written by: michael a. budkie
source: S.A.E.N.

 

Where will  you be October 11th through October 19th 2008?

 

National Primate Liberation Week will take place October 11th – October 19th. Please help fight for the chimpanzees, rhesus monkeys, spider monkeys, marmosets, lemurs, squirrel monkeys, owl monkeys, and all the other innocent primates confined in laboratories. Help us end their abuse! 

 

Fellow Activists,

Over 60,000 primates (chimpanzees, rhesus monkeys, baboons, squirrel monkeys, etc.) are experimented on every year in the United States. Many thousands of primates are also imprisoned in labs for breeding and conditioning. This brings the total number of primates held captive in laboratories to almost 120,000.

Many more primates are caged in facilities owned by the federal government. Over 7000 are imprisoned within the laboratories of the National Institutes of Health. The Department of Defense incarcerates over 1600. Other federal agencies also use primates in experimentation including NASA, USDA, FDA, and the CDC. And animal dealers who sell primates to labs lock away 7000 - 10000.

 

 

Many of these primates experience horrible conditions.  Recent government documentation has revealed primates dying of dehydration, wasting diseases, hepatitis, encephalitis, and many other severe illnesses.

These intelligent social animals often suffer terribly from social isolation.  Approximately 35% of the animals housed in labs undergo some level of social isolation.  Solitary housing has been shown to cause psychologically aberrant behavior in primates within laboratories.  In fact, as many as 10% of isolated primates engage in self-injurious behavior, biting and tearing at their own flesh. 

 

Duplication within the system is rampant, with some experiments being funded approximately 180 times simultaneously, wasting tens of millions in federal funding.

 

As citizens of the United States we feel that we have the right to see what is happening within the laboratories that are funded with our tax dollars.  Therefore, we would like to ask all activists to contact laboratories in your respective cities to demand an in-depth tour of the facilities.  Sample letters are posted on our website.

It is also crucial that all of us work together to educate the public about the horrors of primate experimentation.  There are several important steps to be taken to prepare for events in your area.

 

First, look at the materials on our website which will be useful for educating both activists and the public. We have prepared fact sheets about animal experimentation and primate experimentation. Several informative reports are available on our website to acquaint you with relevant information about primate experimentation. Photos of primate experimentation are also available for your use on our website. You should also check the Government Grants Promoting Cruelty to Animals section for abusive primate experiments at laboratories near you.

 

Second, pick a target for your event.  Primate laboratories are located within many major cities across the U.S. including:

Birmingham (AL)
Little Rock (AR)      
New Haven (CT) 
Washington, D.C.
Seattle     
Portland (OR)            
San Francisco             
Los Angeles   
San Diego      
Denver                       
San Antonio               
Houston         
Austin (TX)
Gainesville (FL)
Richmond (VA)
Atlanta                       
Chicago
New Orleans     
Baltimore                    
Ann Arbor (MI)         
Minneapolis
St. Louis           
New York                  
Rochester                   
Durham (NC)
Winston-Salem (NC)
Pittsburgh                   
Philadelphia                
Nashville (TN)
Madison (WI)

It is possible to locate primate laboratories by using the resources section of our website.

Pick the style of event you would like to organize.  Protests, vigils, news conferences, informational tabling, leafleting, etc. are all worthwhile events.  The type of event that you choose is limited only by your own imagination.  Utilize the informational resources on the SAEN website to help in your planning.

Now go to our website and fill in the participation form so that we can support your efforts.  We will provide you with information, press releases, and other technical support that will make your events more effective.

 

Remember one thing:  the primates who are suffering in laboratories as you read this letter are depending on us to work together to fight for their freedom.  We must exercise our rights (free speech, freedom of assembly, etc.) so that we can fight for the recognition of their rights.  They have no voice but ours.  They have no protection, no hope, unless you act.  For every activist that does nothing, more primates suffer and die.

Where will you be October 11th – October 19th?

With Respect for All Life,

Michael A. Budkie, A.H.T.,
Executive Director, SAEN (Stop Animal Exploitation NOW!)