ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Will Potter - Investigative journalist
Award-winning journalist and author, Will Potter focuses on the animal rights and environmental movements, and civil liberties in the post-9/11 era.

Why you should listen

Independent journalist and TED Fellow Will Potter is based in Washington, D.C.; his current work examines how whistleblowers and non-violent protesters are being treated as terrorists.

The author of Green Is The New Red: An Insider's Account of a Social Movement Under Siege, Potter has extensively documented how non-violent protest is slowly being criminalized. His reporting and commentary have been featured in the world's top media outlets, including the Washington Post, NPR, Rolling Stone, El Pais, and Le Monde. He has testified before the U.S. Congress about his reporting, as the only witness opposing the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act -- and he is a plaintiff in the first lawsuits challenging so-called "ag-gag" laws as unconstitutional.

Will has also lectured at many universities and public forums about his work, including Georgetown University, Harvard Law School, and the House of Democracy and Human Rights in Berlin. International speaking tours have included Germany, Austria, Switzerland, New Zealand, and Spain, and he was the international guest lecturer for Australia's 2014 animal law lecture series.

His reporting has overturned criminal prosecutions, and it has both been praised in Congressional reports and monitored by the Counter-Terrorism Unit.

More profile about the speaker
Will Potter | Speaker | TED.com
TED2014

Will Potter: The shocking move to criminalize nonviolent protest

Вил Потер: Шокантниот потег да се криминализира ненасилниот протест

Filmed:
1,127,722 views

Во 2002, истражувачкиот новинар и соработник на TED, Вил Потер одлучи да го промени својот работен ритам, пишувајќи за пукања и убиства за „Чикаго Трибјун“. Отиде да помогне на локална група која водеше кампања против тестирањето врз животни: „Мислев дека тоа е правилен начин за да направам нешто позитивно,“ вели тој. Наместо тоа, тој беше уапсен, и така започна неговото патешествие во светот, во кој мирниот протест е етикеtиран како тероризам.
- Investigative journalist
Award-winning journalist and author, Will Potter focuses on the animal rights and environmental movements, and civil liberties in the post-9/11 era. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
It was less than a year after September 11,
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Немаше поминато година од 11 Септември,
00:15
and I was at the Chicago Tribune
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а јас бев во Чикаго Трибјун
00:16
writing about shootings and murders,
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каде пишував за пукања и убиства,
00:18
and it was leaving me feeling
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нешто што ме направи
00:20
pretty dark and depressed.
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доста депримиран.
00:21
I had done some activism in college,
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За време на колеџ бев активист,
00:23
so I decided to help a local group
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па одлучив да помогнам на една локална група
00:25
hang door knockers against animal testing.
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која се бореше против тестирањето на животни.
00:27
I thought it would be a safe way
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Мислев дека постапувам правилно
00:29
to do something positive,
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и дека нема да има проблеми,
00:31
but of course I have the absolute worst luck ever,
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но ме биеше толку голем малер,
00:33
and we were all arrested.
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што сите бевме уапсени.
00:36
Police took this blurry photo of me
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Оваа матна слика на која држам
00:38
holding leaflets as evidence.
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летоци им беше доказот.
00:41
My charges were dismissed,
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Обвиненијата против мене беа отфрлени,
00:43
but a few weeks later,
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но по неколку недели,
00:44
two FBI agents knocked on my door,
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двајца ФБИ агенти ми тропнаа на врата,
00:46
and they told me that unless I helped them
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и ми рекоа дека морам да ги шпионирам
00:48
by spying on protest groups,
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другите протестни групи, оти во спротивно
00:50
they would put me on a domestic terrorist list.
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ќе ме стават на листата на домашни терористи.
00:54
I'd love to tell you that I didn't flinch,
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Ќе излажам ако кажам дека не се стаписав.
00:56
but I was terrified,
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Бев преплашен,
00:58
and when my fear subsided,
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а кога стравот стивна,
01:00
I became obsessed with finding out
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морав да откријам
01:02
how this happened,
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како дојде до ова,
01:03
how animal rights and environmental activists
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зошто активистите за правата на животните и средината,
01:05
who have never injured anyone
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кои никогаш не повредиле никого,
01:07
could become the FBI's number one
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како и зошто станале главна
01:09
domestic terrorism threat.
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мета на ФБИ.
01:12
A few years later, I was invited to testify
