Tag: direct action everywhere

Golden Gate Fields Files Lawsuit Against Animal Rights Protestors

Golden Gate Fields in Berkeley, Calif. has filed a lawsuit against the animal rights group Direct Action Everywhere in an effort to ban those activists from the racetrack grounds, reports The Mercury News. The track is also seeking $25,000 in damages, according to the suit filed March 9 by San Francisco-based firm Allen Matkins, Leck Gamble, Mallory & Nastia in the Alameda County Superior Court.

Four members of the group chained themselves together on the racing surface and delayed races for approximately six hours on March 4, an action which also led Berkeley Public Health Department officials to temporarily shut down a COVID-19 vaccination clinic located at Golden Gate.

Albany assistant city manager Isabelle Leduc said four individuals were arrested without incident at about 6:30 p.m. PT on the evening of March 6, cited for trespassing, and released. The individuals named were: Omar Aicardi (43) of Modesto, Rocky Ming Fan Chau (32) of San Francisco, James Nicholas Crom (29) of Oakland, Rachel Christina Ziegler (28) of Oakland.

Read more at The Mercury News.

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Golden Gate Protestors Arrested for Trespassing

The four protestors who disrupted a card at Golden Gate Fields were arrested at 6:30 p.m. (Pacific Time) on Thursday without incident and were released after being cited for trespassing, according to Isabelle Leduc, the assistant city manager for the town of Albany, California.

Leduc identified the individuals as Omar Aicardi (43) of Modesto, Rocky Ming Fan Chau (32) of San Francisco, James Nicholas Crom (29) of Oakland and Rachel Christina Ziegler (28) .

The four, members of the animal rights group Direct Action Everywhere, scaled a fence before the first race and then lay down on the track on the far turn. They locked themselves together with heavy, interlocking pipes over their arms. The pipes made it very difficult for police and security personnel to remove them from the track.

Golden Gate management canceled the first race, scheduled for 12:45 Pacific time, but waited out the protest and eventually ran the remaining six races under lights. The card resumed at 7:28 p.m. and finished just after 9:30 p.m. The total handle was $619,349.

Matt Johnson, a spokesperson for the group, said the four ended their protest voluntarily, about six hours after it began.

“They were sunburnt and it had been a long day,” he said. “It was a question of how much longer they wanted to be doing this. We decided we were at our end point. I don't know what the police prospects would have been when it comes to cutting through those pipes. It would have been very difficult.”

Representatives of the group had said their goals included disrupting the entire card Thursday, which didn't happen.

“We were trying to shut them down, in the immediate term, the medium term and the long term,” Johnson said. “This wasn't the goal we were looking for. They knew they might try to fit in some races during the night, but those people were uncomfortable.”

Despite being unable to halt Thursday's card all together, Johnson said the protest achieved the group's goals.

“Overall, I would say we were successful,” he said. “This reached a lot of people and the public sentiment is very much moving against this industry. We think as a general matter, by getting more exposure to this subject and doing something the general public is inclined to support, that is going to be a good thing. That is pretty much what we were going for.”

The group said it was inclined to act when it did because of a recent rash of breakdowns at Golden Gate Fields. According to a Feb. 23 report from the Associated Press, five horses have died at the track in 2021. According to the television station KTVU, three horses died at Golden Gate between Feb. 20 and 25.

Johnson said the group had no immediate plans to lodge another protest, but added that it will stay on top of the situation. Direct Action Everywhere has said its goals include a nationwide ban of horse racing.

The ripple effects from events at Golden Gate Friday aren't restricted to the north of the state, with eyes now turning to Santa Anita, which cards a huge weekend of racing top-lined by Saturday's G1 $400,000 Santa Anita H.

Nate Newby, Santa Anita's general manager, said that he was unable to provide specifics about any beefed-up security team, but added that the track has “increased our security presence” for this weekend and has been “in touch” with the local Arcadia police department.

Golden Gate posted several statements on Twitter about the incidents.

“Golden Gate Fields is committed to the safety of the horses and the people who care for them, and the types of actions exhibited today run directly counter to the safe environment we are trying to create.

“Thoroughbred horse racing is a highly regulated, legal sport. Trespassing and endangering others are completely inappropriate and illegal methods to express opposition to the sport.”

When the activists first lay down on the track, they set off purple smoke flares, presumably to alert the track, the harrows, and the field for the first race that they were there.

“Further,” said the statement from Golden Gate, “bringing incendiary devices onto the property is inherently dangerous to human life, the more than 1,200 horses stabled here and the hundreds of people who care for them. This behavior will not be tolerated. We encourage those responsible to find an appropriate way to air their grievances rather than endangering the lives of thousands, including the horses they claim to want to protect.”

After the second race went off, the track Tweeted, “We are grateful for the support of racing fans in the Bay Area and around the globe. A special acknowledgement is due the Albany Police Department for their professionalism and responsiveness. We were able to race tonight thanks to them and we continue to believe in our commitment to safety, the beauty and greatness of our sport and the right of thousands of Californians to enjoy what we regard as a treasure. We would like to thank all the owners, trainers, grooms and our dedicated employees at Golden Gate Fields for their commitment and patience under extremely trying circumstances today.”

Additional reporting by Dan Ross.

