A Dangerous Mind

The attitude displayed by Oxford University towards the SPEAK campaign and, more importantly, to the animals in its laboratories have a very familiar ring to them. It seems all those employed by this institution are ingrained with the same total disregard for any respect to the sentient beings that fill their laboratory cages. The recent investigation by Thames Valley Police into the abuse of a monkey by a leading professor at the university gives a clear insight into exactly how sentient life is viewed by those charged with the life and death of their victims. Describing an animal as an 'asset' and thereby rendering it with no more value than the inanimate objects in the laboratory. It is not how you would expect or even hope an intelligent person to behave. However this is not just the attitude of those directly involved in experimenting on animals but pervades the whole body of those employed to defend it.

On Thursday 17th February, supporters of the SPEAK campaign were at the regular site demos on South Parks Rd. On this particular day we were accompanied by a journalist and photographer from a national newspaper who were there to cover the campaign. As usual the two process servers who are employed by the university to serve injunctions on protesters were present with camcorders and injunctions at the ready. Despite there being at least three new protesters present for them to serve, they remained rooted to the spot all afternoon. At 5pm the protest ended and we made our way back up South Parks Rd as we passed the still motionless servers one woman remarked to them "you were a bit slow off the mark today" a smirking process server replied "it's a change of tactics". A man who is a regular protester at the site suggested "that they might be a bit camera shy". As he walked by, the server commented, "we are off to kill some monkeys now" and laughed.

The Oxford University has adopted an arrogant and high-handed approach to all those who dare to expose their lies and the true nature of those employed in vivisection. The academics and professors have been protected from prosecution by the same attitude from government as well as the closed world of animal experimentation at Oxford University. What is equally true is that the same callous and nasty mindset infects all those caught in the web of animal abuse at Oxford University, irrespective of whether it's those doing the abusing or the ones that serve the papers to defend it.