{"id":763639,"date":"2021-04-30T07:36:21","date_gmt":"2021-04-30T11:36:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/animalrightswatch.us\/?p=763639"},"modified":"2021-04-30T07:36:21","modified_gmt":"2021-04-30T11:36:21","slug":"r-i-p-elliot-katz-fervent-animal-rights-activist-who-was-arrested-37-times-is-dead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/animalrightswatch.us\/?p=763639","title":{"rendered":"R.I.P. Elliot Katz: Fervent animal rights activist who was arrested 37 times is dead"},"content":{"rendered":"\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Katz founded In Defense of Animals, an advocacy group that remains active today with national and international operations. Some of the organization\u2019s biggest victories involved animal research practices.<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\n

LILA SEIDMAN:<\/strong> Dr. Elliot Katz, a fierce animal rights activist and veterinarian who helped shape the modern movement with his advocacy group In Defense of Animals, has died at 86. Katz died at his home in Corte Madera in Marin County on March 24 after a year of declining health related to two surgeries, according to his daughter, Danielle Katz. A fervent love of animals and unwavering moral compass won Katz both admirers, including the well-known chimpanzee expert Dr. Jane Goodall, and critics, ruffling fur and feathers along the way.<\/p>\n

The New York native filed numerous lawsuits and was arrested 37 times for civil disobedience during his decades of activism. One of the first to practice nonviolent organized resistance on behalf of animals, Katz saw it as \u201ca powerful tool to speak up for animals,\u201d according to his daughter, who followed in his footsteps and now works for PETA. \u201cHe was strong in his beliefs until the very end,\u201d Danielle Katz said. \u201cHe planted a lot of seeds and set the stage for victories to happen for animals later”…<\/p>\n

He was nearly thrown out of Cornell University\u2019s veterinary school for refusing to perform practice surgeries on live dogs. But sticking to his guns, Katz prevailed on his terms… A pivotal moment arrived in 1983, when Katz filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture after learning that researchers at UC Berkeley were reportedly performing surgeries on animals without proper sterilization and keeping them in overcrowded cages. As a result of the suit, the USDA filed a cease-and-desist order against the university, which was ultimately fined $12,000 for violating the Animal Welfare Act.<\/p>\n

Motivated by the win, Katz quickly founded In Defense of Animals, an advocacy group that remains active today with national and international operations. Some of the organization\u2019s biggest victories involved animal research practices, the group\u2019s initial focus and an area Katz knew well… Katz once said, describing what prompted him to start the advocacy group. \u201cI had been taught not to stand by or turn my back while animals suffer and die, certainly not to purposely burn them or beat them, poison them or starve them, blind them or electrocute them, addict or infect them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Through the years, the organization took on big universities \u2014 as well as the U.S. Army \u2014 working to spare scores of dogs, cats and monkeys from what members said were cruel experiments… With Katz\u2019s death \u201canimals have lost a true friend and defender,\u201d Goodall said during a recent virtual memorial for Katz, during which she described him as a \u201ctrailblazer\u201d who spearheaded a movement as animal abuse was just coming to light. She added that \u201che liked being arrested,\u201d since it drew attention to the cause…<\/p>\n

At home, Katz was a loving, devoted father who instilled a respect for the humblest of creatures, his daughter said. When she was young, he brought home a rat named Ginger. Bonding with an animal that some might not appreciate, she said, \u201cwas such a profound moment for me”. SOURCE…<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

RELATED VIDEO:<\/strong><\/p>\n