Mauritius demo in New York

Gateway to Hell
8-25-05
Win Animal Rights launches Gateway to Hell campaign at the Mauritius Consulate in New York City
Although WAR has campaigned at the offices of Air France, El Al and other airlines, this was our first visit to the Consulate, which is located at 211 East 43rd Street in Midtown Manhattan. A representative was sent up to the Consulate office to let them know that we had arrived. The young woman who answered the door acted surprised when she was told that there were demonstrators assembled in front of the building to protest Mauritius' trade in primates for vivisection. She told us that she wasn't aware of the campaign, so we promised to deliver a full package of information next week and to return often for future protests.

On the street, demonstrators held a banner reading: "BOYCOTT MAURITIUS GATEWAY TO HELL" and distributed flyers with details of Mauritius' active involvement in the wild caught primate trade. This location was one of the most receptive to our flyers and our message. Within an hour, we had distributed over 200 flyers. Many pedestrians stopped to chat and ask questions about the campaign and many promised to call or write the Mauritius Ambassador to the United Nations and the First Secretary of the Consulate. Most displayed disgust at the vile and reprehensible slave trade of primates for vivisection.

As an added bonus, several employees of pharmaceutical giant, Pfizer, visited our protest with nervous questions about whether we knew which companies used primates for animal testing. Pfizer has offices right across the street from the Mauritius Consulate. We made a note to remember to bring some Pfizer specific literature next time we return to the Consulate.