Shining a Light on Cruelty—PETA to Call Out NIH Monkey Experimenters in Vivid Sunset Display
For Immediate Release:
November 11, 2024
Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382
Rush hour commuters near the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) headquarters will get a shining surprise tomorrow evening as more than a dozen PETA supporters light up the night with a brilliant message over 495 Interstate Freeway: “NIH Kills Monkeys!” The neon demonstration will highlight the cruelty and waste in government-funded laboratories, where monkeys and other animals are tormented, terrified, mutilated, and killed in pointless experiments that do not advance human health.
“Monkeys in NIH’s laboratories are isolated, are deprived of food and water, and suffer from chronic diarrhea. In addition, their skulls are sawn open and they endure other forms of abuse,” says PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo. “PETA calls on NIH to see the light, stop abusing monkeys in useless experiments, and switch to human-relevant research methods.”
Where: 9581 Fernwood Rd., Bethesda, MD 20817 (on the overpass above the freeway)
When: Tuesday, November 12, 6–7:30 p.m. EST
Why: NIH’s laboratory overseen by Elisabeth Murray confines monkeys in metal boxes and subjects them to experiments in which their skulls are cut into. Records obtained by PETA for 73 monkeys in Murray’s laboratory reveal that 85% of the monkeys suffered from hair loss, a condition that can indicate extreme psychological distress. Almost 18% suffered from diarrhea or loose stool, and nearly two-thirds were subjected to fluid deprivation, while 48% were deprived of food to coerce them to cooperate.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to experiment on”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
