“There is no exploration more valuable than our own integrity and ethical consistency, and our relationship to animals is a direct reflection of our values in relation to life and to each other.” These are the powerful words of Dr. John Gluck, a former animal experimenter turned pioneering animal rights advocate. PETA presents the University of New Mexico (UNM) Professor Emeritus of Psychology with an award for his courageous work for the benefit of our fellow animals.
PETA applauds Gluck for sharing his story
Gluck is an invaluable ally in our work to end the archaic monkey experiments he witnessed as a graduate student at the University of Wisconsin in the 1960s.
“I remember how many times I saw these monkeys in the experimental apparatus, and they looked so helpless, confused and frightened. It got me thinking … who are these creatures? … [T]now the time has come when I could no longer drive away questions. “
– Dr. John Gluck
The primate lab, where Gluck began his career, normalized confinement and torture of monkeys, but that changed for him when he made a connection with sensitive, intelligent animals. The realization that our fellow primates have complex emotions, behaviors, and social relationships — for example, female rhesus monkeys cooing at babies to calm them — set him on a different path — advancing ethical research.
“[W]We have consistently underestimated the mental complexity and sensitivity of animals to pain, and therefore the potential for harm. The obvious question arises: why the harm to which these animals, which at least will be similar to humans, are subjected to harm not matter? How did belonging to a group of primates, which includes humans, automatically change the moral universe? “
– Dr. John Gluck
Glitch continues to be an important voice against animal experimentation
In addition to spending years at UNM to encourage his colleagues to study humane research, Gluck has documented his journey from animal experimenter to animal welfare in his book, Voracious Science and Vulnerable Animals. He also joined PETA’s call to end experimentation on our fellow animals, including in our successful campaign to end the series of maternal deprivation experiments on baby monkeys at the National Institutes of Health and in our #IStoppedYouCanToo campaign, which pushes experimenters to challenge the status quo. … keeps hundreds of thousands of animals trapped in laboratories and subjects them to senseless and cruel procedures. Join PETA and animal rights advocates like Gluck in calling for an end to cruel experiments on monkeys:
Help PETA close the monkey prisons!