Not only is it St. Patrick’s Day but it’s also St. Gertrude’s Day, the never-before-heard of patron saint of cats! And on this day, an important animal rights demonstration in Trieste took place…probably the first of it’s kind in this city. Unexpected throngs of citizens and animal lovers gathered this afternoon to peacefully show their support against the construction of a new animal research facility at the University of Trieste.
And if you’re wondering, no I’m not religious. It’s just that in Italy, every day is some saints’ day and for some, it’s a big deal. How did I find out about St. Gertrude? Wiki-ed. Other patron saints of animals in Italy are Saint Francis of Assisi and Saint Anthony Abate.
In any case, at the demonstration earlier today, there were no student groups demonstrating against the construction of what the animalists call “a new place of torture and death in the name of teaching science”. Word murmurred among the demonstrators that the students on campus, outside of the science dept., had no clue to the university’s project and that the recently approved public funding of about €455,000. That’s pretty smelly business.
Petition: Trieste says NO to Animal Research Facility (started Feb 3, 2012)
Note, Aug 15, 2012: The antivivisection demonstration was organized by an apolitical group of Triestines that since then formed the ‘Citizens Committe for the Protection of Animals’ – Trieste per gli animali. The proponents of the committee were also present at the first demonstration against Greenhill in Montechiari, Brescia (Lombardy) on June 24, 2010.
links:
The directive on vivisection: A European Shame (LEAL Lega AntiVivisezionista)
Diciamo NO alla vivisezione all’università di Trieste e alla SISSA (facebook)
“Trieste e la vivisezione sulla collina” (GeaPress, news agency)
NO ALLA REALIZZAZIONE DEL NUOVO STABULARIO A TRIESTE (LAV – lega antivivisezione)
“The question is not, Can they reason?
nor, Can they talk?
but, Can they suffer?”
– Jeremy Bentham