Urge Representative Mikie Sherrill to End Cruel and Unnecessary Animal Dissections in Schools
The Honorable Mikie Sherrill
Parsippany District Office
8 Wood Hollow Road
Suite 203
Parsippany, NJ 07054
Dear Representative Sherrill,
My name is Elizabeth Novogratz and I am the founder of Species Unite, an animal welfare media organization based in Brooklyn, New York.
I am getting in touch with you today as I know you to be great ally for animals in Congress. As one of the original co-sponsors of the FDA Modernization Act in the House of Representative you have made it clear that you are willing to champion common sense legislation that has the potential to greatly reduce animal suffering while simultaneously embracing the incredible potential of nonanimal methods for scientific study.
Every year in the United States 10 million animals are killed to be used in classroom dissections. These animals include frogs who are captured in the wild, stray, or lost cats who are taken from animal shelters and pounds, fetal pigs taken from slaughterhouses, and mice, rats, and rabbits who are often sourced from animal experimentation breeding facilities.
These animals are all killed in the name of education, but according to a recent study in the leading science-education journal, The American Biology Teacher, students who use non-animal methods (NAM) perform just as well, if not better, than their fellow classmates who use animal dissection.
American taxpayers are funding the killing of these animals without providing any real benefit to students. Fortunately, 21 states including your home state of New Jersey, have passed student choice laws that offer students the right to refuse to participate in classroom exercises that harm animals, including dissections without being penalized.
Students should have the right to choose not to participate in unnecessary animal cruelty no matter where they live. I have collected over ____ signatures (attached below) from Species Unite community members who believe that Congress has an obligation to protect equal educational opportunities, and this should be extended to children who morally object to participating in animal cruelty in school.
As a member of the House Education and Labor Committee and a Humane Society endorsed member of the Congressional Animal Protection Caucus, I believe you are the perfect person to champion this issue that falls at the intersection of student’s rights and animal protection.
As we look ahead to the 118th US Congress I know that there is room for bipartisan collaboration to end unnecessary animal cruelty and to protect the rights of students to equality in education. Please consider sponsoring a bill to make this right a reality. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,