Camp Beagle is fast approaching the ‘landmark’ of three years of consistent protest outside the gates of hell – some say Camp Beagle is the longest animal rights protest in the UK.
– I’m sure that MBR Acres never thought we’d make it past a few months, but hey we are still there!
– I’m sure that MBR Acres never thought that they would be spending between £3,000,000/£4,000,000 to get rid of their nosey and noisey neighbours in the High Court.
– I’m sure that CaMBRridgeshire Police never thought that they will be forking out close to £1,000,000 in order to ‘balance the rights of protesters and the rights of a ‘lawful’ ‘Business’, let alone becoming a private security company for MBR Acres.
Things have changed at Camp over three years or so and the most significant being the numbers of like minded animal rights campaigners who actually pitch up.
Why is this? I have thought long and hard about this and come up with many theories.
You aren’t going to change the law so why bother?
Imagine the Suffragettes even thinking that back in the day?
Camp Beagle, in my opinion, is a slow burn operation. I get it that MBR won’t close the gates, re-home the beagle puppies overnight and walk away from a multi-million pound business – why would they?
I get it that the Government just play lip service and won’t write legislation overnight outlawing the outdated, immoral and unjustified practice of testing on beagle puppies. With the upcoming Elections, the Labour party are promising to set up another committee to agree a roadmap to end animal testings – can we really trust them coming from the same Party who promised a Royal Commission only for Tony Blair to cave in when the big Pharmas put pressure on him to pull out of the UK? Then again who remembers Priti Patel who was ‘shocked and horrified’ when she saw the MBR expose in the national press?
Equally I get it that the likes of LabCorp, Charles River and Sequani, to name but a few, won’t change overnight to NAMs (Non Animal Methods).
The tide is changing – before Camp most of the UK didn’t have a scooby about MBR Acres, let alone animal testing on beagles still happening, so I guess Camp has ticked that box.
Parliament is taking note, especially leading up to the Election, that Animals Rights are now firmly on the agenda.
Perhaps the success of Camp Beagle can be summed up at an outreach event that I recently attended.
There was a constant flow of visitors to our stand and I estimated that 1 in 3 of our visitors knew either of Camp Beagle or MBR Acres and they were extremely passionate about the cause and extremely knowledgeable. Of the other folk most thought that animal testing was outlawed when cosmetic testing was banned – Once known the majority were shocked in disbelief so I guess Camp is making progress.
PLEASE SAVE ME! X
Much has changed over the years in Camp Beagle’s strategy – social media has played a significant part in raising the profile, providing updates and, above all, getting the word out.
Our recent Government petition achieved over 100,000 signatures – at the end it was ‘turbo charged’ by the likes of Jodie Marsh, Gemma Collins and Tom Hardy without whom getting the required number of signatures would have been ‘challenging’, so we thank you all.
The livestreams from Camp get thousands and thousands of views and reactions – Don’t tell me about Tik-Tok, as it would seem that Camp only has to go live and we get over 500,000 views.
Socials are essential, but what has come of getting actual boots on the ground before all this social media lark?
I am sure that when people think of Camp Beagle they think of Nato tents, camper vans and placards. It is worth pointing out that a colossal amount of unseen work is being conducted behind the scenes, and for obvious reasons, under the radar, and believe me this will play a significant part in the closing down of you know who.
Nah you are all Vegans at Camp….
In the early days of my involvement with Camp, I would rock up at Camp early morning to ‘welcome in the workers’ armed with the obligatory large McCoffee. To be honest no one said a thing, but ultimately I came to respect that yes most campers are vegan, so now it’s a coffee with soya milk.
One of the many good things to come out of Camp Beagle is community. I have made friends for life at camp. People may have different opinions and views outside of trying to save the dogs but, as Camp says ‘Like Beagle Puppies? welcome in you are part of the Camp’. Couldn’t have put it better.
If I go to Camp I’ll get arrested…
Back in November 2021 the High Court imposed an exclusion zone around the gates of hell, which simply put, forbids protesters from entering. To be honest, it works well for all involved parties. MBR Staff know that we can’t be in their faces when they arrive or depart and the vast majority of protesters know the restriction and act accordingly. Even the Police benefit from it, as they don’t have to send van loads of riot clad PC’s to stand like androids twice a day.
So unless you ‘lightly touch a PC’ which in the eyes of the Cambridgeshire Police is assaulting a Police Officer, or blatantly enter the exclusion zone, chances are that the Police will completely ignore you which, in 99.9% of the time, is the case.
Do you know how far Camp is from me?
I get it. Distance gets in the way of most things. But what about pitching up for a day or so or even longer ? You will be welcomed like a lost brother or sister, given numerous cups of tea and cake which are normally to be found in the kitchen tent.
Once at Camp, you will get a true feel on how it functions day to day week to week, get to hear firsthand how loud the dogs actually are and above all realise why so many ‘campers’ have chosen to give up virtually everything to be at camp to protest.
I guess I am one of the so-called lucky ones as I live close to the camp. I say lucky, more ashamed that I actually live in a small market town that has such a vile place, let alone Labcorp a short distance from MBR Acres/Camp.
Boots on the Ground or likes or shares?
My age dictates that I am ‘old school’ – in my book it’s always best to be there in person whenever possible, as opposed to looking at a screen and clicking ‘like’.
Yes there has always been a constant 24/7 presence at Camp for nearly 3 years and I would urge you to be part of history, part of a national outcry and part of the protesters outside of MBR Acres.
Get down to Camp and be on the right side of history – what is the worst that can happen! (See above!)
Local Man