An animal rights activist has been tackled to the ground after she attempted to interfere during an NBA game.
Protester Sasha Zemmel wore a referee jersey and whistle as she leapt onto the court during the third quarter of a Minnesota Timberwolves postseason game.
She was hoping to approach the team's majority owner, Glen Taylor, but was immediately slammed to the ground by a security guard.
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The Daily Mail reports that Zemmel’s protest was in response to Taylor’s killing of more than 5.3 million chickens following an outbreak of ‘highly pathogenic avian influenza’ at his farm.
Zemmel is part of the animal rights activist group Direct Action Everywhere, which issued a statement following her removal from the stadium.
“Zemmel’s makeshift referee jersey had the jersey number 5.3 displayed on the back, in honor of the 5.3 million chickens killed at Rembrandt following an outbreak of ‘highly pathogenic avian influenza’ (HPAI)," the statement said.
“DxE’s video shows birds on-site which survived 'ventilation shutdown plus' (VSD+), a mass killing method whereby ventilation openings in the industrial sheds full of birds are closed, and some combination of heat, steam and/or carbon dioxide gas are introduced, eventually killing the animals via suffocation.
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"Dozens of surviving birds were found still in their cages, running loose in the sheds, even buried alive.”
The Daily Mail reports that police have not disclosed whether Zemmel will be charged for the incident.
Her demonstration is one of many recently.
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Action 5 News reports that on April 16, Zoe Rosenberg chained herself to the basketball goal to protest against Taylor's farm practices, which temporarily halted the Memphis Grizzlies home game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Shortly after, the 19-year-old was detained and is now facing criminal trespass and disorderly conduct charges.
While appearing in court, Rosenberg apologised to the Memphis community but defended her actions as ‘demanding’ justice for all those deceased animals at the hands of Taylor.
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She said: “[I have] nothing but respect to the Memphis community.
“I’m sorry that folks felt like the game was interrupted and if anybody felt like it was disrespectful.
"I just wanted to raise awareness about this really big issue and demand justice for the 5.3 million who died in excruciating pain.”
On April 12, Alicia Santurio glued herself to the court during a Clippers-Timberwolves game, according to Complex.
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Santurio was removed from the court while being escorted by security, leaving fans and commentators baffled by the stunt.
Charisa Bossinakis