Latest / UNCHAINEDTV'S Truth Files with Jane Velez-Mitchell / UnchainedTV: The TMZ Paparazzi Turned Animal Rights Filmmaker

Transcript

UnchainedTV: The TMZ Paparazzi Turned Animal Rights Filmmaker · UNCHAINEDTV'S Truth Files with Jane Velez-Mitchell

0:00
Welcome to Unchained TV featuring best-selling author,
0:04
TV journalist, and the founder of the Unchained
0:06
TV free streaming network, Jane Valez Mitchell.
0:10
You're about to hear a secret solution to
0:12
the problems that plague our world.
0:14
If you want to revolutionise your health, get
0:17
truly joyful, and jump to the next phase
0:20
of human evolution, all it takes is one
0:22
simple choice.
0:24
Now here's your host, Jane Valez Mitchell.
0:27
Welcome, let's go to May 28th, 2016, the
0:34
zoo in Cincinnati, horror erupts, a child has
0:40
somehow ended up in the zoo enclosure, and
0:43
what happened next has become a movie that
0:47
will rock your world.
0:49
This image alone of Harambee has been shared
0:53
28 billion times.
0:56
His case went viral because they shot him
1:00
dead.
1:02
They shot this innocent being who was in
1:05
captivity, not in the wild, dead because a
1:10
child had fallen into his enclosure.
1:13
Now I'm going to talk to the two
1:15
extraordinary filmmakers who took a deep dive into
1:19
this case to find out what really happened
1:22
and also explore the horrors of animals in
1:26
captivity and a syndrome called zookosis, which is
1:31
the psychosis that animal prisoners inside zoos endure.
1:39
This film has been hailed as the next
1:42
Blackfish, and it is rocking the world of
1:46
zoos, which in this film makes an argument
1:50
are animal prisoners.
1:52
Rest in peace, Harambee.
1:54
Thank you so much for joining us, Eric
1:57
Crown and Sierra Williams.
1:59
And you just got back from Africa, where
2:01
you were also trying to save animals.
2:05
Let's just start with this extraordinary film you
2:08
did, Harambee.
2:09
Eric, if you had to do the 32nd
2:13
elevator pitch to somebody, what would you say
2:16
about the importance of your film?
2:19
I would say that right now the most
2:22
important thing we can do as a modern
2:23
society is to re-examine the concept of
2:26
captivity for entertainment and re-examine the idea
2:31
of keeping sentient beings in these types of
2:33
prisons.
2:34
It's an outdated concept, and we need to
2:36
look at it through modern eyes, modern understanding
2:38
of animals, and modern sense of empathy that
2:42
has grown and grown and grown, and we
2:44
have seen an overwhelming amount of people that
2:46
stand behind this idea.
2:47
But I think captivity is outdated, cruel, and
2:49
needs to be ended.
2:51
And I'm very proud to say that Harambee
2:54
is streaming for free on Unchained TV, which
2:59
is our free streaming television network for animal
3:04
rights and compassion to all animals and the
3:09
plant-based lifestyle.
3:10
So let's play a trailer, a snippet of
3:15
a trailer of Harambee with sound so that
3:18
you can experience truly the horror of that
3:21
moment when this young boy fell into the
3:26
enclosure, and then we're going to discuss it
3:28
on the other side.
3:39
Oh my god!
3:44
A zoo under fire for shooting and killing
3:47
an endangered gorilla instead of tranquillizing him.
3:50
This whole tragedy was a misunderstanding.
3:52
I don't know for sure if he was
3:54
trying to protect him, but I know he
3:55
wasn't trying to hurt him.
3:57
It went viral.
3:58
Everyone was talking about it.
3:59
It was on every news channel.
4:01
It was dominating the headlines about a boy
4:05
coming face to face with a gorilla.
4:08
I mean, this is not a common news
4:09
story that you hear about.
4:10
I know about it because of what happened,
4:12
and then it blew up into a meme,
4:14
and it's unforgettable.
4:21
He was known as Handsome Harambee.
4:26
He was there, but he preferred to be
4:29
out in the wild.
4:30
I know that.
4:30
He didn't even know what the wild was,
4:32
but he would tell us, like, you know,
4:34
there's a better place for me.
4:38
So this child somehow ended up in the
4:42
gorilla world, which is the enclosure where these
4:46
gorillas were kept.
4:47
There were two females, and then there was
4:50
Harambee, who, according to published reports, was 440
4:54
pounds.
4:55
The two females were shushed away.
4:58
Harambee remained, and just describe what happened next
5:03
for the next crucial 10 minutes, because the
5:07
whole question that your film poses is, was
5:11
he trying to hurt the boy, or was
5:13
he trying to protect the boy?
5:16
You know, and that is really the crux
5:19
of the questions that we hear the most
5:21
of.
5:21
What happened next is very challenging because they
5:24
whisked everybody away.
5:25
No one was allowed to be in the
5:26
area, so there's not a lot of video
5:28
or imagery.
5:30
When we asked for security tapes, even first
5:32
responder cameras, we were denied, and we were
5:35
also denied all information from the city when
5:38
we made our FOIA request.
5:40
What happens next is Harambee, so Harambee was
5:42
on the opposite side of the exhibit as
5:45
the exit door was located, where Harambee knew
5:48
to go in and out of the door
5:49
and to get food, and he was trained
5:52
for that one particular door.
5:54
He lived on the other side of the
5:56
enclosure.
5:56
He kept to himself.
5:57
He was not very happy.
5:58
He was very closed off, and when the
6:01
boy fell down, he, in many, I would
6:04
say most guerrilla experts' opinions, was trying to
6:09
return the boy to the parents.
6:11
Now, this is where people will argue different
6:13
things, but what we do know is he
6:15
was on the opposite side of the enclosure.
6:17
He grabbed the boy, picked him up.
6:19
He did carry him in a very normal
6:21
guerrilla fashion, and then actually climbed up 13
6:24
feet to the top of the exhibit and
6:28
stood next to the door he usually comes
6:30
in and out of, waiting for zookeepers, and
6:33
he was killed with a single bullet, and
6:36
his head exploded.
6:37
We know that due to the size of
6:39
the ammunition they used, so what everybody saw
6:44
was a guerrilla and a child, and understandably,
6:47
they were very frightened for the child's safety,
6:49
but that fear created a series of chaos
6:53
and confusion that led to his death, as
6:56
opposed to an understanding of animal behaviour and
7:00
an appreciation that, as Ian Redmond says in
7:04
the movie, if he wanted to harm the
7:05
boy, he could have in an instant, but
7:08
he didn't.
7:08
He brought the boy back to the actual
7:12
exhibit door, and then he was killed.
