"North Carolina’s Chilling New Twist on “Ag-Gag”"

"Up until now, there have been three main ways that states have tried — in some instances successfully — to keep the truth about what happens on factory farms hidden. In some, like Idaho, Kansas, Montana and North Dakota, it’s illegal to take photos or video inside agricultural facilities. In others, like Iowa and Utah, it’s illegal to lie on a job application: an undercover activist, for example, wouldn’t be able to hide the fact that they’re affiliated with an animal welfare group. And in Missouri, whistleblowers with evidence of abuse or illegal practices have to immediately turn that information over to authorities, effectively preventing activists from being able to build a case against a facility.

The bill that passed in North Carolina Wednesday when Senate Republicans overrode the governor’s veto presents a fresh twist on that old standard: technically, it doesn’t criminalize whistleblowers. But it does allow employers to pursue civil charges against any employees who take photographs, shoots video or steals data or documents, holding them responsible for any damages incurred — including damages caused by the exposure of abuse — as well as up to $5,000 per day in punitive damages. It is, Paul Shapiro, the vice president of farm animal protection at the Humane Society of the United States, told Salon, “a new type of ag-gag.”"

Lindsay Abrams reports for Salon June 4, 2015.