Dr. Marino and Michael Mountain joined attorney Steven M. Wise of the Nonhuman Rights Project, whose work is featured in the movie Unlocking the Cage by Oscar-winning director D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus.
The movie follows Steven as he prepares his first lawsuits to have chimpanzees recognized by the legal system as “legal persons” who have the right to bodily liberty rather than being treated as pieces of property.
The movie premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, and we returned to Park City, Utah, for this second showing, which was being promoted by Future in Review Films. (The movie will air on HBO in early 2017.)
After the movie, Lori and Steve answered questions from the audience, and Michael joined them for a Q&A session. Many thanks to Sharon Anderson-Morris and David Morris for hosting both events.
Steven is currently preparing a lawsuit on behalf of an elephant plaintiff, and is in the early stages of preparing a suit on behalf of a captive orca. Right now, there are sanctuaries to which chimpanzees and elephants can be sent when released from captivity. But the Nonhuman Rights Project can’t go to court on behalf of an orca until a sanctuary is ready to receive him or her.