7:15
So, one shot, boom, he's dead, and of
7:19
course, even the newscasters were asking, why didn't
7:22
they use a tranquillizer gun?
7:24
That is one of the key questions.
7:27
We have some callers lining up, but can
7:29
you answer that crucial question?
7:32
Yes, actually, it's very important that they did
7:34
not use a tranquillizer, because tranquillizers don't work
7:36
the way people think of in movies.
7:38
You don't fire a tranquillizer dart and somebody
7:41
goes down.
7:42
It actually puts a system into overdrive, which
7:45
then shuts the system down.
7:46
It can take up to 20-25 minutes
7:47
to become active inside, especially inside of a
7:51
large guerrilla, so that may have agitated Harambe
7:54
and may have led to a different outcome
7:57
or a very dangerous outcome for the boy.
7:59
So, as much as we would have liked
8:01
to have seen a non-lethal ending to
8:03
it, I don't believe the zookeepers necessarily had
8:06
a choice with the way their programme runs,
8:08
and that is exactly why we feel we
8:10
should not have endangered animals in captivity anymore.
8:15
I don't think we should have any animals
8:16
in captivity, frankly.
8:18
Let's go to the phone lines.
8:19
Michael in Los Angeles, your question or thought
8:22
for the makers of Harambe.
8:25
Yeah, thank you for having the show.
8:27
I remember when this incident happened, and I
8:31
was so angry, and I still am.
8:33
This is so sad on so many levels,
8:36
and it's something that should never have happened
8:37
for the simple reasons that zoos should not
8:40
exist.
8:41
Plain and simple, they're prisons, but my question
8:43
is why were the parents never charged with
8:46
the crime, and for no other reason than
8:48
endangering their child by not properly watching him
8:51
and letting him enter the enclosure?
8:54
Thank you.
8:55
You know, Michael, that is a great question,
8:58
and that is one of one of the
8:59
biggest points that we do talk about, because
9:02
when we talk about Harambe, people are very
9:03
upset, because we all know that what happened
9:05
to him was wrong.
9:07
Now, what we uncovered while making the movie
9:09
is that the zoo actually was not in
9:12
compliance.
9:12
Their fence was not proper size, and as
9:16
a matter of fact, it was a little
9:17
under three feet tall, and it was three
9:20
simple wires that the kid climbed right under.
9:23
Now, there is a lot of question mark
9:25
as to what were the parents doing, but
9:28
we posit a similar question in response, which
9:31
is when you take your children to a
9:33
zoo or a movie theatre, for example, someplace
9:36
where there's a public place that is allowed
9:38
to have children, you do expect a certain
9:41
level of safety, and the zoo failed, and
9:45
that's why the zoo was actually charged, penalised,
9:48
and we spoke to some of the responding
9:50
officers who didn't want to be in the
9:51
movie, but they did an investigation and found
9:54
no negligence on the mom's part, but what
9:57
we did see at the end was a
9:59
spin where everybody took their anger, and it
10:01
went directly to the parents instead of the
10:04
zoo who was legally responsible.
10:07
In fact, this is the first time that
10:09
a child is falling into a gorilla enclosure.
10:12
This is the third time it's happened.
10:13
It's true.
10:15
Yeah, and you know, the thing that really
10:18
just drives me crazy is that people always
10:22
talk about zoos as educational for the children,
10:25
for the children.
10:27
This is the 21st century.
10:28
I can swim with the dolphins with a
10:31
headset.
10:32
I can experience in a real world way
10:37
what these animals are like with 21st century
10:41
technology, 3D technology, virtual headsets, etc.
10:45
We don't need to keep these animals in
10:48
these prisons called zoos, and I invite the
10:51
Cincinnati Zoo or any zoo on here on
10:53
Unchained TV to debate me on that and
10:56
dialogue with me.
10:57
We've got so many callers.
10:59
We're going to run through them.
11:00
Karen in Venice, California, your question or thought.
11:04
Okay, so I have been to Rwanda.
11:08
I've been up close with gorillas.
11:10
I've seen how gentle they are.
11:13
They are not threatening.
11:14
These zookeepers should have been trained properly.
11:20
They should know these gorillas.
11:22
They should know better, and it is totally
11:26
criminal on the zoo's part.
11:28
They shouldn't be in zoos anyway, but it's
11:31
common knowledge how gentle they actually are, and
11:35
they should be prosecuted to the fullest.
11:39
Absolutely.
11:41
These beautiful animals are so close to us.
11:45
They understand young children.
11:49
They're not going to harm a young human
11:51
child.
11:52
Definitely not, and they should have known that.
11:54
We've got so many callers lined up, but
11:56
just to address quickly, did charges ever, whatever
12:00
happened legally?
12:02
Legally, the only response was the zoo was
12:06
fined, and then they changed their fence.
12:09
As a result, they raised it two inches
12:13
approximately, and when we went back, we still
12:16
saw children standing on the fence trying to
12:19
crawl under it.
12:20
Absolutely.
12:20
It is in no way a safe barrier
12:23
and in no way a good idea for
12:25
this to be there, especially just to sell
12:26
tickets for exhibition.
12:28
We invite the zoo on any time to
12:30
respond.
12:32
Let's go to our next caller, Nilo Farr
12:35
in Dallas, Texas, your question or thought for
12:37
our incredible panel, the makers of Harambee.
12:43
Hi.
12:44
What strategies have you found effective in getting
12:48
all people to engage with Harambee?
12:51
In other words, how do we get a
12:54
house filled with those who want to watch
12:57
this film?
13:00
Great question.
13:01
Yeah.
13:02
Send us an email at harambeemovie.com and
13:04
let us know where you're located, and let's
13:06
get a screening set up.
13:09
It's a matter of spreading the word and
13:11
just people coming together.
13:15
Aside from this programme, we have found a
13:20
very silence within the press, because a lot
13:23
of times zoo money is borne into advertising
13:27
money, fundraisers, all that stuff, so we really
13:30
are relying on people all around the country
13:33
that want to watch the movie, talk about
13:34
the movie.
13:36
We offer it for free here on Unchained
13:38
TV.
13:38
You can have a watch party, contact us.
13:41
We'll come do a Q&A afterwards for
13:42
free.
13:43
We just want to talk about this topic
13:44
because we want to stop the next Harambee
13:47
from happening, and the only way we can
13:50
do that is if we demand bigger changes
13:52
from the zoo, not in security measures, but
13:55
in keeping these animals in the wild, which
13:58
I know we are on a time crunch,
14:00
but at the same time, I also want
14:01
to mention that every gorilla in a zoo
14:05
is a nail in the coffin of our
14:08
environment.
14:09
They are very important.
14:11
They're keystone species, and the longer they sit
14:13
in zoos, the less they're doing their work
14:15
for the biodiversity and for the planet, which
14:17
we all rely on to survive.
