees--the Guild works locally, nationally and internationally

as an effective political and social force in the service of the people.