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По неколку години, бев повикан да сведочам
01:14
before Congress about my reporting,
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пред Конгресот за мојата репортажа.
01:17
and I told lawmakers that, while everybody
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На законодавците им реков, и додека сите
01:18
is talking about going green,
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зборувате за зеленило,
01:20
some people are risking their lives
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некои луѓе ги ризикуваат своите животи
01:21
to defend forests and to stop oil pipelines.
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за да ги заштитат шумите и да ги сопрат нафтоводите.
01:25
They're physically putting their bodies on the line
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Тие ги ставаат своите тела на линијата
01:27
between the whalers' harpoons and the whales.
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меѓу харпуните и китовите.
01:30
These are everyday people,
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Ова се обични луѓе,
01:32
like these protesters in Italy
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како демонстративе во Италија,
01:34
who spontaneously climbed over
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кои спонтано се прекачија преку
01:36
barbed wire fences to rescue beagles
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бодликава жица за да ги спасат
01:38
from animal testing.
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овие зајачари од тестирање.
01:41
And these movements have been incredibly effective
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Овие движења биле неверојатно ефективни
01:43
and popular,
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и популарни,
01:45
so in 1985, their opponents made up a new word,
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и затоа во 1985, нивните противници смислија нов збор,
01:49
eco-terrorist,
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еко-терористи,
01:51
to shift how we view them.
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за да го сменат начинот на кој ги гледаме.
01:53
They just made it up.
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Едноставно го измислија.
01:55
Now these companies have backed new laws
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Овие компании лобираа за нови закони
01:57
like the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act,
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како ,,Терористичкиот Акт против Претпријатијата за Животни,"
02:00
which turns activism into terrorism
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кој го претвора активизмот во тероризам,
02:02
if it causes a loss of profits.
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ако тој предизвикува намалување на профитот.
02:05
Now most people never even heard about this law,
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Повеќето никогаш и не слушнале за овој закон,
02:08
including members of Congress.
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вклучувајќи ги и членовите на Конгресот.
02:10
Less than one percent were in the room
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Помалку од еден процент беа присутни
02:12
when it passed the House.
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кога беше усвоен.
02:14
The rest were outside at a new memorial.
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Другите беа на комеморација.
02:17
They were praising Dr. King
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Му оддаваа чест на Др. Кинг,
02:19
as his style of activism was branded as terrorism
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додека неговиот активизам стануваше тероризам
02:22
if done in the name of animals or the environment.
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доколку се прави во име на животните или средината.
02:26
Supporters say laws like this are needed
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Поддржувачите велат дека овие закони се потребни
02:28
for the extremists:
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за екстремистите:
02:30
the vandals, the arsonists, the radicals.
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вандалите, потпалувачите, радикалите.
02:33
But right now, companies like TransCanada
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Но во моментов, компании како ,,ТрансКанада"
02:35
are briefing police in presentations like this one
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ја советуваат полицијата за тоа како
02:38
about how to prosecute nonviolent protesters
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да ги прикаже ненасилните демонстранти
02:41
as terrorists.
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како терористи.
02:43
The FBI's training documents on eco-terrorism
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ФБИ документите за обука за еко-тероризмот
02:47
are not about violence,
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не се за насилство,
02:48
they're about public relations.
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туку за односи со јавноста.
02:51
Today, in multiple countries,
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Денес, во повеќе држави,
02:53
corporations are pushing new laws
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корпорациите туркаат нови закони
02:54
that make it illegal to photograph
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кои не дозволуваат фотографирање на
02:56
animal cruelty on their farms.
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суровоста врз животните на нивните фарми.
02:59
The latest was in Idaho just two weeks ago,
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Последниот беше во Ајдахо пред само две недели,
03:02
and today we released a lawsuit
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а денес поднесовме тужба
03:04
challenging it as unconstitutional
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оти сметаме дека е неуставен