14:20
Our survival is wrapped in their survival, and
14:22
their survival is wrapped in their freedom.
14:24
We're in the world of species extinction right
14:27
now.
14:28
Let's go to the next caller, Christina in
14:30
Los Angeles.
14:31
Your question or thought for the makers of
14:33
Harambee.
14:35
Hi there.
14:36
My question is, and I hope I didn't
14:38
miss it.
14:39
I just joined.
14:41
So did any of the zookeepers or gorilla
14:45
caretakers, did any one of them try to
14:49
go into the area to save the kids?
14:52
I mean, where are they?
14:54
Great question.
14:55
That is a great question.
14:57
Yeah, where were they the whole time?
15:00
Harambee was standing for at least five minutes
15:03
next to the door that he usually comes
15:05
in and out of waiting, just waiting for
15:07
a keeper to come in and take over.
15:10
He knew where his responsibility ended.
15:12
Like I said, he walked over, climbed up
15:15
13 feet to the top of the exhibit
15:17
to return the child, and the zookeepers, we
15:21
don't really know.
15:23
The biggest problem is it seems to us
15:25
that they went to violence right away.
15:29
If you're not aware, or if you guys
15:30
haven't seen the movie yet, there's this thing
15:32
called the dart team, which is a team
15:34
of zookeepers that are trained to lethally kill
15:36
the animals if there is an unwanted human
15:39
animal interaction.
15:40
The problem we see is that they went
15:43
right to the dart team as a measure
15:46
because they were worried for the child's safety.
15:48
It's very hard for us to, you know,
15:51
Monday morning quarterback everyone's things there.
15:54
The way we see it is it was
15:55
a tragedy for everybody.
15:57
We know whoever had to take that shot
15:59
is probably still living with that decision in
16:01
that moment today.
16:03
It is another form of cruelty that is
16:06
on everybody.
16:07
It's crazy to think that people go spend
16:09
all their time, money, and lives to become
16:12
zookeepers only to potentially have to shoot the
16:14
very animals they love.
16:16
Oh, yeah.
16:17
I mean, this is a bad setup for
16:19
everyone because the premise is let's take animals
16:23
from the wild or breed them in captivity
16:25
and keep them in animal prisons.
16:27
All right.
16:28
We've got so many callers.
16:29
This is touching a nerve.
16:30
Tiffany in Los Angeles, your question or thought
16:33
for the makers of Harambe.
16:36
Hi, Jane.
16:36
Thank you for taking my call.
16:38
To be honest, I haven't seen the movie
16:40
yet, so I will watch it on Unchained.
16:42
Thank you both for making this movie.
16:45
My question is how did you become interested
16:48
in making this?
16:50
What brought you to decide to make the
16:53
film?
16:53
Thank you.
16:55
Thank you.
16:56
That is a really great question, you know,
16:58
because we have always been very focused on
17:01
pollution, environmental rights, and animal rights as filmmakers
17:06
and storytellers.
17:07
We ended up meeting the man who took
17:09
the viral image of Harambe, and he said,
17:12
I want to do something positive with this
17:14
that can help gorillas today.
17:17
We thought, let's tell Harambe's true story, not
17:20
just those last few moments that he's remembered
17:22
for, but let's tell his whole life story
17:24
so people can get a sense of what
17:26
he's been through.
17:28
That will give everybody an opportunity to reconsider
17:32
the idea of gorillas in captivity.
17:35
I agree, Jane, every animal should actually be
17:37
out of captivity, but hopefully with an animal
17:40
that shares 98% of our DNA, maybe
17:42
people can relate and understand him and understand
17:46
that we need to build these, you know,
17:48
we already have understanding of how their minds
17:50
work and how their logic works.
17:52
They are sentient.
17:53
And, you know, so when we found all
17:55
of these things, and then we linked up
17:57
with Born Free and learned about zookosis, which
17:59
is absolutely a terrible, terrible psychological issue that
18:04
occurs to animals that are forced to be
18:05
in captivity or born in captivity.
18:08
We all got to touch that with COVID
18:10
and everybody got a little stir crazy.
18:12
We decided we had a great opportunity to
18:15
try to fight against the idea that captivity
18:18
is essential and that it needs to be
18:21
there for education because we know that there
18:24
are so many more ways, and you're not
18:27
even going to learn about the animals properly
18:28
inside of the zoo.
18:30
All right, Annie and Sherman Oaks, your question
18:32
or thought?
18:35
Hi.
18:35
Yes.
18:36
Thank you for having the show, Jane.
18:37
And thank you for making this movie amazing.
18:40
Thank you.
18:41
This is long overdue.
18:42
I still cry when I think of Harambee.
18:45
I know the suffering they go through being
18:47
locked up.
18:48
During COVID, people that do not relate to
18:51
animals in zoo and think that we're getting
18:53
education.
18:53
They need to remember during COVID how psychotic
18:56
they went.
18:57
These animals are innocent, being kidnapped, taken away
19:00
and forced into being locked up.
19:03
I want to know, is there any kind
19:05
of way that we can have a class
19:08
action lawsuit against all zoos because they're prison
19:12
for every single being, not only Harambee, the
19:16
innocent, beautiful, intelligent, going extinct species, but all
19:21
animals?
19:22
I love it.
19:23
That's an excellent question.
19:26
Is there a possibility of taking overall legal
19:29
action?
19:30
Because it's just like it's never just one
19:34
factory farm doing the bad thing.
19:36
It's all zoos.
19:38
Eric?
19:39
Yes.
19:41
We have linked up with the non-human
19:43
rights project, and they're actually working on, they
19:47
tried to work on getting freedom for primates
19:49
previously.
19:50
Now they are fighting for elephants, which are
19:52
other keystone sentient beings that are facing the
19:56
same thing.
19:56
They do try one by one.
19:59
What we would love to see would be
20:01
to not only have the captivity, but the
20:04
ability to breed, just like with the recent
20:07
Big Cat Safety Act, where they stopped breeding
20:09
in roadside zoos.
20:11
We have some friends that were instrumental in
20:13
making that happen.
20:14
We would love to see the same thing
20:15
with major zoos and with breeding, especially if
20:19
we can start with our endangered animals.
20:22
We don't have enough for the world to
20:25
operate right now.
20:26
To have one that's just sitting there locked
20:29
away and then executed is absolutely, it's against
20:34
the idea of saving the animals.
20:37
I think as a nation, as we continue
20:40
to rethink our relationship to the world around
20:43
us and the sentient animals, especially around us,
20:45
and all nature around us, I think we're
20:48
headed towards a movement where, you know, we're
20:51
personally, we're vegan, and so we do always
20:54
try to fight for all animal rights.
