New Jersey: Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus. PETA Protest. East Rutherford.

Well, we were out there today in East Rutherford protesting the arrival of the Barnum & Bailey Circus in New Jersey. We got pretty good coverage from news agencies plus all the people who drove by and honked their horns. We stationed ourselves at the junction of Park Avenue and Ridge Road, and when it started to rain we didn't abandon our posts. It wasn't a particularly large group, probably eight people in total. We had a caged PETA Campaign Coordinator named Virginia Fort who donned nothing but body paint and panties to highlight the circus' abuse of animals. The attraction was a real eye-catcher. " I'll gladly bare my skin if it will help expose Ringling's abusive treatment of animals," says Fort. "The best way to stop this abuse is for people to boycott Ringling and other circuses that use animals." (PETA)
Ms. Fort was, in fact, referring not only to the general animal population of the circus but also to a caged tiger shot dead by a circus employee. The abuses continue at the circus. We created a bit of a slow down in traffic which is good from our point of view. As usual, the protest attracted both skeptics and sympathizers. One fellow said that the circus was " nice. " Another drove by and yelled disparagingly " Get involve in your country! " There were two ladies who came over and congratulated us for our work and dedication while several young men came over to enjoy the sights. They got a handful of our literature and an earful of our thoughts. Other people honked, rolled down their windows and gave us the thumbs up. The cops drove by several times, and I don't think they realized that we had a near-naked lady in the cage. The body paint can be illusionary. The protest took approximately two hours altogether. Photos by Ted Teodoro. Click on photos to enlarge.

In the News: http://www.northjersey.com/news/PETA_squad_protests_circus.html