Shut up and eat your vegetables: The Danger of Ag Gag Laws
Vegetables such as turnips, parsnips, and celery have rights. No, this is not some sick joke. Rather, veggie hate crimes came about as a result of powerful lobbying on behalf of the food industry. These laws subject individuals to liability for publicly making disparaging comments about certain agricultural food products.
For example, Florida Statutes, section 865.065 is entitled “Disparagement of perishable agricultural food products….” In it, the Florida legislature has made it a crime for an individual to make a willful, malicious, and false public comment regarding perishable food. The text of the