20:56
And I think that as that also continues,
20:58
we're finding this holistic movement where everybody says,
21:02
I don't want to do this.
21:03
And when people learn about zookosis, this is
21:04
our biggest one we found so far.
21:06
When people learn about zookosis, you can't unlearn
21:08
it.
21:09
And when you learn that they're being psychologically
21:11
damaged by being in these exhibits that people
21:13
think maybe you're okay for them, you start
21:16
to rethink what's there.
21:18
And I see a big change in our
21:20
society, and I think there's a really strong
21:22
possibility we can change this.
21:24
Now, I urge everybody, watch Harambee.
21:28
It's streaming for free.
21:30
That's Unchained TV right behind me.
21:32
On my Samsung TV, you can download it
21:34
on Samsung TV, Amazon Fire Stick, Roku device,
21:38
Apple TV device.
21:39
You can watch Unchained TV on your phone.
21:41
You can watch it online.
21:43
Just go to unchainedtv.com and click streaming
21:46
now.
21:47
Boom.
21:48
I want to ask you about zookosis in
21:54
specific.
21:55
But first, let me play a clip from
21:57
your trailer that features prominent people speaking up
22:05
about this entire issue of zookosis and saying
22:09
essentially that zoos are animal prisons, and the
22:15
animals inside them are experiencing severe psychological distress.
22:22
We value our freedom.
22:25
And we put these beautiful creatures who we
22:27
say we want to look after and save
22:29
in prison, because that is what zoos are.
22:33
600 million zoo visits a year.
22:35
We are fundamentally mis-educating people, misleading them
22:39
about what these animals are, their role in
22:43
the natural environment.
22:45
All of that is effectively lost.
22:49
They're not ornaments.
22:52
Here's a complex autonomous being locked in a
22:54
cage.
22:55
This isn't acceptable.
22:57
Once you engage with and contribute to selective
23:00
compassion, you actually have gone on the journey
23:04
of reducing your natural compassion.
23:07
Zookosis, wild creatures kept in confinement, which they
23:11
cannot really tolerate.
23:13
It does drive them crazy.
23:17
If you can't leave, you're in jail.
23:18
The zoo is here.
23:20
And we can make an informed choice about
23:23
whether we go and patronise and fund through
23:28
our buying a ticket or not.
23:31
The zoo just wants to forget about Harambe,
23:34
because their part of it was, you know,
23:37
the bad part of it.
23:38
And so it seems like I'm the only
23:40
one in Cincinnati fighting for Harambe's rights and
23:43
say, hey, you need to remember him.
23:45
He was a part of this city.
23:46
And now you're acting like he's not.
23:49
And that was one of the key players
23:51
in your amazing film.
23:54
Peter Egan, the famous actor who you may
23:57
remember from Downton Abbey, is the narrator and
24:00
plays himself in this film.
24:02
So I personally will say that when I
24:05
lived in New York City and I was
24:07
in Central Park and people would say, which
24:08
way is the zoo?
24:09
I said, I'm not going to tell you
24:10
because I don't believe that you should go
24:12
to the zoo.
24:13
I don't think it's healthy psychologically for your
24:16
kids.
24:16
When I was a kid, my father took
24:18
me to the Central Park Zoo and I
24:20
would get depressed because I saw these animals
24:22
and they were clearly miserable, clearly to a
24:26
child.
24:27
It's funny how children can sometimes see what
24:30
the adults repress to the point they can't
24:33
see them.
24:33
So tell us about Zookosis.
24:40
This was, I mean, we didn't even know
24:42
about Zookosis when we started the movie.
24:44
So we learned along with the audience.
24:48
First of all, it was understood by animal
24:52
behaviourists back in the 50s and 60s when
24:55
they started to travel around and understand how
24:57
animals behave differently in captivity than in nature.
25:02
There's a lot of great examples of that
25:04
that we have, especially in the movie, to
25:07
talk about.
25:08
But one thing that people need to remember
25:11
also is in 1973, the Endangered Species Act
25:14
was passed, which meant that any animals that
25:16
were left over from poaching could no longer
25:19
be imported into zoos.
25:21
Since then, the zoos created a workaround to
25:24
breed different endangered animals and trade them for
25:27
free amongst other zoos.
25:29
So you have babies that are being born
25:32
to sell tickets.
25:33
Zoo babies are very popular.
25:35
These animals are never going to understand freedom,
25:39
but they're never going to forget what it
25:41
is either.
25:42
It's their instinct.
25:43
We've seen a lot of animals successfully rehabilitated
25:45
into the wild, whether it's through rewilding programmes,
25:49
even dolphin programmes.
25:52
They have gorilla programmes now.
25:54
And so Zookosis is this psychological effect where
25:58
they're born into a world they don't understand
26:01
and are held captive.
26:02
So there's a lot of things that they
26:04
can no longer do in captivity that they
26:07
normally would do.
26:08
One would be calling to other gorilla groups.
26:12
They're very communicative and they all speak to
26:14
each other.
26:15
Without that communication, they start to lose their
26:17
sense of what's happening.
26:19
They're not allowed to climb trees.
26:21
One of the biggest things is gorillas climb
26:23
trees.
26:24
They love being in trees.
26:25
They eat from the trees.
26:26
They'll sleep in the trees.
26:28
And to this day, I've never seen a
26:29
gorilla be allowed in a tree in a
26:31
zoo.
26:32
So they take their natural habits, they transform
26:36
them into habits that'll be good for the
26:39
viewer, the audience member, sit there on that
26:43
log.
26:44
And we learned about hot wires in zoos.
26:46
There's electric wires all over the place in
26:48
the greenery to keep the animals from eating
26:51
it.
26:52
I mean, can you imagine if really a
26:53
gorilla was acting the way they wanted to,
26:55
they'd be climbing the trees, eating all the
26:56
leaves.
26:57
And when you look at their exhibits, you'll
26:58
notice there's a lot of greenery.
27:00
It's not fake.
27:01
It's just electrified to shock them.
27:04
So they don't know what's happening.
27:06
They're now on a human schedule.
27:08
They're going to eat at 8 a.m.,
27:09
have lunch at 4 p.m. That's extremely
27:11
unnatural.
27:13
And the diets that they're supposed to have,
27:15
they don't have, and they're supposed to change
27:17
all the time.
27:19
So that creates a lot of heart issues
27:22
and a lot of the gorillas will die
27:25
earlier with heart disease and other issues as
27:28
well.
27:29
So zookosis is the psychological devastation to these
27:33
animals.
27:34
And when you go to a zoo and
27:35
you see them just sitting there going that's
27:38
what's happening, they've shut down internally.
27:41
And as Peter says, you're not going to
27:43
learn anything from them because they're shut down
27:46
and they're closed off.
