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Activists Erect Billboard in Georgia to Expose Cruelty at Project Chimps

September 28, 2021 by — Leave a Comment


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Chimpanzee advocates have erected a billboard near Project Chimps in Georgia to raise awareness of the plight of the 77 chimpanzees who live there. At this Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) facility, the 77 chimpanzees have access to the outdoors for just a few hours every three days. They spend the rest of the time languishing in concrete rooms. Activists put up the billboard on the weekend of September 25th to coincide with “Discovery Days” at Project Chimps, a semi-annual, two day open house that attracts hundreds of visitors.
Advocacy groups erected a billboard calling on The Humane Society of the United States to transform its Project Chimps facility from a warehouse to a true sanctuary

Advocacy groups erected a billboard calling on The Humane Society of the United States to transform its Project Chimps facility from a warehouse to a true sanctuary

The billboard is the latest tactic in a campaign to compel HSUS to improve animal welfare at Project Chimps. Activists with Chimps Deserve Better, Progress for Science and TheirTurn launched the campaign in July, 2020, after Project Chimps filed a lawsuit against two whistleblowers who came forward with extensive evidence of animal cruelty. As part of the campaign, the advocacy groups are calling on HSUS to transform the facility from a warehouse into a true sanctuary where the chimps spend their days in an outdoor habitat on the 236 acre forested property.
At Project Chimps, the Humane Society's chimpanzee "sanctuary" in Georgia, the 77 chimpanzees spend most of the time in concrete rooms.

At Project Chimps, the Humane Society’s chimpanzee “sanctuary” in Georgia, the 77 chimpanzees spend most of the time in concrete rooms.

In July, 2021, HSUS CEO Kitty Block acknowledged the need for additional yards, but she did not specify when Project Chimps would create them. In a response to advocates who contacted her about the deficiency, Block blamed “COVID” and “weather” for the delay, despite the fact that the chimpanzees have been living in these conditions since 2016.

HSUS CEO Kitty Block’s response to advocates calling on her to create additional yards at Project Chimps so that the 77 chimpanzees have daily access to the outdoors.

“How can HSUS blame COVID-19 for its inability to build yards for the chimps when Project Chimps was able to create elaborate hiking trails for visitors during the pandemic?” said Lindsay Vanderhoogt, one of 22 whistleblowers who sent a letter to the Chairman of the Board, Bruce Wagman, to sound the alarm about poor welfare conditions. “Project Chimps is supposed to be a sanctuary, not a zoo, yet it continues to prioritize the entertainment of tourists ahead of the welfare of the animals.”
At Project Chimps, HSUS has prioritized amenities for tourists ahead of some of the basic needs of the chimps.

At Project Chimps, HSUS has prioritized amenities for tourists ahead of some of the basic needs of the chimps.

HSUS’s multi-year delay in creating additional yards doesn’t only affect the 77 chimpanzees at Project Chimps; it also impacts the estimated 120 retired chimpanzees at New Iberia Research Center (NIRC) who are waiting to be sent to a sanctuary. In 2016, Project Chimps signed a contract with NIRC which stipulated that its 220 chimps would be sent exclusively to Project Chimps. In a call on August 9th, however, NIRC Director Dr. Francois Villinger told Donny Moss of TheirTurn that he would not transfer any additional chimpanzees to Project Chimps until the sanctuary addresses the space issues. “Because HSUS is dragging its feet on expanding Project Chimps, the chimps at NIRC are stuck there for the indefinite future,” said Moss. “This is especially troubling given the recent instances of animal cruelty uncovered at NIRC by the advocacy group Stop Animal Exploitation Now (SAEN).”

Through a Freedom of Information Act request, Stop Animal Exploitation Now (SAEN) uncovered and publicly exposed animal cruelty at the New Iberia Research Center

Through a Freedom of Information Act request, Stop Animal Exploitation Now (SAEN) uncovered and publicly exposed animal cruelty at the New Iberia Research Center

Among the NIRC chimpanzees transferred to Project Chimps before the moratorium are Hercules and Leo, clients of the Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP) who were made famous by the 2016 documentary film Unlocking The Cage. In 2015, a New York lab (that leased them from NIRC) released them after years of legal pressure applied by NhRP.  To ensure a humane retirement for Hercules and Leo, NhRP made arrangements to transfer them from NIRC to Save The Chimps, a sanctuary in Florida where they would spend their days outdoors. Because of its exclusive contract with Project Chimps, however, NIRC sent Hercules and Leo to the Georgia sanctuary instead, where they spend most of the time in concrete rooms. Now, NhRP is engaged in another battle on behalf  Hercules and Leo – this time with HSUS. After HSUS privately dismissed their concerns about their clients’ captivity at Project Chimps, NhRP took the unusual step of publicly calling on HSUS to provide Hercules and Leo with daily access to the outdoors.
Through a Freedom of Information Act request, Stop Animal Exploitation Now (SAEN) uncovered and publicly exposed animal cruelty at the New Iberia Research Center

The Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP) and the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) are engaged in a public battle over the plight of Hercules and Leo, NhRP clients who are languishing in concrete enclosures at HSUS’s Project Chimps facility in Georgia.

Crystal Alba, a Project Chimps whistleblower who created a website to expose the mistreatment at the facility, summed up the sentiments of all of the advocates working on the effort to help these chimpanzees: “For the sake of all of the chimps – those awaiting sanctuary at the NIRC and those already at Project Chimps, I hope that HSUS addresses the most serious animal welfare issues by creating more outdoor habitats, hiring a qualified veterinarian, and providing the comprehensive care these chimps need to thrive in captivity.”


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TheirTurn.net Comments

  1. Angela Quacinella says:
    October 2, 2021 at 12:13 pm

    I am here to help the chimps in any way ❤ I am begging you to please do the right thing them❤

  2. Judy says:
    October 1, 2021 at 2:38 pm

    There needs to be oversight and a viable plan to get these chimps the healthiest environment possible.

  3. My says:
    September 30, 2021 at 11:08 pm

    Stop animal cruelty. Technically is amazing and why we tested on animal

  4. Zizi says:
    September 28, 2021 at 10:38 pm

    Under the shameful control of HSUS, these unfortunate chimps at Project Chimps, lead sad, depressing lives, in which their physical and emotional needs are not being properly addressed. This was not the arrangement to which NIRC agreed when it approved their transfer to Project Chimps. It has been said they had a more enriched environment, and more time outdoors, at NIRC….Imagine that!

    We are not talking about some poor little organization, but rather, HSUS is the wealthiest animal organization in the world. They are “cashing in” on suffering and misery, while soliciting donations! They can well afford the very best conditions, vet care, staff, enrichment, developed outdoor space for these “prisoners”…make no mistake about that!

  5. ahimsa42 says:
    September 28, 2021 at 6:46 pm

    talk about the ultimate betrayal! you know how screwed thw world is when the very organizations which are supposed to be protecting the helpless, innocent non-human victims are the one’s who are exploiting them & then lying about not having the financial resources to help when they have literally hundreds of millions of dollars in the bank at this very moment. just think of the amount of good a real AR org could do with a fraction of the funds that a corporate charity like h$u$ has at it’s disposal.

  6. Lawrence Trepel says:
    September 28, 2021 at 2:27 pm

    A shame this continues, but good to see a billboard. Whatever it takes to improve the situation.

  7. Matthew Endo says:
    September 28, 2021 at 12:24 pm

    It would be so easy for Project Chimps to just do the right thing! Hopefully this exposure and the other actions and ongoing pressure trigger movement in favor of the Chimps’quality of life.

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