Sunday, April 12, 2009
Demo #1: James Murdoch - Non-Executive Director GlaxoSmithKline On May 20, 2009, the Board of Directors of GlaxoSmithKline will welcome newly elected Director, James Murdoch. Mr. Murdoch is the son of famed media mogul, Rupert Murdoch. Activists gathered at Mr. Murdoch’s multi-million dollar town house on Easter Sunday in hopes of convincing him to influence the GSK Board about their relationship with the notorious Huntingdon Life Sciences. Those who gathered were disappointed to find construction barriers at 58 Downing Street in NYC’s Greenwich Village. Apparently Murdoch’s town house is undergoing renovation. Activists vowed to keep checking back and to reschedule this protest as soon as the construction work is done. This lovely quiet street will provide excellent acoustics for future protests. Meanwhile, activists will urge Murdoch, in writing, to take a compassionate stand and to dump Huntingdon Life Sciences. Demo #2: John Guenther - Managing Director - Bank of New York Mellon Pent up energy and frustration abounded as activists made their way to the next location. Once again, a quiet residential street in Greenwich Village provided just the right amount of pedestrian traffic coupled with excellent acoustics for carrying voices raised in protest. John Guenther is a Managing Director with Bank of New York Mellon that continues to hold a sizable number of shares of Huntingdon Life Sciences. Guenther lives at 88 Charles Street, New York City. Although the number of activists was small, their voices were not small at all. Chants rang through the quiet neighborhood and many of Guenther’s neighbors came out to see who was kicking up such a fuss on Easter night. Oh yes, it was Easter, the holiday of bunny rabbits and yellow chicks….peace on earth, love and all that kind of stuff. Meanwhile, down the road in East Millstone, New Jersey……chicks and bunnies enslaved and exploited by Huntingdon Life Sciences were being tortured and mutilated to test outdated chemicals and unnecessary food flavorings and additives. On Easter, a holiday of sweet treats, activists recall that 12,800 animals were brutally killed to test the disgusting artificial sweetener, Splenda. Pregnant bunnies and monkeys, puppies and infant monkeys were all poisoned at Huntingdon Life Sciences. Unlike the robber barons that work at places like Bank of New York Mellon, the animals at Huntingdon Life Sciences don’t get treats or holidays like Easter. That is why activists have made it a point to be the voice for those who cannot speak, especially on holidays. Police from the 6th Precinct arrived en force. Multiple squad cars with lights flashing created more of a stir than the activists ever could on their own. Police officers outnumbered demonstrators and did their absolute best to intimidate and bully the activists into silence. It didn’t work. Threatened with arrest, summonses and other repercussions, activists stood their ground and continued to raise their voices in order to get the attention of the neighborhood. "“500 animals were murdered today, John Guenther is to blame!” followed by “For the bunny and for the mouse, we are here outside your house”. Meanwhile, police came in such numbers, that they were effectively blocking both pedestrian and vehicular traffic on the narrow street. Police offered to stop harassing activists (who were conducting a peaceful, legal protest) and allow them to stay, if only they would agree to hold their signs on the poorly lit street, in silence. Protesters were perplexed as they were under the impression that protests were supposed to GET attention, not remain silent. Despite the threats of arrest and ill treatment, protesters stayed until their message was delivered and their time (according to notifications that had been submitted to the 6th Precinct well in advance) was finally up. “We'll be back”…chanted the protesters as they left. Of this, there is no doubt! Video Clip: |
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