27:48
I'd also like to add that Ian Redmond,
27:51
our biologist, mentions that the animals are bred
27:57
for different characteristics or traits.
28:01
So they will become more docile or they'll
28:05
do certain behaviours that the zoo likes.
28:08
So generations after generations, are you still looking
28:13
at a gorilla or any other animal that's
28:16
bred for certain traits?
28:19
Well, what struck me as I was researching
28:22
this is that gorillas are our closest relatives
28:26
in terms of our DNA.
28:29
They're also the largest primates.
28:30
So they are really as close as we're
28:32
going to get to our ancestors because we
28:38
stem from them.
28:40
And that is the real tragedy that we
28:43
are persecuting the very beings who are our
28:46
own ancestors.
28:49
Once again, you can watch Harambe for free
28:52
on Unchained TV.
28:53
I hope you do.
28:54
Let's take a moment to learn a little
28:56
more about Unchained TV.
28:58
So it's a vegan Netflix.
29:00
Okay, that's the craziest thing I've ever heard.
29:02
I love Unchained TV.
29:03
Unchained, Unchained TV.
29:05
Your life will change.
29:06
It's just that easy.
29:08
Unchained TV has all sorts of content for
29:10
everybody.
29:11
Unchained TV changed my life.
29:13
Unchained TV is crushing it.
29:16
I love Unchained TV.
29:18
Unchained TV is my go-to.
29:20
Unchained TV, who knew?
29:22
Unchained, baby, yeah.
29:30
All right, now you and I have something
29:33
in common.
29:34
And this is the personality side, the backstory
29:38
of this incredible team.
29:40
Eric is a former paparazzi and he worked
29:44
at TMZ, of course, the very well-known
29:49
tabloid celebrity gossip site run by Harvey Levin.
29:54
I also worked for Harvey Levin as a
29:56
reporter on the precursor to TMZ, which was
30:00
called Celebrity Justice.
30:02
Interestingly enough, Harvey allowed me to do a
30:05
lot of animal rights stories.
30:06
I worked with PETA and other groups to
30:08
get stories about celebrities advocating for animals on,
30:15
and we won a couple of Genesis Awards.
30:18
So TMZ paparazzi turns environmental activists.
30:22
Tell us your story.
30:25
This is one of the headlines that really
30:28
intrigued me.
30:29
I'm like, wow, we have so much in
30:30
common.
30:31
I was a crime reporter for many years,
30:35
decades, and yet my true passion was animal
30:38
rights and still is.
30:40
We have that in common.
30:43
It's funny that Harvey would be at one
30:45
of our intersections in time.
30:48
For me, I was there at the beginning
30:50
of TMZ and my job was to work
30:54
at the airport.
30:55
So I created that environment there on that
30:59
television show.
31:00
What I learned was how to think quickly,
31:05
how to come up with good questions, and
31:07
how to get people to interact with you
31:09
while you're changing your lenses, walking backwards, and
31:13
still getting a nice video or image.
31:15
So the training ground was incredible.
31:16
One day I thought to myself, I'm battling
31:21
cancer over and over, and what am I
31:24
doing with my life?
31:25
I want to go do something that will
31:27
have an impact.
31:28
So I wanted to take those skills that
31:29
I had learned at TMZ.
31:31
I had grown up in production, but this
31:32
was a whole new world.
31:34
I wanted to take those skills and take
31:36
them to something that was important that could
31:38
make a difference.
31:39
So for me, it was a big transition
31:41
to just say, you know what?
31:42
I'm going directly into conservation and see what
31:46
I can do and see how I can
31:48
help out.
31:49
So it was a big motivator for me
31:51
to change over there.
31:53
Plus, it was okay to not have celebrities
31:57
getting mad at us anymore.
31:59
Oh, yeah.
31:59
I chased a few celebrities down the street
32:01
myself.
32:03
And I agree with you, and I also
32:06
relate to using the skills.
32:08
Because the one thing you learn when you
32:10
are reporting...
32:11
I used to have a morning meeting with
32:13
Harvey at 7 a.m. I had to
32:15
have three story ideas, and the story had
32:18
to be shot and edited by something like
32:21
11.30 in the morning.
32:22
I mean, we work super, super, super, super
32:24
fast.
32:26
And we need to teach those skills to
32:29
animal rights activists so that they can get
32:32
things done quickly.
32:33
I don't think a lot of the folks
32:35
have any clue as to how fast we
32:38
worked, because that deadline's breathing down our neck.
32:43
If you have to determine a story, shoot
32:46
it, write it, edit it, and have it
32:48
ready to go out before noon of the
32:51
same day, that is an incredible training.
32:55
And I try to use that myself.
32:59
What are your thoughts on that?
33:02
Exactly, exactly that.
33:04
The fact is, it was live television every
33:06
day, so we had to produce.
33:09
And the thing is, when you start to
33:10
look at any story, you can start to
33:12
find a unique angle, you can start to
33:14
find a unique way.
33:15
And the other thing was, I really learned
33:17
how to approach people that did not want
33:18
to talk to me.
33:20
Every now and then you get attacked, like
33:21
where it happened to me a few times,
33:23
unfortunately, semi-high profile.
33:26
But for the most part, how do you
33:28
get somebody that normally wouldn't give you the
33:30
time of day to talk to you?
33:32
And that is one of the bigger things,
33:33
because as conservationists, environmentalists, vegans, we believe in
33:37
outreach and we believe in discussing things.
33:39
We want to bring, like we tried to
33:41
get the zoo involved several times in this
33:43
movie.
33:44
They refused, refused, refused.
33:46
So we're always wanting to talk to the
33:48
other side, wanting to bring everybody in, because
33:51
until we get a big, inclusive discussion, the
33:55
solutions are going to be more challenging.
33:57
So I think that really made a big
33:59
impact on how we wanted to do things.
34:01
We wanted to try to be inclusive, friendly
34:04
to everybody, and respectful to everybody that we
34:07
have involved in our conversations.
34:10
Yeah, and that was definitely something that it
34:12
taught me.
34:12
And as well as, yes, making sure that
34:14
we don't miss our deadlines.
34:16
Yeah, and we've got some good news here.
34:18
Nilo Farr says she's subscribed to Harambe, and
34:21
she's going to plan a screening in Dallas,
34:24
Texas.
34:25
And she would love the two of you
34:26
to be present for a Q&A session.
34:29
And remember, you can watch this on Unchained
34:32
TV, our free streaming network.
34:35
Just go to watchunchainedtv.com.
34:39
You can go to unchainedtv.com and just
34:43
click watch now, stream now, and boom, you
34:47
can watch it immediately.
34:50
So I hope everybody takes advantage, because I
34:53
have to say, I also review a lot
34:56
of animal rights environmental films.
