Ok its not animal rights but we need some time out.
Siouxsie – from our home county of Kent and also Kate Bush – do I need to say any more ?
Trust me, they are, really !!
But most importantly:
MAKE ANIMALS MATTER
Day: October 15, 2022
Animal Rebellion protesters ‘may have caused £100k in damage after pouring 20 bottles of milk on Fortnum & Mason carpet’
WAV Comment – F&M, buy carpet tiles !
The animal rights protesters are also accused of causing damage at Selfridges
Animal Rebellion protesters accused of pouring 20 bottles of milk on to the carpet of Fortnum & Mason may have cost it £100,000, a court has heard. Steve Bone, 40, from Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, stands accused of targeting Fortnum & Mason and Selfridges on Friday along with Sofia Fernandes Pontes, 26.
He pleaded not guilty to a charge of criminal damage in relation to the alleged Fortnum & Mason incident at Highbury Corner Magistrates’ Court on Monday afternoon (October 10). Prosecutors told the court the alleged incident took place at 11.30am.
Allegedly, the animal rights protesters took a basket with 20 bottles of milk to a value of £38 and emptied its contents on to goods and the carpet at the store, reports MyLondon. The carpet which was only laid a year ago would cost at least £5,000 to fix. Should it need replacing in its entirety then the total cost would be £100,000, the court heard.
Bone also indicated a not guilty plea for a charge of theft at the store as well as one count of theft and one count of criminal damage in relation to the alleged incident a Selfridges. He is accused of causing £273 of damage in that particular incident.
Bone, was granted conditional bail with conditions which include not being allowed to visit the two stores and will appear at Southwark Crown Court on November 7. His alleged accomplice, Fernandes Pontes, 26, of Copenhagen Street, Islington, North London, will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on November 7.
Regards Mark
WAV Comment – A brilliant day for US activists. And the same day that Ag Gag is kicked into the dust. Great that this means activists can enter facilities if they are getting evidence of animal abuse and cruelty. Congats to all !
Animal Rights Activists Found Not Guilty After Rescuing Pigs From Smithfield Factory Farm
Wayne Hsiung said his and and Paul Darwin Picklesimer’s animal rescue trial is “a matter of conscience”
Two animal rights activists who rescued pigs from a Smithfield meat factory farm have been acquitted after standing trial in the US.
Wayne Hsiung and Paul Darwin Picklesimer, who filmed themselves taking two sick piglets from a Utah farm in 2017, were facing burglary and theft charges. If found guilty, they risked a prison sentence of five years each.
On Saturday night, the jury unanimously found them not guilty. Activists said the trial has set a “powerful precedent” for the right to rescue animals.
Hsiung, an attorney who represented himself, told the jury in his closing statement: “I don’t actually want you to acquit us on a legal technicality. I want you to acquit us as a matter of conscience. There’s a big difference between stealing and rescue.”
The rescue
In 2017, Hsiung and Picklesimer entered Circle Four Farms in Utah. The farm is one of the United States’ largest pork producers, processing one million pigs a year. They were investigating the use of gestation crates, which Smithfield promised to ban back in 2007.
When they entered the farm, they saw “row after row” of the cages. These two foot by seven foot metal stalls offered the pigs no room to turn around. The animals could spend up to five years of their life in them while pregnant.
The two pigs they rescued, later named Lizzie and Lily, are still alive today. Hsiung previously said in an interview that the pigs were ill and close to dying when they found them.
The trial
Hsiung and Picklesimer filmed the conditions on the farm, but the footage wasn’t allowed to be used in the trial due to the fact that it may have caused “horror” to the jury.
The activists claimed this was a violation of their constitutional rights and is part of a broader pattern of undue corporate influence.
Hsuing previously stated that the FBI, dozens of agents, and attorneys tried to prosecute the case “for years.” This is despite the fact that the commercial value of each piglet was around $42.20. The FBI were sent to raid sanctuaries in search of Lily and Lizzie after they were rescued.
“State and federal authorities have consistently shielded factory farms from transparency and accountability,” said Matthew Strugar, a constitutional lawyer involved in all successful efforts to overturn “ag-gag” statutes.
“In nearly two decades of legal work, this case is one of the most egregious I’ve seen, in terms of denying defendants’ constitutional right to a rigorous defense.”
Regards Mark
Previous posts:
Hogwood is now on Netflix!
Dear Mark,
Since Hogwood: a modern horror story launched in 2020, we’ve been working hard behind the scenes to bring this incredibly important film to an even wider audience.
