educate others
One of the best ways to help exploited great apes is by educating others about their plight. Tell your friends about the Primate Patrol website and get them involved in letter-writing too. Following are some other great ways to spread the word about the plight of apes in entertainment:
- Host a letter-writing party – Increase the number of Action Letters a company receives by hosting an event for friends and family who would like to get involved. Print off copies of the PDF “Serving a Life Sentence” and distribute them to your guests. You could also set up a laptop and show the Charles Spano film, “Serving a Life Sentence”. Or, consider giving a short presentation of your own on great apes in entertainment. You’ll need the following supplies:
- Copies of sample letters
- Correct addresses of the companies you will be contacting
- Envelopes with recipient addresses
- Pens and stamps
- Chimpanzees in Entertainment: The Facts
- Set up an outreach table at a community event – Have a table at a public meeting, festival, or concert. Bring the supplies listed above and get a couple of friends to help you engage people who might be interested in writing a letter. You can also pass out supplies to people who might want to write letters at another time or from home.
- Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper - A good way to educate a large number of people is to generate awareness through local newspapers. Letters to the editor are more likely to be published if they are short and concise, and particularly if they seem relevant to any current events happening in your area. For example, if you hear about a circus coming through your town or county, this would be a great time to contact your local newspaper and tell them about the brutal methods trainers use to control great apes (and all the other non-domesticated animals who suffer in circuses! See www.idausa.org/facts/circusfacts.html for more info).