If you haven’t already, please sign and share this action alert directed to the CEO of the Pittsburgh Zoo.
Today, with no reasons given, Judge Alan Hertzberg denied the Nonhuman Rights Project’s request for a temporary restraining order to prevent the Pittsburgh Zoo from moving siblings Victoria and Zuri to the zoo’s elephant breeding facility. During today’s hearing, lawyers for the Pittsburgh Zoo used the same tired arguments and false statements that come up in all our lawsuits to try to prevent our litigation seeking the elephants’ right to liberty from moving forward. They also announced during the hearing that Victoria and Zuri had already been moved to the zoo’s breeding facility. This move was made on October 27th, six days after we filed our lawsuit, with no public announcement (our request then became for the judge to reverse this move).
The zoo’s words and actions show that zoo leadership has no concern for the mental and physical anguish these elephants are forced to endure on a daily basis–anguish that’s even worse for the elephants used in captive breeding. The zoo cares only about being in compliance with bare-minimum regulations that preserve the zoo’s ability to deprive elephants of their autonomy.
We’ll continue to fight for the elephants’ autonomy to be restored. The courts have yet to rule on the elephants’ habeas corpus petition, which seeks their right to liberty and release to a sanctuary.
As our litigation proceeds and we prepare to hold a rally outside the zoo on November 22nd, you can help by speaking out. Please take one to two minutes to use our action alert to send a message to the President & CEO of the Pittsburgh Zoo–urging the zoo to release Angeline, Savanna, Tasha, Victoria, and Zuri to a sanctuary. If you’ve already signed, please share it, especially with any Pennsylvanians you know. We’ll have further updates soon.