We can now confirm that Hogwood is live on Netflix, having premiered on Saturday 15th October 2022!🎉
Joining the world’s largest streaming service will allow Hogwood to reach millions more people and show that we need to End Factory Farming Before It Ends Us.
From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank you for your ongoing support and for helping us to share Hogwood with the world.
Presented by Jerome Flynn
Jerome originally shot to fame as one half of pop duo Robson & Jerome and is now best known for his role as Bronn in the HBO series Game of Thrones. Other roles include Bennet Drake in Ripper Street and Paddy Garvey of the King’s Fusiliers in the ITV series Soldier Soldier.
“It is an honour to be presenting this very important film. After seeing the horrendous conditions and animal abuse that is happening behind Hogwood’s walls I had to do something. The pigs of Hogwood aren’t just meat products, they are sensitive, emotionally aware beings just like us and they deserve better than this.”
Running at just over 30 minutes, HOGWOOD explores the reasons behind factory farming and exposes the negligence and inaction by government bodies and corporations alike. It highlights how meat pollutes our planet and puts us at risk from disease outbreak. It explores why factory farming is supported and follows the brave fight to expose the truth and change the world.
The documentary centres around a seemingly idyllic pig farm, named Hogwood. Jerome Flynn opens the documentary against the picturesque backdrop of rural England, just minutes away from Hogwood Farm. He tells the captivating tale of HOGWOOD and how it came to be one of the most infamous pig farms in the UK. His narrative is intertwined with undercover footage and interviews with investigators and activists representing the animal welfare group Viva! — who spearheaded the campaign. The film goes onto feature interviews with a livestock vet speaking out about her horrific on-the-job experiences for the first time. It concludes with expert comment from GP and public health expert, Dr Josh Cullimore and Oxford University researcher Joseph Poore.
Directed by Tony Wardle
“I have been producing investigative documentaries for many years and no film has been more harrowing than HOGWOOD. The name ‘a modern horror story’ could not be more apt; there are modern horror stories taking place each day in the British countryside. Not only are these horrors hidden from sight, but they are endorsed by huge corporations and the Government. That is why this film had to be made — because the public has a right to see what takes place beyond the factory farm walls.”
Viva! investigated Hogwood pig farm four times from 2017 to 2019. Year after year, we recorded a catalogue of cruelty including extreme overcrowding, routine mutilation, sick and dying pigs abandoned in gangways, painful lacerations and live cannibalism. This was one of our biggest campaigns to date and with your overwhelming support, Red Tractor and Tesco finally dropped Hogwood. Like many of our supporters, we couldn’t help but think about the pigs trapped inside Hogwood. We know that Hogwood is a typical pig farm; these conditions are enforced and supported by huge corporations and government bodies alike. We realised that Hogwood is part of a bigger story, one that aims to end factory farming for good — and so we created HOGWOOD: a modern horror story. Now we need your help to get this film seen by the masses.
Viva! has investigated Hogwood pig farm four times from 2017 to 2019. Hogwood was a Red Tractor approved farm, supplying supermarket giant Tesco, and major food producer Cranswick plc, supposedly representing the best of British farming.
In 2019, Hogwood farm was dropped by Tesco, Cranswick plc and Red Tractor. Despite this landslide victory, it remains the most disturbing and harrowing investigation of them all.
Each person who has seen the investigation footage had a powerful reaction and so Viva! crowdfunded to produce the documentary, smashing their target and raising over £10,000 in the first 24 hours alone.
HOGWOOD has already sent ripples throughout the animal agriculture industry. It sparked a nationwide Day of Action where thousands of people came together to protest outside 150 Tesco stores. Over 70,000 people signed a petition urging Tesco to drop Hogwood. It became one of Viva!’s most far-reaching campaigns to date.
Running at just over 30 minutes long, HOGWOOD takes you beyond the factory farm walls. It is the culmination of months of investigative work by the Viva! team who worked tirelessly to expose the kind of unspeakable cruelty to animals many mistakenly think we have consigned to the history books.
HOGWOOD is narrated by Jerome Flynn, the Game of Thrones star who shot to fame as one half of Robson and Jerome. He tells the captivating tale of Hogwood, intertwined with interviews with the intrepid Viva! investigators and with expert comment from GP and public health expert Dr Josh Cullimore, pig vet Dr Alice Brough and Oxford University environmental researcher Joseph Poore.
HOGWOOD is set to launch on March 26 at the Houses of Commons. The launch will be followed by a Q&A with Jerome Flynn, Labour MP Christina Rees, Conservative MP Sir Roger Gale, and the producers of the film.
Juliet
Founder and Director
Regards Mark
World Animals Voice 