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Protestors Lying On Track Delay Golden Gate Card, Shut Down Vaccination Site

A group of four protestors lying on the track in a “sleeping dragon” maneuver caused officials to push back the start of Thursday's card at Golden Gate Fields in Berkeley, Calif. Races were scheduled to begin at 12:45 p.m. Pacific, and have not begun as of 3:45 p.m. The track feed indicates that the afternoon's first race has been canceled, while races two through seven are delayed until further notice.

The actions also caused a 2 1/2-hour shutdown of the COVID-19 vaccination clinic hosted at Golden Gate.

The protestors were joined by a group of about a dozen others demonstrating outside the track, and belong to a group called Direct Action Everywhere (DXE), which has been live streaming the goings-on on their Facebook page.

Spokesperson Cassie King, appearing on the live feed, said DXE was spurred to action by the deaths of three horses during a recent four-week period.

According to a press release issued by the organization, the four on-track protestors are Omar Aicardi, Rachel Ziegler, Rocky Chau and Jamie Crom. They are connected by heavily-weighted PVC pipes in a direct action maneuver called a “sleeping dragon.” They also lit purple smoke flares while in place.

“These beautiful animals live lives of exploitation and abuse for the sake of profit, then they're killed for the same reason,” said Chau. “The public is increasingly aware of the reality of this barbaric industry, and is demanding that we leave it in the past.”

At about 1:30 p.m., security personnel could be seen on the track hovering over the protestors, but didn't take any action against them. An hour later, a tent was placed on the track to shade the protestors.

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Protestors Shut Down Racing at Golden Gate

The Thursday racing card at Golden Gate Fields was on hold after animal rights protesters ran on to the track before the first race and locked themselves together with interlocking pipes over their arms. The first race was scheduled to go off at 12:45 p.m. Pacific Time. As of 4:45 p.m. local time, one hour after the last race was scheduled to go off, no races had been held and the protestors remained on the track.

The protest was staged by a group called Direct Action Everywhere, which live-streamed the goings-on on their Facebook site, including drone footage of the protestors lying on the track, before signing off just after 4 p.m. PT. The group is based in the Bay Area.

According to Cassie King, a spokesperson for the group, the four individuals were locked together to form a human blockade. They were connected by heavily weighted pipes, according to a press release from the organization.

The protestors ran onto the track at about noon, climbing what Direct Action Everywhere said was a 7 1/2-foot fence and lying on the track on the far turn. On video shown from drone cameras, the four activists waited until the harrows had passed before the first race before scaling the chain link fence, carrying the interlocking pipes. After they lay down on the track, they attached themselves to one another with the pipes. On the video, one of the harrow drivers ran up to them and tried to stop them from locking arms, but was unable to do so.

“Their goal is to be there long enough so that they can't race today,” King said. “The first race was scheduled to go off at 12:45 and that obviously hasn't happened because they haven't moved them yet. Our bigger goal, which we are trying to get support behind, is to shut down Golden Gate Fields permanently.”

At about 1:20 p.m., police officers or security personnel were on the track hovering over the protestors but didn't seem prepared to take any immediate action.

“The activists in this blockade are prepared to be arrested,” King said.

Direct Action Everywhere describes itself as “a global network of activists working to achieve animal liberation in one generation.” Their website says that their 'accomplishments' to that end are rescuing hundreds of animals from slaughterhouses, laboratories and other places of violence, mobilizing thousands to take action in hundreds of cities worldwide, and passing legislation such as the fur ban in Berkeley and San Francisco that led to California banning it statewide. Their website says they have 30 chapters across the U.S. and Canada.

The group's goal, she added, was to end horse racing in the U.S. King and the other hosts of the live Facebook feed also said that they were advocating for the land at Golden Gate be repurposed as affordable housing.

“Ending horseracing can be a powerful domino to fall toward ending all animal exploitation,” she said. “We don't want this industry in the state of California. We don't want this industry anywhere.”

King was clearly misinformed about what makes up a racing card as she repeatedly said that only two races were scheduled on the day and that the second one was set to go off at about three hours after the first. She also said that half of all Thoroughbreds bred for racing went to slaughter, also not true.

King said the group decided to take action because, she said, three horses had died there over a recent four-day period and that five had died during the current meet.

A small group of protestors gathered outside the track with banners and signs reading, “Shut Down Golden Gate Fields.” The group was also circulating a petition online to shut the track down. Some passers-by threw eggs at the group, according to the activists.

“This is obviously not just because of those four horses or five horses this season. It's the entire industry,” she said.

Golden Gate was meant to function as a COVID vaccination site today, where people were reportedly going to show up to receive their second dose of the vaccine. The site was temporarily closed due to the protests, but was opened again around 2:30 p.m. A local health site estimated the number of canceled vaccination appointments at 200.

Golden Gate Fields addressed the action over Twitter, tweeting, “Golden Gate Fields is a firm believer in the right to protest. However, the current actions of the protesters have forced the closure of the onsite COVID vaccination clinic, and hundreds of people have already had their vaccinations cancelled.

“We respectfully suggest to the activists that there is a better way to have this conversation and air their concerns. We welcome the opportunity to have this discussion in the appropriate format.”

Later in the afternoon, a portable pop-up shade tent was put up over the protestors, presumably as a goodwill gesture from Golden Gate.

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