Below is an alert re: submitting letters to the editor to the Vancouver Sun and the Province. In addition, I've included two more stories about our coalition letter. They both ran today.

"Cause and Effect" (North Shore News, October 13)

"End Secrecy of Animal Tests" (Postmedia wire story, October 13. Ran in various papers including National Post, Ottawa Citizen, Leader Post, and others)

ALERT: PLEASE WRITE LETTER TO VANCOUVER SUN, PROVINCE EDITORS

Yesterday, the Vancouver Sun published a story about our coalition letter to UBC (See Group Demands UBC Lift “Veil of Secrecy” Around Animal Testing). The Province also ran a piece about the letter (See Drop Veil of History, UBC). It is critical we show the newspapers that their readers are concerned about what is happening to animals at UBC. Now is the time to send letters to both the Sun and Province.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

*Submit a letter to the Vancouver Sun and Province editors. Maximum length of letter is 200 words. I've included some points below you may want to include in your letter. You can also get helpful information from our new website. Go to our "Resources" page for more information. Be sure to personalize your letter so that it does not look like a form letter. If you need help drafting your letter to the editor please contact Brian Vincent at stopubcanimalresearch@gmail.com

To submit letters to the editor:

Vancouver Sun

Email: sunletters@vancouversun.com

Fax: 604-605-2522

The Province

Email: provletters@theprovince.com

Fax: 604-605-2759

POINTS YOU MAY WANT TO INCLUDE IN YOUR LETTERS TO EDITOR (Remember the letter must be no longer than 200 words so pick a few of these points)

*UBC is one of the largest bio-medical campuses in the country. UBC researchers experiment on a number of animals, including non-human primates, cats, rats, pigs, mice, and more. Some of the experiments involve highly invasive procedures.

*Each year, UBC's Animal Care Centre distributes 100,000 animals to UBC-affiliated research projects

*There has been a steady increase in the use of animals in research across Canada. In 2008, 2.3 million animals were used in animal research in Canada, up from less than 1.8 million in 1998. UBC is at the forefront of these trends.

*UBC continues to use non-human primates in neurological experiments. Recently, the rhesus macaque, an Asian species, has been used extensively in Parkinson's disease research. The monkeys are typically subjected to brain damage which models the degenerative disease and then treated with various methaphetamine and electroconvulsive shock therapies.

*UBC also conducts experiments on cats, and in some cases, using highly invasive, painful procedures

*UBC has been less than forthcoming about its animal research activities. To date, UBC has been reluctant to disclose details about experiments on animals. If UBC is so proud of its research, why have they hidden it from the public? UBC should disclose information about its animal research programs, including methods used on animals in research, Animal Care Committee assessments of UBC's research, veterinary and necropsy reports, photos and video footage of research activities, and data on the numbers (by species) of animals at UBC facilities.

*UBC should abandon its research on animals because it is morally at odds with many peoples' values of compassion. In addition, animal research is of questionable scientific merit.

*Experiments on animals in Canada are not "tightly regulated" by the Canadian Council on Animal Care. CCAC guidelines are voluntary and there is no regulatory statute in Canada that requires UBC to comply with CCAC guidelines.

*UBC should hold a forum on campus to allow the public to ask questions about UBC's research on animals. The university should also agree to a debate with researchers who reject animal experimentation and with animal advocates.

*Urge UBC to agree to a debate with Stop UBC Animal Research

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Stop UBC Animal Research is a community grassroots campaign that employs peaceful, legal, and compassionate approaches to educate the public about the grim realities of research on animals at the University of British Columbia and to ultimately bring about an end to research on animals at UBC. Please visit our website at: http://stopubcanimalresearch.org/