A coalition of animal-rights groups recently filed a lawsuit in Kansas challenging the state’s “ag-gag” law, the oldest such law in the United States, citing violations of the First Amendment. The coalition—which includes the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), Center for Food Safety and Public Justice, and two Kansas-area animal protection organizations—contends that the law subjects investigative journalists to large fines and jail time for revealing animal abuse that occurs at factory farms and slaughterhouses. “The Kansas ag-gag law has silenced whistleblowers seeking to protect animals from cruelty for far too long,” ALDF executive director Stephen Wells said. “This unconstitutional law exists solely to protect the financial interests of industries that abuse animals, and it will not hold up in court.” The Kansas lawsuit comes after last week’s federal court decision that struck down provisions of Idaho’s ag-gag law, ruling that Idaho’s ban on recording conditions at factory farms violated free speech rights.

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