One Month of (Mostly) Solo Protests

I've been protesting outside Zootopia Contact Zoo every week for a month – and so far, only one Georgian has stood with me for a whole two-hour protest.

On June 21st, a fellow activist sent me this video, posted in a Facebook group by a lady who took her children to visit Zootopia Contact Zoo, in Tbilisi Mall:

The raccoon in the video exhibits stereotypic behavior (constant pacing in their cage) – a clear sign of stress that can often be observed in animals held in captivity. According to Wikipedia: "These behaviours have been defined as ˝abnormal˝, as they exhibit themselves solely in animals subjected to barren environments, scheduled or restricted feedings, social deprivation and other cases of frustration, but do not arise in ˝normal˝ animals in their natural environments (...). Stereotypical behaviours are thought to be caused ultimately by artificial environments that do not allow animals to satisfy their normal behavioural needs."

When I saw that video, I knew I had to do something for those animals. I figured it was worth trying to launch a campaign to shut down that petting zoo and others just like it. So I set out to draft a petition, which I published on July 1st, and I scheduled the first protest at Zootopia on July 6th.

I shared the Facebook event in various groups, replied to dozens of people who had commented on the original raccoon video, and personally invited vegans who had attended animal rights demos in the past. In the end, 12 people said they were coming, and 38 marked "maybe".

On my way to Tbilisi Mall for that first protest, I was super nervous. How many people would show up? Would they understand English (if not, things might get really awkward, as I don't speak Georgian)? How would the zoo staff react? Would they call the police? Would I get in trouble? So far, I'd only organized demos and protests in public spaces, but the mall is private property and I didn't know what to expect.

Out of the 50 people who had expressed interest in the event, only 3 actually showed up. Unfortunately, one was only able to stay for a very short time (she works at the mall and was on her break), and another left when the security guards threatened to call the police, shortly after the beginning of the protest. Only one Georgian girl stayed with me for the whole 2 hours, and I was really grateful because she did most of the outreach (given my level of Georgian).

Despite the disappointing turnout, we managed to convince quite a few families to boycott the zoo, so the protest was a success.

I scheduled the next protest for the following Sunday (July 13th), and this time only 2 people signed up on the Facebook event page. When I got to the mall at 2:30 p.m. though, no one was there. At first I wasn't worried, because people are always late. But the 2 people who were supposed to join me eventually replied to my messages – they weren't coming.

I was disappointed, but not exactly surprised. These past few years, it's been incredibly difficult to gather even just a handful of people to speak up for the animals (and not only here in Georgia; I had the same experience back in France last year).

So I cancelled that protest and did some shopping instead. However, I was determined not to let people's indifference stop me, so I once again scheduled a protest for the following Saturday (July 19th).

This time I expected to be alone, so I came prepared. I had memorized a few basic sentences in Georgian to explain to visitors why I was there and why they should boycott the zoo. I also asked them to sign the petition.

That was my first ever solo protest, and it was super stressful (it was also my birthday). Just like the first time, the zoo staff called security, but they just let me do my thing. Basically, I was standing by the entrance of the zoo, trying to talk to every person or family before they went in. I wasn't very successful, but I did my best with my basic Georgian, and I knew I would get better with time (both in terms of language and self-confidence).

An activist friend who had just returned to Tbilisi after several months abroad surprised me by joining me for the last half-hour. Unfortunately she doesn't speak any Georgian at all so it was still difficult to talk with the visitors, but I really appreciated the moral support.

The next week (July 27th), I decided to innovate. I made a sign that read "Boycott Zootopia" and printed out some cards with a QR code linking to the petition, along with the words: "Help us shut down Zootopia; sign and share our petition" – so even if I struggled to express myself in Georgian, I would still be able to get the message across.

The zoo staff weren't happy with my little sign. They took several photos (including a picture of me which an employee took without my consent) and, as usual, called security. They told me that, as I was on private property – the place apparently belongs to someone in the UAE – it was illegal for me to use that sign. They said if I wanted to protest with the sign I had to stand outside the mall. I refused. They said they were calling the police. I said go ahead.

A bit later, they came back with a guy whom I assume was the mall's director of security (he was definitely the other guys' boss). He repeated that my little cardboard sign was illegal, and that I could either not use it, or protest outside – bear in mind we're in the middle of summer, it's 35°C in the shade, and there is no shade whatsoever in front of the mall. So once again, I said I'm not going anywhere.

They were beginning to look confused. One of the security guards asked me, "Why? Why are you doing this?" And I said, "I'm here for the animals, they have no one else speaking up for them, so I'm going to stay here." At that point, there must've been 6 people surrounding me (zoo employees, the security guards, and their boss). Some bystanders were watching and listening; I think one guy was even filming the scene.

They weren't going to call the police, but as long as they kept talking to me, they were preventing me from talking to the visitors, so eventually I agreed to put my sign away. However, I continued to give out my little cards, and I was even more determined to talk to as many visitors as I could. One security guy came back and tried to stop me from handing out the cards, but his boss had already told me I was allowed to use those, so I just carried on.

The next time though (August 3rd), I left my sign at home and brought only the few cards I had left. Once again, no Georgian came to speak up for the animals. Once again, a few minutes after I got there, the staff called security. Once again, they tried to tell me I wasn't allowed to use my cards; and once again, I ignored them and kept going.

Later in the afternoon, my activist friend came to offer me moral support again, which was nice. It is surprisingly exhausting to protest alone, week after week, especially with the language barrier. Also, I'm an introvert, and every single conversation with those strangers is an effort. After doing street outreach for the last 7 years, you'd think I'd have gotten used to it by now, but I'm still stressed every time.

As I'd told the security guard though, these animals have no one else speaking up for them. I created Facebook events for each protest, and shared them in various groups (I always posted in Georgian). I invited people directly. Every time, a few people would click "Maybe", but then they wouldn't show up. In a group chat with vegans who have attended demos in the past, no one even bothers to reply to my messages anymore.

Some people may work on Sundays. Some people may be away on vacation (the whole summer? Lucky them.) But most people – and I mean "vegans" – simply don't care.

Seriously, how hard is it to come and spend a couple of hours to speak up for the animals on a Sunday afternoon (in your native language)? Not even every week, but at least ONE time?

I am certain that a pressure campaign against those petting zoos could be successful. I am confident that we could shut them down (I wouldn't have started this campaign if I didn't believe it could work). But I also know for sure that I can't do it alone.

This week I didn't even bother to make a Facebook event. I'll just go and see what happens.

In the past, when we were doing street outreach, I was told that August is extremely quiet, everyone leaves Tbilisi if they can, and there's no point in doing activism at this time of year.

Maybe things will pick up in September. I sincerely hope so, because once the temperatures become bearable again, I plan to start outdoor protests at FaunaLand petting zoo, and also at the universities that use animals for experiments (as part of my animal testing campaign; by the way, have you signed that petition?).

So stay tuned – and wish me luck!