03:05
as a threat to journalism.
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и дека е закана за новинарството.
03:08
The first of these ag-gag prosecutions,
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Во првиот судски случај од ваков вид,
03:10
as they're called,
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беше инволвирана
03:12
was a young woman named Amy Meyer,
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една млада жена, Ејми Мејер.
03:13
and Amy saw a sick cow being moved
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Ејми забележала како пренесуваат болна
03:15
by a bulldozer outside of a slaughterhouse
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крава со булдожер надвор од кланица,
03:18
as she was on the public street.
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додека била на улицата.
03:20
And Amy did what any of us would:
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И Ејми го сторила тоа што секој од нас би го сторил:
03:22
She filmed it.
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Снимала.
03:24
When I found out about her story, I wrote about it,
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Кога дознав за нејзината приказна, пишував за тоа,
03:27
and within 24 hours, it created such an uproar
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и во рок од 24 часа, создаде толкава галама
03:30
that the prosecutors just dropped all the charges.
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што обвинителите едноставно ги отфрлија сите обвиненија.
03:33
But apparently, even exposing stuff like that
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Но, очигледно, дури и ваквите работи
03:35
is a threat.
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ги сметаат за закана.
03:37
Through the Freedom of Information Act,
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Преку ,,Актот за Слобода на Информациите,"
03:39
I learned that the counter-terrorism unit
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дознав дека единицата за борба против тероризмот
03:41
has been monitoring my articles
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ги следи моите статии
03:43
and speeches like this one.
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и говори како што е овој.
03:45
They even included this nice
little write-up of my book.
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Дури го вклучија и овој убав мал опис на мојата книга.
03:47
They described it as "compelling and well-written."
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Ја опишаа како „неодолива и добро напишана.“
03:50
(Applause)
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(Аплауз)
03:55
Blurb on the next book, right?
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Реклама за наредната книга, така?
03:58
The point of all of this is to make us afraid,
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Поентата на сето ова е да нè исплашат,
04:02
but as a journalist, I have an unwavering faith
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но како новинар, имам непоколеблива верба
04:04
in the power of education.
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во моќта на образованието.
04:06
Our best weapon is sunlight.
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Нашето најдобро оружје е сончевата светлина.
04:09
Dostoevsky wrote that the whole work of man
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Достоевски напиша дека целиот труд на човекот
04:11
is to prove he's a man and not a piano key.
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е да докаже дека е човек, а не дирка на пијано.
04:14
Over and over throughout history,
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Одново и одново низ историјата,
04:16
people in power have used fear
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луѓето на власт го употребувале стравот
04:18
to silence the truth and to silence dissent.
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да ја замолчат вистината и несогласувањето.
04:22
It's time we strike a new note.
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Време е да отсвириме нова нота.
04:24
Thank you.
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Ви благодарам.
04:26
(Applause)
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(Аплауз)
Translated by Adriana Popovich
Reviewed by ALEKSANDAR MITEVSKI

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Will Potter - Investigative journalist
Award-winning journalist and author, Will Potter focuses on the animal rights and environmental movements, and civil liberties in the post-9/11 era.

Why you should listen

Independent journalist and TED Fellow Will Potter is based in Washington, D.C.; his current work examines how whistleblowers and non-violent protesters are being treated as terrorists.

The author of Green Is The New Red: An Insider's Account of a Social Movement Under Siege, Potter has extensively documented how non-violent protest is slowly being criminalized. His reporting and commentary have been featured in the world's top media outlets, including the Washington Post, NPR, Rolling Stone, El Pais, and Le Monde. He has testified before the U.S. Congress about his reporting, as the only witness opposing the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act -- and he is a plaintiff in the first lawsuits challenging so-called "ag-gag" laws as unconstitutional.

Will has also lectured at many universities and public forums about his work, including Georgetown University, Harvard Law School, and the House of Democracy and Human Rights in Berlin. International speaking tours have included Germany, Austria, Switzerland, New Zealand, and Spain, and he was the international guest lecturer for Australia's 2014 animal law lecture series.

His reporting has overturned criminal prosecutions, and it has both been praised in Congressional reports and monitored by the Counter-Terrorism Unit.

More profile about the speaker
Will Potter | Speaker | TED.com

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