34:59
And what I really love about your film
35:01
is it doesn't come off as preachy.
35:03
It comes off as something that is like
35:05
literally a true crime movie, like, oh, my
35:09
God, it's shot and produced in an exciting
35:11
way.
35:12
And that's not to say it's exploitive.
35:15
It's telling Harambe's story in a way that's
35:19
going to get people to watch.
35:20
We have to get people in the tent
35:22
if we want them to watch.
35:23
And just playing sad music and preaching ain't
35:26
going to cut it.
35:27
Your thoughts?
35:29
So right, you know, Harambe's story is every
35:32
captive animal story, and especially for zoo animals.
35:37
It's really something we wanted to dive into
35:43
Harambe's story, but also show how it's connected
35:46
to every other zoo captive animal there is
35:48
out there.
35:49
And we wanted to change that, you know.
35:52
His death was, I don't want to say
35:54
by design, but it was something that they
35:57
had thought about.
35:58
It's their protocol when something like that happens.
36:00
And the next time it happens, it will
36:03
happen again.
36:04
And it's just really sad to see Harambe
36:07
was replaced by Fiona, a baby hippo.
36:11
And the sad, the really, the worst part
36:13
is that it could happen to Fiona, too.
36:16
So we want to make sure that that
36:18
doesn't happen.
36:19
We're waging war on wildlife.
36:22
Just today, I got a text that I
36:24
couldn't even believe it.
36:26
It was so disturbing.
36:27
I want to make sure I have it
36:28
right.
36:29
I just texted somebody to say, can we
36:33
stop this?
36:34
CNN says Zimbabwe is going to call, call
36:37
it what it is, kill, slaughter 200 elephants,
36:41
defeat citizens left hungry by drought.
36:44
This makes me insane.
36:47
Oh, there we go.
36:48
CNN.
36:49
Now, when you click that, it plays.
36:51
Zimbabwe has authorised a mass slaughter of elephants
36:54
to feed citizens left hungry by the worst
36:56
drought.
36:57
Now, of course, I have tremendous compassion for
37:01
anybody experiencing hunger.
37:02
In fact, if you want to end hunger
37:04
worldwide, if we all transition to a plant
37:08
-based diet, we could take all the food,
37:11
which is a huge percentage of the food
37:13
produced globally, that is fed to farmed animals,
37:16
which is a very inefficient food source, and
37:19
transition that food directly to people.
37:22
We could end world hunger right now.
37:25
You know, people don't realise 85 percent of
37:27
the soybeans produced are fed to farmed animals.
37:30
A huge percentage of all commodity crops aren't
37:32
fed to people.
37:33
They're fed to farmed animals.
37:35
So if we reduce the number of farmed
37:38
animals that we are raising and killing, billions
37:41
and billions and billions of them every year,
37:44
who are not just miraculously coming onto this
37:47
planet, they are artificially inseminated by people, and
37:52
took that food and diverted it to people,
37:55
we could end world hunger.
37:56
We could live in a world of natural
37:58
abundance where food is a right and everybody
38:00
has whatever they need to eat.
38:03
Instead, in our sick, sick, sick human supremacist
38:08
mentality, we allow corporations to continue feeding all
38:14
this food to artificially produced animals and then
38:19
decide to kill elephants to feed people.
38:23
It's so sick.
38:25
It's so demented that I'm embarrassed to be
38:29
a member of the human race.
38:32
You know, that story really caught our attention
38:35
because, you know, we've just been working a
38:37
lot with elephants in Thailand, Africa, and a
38:41
couple other areas here in the States, also
38:42
in Canada.
38:44
And, you know, it's mismanagement leading to more
38:47
mismanagement.
38:48
But one thing we always find is poaching
38:50
itself is indicative of poverty.
38:54
And one way we can end poaching is
38:56
to end world hunger and end that poverty
38:59
that creates the opportunity for exploitation for people
39:03
that are trying to just survive each day
39:05
from major companies, other corporations, poachers, syndicates, things
39:10
like that.
39:11
So one of the ways we need to
39:12
save the animals is to save the people.
39:14
And the best way I think that we
39:16
can do that is like you're saying, we
39:18
fully believe that Peter Egan always says, to
39:20
align our stomachs and our hearts together.
39:24
Because, you know, we need to approach the
39:27
world with more love and empathy and compassion
39:30
in order to get more of it circulating
39:32
in order to save all the animals.
39:35
And, you know, not only the fact that
39:36
elephant meat is, I mean, that's even a
39:40
terrible, terrible resource for them to give people.
39:43
That's the equivalent of them feeding people dolphin
39:45
and whale meat in Japan, as we learned
39:47
in the cove, is extremely dangerous and in
39:52
no way beneficial to the people eating it
39:54
as well.
39:55
Is there anything, my understanding is you just
39:57
got back from Africa, is there anything we
40:00
can do to stop this?
40:01
I mean, I just, my mind is just
40:06
blown by the sheer stupidity of this decision
40:10
and that people are sort of accepting it.
40:12
Oh, this is what they're going to do.
40:14
Hell no.
40:15
I mean, do we need to go to
40:16
the Zimbabwe consulates and the Zimbabwe embassy and
40:19
have protests?
40:19
What can we do right now to contact
40:24
hunger organisations and say, don't let this happen.
40:27
Send food.
40:28
Send food there that people can eat.
40:33
Exactly.
40:33
There are so many companies that can step
40:36
in right now that can be world food
40:38
banks, all types of groups that can come
40:40
in and help these people.
40:41
I mean, I've never even heard of anybody
40:43
offering elephants as a meat source anywhere.
40:47
So the fact that that's not even outraging
40:49
people, it's, I mean, it's so out of
40:52
the ordinary.
40:53
I think what we need to do is
40:54
make sure for one, the story stays going.
40:57
You know, a lot of times in conservation,
40:58
we get shocked and we get upset and
41:01
we want to turn ourselves off, but we
41:02
have to remember that as bad as humans
41:04
are, we're also the solution.
41:07
So the kind ones of us need to
41:09
find solutions to fight against the ones that
41:11
are purely exploitative.
41:13
And I think, you know, we do need
41:14
to let Zimbabwe know this is a no
41:16
-go.
41:17
You know, a lot of these countries are
41:18
based on tourism.
41:19
We were just in Tanzania.
41:21
They have an amazing programme to save their
41:24
animals.
41:25
You can't coach, you can't do any of
41:27
that.
41:29
Tanzania.
41:30
They are completely on top of keeping all
41:33
elephants wild.
41:34
There are no captive elephants there.
41:36
We're really amazed by.
41:38
So, you know, these countries need to remember
41:40
that if they're going to do this, they're
41:42
going to have to pay the price.
