Kinship Circle - 2007-11-27 - 09

This photo is part of the 11/27/07 Kinship Circle alert November Digest (Parts 1 & 2).

PHOTO: As a result of Huntingdon's ongoing injunction farce (or flushing your money down the toilet as normal people call it), we have been unable to hold a national protest outside of Huntingdon's Laboratory in 4 years.

Until now... November 10, 2007 was a celebration of our right to protest, and a huge morale boost to the campaign which is going to close down Huntingdon Life Sciences... As 700 people gathered in Huntingdon, Amanda Richards from SPEAK kicked of the speeches, reminding everyone...HLS kills 500 animals every day, and has been exposed time and again punching dogs, cutting open live primates, and generally abusing animals... Amanda spoke of the Newchurch campaign, which successfully closed the Staffordshire Guinea Pig farm, who shipped animals straight into the labs of HLS... Next up was the ever charismatic Keith Mann, who reinforced the message that we must keep fighting for the animals inside HLS... Finally, Sarah Whitehead read an emotive and powerful letter from Heather Nicholson, currently remanded in prison simply for standing up and speaking out for the animals inside HLS.

...We traveled in convoy to the gates of hell themselves... As people tried to take in what they were seeing, Tom Harris from SHAC gave a rousing speech, urging everyone to take up the fight against HLS... He spoke of the current lawsuit against HLS in which they are accused of falsifying data, the abuse of animals recently witnessed at interfauna, and the fact that, as Roche said, it is not a matter of IF Huntingdon closes, but WHEN...

Then, for two hours, we vent our grief and our anger. The air was rent with noise, as for the first time in years we filled the night air outside HLS with the sound of megaphones, sirens, voices, whistles and drums. This protest was amazing, for those who came, thank you on behalf of everyone of the 70,000 animals waiting to die inside HLS. To those who couldn't make it, you missed out, and we'll see you next time!