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Animal Rights Activists Nationwide Protest CEO of Company Building Underground Animal Lab

January 23, 2016 by Leave a Comment


The News

In a weekend of protests dubbed #StormSkansa, animal rights activists from across the country travelled to New York to stage massive protests at home and office of Richard Cavallaro, the President and CEO of Skanska USA, a multi-billion dollar global construction company. Skanska was hired by the University of Washington to build a $90 million underground animal research facility in Seattle. According to organizers, Cavallaro was targeted because, as the head of Skanska USA, he has the power to shut down the project.

No New Animal Lab activists occupy a crane to halt construction of underground lab at the University of Washington

No New Animal Lab activists occupy a crane to halt construction of underground lab at the University of Washington

The convergence was co-organized by activists with the NYC Animal Defense League and the No New Animal Lab campaign, which was started in Seattle by grass roots activists who, in late 2014, discovered that thousands of animals would be held captive, abused and killed in the university’s proposed hidden laboratory.

The University of Washington experiments on baby monkeys. No New Animal Lab is aiming to stop the institution from building a new lab to for more animals

The University of Washington experiments on baby monkeys. No New Animal Lab aims to stop the institution from building a lab for more animals.

On Friday night, activists staged a disruptive protest at the Empire State Building, where Skanska’s main office is located. To the delight of activists and pedestrians who recognized him, actor and social justice activist James Cromwell participated in the protest. Following the protest, Mr. Cromwell gave a rousing speech about his advocacy during a Know Your Rights seminar at NYU Law School.

On Saturday, approximately 150 activists travelled to Huntington, a suburb 1.5 hours outside of the New York City, to march through Cavallaro’s neighborhood and demonstrate in front of his mansion. During the protest, two activists were arrested as they allegedly attempted to climb to his roof to drop a banner. In an interview with Newsday, Cavallaro described the activists as “terrorists.”
Activists with No New Animal Lab march through Richard Cavallaro's neighborhood in Huntington, NY

Activists with No New Animal Lab march through Richard Cavallaro’s neighborhood in Huntington, NY (photo: No New Animal Lab)

At one point during the protest, Cavallaro angrily emerged from his house and unwittingly gave protesters a photo op.
Skanska USA CEO Richard Cavallaro

Skanska USA CEO Richard Cavallaro (photo: No New Animal Lab)

Jay Johnson, an organizer with NYC Animal Defense League, said that No New Animal Lab is undeterred by arrests and by the injunctions filed by Skanska: “You can sue one person, or you can try to intimidate one person. But you can’t do that to an entire movement. We’re going to keep coming back to them. And we are going to stop this lab from being built.”
No New Animal Lab Protests at the home of Skanska USA CEO Richard Cavallaro (photo: No New Animal Lab)

No New Animal Lab Protests at the home of Skanska USA CEO Richard Cavallaro (photo: No New Animal Lab)

While No New Animal Lab was created to shut down the University of Washington animal lab, the organization has morphed into a modern day incarnation of Stop Huntington Animal Cruelty (SHAC), an activist group in the U.K. and U.S. that employed non-violent direct action to shut down the multinational animal research laboratory, Huntington Life Sciences.

Your Turn

Please visit No New Animal Lab to learn more about the group’s campaign and to join and/or support their efforts.



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TheirTurn.net Comments

  1. Celina says:

    I’m a Animal Right’s Activist myself. I believe no harm should come to any animal. I applaud myself and those out there that believe so strongly against animal abuse that they protest on street corners to be heard. After watching some of the video’s I was appalled at how loud and cruel the protesters were. Do you win over with badgery? Maybe that’s why there so much constant ridicule from bypassers. The mega phone, really? How about winning over bee’s with honey not vinegar. I do plenty of street protest about animal cruelty that are silent. People take our hand outs and read our signs. That’s what gets there attention. NOT YELLING IN PEOPLE’S EAR, CLIMBING ROOF TOPS, AND VANDALIZING PROPERTY. Other than that, keep up the great work.

  2. MORE SUFFERING HELL HOLES BEHIND CLOSED DOORS.EXPOSED.THERE IS ENOUGH CRUELTY WITHOUT ADDING MORE

  3. Patricia says:

    Karma w get you

  4. Hope are greedy bastard have a horrible life of pain and suffering.

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