A look at Hollywood’s
conflicting support
for medical research and “animal rights”
It is intellectually dishonest to support medical research while embracing the animal rights movement, which is fundamentally opposed to animal research. Sadly, a number of Hollywood celebrities continue to promote the notion that the mutually exclusive goals of animal activists and biomedical researchers can be achieved simultaneously.
The idea that medical and scientific research can be advanced – without laboratory animals – is completely false. Animal research has played a vital role in virtually every major medical advance of the last century. From dialysis to organ transplantation, from the development of protease inhibitors to dopamine replacement, from vaccinations to chemotherapy, practically every present day protocol for the prevention, treatment, cure and control of disease, pain and suffering is based on knowledge attained through research with animals.
Much of what we know about AIDS and how to treat it is the result of research with lab animals including non-human primates, chickens, cats and rodents. Studies with rats and mice continue to provide invaluable data in the fields of breast cancer and heart disease research. Animal studies have also been instrumental in achieving better understanding of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease and treatments for drug addiction.
Animal activists have not only rejected the essential need for animals in finding new therapies and cures, they have attempted to block or slow advances in important and promising research. In recent years animal activists have:
- initiated litigation against the U.S. government to impede
scientific progress
- applied pressure on members of the U.S. Congress to introduce
legislation opposing some biomedical research
- spent millions of dollars spreading misinformation regarding
the value of animal research
- issued death threats against dozens of doctors and other biomedical researchers.
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Despite these activities, some celebrities continue to serve as spokespersons for the animal rights movement. Some have been honored by groups like PETA for their outstanding leadership on animal rights, even as they support areas of disease research that rely upon the continued use of laboratory animals. They are communicating the false and illogical notion that the mutually exclusive goals of animal rights and disease research can be attained simultaneously. |
"My message to people in Hollywood who support disease research and animal rights: Leave your ribbons at home. The patients, activists and families, as well as your fans – and the scientists working hard on a cure – deserve to know precisely where you stand." –
Dr. Michael E. DeBakey |
Hollywood stars must recognize that when they support, represent, or advocate on behalf of PETA, the public will assume they also support the organization's fundamental objective, namely, to deny scientists access to one of the most valuable resources available to combat life-threatening illness.
It must be noted that FBR strongly supports the continued efforts of the Hollywood community to raise awareness for serious illness. The entertainment industry's advocacy has resulted in the donation of hundreds of millions of dollars for important research deleted, and delete has helped advance scientific understanding for diseases that affect millions of Americans
However, those who truly support the fight against AIDS, breast cancer, and other diseases should support and defend the scientific community's efforts to utilize every resource available in the search for new therapies and cures. This includes the use of animals in biomedical research.
FBR has identified some of the most high-profile celebrity supporters of animal rights who are attempting to straddle the fence on animal rights and medical research.
Alex Baldwin has unequivocally opposed the use of animals for medical research while supporting both breast cancer research and various AIDS-related causes. Baldwin has specifically supported a New York-based breast cancer facility that conducts animal research. Read more.
Kim Basinger has publicly denounced the value of animal studies while advocating on behalf of breast cancer research. Scientists use laboratory mice and other animals to learn more about the deadly disease, which impacts one in every eight women in America. Read more.
While actively supporting both AIDS and cancer-related charities, Sandra Bernhard has served as a representative for PETA, which opposes any use of animals for research into cures for these afflictions. Much of what scientists know about AIDS comes from previous studies on sheep, cats, horses, and primates. Continued research on AIDS will require the use of animals. Cancer research relies heavily on the use of rats and mice, and to a lesser degree, many other animals. Read more.
Animal research has already positively affected Jennie Garth's life. Her father is a beneficiary of heart-bypass surgery, which was developed in part through animal research on dogs and calves. In addition, Garth has raised awareness about the horrors of drug addiction. Researchers say drug-addiction studies in animals such as rodents and primates are critical to understanding a drug's physiological effects on the body, the critical changes in the brain as a result of drug use, and the manner in which these brain changes can be reversed as effective treatment for addiction. Despite being in a position to appreciate the importance of animal studies, Garth publicly supports PETA, which is categorically opposed to the use of animals for any reason, including medical research. Read more.
Bill Maher has publicly endorsed PETA wile advocating on behalf of AIDS and cancer-related charities. It is hard to reconcile Maher's support for an organization that actively campaigns for the elimination of animal research, when the overwhelming majority of physicians and scientists say animal studies are indispensable to the search for treatments and cures for AIDS and cancer. Read more.