Will Potter: The shocking move to criminalize nonviolent protest

Translator: Marta García Reviewer: Alicia Ferreiro

It was less than a year after September 11,

Pasara menos dun ano do 11-S

e estaba no Chicago Tribune

and I was at the Chicago Tribune

writing about shootings and murders,

escribindo sobre tiroteos e asasinatos

and it was leaving me feeling

o que me poñía

un pouco triste e deprimido.

pretty dark and depressed.

I had done some activism in college,

Fixera algo de activismo na universidade

so I decided to help a local group

así que decidín axudar a un grupo local

hang door knockers against animal testing.

a distribuír panfletos contra a experimentación animal.

I thought it would be a safe way

Pensei que era unha forma segura

to do something positive,

de facer algo positivo.

but of course I have the absolute worst luck ever,

Pero como teño a peor sorte do mundo

and we were all arrested.

arrestáronnos a todos.

A policía tiroume esta foto borrosa

Police took this blurry photo of me

holding leaflets as evidence.

termando dos panfletos como proba.

My charges were dismissed,

Os cargos desestimáronse

but a few weeks later,

pero unhas semanas despois

two FBI agents knocked on my door,

dous axentes do FBI chamaron á porta

and they told me that unless I helped them

e dixéronme que se non lles axudaba

by spying on protest groups,

a espiar a grupos de protesta,

they would put me on a domestic terrorist list.

poríanme na lista de terroristas domésticos.

I'd love to tell you that I didn't flinch,

Gustaríame dicir que non me amedrentei

but I was terrified,

pero estaba aterrado,

and when my fear subsided,

e cando o medo sosegou

I became obsessed with finding out

obsesioneime con descubrir

como pasara isto,

how this happened,

como os dereitos de animais

how animal rights and environmental activists

e activistas ambientais

who have never injured anyone

que non lle fixeran dano a ninguén

could become the FBI's number one

se podían converter no número un

domestic terrorism threat.

da lista do FBI da ameaza do terrorismo doméstico.

A few years later, I was invited to testify

Anos despois, invitáronme a testificar

before Congress about my reporting,

perante o Congreso sobre o meu informe.

Díxenlles aos lexisladores que

and I told lawmakers that, while everybody

is talking about going green,

mentres todos falan de volverse verdes

some people are risking their lives

algúns arriscan as súas vidas

to defend forests and to stop oil pipelines.

para defender os bosques

e parar os oleodutos.

They're physically putting their bodies on the line

Basicamente estanse pondo en risco

between the whalers' harpoons and the whales.

entre os arpóns baleeiros e as baleas.

These are everyday people,

Son persoas correntes,

like these protesters in Italy

como os manifestantes de Italia

who spontaneously climbed over

que espontaneamente saltaron

barbed wire fences to rescue beagles

un valo de arame de espiño

para rescatar beagles

from animal testing.

da experimentación animal.

E estes movementos

And these movements have been incredibly effective

foron moi efectivos e populares.

and popular,

so in 1985, their opponents made up a new word,

Así que en 1985, os seus opositores crearon un termo novo:

eco-terrorist,

"ecoterrorista",

para cambiar o xeito como os viamos.

to shift how we view them.

They just made it up.

Inventárono.

Agora estas compañías apoiaron novas leis

Now these companies have backed new laws

like the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act,

como a Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act,

which turns activism into terrorism

que converte o activismo en terrorismo

if it causes a loss of profits.

se causa unha perda de beneficios.

Now most people never even heard about this law,

A maioría da xente nunca escoitou falar desta lei,

including members of Congress.

incluídos membros do Congreso.

Less than one percent were in the room

Menos do 1% estaban na sala

when it passed the House.

cando se aprobou na Cámara.

The rest were outside at a new memorial.

O resto estaba nun novo memorial.

They were praising Dr. King

Estaban eloxiando ao Dr. Luther King

as his style of activism was branded as terrorism

cando o seu tipo de activismo se catalogaba como terrorismo

if done in the name of animals or the environment.

se se facía en nome dos animais ou do medio ambiente.

Supporters say laws like this are needed

Os defensores din que estas leis son precisas

for the extremists:

para os extremistas:

the vandals, the arsonists, the radicals.

vándalos, pirómanos, radicais.

But right now, companies like TransCanada

Pero agora mesmo empresas como TransCanada

are briefing police in presentations like this one

están instruíndo á policía en presentacións coma esta

about how to prosecute nonviolent protesters

sobre como procesar manifestantes non violentos

as terrorists.

como se fosen terroristas.

The FBI's training documents on eco-terrorism

Os documentos do FBI sobre ecoterrorismo

are not about violence,

non falan de violencia,

they're about public relations.

falan de relacións públicas.

Today, in multiple countries,

Hoxe en moitos países

as empresas están impulsando novas leis

corporations are pushing new laws

that make it illegal to photograph

que ilegalizan fotografar

animal cruelty on their farms.

crueldade animal nas súas granxas.

The latest was in Idaho just two weeks ago,

A última foi en Idaho hai dúas semanas

and today we released a lawsuit

e hoxe puxemos unha denuncia

challenging it as unconstitutional

que a cuestiona como inconstitucional,

as a threat to journalism.

como unha ameza ao xornalismo.

The first of these ag-gag prosecutions,

O primeiro destes procesos "mordaza",

as they're called,

como lles chaman,

was a young woman named Amy Meyer,

foi a unha rapaza nova, Amy Meyer.

and Amy saw a sick cow being moved

Amy viu que movían unha vaca enferma

by a bulldozer outside of a slaughterhouse

cunha escavadora fóra dun matadoiro

mentres estaba na rúa.

as she was on the public street.

And Amy did what any of us would:

Amy fixo o que faría calquera:

She filmed it.

Gravouno.

When I found out about her story, I wrote about it,

Cando souben a súa historia escribín sobre ela

and within 24 hours, it created such an uproar

e ás 24 horas creara tal barullo

that the prosecutors just dropped all the charges.

que retiraron a denuncia.

But apparently, even exposing stuff like that

Pero parece que expor cousas coma estas

is a threat.

é unha ameza.

Through the Freedom of Information Act,

Grazas á Lei pola Liberdade da Información

I learned that the counter-terrorism unit

souben que a unidade de contraterrorismo

has been monitoring my articles

estivo vixiando os meus artigos

e charlas coma estas.

and speeches like this one.

They even included this nice little write-up of my book.

Incluso incluíron esta agradable crítica do meu libro.

They described it as "compelling and well-written."

Describírono como "cativador e ben escrito".

(Applause)

(Aplausos)

Blurb on the next book, right?

Publicidade para o próximo libro, non si?

The point of all of this is to make us afraid,

O propósito de todo isto é amedrentarnos

but as a journalist, I have an unwavering faith

pero como xornalista teño unha fe firme

in the power of education.

no poder da educación.

A nosa mellor arma é a luz do sol.

Our best weapon is sunlight.

Dostoevsky wrote that the whole work of man

Dostoievski escribiu que todo o traballo dun home

is to prove he's a man and not a piano key.

é demostrar que é un home e non un teclado de piano.

Over and over throughout history,

Unha e outra vez ao longo da historia

people in power have used fear

a xente no poder usou o medo

to silence the truth and to silence dissent.

para silenciar a verdade e o desacordo.

It's time we strike a new note.

É hora de que marquemos a pauta.

Thank you.

Grazas.

(Applause)