Health Charities: Helping or Hurting?

[Guest guest]

Health Charities: Helping or Hurting?

http://blog.peta.org/archives/2007/05/why_heather_sto_1.php

By

Senior Writer

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals

( and Carly photo at link)

WalkAmerica, March of Dimes' largest annual fundraiser, is taking

place now in cities across the United States. More than fifteen

years ago, I participated in this event, believing funds would be

used to fight birth defects. Since then, I've had three surgeries to

correct foot deformities that doctors suspect were caused by Charcot-

Marie-Tooth Disease (CMT), a hereditary progressive nerve disorder

of the feet, lower legs and hands. CMT is the most common inherited

neurological disorder, characterized by a high-arched foot and gait

disturbances.

Unbeknownst to many donors, a number of health charities, including

the March of Dimes, waste time and money on animal experiments

instead of devoting all of their funds to worthwhile projects that

may truly help people with CMT and other disabilities or diseases.

This causes me far greater distress than any genetic defect ever

could. It's shameful that a health charity would inflict the same

pain and suffering on animals that it wishes to eliminate in humans.

Animal research proponents often like to claim that animal rights

advocates would change their minds about animal experimentation if

they had diseases or disabilities. I didn't. In fact, I find the

implication that those of us with disabilities would automatically

support animal experimentation insulting. It suggests that people

with diseases and disabilities are selfish, callous, and desperate,

and will support cruelty to animals in order to help themselves—no

matter how futile the chance.

It's simply unethical to cause harm to one species under the guise

of helping another—unethical and ineffective. Although animals feel

pain and fear like people, there are enormous physiological

differences between animals and humans; data taken from one species

cannot always be correctly applied to another. Vast differences

exist even between mice and rats, let alone rats and humans.

Every dollar spent on animal research is a dollar that could have

been better spent on humane, effective methods of fighting birth

defects and helping people.

Relevant programs, such as the National Birth Defect Registry,

improved prenatal care, counseling and education, and treatment for

pregnant women addicted to nicotine, alcohol and drugs, can really

help prevent birth defects and improve the quality of life for

people with disabling conditions.

Many other charities, including Easter Seals, Birth Defect Research

for Children, Heimlich Institute, and the Little People's Research

Fund, Inc., put all their funds into programs that directly benefit

people and never waste a penny on animal experiments. People for the

Ethical Treatment of Animals, where I work, provides a complete list

of health charities that do and do not fund animal experiments at

StopAnimalTests.com.

The next time a health charity stretches a hand in your direction,

make sure the charity won't waste your money on cruel animal

experiments. After all, health charities are supposed to help stop

suffering—not cause it.