Date
October 13, 2006
Contact
Suzanne Roy
(919) 732-8983
Margo Cavanaugh
(314) 517-8784
In Defense of Animals
3010 Kerner Blvd
San Rafael
CA 94901
IDA is an international, California-based animal advocacy organization dedicated to ending the abuse and exploitation of animals by defending their rights, welfare and habitats.
Elephant Advocates Gather at St. Louis Zoo in Face of Zoo Intimidation and Amid Escalating National Controversy
St. Louis, Mo.—Despite repeated attempts by the St. Louis Zoo to impede the public’s right to hear both sides of the captive elephant debate, members of the St. Louis Animal Rights Team (START) and In Defense of Animals (IDA) will gather at the St. Louis Zoo and attempt to educate Zoo customers about the plight of the elephants confined in an outdated and inadequate exhibit.
Who: Members of the St. Louis Animal Rights Team and In Defense of Animals
Where: St. Louis Zoo, south entrance
When: Saturday, October 14, 1:00 – 3:00 p.m.
On numerous occasions, the Zoo has restricted activists to a small sidewalk outside the entrance and has prevented them from crossing the street to the location where paid zoo employees are actively taking IDA/START leaflets away from people leaving the park. Several months ago, zoo officials instructed the St. Louis Police Department to arrest an activist who was standing on a public sidewalk. The charges against the woman were later dropped.
Despite the St. Louis Zoo’s heavy handed attempts to shut down voices of dissent, controversy about the negative effects of captivity on elephants is escalating in St. Louis and nationally. Last Sunday, the national spotlight was focused on the issue with a New York Times Magazine cover story focusing on the trauma elephants suffer at the hands of humans both in the wild and captivity. Meanwhile, last week the Philadelphia Zoo became the 11th major U.S. Zoo to close or phase out its elephant exhibit.
As zoos nationwide reevaluate their ability to meet the needs of earth’s largest land mammal, the St. Louis Zoo continues to hold elephants in yards of less than one-half acre and confines them to concrete-floored barn stalls for extended periods of time, especially in winter when the cold temperatures force elephants to be indoors for days on end. Of the Zoo’s seven adult elephants, six suffer from lameness, joint problems, chronic foot abscesses, and nail problems. According to an autopsy report, an eighth elephant, 32-year-old Carolyn who died at the Zoo in 2000, also suffered from arthritis and foot problems.
For more information see www.helpelephants.com.