Adventures in Oxford – “We put acid on monkey penises”
Rick Stein | 08.12.2004 16:05 | Animal Liberation | Repression | Oxford
Last week the police got themselves carried away by the injunction thinking that they could trample all over protestor rights at the behest of Oxford University, by moving people on when ever they tried to demonstrate against the animal labs being built. Not to be so easily dissuaded a group of us went back on Thursday and continued the mission to bring the horrific labs to the attention of the people of Oxford.
First stop was on St Giles, where we stood with a big banner directing people to www.curedisease.com so they could find out the real facts behind vivisection, and a megaphone to inform everyone that we were there and why we were protesting. There was the much interest from people who had heard of the campaign but wanted to learn more.
Apparently this exercise of freedom of speech was too much for the police who sent down a big bunch of officers to supervise us. Despite them all reading the injunction, they couldn’t find anything that was in breach of it. So they sent for the top man in charge of policing the City of Oxford to impose his regulations saying that we were upsetting the people in a nearby library, blah, blah and that we had to move on.
We told them that it was the university’s fault for taking out an injunction so we cannot stand down at the labs were we wanted to be anyway, and that is who the library should complain to.
Anyway, we were not going to be put off that easily. So having had a good one and half hours there, we trooped off to South Park Road, and stood just outside the injunction zone – much to the disbelief of the police and other people working there, many of whom were shocked that we could not go the 30 meters further along to actually stand across from the labs.
Instead we stood with our banner and placards opposite the chemistry building, where a number of the students seem to think the pictures of mutilated animals similar to those which will suffer in experiments to be carried out in the laboratory next do to them. Some of these pinnacles of civilisation and learning stuck a crude sign on their window saying “We put acid on monkey penises” – how charming! They were forced to take it down and given section 5 warnings by the police and told that the university would also be receiving a complaint.
So, all in all, an excellent day out in Oxford, showing them that their injunctions was not going to stifle our rights to protest, and with some excellent outreach achieved. We must say a big well done to those people inside of the university who are opposing the building of the lab in the face of so much shameful uncritical thinking from their fellow students.
We will be back on a regular basis (and not just on the regular Thursday demos) so if you are interested in becoming involved in the campaign contact Speak Campaigns at
info@speakcampaigns.org.uk or see www.speakcampaigns.org.uk.
Why not check out the leak of documents on just what is going on in Oxford animal labs at
http://www.speakcampaigns.org.uk/news/20041207leak.php
Let the Chemistry Research Laboratories know that you do not think making jokes about pouring acid on monkey penises is a laughing matter and request that people who post these sort of notices only bring the university into further disrepute - politely of course! (Note, this is not a protest against the animal labs, but a complaint against the behaviour of some students).
Department of Chemistry, c/o Central Chemistry,
South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QH
Tel. 01865 275906
Fax 01865 275905
Prof W Graham Richards - head of department
Email: graham.richards@chem.ox.ac.uk - Tel: 01865 275 908
Apparently this exercise of freedom of speech was too much for the police who sent down a big bunch of officers to supervise us. Despite them all reading the injunction, they couldn’t find anything that was in breach of it. So they sent for the top man in charge of policing the City of Oxford to impose his regulations saying that we were upsetting the people in a nearby library, blah, blah and that we had to move on.
We told them that it was the university’s fault for taking out an injunction so we cannot stand down at the labs were we wanted to be anyway, and that is who the library should complain to.
Anyway, we were not going to be put off that easily. So having had a good one and half hours there, we trooped off to South Park Road, and stood just outside the injunction zone – much to the disbelief of the police and other people working there, many of whom were shocked that we could not go the 30 meters further along to actually stand across from the labs.
Instead we stood with our banner and placards opposite the chemistry building, where a number of the students seem to think the pictures of mutilated animals similar to those which will suffer in experiments to be carried out in the laboratory next do to them. Some of these pinnacles of civilisation and learning stuck a crude sign on their window saying “We put acid on monkey penises” – how charming! They were forced to take it down and given section 5 warnings by the police and told that the university would also be receiving a complaint.
So, all in all, an excellent day out in Oxford, showing them that their injunctions was not going to stifle our rights to protest, and with some excellent outreach achieved. We must say a big well done to those people inside of the university who are opposing the building of the lab in the face of so much shameful uncritical thinking from their fellow students.
We will be back on a regular basis (and not just on the regular Thursday demos) so if you are interested in becoming involved in the campaign contact Speak Campaigns at
info@speakcampaigns.org.uk or see www.speakcampaigns.org.uk. Why not check out the leak of documents on just what is going on in Oxford animal labs at
http://www.speakcampaigns.org.uk/news/20041207leak.php Let the Chemistry Research Laboratories know that you do not think making jokes about pouring acid on monkey penises is a laughing matter and request that people who post these sort of notices only bring the university into further disrepute - politely of course! (Note, this is not a protest against the animal labs, but a complaint against the behaviour of some students).
Department of Chemistry, c/o Central Chemistry,
South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3QH
Tel. 01865 275906
Fax 01865 275905
Prof W Graham Richards - head of department
Email:
graham.richards@chem.ox.ac.uk - Tel: 01865 275 908
Rick Stein