Demo report

Encaenia demo 07

Encaenia demo 07Just over seventy supporters of the SPEAK campaign gathered in Catte St, Oxford to once again expose the dirty secret Oxford University wants to keep hidden from the rest of the world.

As the so-called 'great and good' of academia, science, politics and the arts filed into the Sheldonian theatre to receive their honorary degrees they were faced with a display of banners and placards which depicted the reality of life for animals like 'Felix' inside the closed world of the university animal labs.

It was exactly one year ago that Thames Valley police unlawfully imposed conditions on SPEAK supporters demonstrating at the Encaenia ceremony in a bid to spare Oxford University having to have themselves exposed as being responsible for abusing and killing 1000’s of non human animals in a fraudulent and the morally repugnant scientific practice inside their labs.

For eleven months sixteen campaigners were barred from entering Oxford to exercise their legal right to free speech but on this day they returned to join fellow campaigners and to once again stand up to the bullies at Oxford University.

A megaphone was used by campaigners to deliver a powerful message to all those gathered waiting for the pomp and ceremony to begin. Members of the public, tourists and gathered notables of academia were reminded that one of the people receiving an honorary degree from the university was Dr Richard Lerner a research chemist and President of the Scripps Research Institute based in the USA.

Among other 'notable' achievements credited to Dr Lerner is a brutal and pointless experiment he carried out in 1994 which involved depriving cats of sleep. Part of this study involved putting cats on a treadmill for 22 hours and then having fluid drawn from holes drilled in their skulls. It was clear that those who were invited to attend the Encaenia ceremony and those who were there to be 'honoured' were ill at ease with being faced with the truth about Oxford University, a university that is not only responsible for the deaths of 1000’s of animals but has been responsible for killing 2000 human guinea pigs in trials of the Vioxx drug.

This was evidenced by comments from some of the guests which involved hurling abuse at campaigners who had clearly unsettled the cosy closed world of Oxford academia. As the ceremony filed into the Sheldonian theatre they could be seen looking towards the cries of 'Shame on you' coming from campaigners a sentiment that can be fairly levelled at many within Oxford University who have turned their backs and closed their minds to real progressive thinking on scientific research whilst sentient beings like 'Felix' suffer alone and afraid.

Campaigners remained throughout the closed ceremony to make sure they were there to greet the 'dignitaries' as they left the theatre. After receiving their honorary degrees the procession left the theatre and once again campaigners were on hand to remind them that Oxford University is a centre of shame.

This demonstration was a triumph for those who are prepared to stand up for free speech but more importantly it was wake-up call to Oxford University. Oxford University believes it can use its considerable influence and financial muscle to silence those who stand up to it. SPEAK has a clear message for Oxford University, we will never give in to bullies or turn our backs on animals like Felix. We would also remind Oxford University that they are not our intellectual or political betters, rather they have revealed themselves to be in possession of a narrow minded, nasty and arrogant ethos that we will neither respect or bow to. Despite the current atmosphere of repression that has fallen over free speech under the Blair government some politicians still have the ability to see the truth and it was one such politician, Tony Benn who briefly joined our demonstration and offered us his support and said we "had done a fine job getting our message across".

 http://www.speakcampaigns.org/demoreports/20070619encaeniademo.php