No chimps were actually in attendance, but journos did have the chance to chat with Emmy nominated Actress Charlotte Ross over lunch at the City Tavern Club Thursday afternoon. Admitting that the “phenomenon” of Glee – on which she plays Quinn’s mother – has afforded her a great platform for advocacy, Ross spoke of her lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill this week for the Great Ape Protection and Cost Savings Act.
“I remember the first time I came face to face with a chimpanzee and it was like looking into a mirror – a very, very hairy mirror – but the eyes that were looking back at me were something I’ll never forget,” she shared with an intimate crowd. Bills in both Houses of Congress, supported by the Humane Society of the United States, call for a phasing out of invasive research on chimpanzees in laboratories (the U.S. is the only developed country in the world that continues to do this) and hopes to retire the over 500 federally owned chimps to sanctuaries.
“It’s beyond heartbreaking because it is a moral issue and an ethical issue obviously, but it’s a huge money issue, too,” Ross said alluding to the estimated $30 million per year the Humane Society claims could be saved by retiring chimps to (largely) privately funded nurturing facilities.
“It would be a moment of a lot of tears and joy for me if I could see them released and seeing sunshine for the first time.”
