On February 25, Amy
Meyer, an animal rescue worker, and her colleague decided to film/expose the
happenings at Dale T. Smith and Sons Meat Packing Company in Utah. Although she
filmed from public land on the side of the road and was not an employee of the
company, she became the agricultural industry’s first ever “Ag-Gag” criminal.
The agricultural industry is fighting hard to suppress the exposure of inhumane
practices that are occurring on farms and in slaughterhouses and factories. The
issue is that the agricultural industry insists on eliminating the exposure of
their practices, but they are so appalling and brutal that animal rights
activists believe it is imperative that they must be put to an end. For example,
undercover videos and images from past investigations have exposed unwanted male
chicks being thrown into the grinder alive, employees swinging sick or runty
piglets by their feet and smashing their heads into the concrete, and calves
being beaten in the head with crowbars. A solution to these inhumane practices
includes appealing to the public by exposing the brutality and mercilessness of
these practices that one can’t simply “unsee” or easily forget. For example, in
the past decade undercover videos broadcasted on national television have contributed
to the “phasing-out” of practices such as the use of “immobilizing gestation
crates” for pregnant sows in several major restaurants’ supply chains, battery
cages for egg-laying hens in California, and force-feeding ducks. Videos revealing
the atrocious procedures of the agricultural industry have been very powerful
politically and have been eye-opening to the public. Organizations such as the
Humane Society and the ASPCA as well as animal rights activists are attempting
to reveal the inhumanity and enlighten the public, but Ag-Gag laws are working
against them since the organizations pose a threat to the profitability of
factories, farms, and slaughterhouses. The agricultural industry is now using “Ag-Gag”
laws as a barrier to possible solutions to the inhumanity. Ag-Gag is essentially
a term that describes anti- whistle blowing laws passed to criminalize and suppress
the exposure of the agricultural industry’s inhumane processes, basically silencing whistleblowers, journalists, and undercover investigators, making them into outlaws. Ag- Gag laws prevent the public from
viewing where their food comes from and the abhorring practices that take place
within the large intensive, mechanized, indoor factories where animals are
sometimes skinned while still alive. Personally, I believe that the inhumane
practices of the agricultural industry should be exposed and reformed. Despite
the insistence of the agricultural industry that they have “nothing to hide” it
is obvious that they are taking extreme measures to conceal the truth. Luckily,
the public opposes Ag-Gag legislation and Ag-Gag bills have been rejected in
states across the country. The way that the police and the manager of the slaughterhouse treated Meyer and the lengths
that they went to in order to charge her for “agricultural operation
interference” as well as their incompetence concerning the technicalities of the law goes to show that something very sketchy is occurring in the
agricultural industry that needs to be put to an end. It is not fair that
animals must suffer for the sake of profit or that the public must be blind to unsanitary
conditions and animal cruelty.
Link to the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=w2Q6e_hDhGo
Link to the article: http://www.thenation.com/article/175506/charged-crime-filming-slaughterhouse#
Animal cruelty is a very serious problem, and thank you for bringing it up. Amy Meyer was simply trying to help these animals, and because of her efforts to help, the government and some agricultural companies are trying to punish her without good reason. The real criminals are the ones who beat calves with crowbars, yet, they find themselves punishing innocent others while continuing to harm animals without reason. Though these animals may be raised specifically to feed us, that gives the corporations absolutely no reason to abuse them, and these Ag-Gag laws will allow such abuse to go unnoticed.If they truly have nothing to hide, then there would be no use for these Ag-Gag laws, and I'm glad many states have struck down such immoral legislature. We have a right to know where our food is made and how it is processed, and by knowing just these few mistreatments out of many, we know that the food industry has to be reformed. Just like in the early 1900s with the release of The Jungle, if these videos are released and recognized by the government, the industry will surely be reformed for the better treatment of the animals and maybe even better food. The treatment of these animals is sick, and I really hope Amy Meyer is released as innocent in order to expose more of the horrors of the agricultural industry.
ReplyDeleteThis article is astonishing to read. While I have always known that my food comes from animals being killed, I never knew it went to this extent. The fact that this mere citizen was labeled a criminal due to her desire to expose real life happenings is atrocious. These Ag-Gag laws are stating that they do not want these revealings exposed, as it will do harm to the organizations and businesses who make profit off of these killings. Does this make sense? This country should know better, and its laws should be made to protect people such as whistle blowers. If all people are suppressed from revealing the truth, who knows what will come of this world. There will be killings and deaths that we, the public, would be blind to. While these animals are the source of our food, the idea of them being beaten to fill our stomachs is not exactly fulfilling. The public needs to be exposed to this happening. Turning a blind eye to this situation is morally wrong and not speaking out is also a terrible deed. If this situation becomes more known, these laws can be stopped, the real criminals can be caught and sent to jail, and the lives of many animals can be saved. If it becomes more revealed, maybe the government will step in and stop this abuse for good.
ReplyDeleteThese inhumane acts should not go unnoticed and should be further investigated. We as Americans have the right to know how our food is processed and what is in it. Amy Meyer should not be guilty. Although Ag-Gag laws say she is guilty, I personally have to disagree. She shed light on a situation that the public should be aware of and should have a stop put to. It it is not a surprise that inhumane acts such as this occur but it goes to show you what is going on behind closed doors in our country. The government needs to put a stop to such incidents and possibly place laws to help prevent another situation such as this.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree. I feel that it should be the companies' goal to work towards a cleaner, more humane procedure in the slaughter of animals, which after all is more appealing to the consumer. All that we need to achieve this is enough coverage of what goes on in these places - I'm talking 24/7, multi-sourced coverage - to achieve this goal. The consumer decides, after all, and the companies need the incentive to improve. However, these laws are what stands in the way, and their removal is the first step towards widespread agricultural recovery.
ReplyDelete