41:43
And I do think we should be out
41:44
there, you know, mobilising and being in front
41:47
of the Zimbabwe embassy, doing as many different
41:51
ways to have our voices heard and to
41:54
not let the story disappear.
41:56
Where are you located right now?
41:58
Where are you right now?
42:00
Right now we're in Florida and we'll be
42:02
back in LA next week.
42:04
So you might see us out in front
42:06
of the embassy there.
42:07
Well, we should, I would be willing to
42:09
organise a protest.
42:11
We protest.
42:23
I The Turkish consulate in LA, I should
42:26
say, but there were also demonstrations at consulates
42:29
and embassies around the world.
42:32
We protested against Turkey's decision to try to
42:35
kill all the stray dogs and cats.
42:38
We did several demonstrations there.
42:40
There's been demonstrations, I believe against the Denmark
42:44
consulate here in Los Angeles for the apprehension
42:48
of a Sea Shepherd captain, co-founder, Paul
42:54
Watson.
42:55
So we could organise a very fast demonstration
42:59
at the Zimbabwean consulate here in Los Angeles.
43:02
I think it's something we should consider.
43:04
These elephants cannot speak for themselves.
43:07
Elephants are endangered.
43:09
We do stories all the time about the
43:12
problems with elephants being under assault in India
43:17
and Africa, you know, all over the place.
43:21
And just to go out and proactively kill
43:24
them is just completely insane.
43:28
Let's talk about it.
43:29
I think we should organise a protest for
43:31
what day of the week now people who
43:34
are watching get to see how animal rights
43:35
happens.
43:36
What day of the week are you back
43:38
from in LA?
43:40
I'll be back around the 27th of September.
43:44
So maybe we could do like any day
43:47
after that, maybe next week, the week after
43:50
would be great.
43:51
Yeah.
43:52
Yeah.
43:53
I mean, I think we might have to
43:55
do something on my birthday, September 20th.
43:57
Well, that's a Sunday, maybe Monday, September 30th.
44:01
If it's not too late.
44:02
I don't know when they're going out to
44:03
kill these animals.
44:05
It's never too late.
44:07
Well, it is.
44:08
If they say they're going to kill them,
44:11
I'd like to know when they're going to
44:12
kill them.
44:13
I mean, it's just insane.
44:16
Our human supremacy is at the root of
44:18
all of this.
44:20
And, you know, is it changing?
44:23
You're an observer of this scene.
44:25
Is it getting any better or is it
44:27
getting worse?
44:29
You know, it's tough.
44:32
You know, I am personally always optimistic about
44:36
our ability to cause change.
44:37
You know, when you look at stopping animal
44:40
testing for cosmetics and the change over to
44:42
that, although it has some issues, things can
44:44
be changed.
44:45
We do find more and more empathy growing
44:48
further and further, especially as the vegan movement
44:51
grows.
44:52
People are a little bit less able to
44:54
determine what they want to kill and what
44:56
they want to love.
44:58
And we need to love all of these
44:59
animals and realise that, again, it's part of
45:02
our biodiversity.
45:03
Our success as a species depends on them.
45:08
And we're all interdependent.
45:10
We do see around the world always a
45:12
series of some of the bad guys, but
45:14
we find so many local people picking up
45:16
the torch and fighting back and saying, no
45:18
longer, we're not going to do this anymore,
45:21
especially in places like Thailand, where we just
45:23
were, where it is thousands and thousands of
45:26
years of cultural normalcy to own elephants.
45:31
As a matter of fact, they're registered as
45:33
motor vehicles in Thailand.
45:35
But we have groups that are all for
45:36
tourism.
45:37
Now we have groups that are going in
45:38
and they're unchaining them, which is why we
45:41
love Unchain TV, because that is the best
45:45
result.
45:46
Unchain them, get them to a safe place.
45:48
I think with the internet, we have a
45:51
wider global community of activists and we have
45:54
a lot more options now.
45:55
And we just have to keep pushing and
45:57
pushing and pushing and not maybe expect to
45:59
see all the results we want in our
46:01
lifetime, but to remember we can plant the
46:03
tree and hopefully generations down can benefit animals
46:07
and people.
46:08
And you mentioned you were recently in Africa,
46:10
I believe.
46:11
Tell us about your other work, your other
46:13
films.
46:16
Yeah, well, we saw a lot of wildlife
46:19
in Tanzania and it was really, truly amazing
46:23
and actually very inspirational.
46:25
The way that they take care of their
46:26
animals is just incredible.
46:28
I've never seen anywhere in the world, actually.
46:33
And it's really incredible to see that.
46:37
And we can't really talk too much about
46:39
that project, just that's about it for that
46:41
one.
46:41
But we do have some more projects coming
46:43
out.
46:44
Well, we also, you know, one thing about
46:46
interesting about Africa is we wanted to show
46:48
nature from a different perspective and we wanted
46:51
to see it from a bird's point of
46:54
view because they are off the ground.
46:56
And, you know, like when you get off
46:58
land, sometimes you can see things better on
46:59
land.
47:00
So we went and actually followed a group
47:02
of hang gliders that wanted to explore places
47:05
like the Serengeti and other areas to get
47:07
an idea of what was happening biodiversity wise,
47:10
natural wise, and to do it in a
47:12
way that required no oil and gas.
47:14
So it's a completely all natural way of
47:17
travel.
47:18
So that was really interesting for us.
47:20
We normally stick to activist pieces.
47:22
We actually just finished a movie on Cancer
47:24
Alley, which is a place down in Louisiana
47:27
between New Orleans and Baton Rouge.
47:28
It's an 85 mile stretch of the Mississippi
47:30
River where it has 500 times minimum the
47:34
national average cancer exposure and risk.
47:38
And it has over 200 petrochemical companies that
47:40
are poisoning many communities that are dotted along
47:44
the river.
47:46
Us being a family that fights cancer a
47:48
lot with my cancer and Sierra having to
47:51
go through multiple radiations with me, multiple medicines,
47:54
surgeries, you know, we want to stop environmental
47:59
pollution that's causing cancer, especially for younger people.
48:03
And we're learning that the cancer rates are
48:05
skyrocketing right now due to environmental cancers.
48:07
I have an environmental cancer.
48:09
So we're very passionate about stories that attack
48:12
the polluters that are attacking our environment.
48:16
And the same with the people, the poachers
48:17
that are attacking the animals that are also
48:19
destroying the environment.
48:20
So I got to ask you, I am
48:23
really blown away by how much you're doing.
48:29
How do you fund this?
48:31
You were a paparazzi.
48:32
I mean, I'm sure you made some good
48:34
money, but not to fund all of this,
48:36
the travel, et cetera.
48:38
How are you doing it?
