Animal Rights Advocates Protest at Schabarum’s Home
More than 100 demonstrators from three animal rights organizations demonstrated Sunday in front of Los Angeles County Supervisor Pete Schabarum’s home in West Covina to protest the sale of animals from county shelters for medical research.
The crowd left voluntarily after a sheriff’s deputy read a statement from Schabarum indicating he would meet with the group leaders this morning in his office, said Javier Burgos, a spokesman for Students United Protesting Research and Experimentation on Sentient Subjects (SUPRESS).
SUPRESS, along with Last Chance for Animals and the Society Against Vivisection, took part in a similar demonstration at Supervisor Ed Edelman’s home in Westwood last week, but left after being promised a face-to-face meeting with the supervisor.
Burgos said that meeting was a “waste of time.” But he added that Edelman has agreed to view an animal rights documentary produced by SUPRESS today.
If action is not taken to halt the sale of animals, “next time they will have 500 people on their lawns,” Burgos said.
Schabarum and Edelman could not be reached for comment Sunday.
The demonstrations were organized after the board failed to pass a motion by Supervisor Mike Antonovich to stop selling animals at county shelters for research purposes.
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