RAYLEEN HSU Chris Melgar protests for animal rights while Javier Burgos, former president of The Nature of Wellness, speaks in Meyerhoff Park.

By Hemesh Patel

Daily Bruin Senior Staff



When former veterinary student Jerry Friedman witnessed rams being raped for research purposes, he decided to become an activist and a law student.

“They used anal ejaculators to stimulate the animals to ejaculate,” Friedman said. “Researchers would then collect sperm samples.”

A group of 30 protesters from various groups gathered at UCLA Friday as part of World Laboratory Animal Liberation Week, an international week of protest against animal experimentation.

With chants such as, “UCLA, how many animals did you kill today?” activists marched from the medical center to Meyerhoff Park.

Javier Burgos, founder of The Nature of Wellness, an organization against animal experimentation, said the scientific community has brainwashed the public for the last 100 years with the mantra, “Animal experimentation saves human lives.”

“We need to destroy this argument, this myth,” he said.

But researchers disagreed and said animal research contributes to human welfare and does save human lives.

There are countless examples of Nobel prizes won in medicine over the last 100 years that used animals, said Matt, a fourth-year graduate student in neuroscience.

Matt, who did not want to be fully identified for fear of being targeted by animal rights groups, works in a laboratory that conducts experiments on mice to study neural stem cells.

In 1902, pigeons were used to understand the malaria life cycle and last year the Nobel Prize was given to researchers who studied learning and memory in mice, guinea pigs and sea slugs.

While the majority of protesters wore black clothing, some wore handkerchiefs over their mouths for fear of being identified and branded as a terrorist by the police.

“We like to wear black to symbolize our mourning for the animals,” said a representative of the Animal Liberation Front, who declined to be named for fear of being labeled a terrorist. “Nowadays police have digital cameras, so if we are photographed, we would be placed into a national police computer.”

“The masks show solidarity with the Animal Liberation Front, a group that has never caused harm or injury to any living being,” she added.

In April 1999, the ALF “liberated” 116 animals from the University of Minnesota.

Matt called the ALF a violent organization.

“The organization did $2 million worth of damage,” he said.

Activists argued that $22 million is spent each year, and money could be saved if experiments were not duplicated.

“If you don’t use enough animals, you don’t learn anything, and that’s a waste,” Matt said.

While activists claim that UCLA researchers often cause animals to be sick as a result of their research, scientists disagreed.

“Every precaution is taken to reduce the pain and stress level of the animals,” Matt said. “It’s better for research to treat animals well.”

He also said the number of animals used in the laboratory have dropped in previous decades.

For example, between 1973 and 1998, the number of dogs used for experimentation decreased by 61 percent.

Activists also questioned whether animal research has any real benefits to human health.

“All these new buildings are built from the pain and suffering of animals,” said Bill Dyer, a member of In Defense of Animals. “Its not about finding cure for cancer and AIDS – it’s all about money.”

Researchers stated otherwise, saying they are working toward a goal that will potentially benefit human health.

“We’re not in this for financial gain,” Matt said. “This is not a big money-making operation. We do this to learn things and help people eventually.”

He noted by the time he graduates he will be making less than $30,000 a year.

“No one is here for hurting animals needlessly; we do it out of necessity,” Matt said.