48:39
And also how do you manage to stay
48:42
so prolific and so upbeat in the face
48:46
of all this?
48:48
Well, you know, I have to, I have
48:50
to thank my cancer for staying upbeat because
48:53
I was diagnosed 2005.
48:55
I've had an environmental cancer.
48:56
I've been battling it ever since.
48:58
I've had over 13 surgeries.
48:59
I've been through chemo multiple times.
49:02
I've been through radiation on different areas multiple
49:04
times.
49:05
I actually have a tumour right now in
49:06
my neck that October 1st, we'll have a
49:09
doctor's appointment to determine what kind of surgery
49:13
we can do.
49:14
But cancer taught me that every day really
49:18
matters.
49:18
And your frame of mind really matters because
49:21
you always hit a point where you either
49:22
have to throw it all away or pick
49:24
it all up when you have cancer.
49:26
I always say that it's either a death
49:28
sentence or a life sentence.
49:30
And if you're lucky enough to get a
49:32
life sentence, I believe you really need to
49:35
take advantage of that.
49:36
So that's what really motivated us to get
49:38
out into the field.
49:40
We have a bunch of projects as well
49:41
that we finished shooting that we're editing right
49:43
now.
49:44
The challenge is funding.
49:46
It's very hard to get funding, especially to
49:48
talk about these topics.
49:50
Sometimes we get people that are willing to
49:52
step in and help us.
49:54
Very often we'll have to go and work
49:57
on projects, save up a little bit of
49:59
money and go for unbelievably low budgets and
50:02
go live somewhere in rough conditions to just
50:06
get the movie done.
50:06
New Orleans, it took us about three or
50:09
four trips because we couldn't afford to stay
50:11
there to shoot as long as we could.
50:14
So it's a challenge.
50:16
But the thing is, it's important.
50:18
It's the most important thing that we can
50:20
do in our lifetime.
50:21
So we don't let any constraints stop us.
50:24
If we have $800 to make a movie,
50:27
we'll figure out how to do that.
50:29
And we'll beg, borrow.
50:30
Let me say that Harambee is produced like
50:34
it's a multi-million dollar production.
50:37
And I think one of the reasons is
50:40
that you have all the skills.
50:43
So you don't have to hire an editor.
50:45
You don't have to hire a cinematographer.
50:47
And then going back again to your training
50:50
as a paparazzi, you know how to grab
50:53
things.
50:53
You know how to get those dramatic moments.
50:56
Because one of the things with paparazzi is
50:57
every second counts.
50:59
If you're too slow in taking your camera
51:01
out, boom, it's gone.
51:04
In fact, when I worked at Celebrity Justice,
51:06
and this was before reporters started carrying around
51:10
these things that just basically, we had cell
51:14
phones, but people weren't using them the way
51:15
they were using them today.
51:17
And I got myself a camera and started
51:18
recording things because by the time the cameraman
51:21
got his camera out of the back of
51:23
the truck, the person who we were trying
51:26
to videotape was long gone.
51:28
And I got some blowback as a reporter
51:30
for doing that.
51:31
People were basically saying I was trying to
51:34
put somebody out of a job.
51:35
No, I was just trying to capture the
51:38
moment.
51:39
But you have these priceless skills that allow
51:43
you to do stuff that would normally require
51:46
a large crew of people.
51:49
So I am so impressed.
51:51
I can't wait.
51:52
First of all, I want to thank you
51:53
for allowing us to stream Harambe, this incredible
51:58
movie, on our streaming network, Unchained TV.
52:02
And I'm urging everybody, watch it.
52:06
That's Unchained TV behind me.
52:08
And you can just literally find Harambe and
52:13
click on it and watch it for free
52:15
on your TV.
52:17
We are on all streaming devices, Amazon Fire
52:20
Stick, Roku device, Apple TV device.
52:22
You just download it.
52:24
You can also watch it on your phone
52:25
if you want to, or you can watch
52:27
it on a laptop.
52:29
We do a free programming on Unchained TV.
52:32
So wow.
52:35
I am very, very inspired.
52:39
And somebody else said that, that they are
52:41
inspired by you because you're not just sitting
52:45
there and complaining about the terrible conditions and
52:48
the situation with animals.
52:50
You are really taking action rapidly, constantly, like
52:56
you're on a breaking news story at all
52:58
times.
52:59
Is that just my imagination, Eric?
53:02
That is how we do it.
53:04
Because it is a breaking news story, right?
53:06
Every second does count.
53:07
And we are just part of a very
53:09
large army fighting for a better future.
53:11
And we have found family everywhere.
53:14
And we're so happy to be on Unchained
53:15
because we have a place now where we
53:17
can really connect with a larger community and
53:20
family that is going to be here to
53:23
talk about all of these topics as we
53:25
move forward, because they're all interrelated.
53:27
Yes.
53:28
And just for the record, Unchained TV is
53:30
expanding to fast channels, free ad supported television
53:34
channels, where we can then reach other audiences.
53:39
Because one of the reasons why I started
53:42
Unchained TV is I had gone to one
53:44
too many animal rights screenings where every single
53:47
person in the room was already on board.
53:50
And I thought, wow, we are in an
53:53
echo chamber, in a bubble.
53:55
This crucial information has to go out to
53:57
the general public, not just people who are
54:00
looking for it, but people who want free
54:03
programming and they want something to watch.
54:06
And a lot of times people want to
54:07
watch something educational.
54:09
I know I do.
54:10
Sure, there are times when I want to
54:12
watch basically just some Agatha Christie and unwind
54:16
with some popcorn.
54:17
But I also like to watch documentaries and
54:20
learn something.
54:22
So I'm so excited to be collaborating with
54:25
you.
54:25
You're my heroes.
54:27
Keep going, keep fighting the good fight.
54:30
And I just was tickled that we had
54:33
this backstory in common of both having been
54:37
in the tabloid world and done our fair
54:40
share of chasing celebrities and are now both
54:44
using those skills to hopefully help animals.
54:48
So I just want to thank you so
54:49
much.
54:50
And people are just sending well wishes, all
54:53
the best for your health.
54:56
Yes.
54:57
Thank you.
54:57
Eric is so inspiring and amazing.
55:00
Thank you for all you do.
55:02
You inspire us.
55:04
So know you're inspiring a lot of people.
55:06
And again, everybody out there, you know, check
55:10
out Unchained TV.
55:12
We've got a lot of fun programming as
55:15
well as incredible documentary.
55:16
Discover Unchained TV and transform your life for
55:20
free.
55:24
Unchained TV is a nonprofit organisation producing plant
55:29
based content filled with tips and tricks to
55:32
spice up those healthy veggies, grains and legumes.
55:36
For more information on Unchained TV productions, just
55:40
visit unchained tv.com.
55:43
That's