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The Importance Of Activism

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Published on Sunday, May 28, 2000 in the Boulder Camera

The Importance Of Activism

by Marc Bekoff "Close down Coulston," "Save the whales," "Med school can be a real killer." The first slogan calls attention to the plight of chimpanzees caged in the horrible confines of the Coulston Research Foundation's prison in New Mexico, the second to whales who have been decimated by human hunters, and the third to the killing of dogs by medical students in physiology classes. Numerous sound bites indicate dissatisfaction with any number of things happening in the world. Luckily, behind the verbiage are people who make a difference because they "walk their talk," because they deeply believe in one or another cause and do something about it. Expressing one's opinions taking an active role to stand up for one's values and beliefs is essential for creating dialogue and for making informed decisions. There are many different forms of activism; "activism" isn't synonymous with "radical." Nor does activism mean violence or the destruction of property. Boycotting is a form of activism as are silent candlelight vigils. Gandhi was an activist as was Mother Teresa. There are numerous examples of how activism pays off. Some of the examples with which I'm most familiar deal with animal exploitation. A classic example of someone who truly made a difference is the late Henry Spira, founder of Animal Rights International. Back in the 1970s, Spira and his grassroots organization were responsible for having federal funding pulled on a project in which researchers at the American Museum of Natural History performed surgery on cat's genitals and pumped them with various hormones to see how the mutilated cats would behave sexually. Spira also formed the Coalition to Abolish the Draize Test, a test that involves using rabbits to test eye-makeup. The Draize test is torture, and rabbits, who have very sensitive eyes, suffer immensely. By 1981 the cosmetics industry itself awarded $1 million to Johns Hopkins University's School of Hygiene and Public Health to establish the Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing. Most cruelty-free products trace their history back to Spira's tireless and unflagging efforts to stop animal abuse. Many people claim we should act locally and think globally. Indeed, the Boulderbased Rocky Mountain Animal Defense (RMAD) has had numerous successes in halting animal abuse. One major achievement was working with locals and narrowly defeating the plan to build a plexiglas zoo at the entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park in Estes Park. These efforts won honorable mention at the Genesis Awards hosted by the Ark Trust (www.arktrust.org), recognition for
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The Importance Of Activism

animal-friendly movies and activism that rivals that of the traditional Oscars. Other RMAD successes include stopping Lakewood from poisoning prairie dogs, calling attention to animal abuse in circuses, securing a moratorium to prevent exhibiting exotic animals at the Boulder Creek Festival, getting Celestial Seasonings to adopt a progressive prairie dog management policy, restricting contest killing in Colorado, and putting an end to pig racing by the Wynkoop restaurant. There has also been much controversy over dog killing at CU's medical school. RMAD's efforts to stop this practice have had a large effect. Channel 7 news and the Daily Camera have called for an end to the use of dogs as have State Reps. Tom Plant and Dan Grossman. Two years ago five medical students opted out of the dog labs, last year 15 made this choice, and this year 31 did so. It's safe to assume that activism had some influence. Non-animal alternatives are justified educationally, economically, and ethically. There are also costs to activism that often become personal. Activism can make one vulnerable to an opponent's onslaughts, especially when an activist is thought to be of "inferior" status. Recently, a medical student at CU claimed she has been harassed because of her criticism of the dog labs (Colorado Daily, April 20, 2000). My own concerns with the dog labs were met head-on by an insulting letter from 11 professors at the medical school (Silver & Gold Record, December 16, 1999) who claimed I wasn't a reliable judge of whether dog labs were essential. That numerous prestigious medical schools have stopped dog labs made little impression. Interestingly, these professors also claimed that the dog labs weren't essential but didn't want outsiders telling them that! I've also felt the effects of attempts to silence my asking questions about the reintroduction of lynx into Colorado. Costs of activism harassment, intimidation, and frustration are the price of putting one's beliefs on the line. Activism also takes a lot of time, but it's well worth it. Be patient. Protest gently but forcefully. Changes that come about due to heavy-handedness are usually short-lived and make little difference. Often it takes many efforts to accumulate the momentum needed to produce deep changes in attitude and heart that truly make a difference. It's important to listen to all views and master opponents' arguments. Only by knowing your opponents' tactics and arguments can you mount a serious offense. It's essential to remember that every individual counts and that every individual makes a difference. As Margaret Mead noted: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." Creative proactive solutions drenched in deep humility, compassion, caring, respect, and love need to be developed to deal with the broad range of problems with which we're currently confronted. Activism often underlies their formulation and implementation. It's essential to maintain hope even when things seem grim. Rather than take a doomsday view that the world won't exist in 100 years if we fail to accept our unique responsibilities, it's more disturbing to imagine a world in which humans and other life coexist in the absence of any intimacy and interconnectedness. Surely we don't want to be remembered as the generation that killed nature. Now's the time for everyone to work for peace with other humans, other animals, and with all of nature for universal planetary peace. There is a sense of urgency time is not on our side. Indifference is far too costly. Please act now with compassion and love for this magnificent world. Marc Bek off teaches in Environmental, Population, and Organismic Biology at CU-Boulder.
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