IDA's Bay Area Events

Table of Contents:

1. Join the Dog March at UCSF Mission Bay Campus
2. Attend Hearing to Protect Marine Mammals from U.S. Navy's Sonar
3. Foie Gras and Duck Meat Dinner Outreach
4. Team IDA Pedals Compassion at California Bicycle Classic
5. Make Plans for World Week for Animals In Laboratories
6. Gopher Gardening at Ocean Beach



1. Join the Dog March at UCSF Mission Bay Campus

Despite last year's "Day of the Dog" protest and many civilized attempts to dialogue with officials at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), the university is still determined to perform cruel heart experiments on 750 to 800 dogs. They will suffer in great pain for a period of time ranging from several days to as long as six months, depending on the degree of problems and injuries caused. These experiments are not going to advance human medicine because it is already known that dog hearts - both anatomically and at the cellular level - are very different from those of humans, and that humane research on human subjects yields more accurate and useful results.

To protest and draw media attention to UCSF's heartless cruelty, a dog march is being held at which we hope to have at least one hundred well-behaved dogs. (Those who don't have dogs are welcome, too!)

What: Dog March to protest UCSF dog experiments
When: Sunday, April 10th from 10:45 a.m. to 12:00 noon
Where: UCSF's Mission Bay Campus (corner of 16th St. and Owens St.), San Francisco

Free parking for the march is available. From 16th St., go down the unnamed street between Owens and 3rd St. (which intersects with 16th St. at the east end) to the parking lot.

There will be vegan snacks, drinks and water for people and pooches.

If you can make it to the march, please contact Michelle at noanimalexperiment [at] yahoo.com or (650) 619-9713. Please give her your telephone number and email address in case she needs to contact you with updates, and let her know how many dogs you can bring.



2. Attend Hearing to Protect Marine Mammals from U.S. Navy's Sonar

The Marin County Board of Supervisors is holding a public hearing to discuss Supervisor Charles McGlashan's proposed Seaflow Resolution, which opposes the U.S. Navy's deployment of high intensity military sonar because it threatens the survival of already endangered marine life. Overwhelming evidence links the Navy's mid-frequency active sonar exercises to many fatal mass strandings of whales and dolphins in the world's oceans.
Even though other technologies can detect submarines at great distances without harming marine ecosystems, the Navy seeks exemption from environmental laws regulating ocean noise in order to continue using and developing sonar that blasts through thousands of cubic miles of ocean, driving marine mammals out of the water and onto beaches.

The Seaflow Resolution emphasizes the responsibility that Marin County residents have to protect whales that migrate along the Pacific coast from life-threatening active sonar. The Resolution's chances of passing are greatly improved by significant public support, so please join other animal advocates, environmentalists and concerned citizens at this important meeting.

What: Marin County Board of Supervisors Public Hearing on the Resolution For a Moratorium on the Deployment of Loud Sonar Technology
When: Tuesday, April 12 at 6:30 p.m.
Where: Marin Civic Center, County Board of Supervisors Chambers (Room 329), 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael

For further information, visit http://www.seaflow.org or email info [at] seaflow.org.



3. Foie Gras and Duck Meat Dinner Outreach

Chefs Jon Sears (The Dining Room Restaurant) and Scott Giambastiani (Viognier Restaurant) are on what they call "a personal crusade" to defend the "right" of restaurateurs to sell the diseased livers of force-fed ducks as a high-priced gourmet delicacy. They are holding a "special dinner" consisting of a twelve-course duck meal specifically to support California's foie gras and duck meat producers, who are in the business of torturing ducks for profit. In fact, the only foie gras producer in the state, president of Sonoma Foie Gras Guillermo Gonzalez, is the "special guest speaker," and will lead an after-dinner discussion of "The Duck Bill of Rights." Sears, Giambastiani and Gonzalez would like to frame the foie gras issue as one of consumers' right to choose, but at $250 a plate ($300 with wine pairing), their real motivation seems to be a desperate attempt to protect their right to make a financial killing off of animal suffering.

Please join IDA, Viva!USA, Farm Sanctuary, and Animal Place at an educational outreach event outside of this "special dinner,"
the actual intention of which is to justify and promote egregious cruelty to animals.

What: Foie gras dinner outreach event
Where: The Dining Room Restaurant, 1602 S. El Camino Real, San Mateo, Calif.
When: Saturday, April 16, from 4:30 - 6:15 p.m.

For more information and directions, email Kristie [at] idausa.org.



4. Team IDA Pedals Compassion at California Bicycle Classic

Come out to support the spring kick-off of Team IDA! Join Team IDA and Organic Athlete at the 2005 Sea Otter Classic bicycle event in Monterey, Calif. from April 14 - 17. This event draws over 50,000 spectators from around the world as well as over 10,000 bicycle racers, and will include events for all types of bike enthusiasts, from professional and amateur racing to bike tours of the area for the whole family. Team IDA and Organic Athlete will have a booth in the Marketplace area to hand out information about the benefits of training on a plant-based diet. IDA Spokesperson and cyclo-cross champion Christine Vardaros will be racing and tabling with us as her schedule permits. We'll also provide cool vegan refreshment from Organic Athletes' bicycle-powered smoothie cart! We hope you'll stop by our table to hang out and meet other Teammates...and remember to wear your Team IDA t-shirt.

We'll also be offering a special membership deal to encourage people who are not yet Team IDA members to join. For a limited time, we'll be offering a dual membership in both Team IDA and Organic Athlete for only $20 - that's two memberships at a savings of $15. For more information about Team IDA, visit our website at http://www.teamida.org/index.html , or e-mail teamida [at] idausa.org. For information about Organic Athlete, check out http://www.organicathlete.org . To learn more about the Sea Otter Classic, visit http://www.seaotterclassic.com .



5. Make Plans for World Week for Animals In Laboratories

World Week for Animals In Laboratories (WWAIL) offers people an opportunity to speak out on behalf of the tens of millions of rabbits, mice, dogs, cats, primates and other animals that become victims of medical research each year. During the week of April 23 - 30, IDA wants you to get active to bring their plight to the public's attention. A series of nationwide events spotlighting the cruelty that takes place behind the heavily guarded compounds of the animal experimentation establishment is being planned for the Bay Area and many cities around the country. If you would like to organize a Bay Area event for WWAIL, IDA would be happy to assist you. Contact Kristie [at] idausa.org for more information and to receive free materials.



6. Gopher Gardening at Ocean Beach

Join the San Francisco Wildlife Protection Project, a joint effort by IDA and the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department, to create a wildlife "sanctuary" along the Great Highway. By landscaping the area according to the Parks Department's specifications, volunteers create a habitat for native gophers and prevent them from being trapped and killed.
This is an on-going monthly effort, and happens on the first Saturday of each month. Please give us a hand so we can help the gophers.

What: Gopher Gardening
When: Saturday, May 7 from 9:00 a.m. to 12 noon
Where: Along the Great Highway, near Ocean Beach, San Francisco

For more information, please contact Kevin Connelly at (415) 388-9641, ext. 226 or kevin [at] idausa.org.

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