Protest at circus turns ugly as activist is hospitalised after assault

Ralph West, a prominent animal and environmental activist, was reportedly assaulted during a protest at King’s Beach, Gqeberha, on Saturday night against the use of animals by McLaren Circus. He underwent surgery on Sunday.

While animal rights activists insisted that their protest was peaceful, McLaren Circus spokesperson Karl Hildebrandt said on Sunday they were  “disturbed” by the events.

West said on Friday that he had informed circus owner David McLaren (whom he described as “the chief dick” in a Facebook post) that he was not welcome in Nelson Mandela Bay.

Hildebrandt said there was no “peace” in the protest by Planty, Bru! and Beauty without Cruelty.

Animal lovers in Nelson Mandela Bay have a long history of protesting against the circus’s use of animals.

Hildebrandt said that on Saturday, “Before our scheduled 5pm show, an altercation broke out involving a male protester and a female circus supporter with her child.

“What started as verbal harassment quickly escalated into physical contact — pushing and shoving — amounting to clear gender-based aggression. A male member of the public had to step in to protect the woman and children. SAPS was contacted, but unfortunately, they provided very little assistance at the time.

“The male protester involved [West] had already been approached yesterday by David McLaren and informed he was not allowed on the property. Despite this, he returned today, continued harassing patrons, and blatantly refused to respect the boundary or comply.

“It must be made clear that the land and parking lot we are renting is private property. These protesters have no permission to be there. Yet they act as if they’re above the law and free to do as they please, even if it means putting families at risk.”

Hildebrandt said that Chad Cupido, the chairperson of Beauty Without Cruelty (Cape Town), “With loudhailer in hand … was shouting provocative chants and disturbing attendees of our 5pm show. As a representative of an organisation claiming to promote compassion, Mr Cupido made no effort to maintain peace — instead, he actively contributed to the agitation and disruption.

“It’s truly ironic that while these individuals claim to care about animal rights, they show little to no regard for human rights — especially those of women, children and peaceful members of the public. McLaren Circus offers family-friendly entertainment, but having adults shouting aggressively and scaring children outside our venue raises serious questions about what they truly stand for.”

Peaceful and legal

Toni Brockhoven, the national chairperson of Beauty without Cruelty, said the organisation had staged peaceful and legal protests at the McClaren Circus to object to the use of animals in its acts.

“We are always peaceful and legal. We don’t disrupt traffic. We do not litter,” she said.

She said the circus was looking for “anything they can twist and manipulate. They are threatened by the … growing number of people who are protesting the use of animals.”

Protesters at the McLaren Circus on Saturday night. (Picture: McLaren Circus)

However, Hildebrandt countered that the real story was that the McLaren Circus “is celebrating 20 years of bringing joy, laughter and live entertainment to families right across South Africa.

“We understand that people are allowed to protest peacefully, and that’s their right. But when they start trespassing and intimidating our staff and customers, that’s no longer a peaceful protest — that’s harassment. They’re simply breaking the law, they’re also infringing on our audience’s basic rights, like their dignity, their freedom to choose what they support and their right to enjoy a day out without being harassed.

“The overwhelming support we get from the communities we visit shows that the public still values what we do. People come to McLaren Circus for the full experience — from the talented performers to the beautiful animals and the incredible bond our trainers have with them.

“We follow all the legal requirements, including the Performing Animals Protection Act of 2016, which is managed by the Department of Agriculture. And of course, welfare organisations like the NSPCA are there to keep all of us accountable.”

Cupido said Beauty Without Cruelty had been protesting at McLaren Circus for more than 16 years.

“We are one of the most consistent and vocal opponents of the use of animals in circuses. Naturally, this positions us as a significant threat to their business model, and it’s no surprise that Mr McLaren is now attempting to shift the narrative by attacking our organisation and my personal conduct.

“I did attend both protests — the first at 1pm and the second at 4pm. For clarity: I used a loudhailer during the first protest only, for roughly half of it. It is well within my constitutional right to do so. However, I chose not to use it during the second protest. This was a conscious decision we made after requesting that the circus turn down their intensely loud music, which we believed was distressing for the animals. Mr McLaren agreed to this request at the time, so it is disingenuous for him to now raise the use of a loudhailer as a factor in the incident, especially when it was not used at all during that time.

“To further clarify: at no point did I incite violence. Our protest was loud, yes, but peaceful and within the bounds of the law. The only aggression came from circus patrons and staff, not from us.

“I’d also like to clarify that this particular protest was not organised by Beauty Without Cruelty. We did not plan or promote it on any of our platforms. Our role was to support the broader collaborative effort organised and/or supported by the following organisations: Planty, Bru!, Humane World for Animals and the Human Animal Project.

He said the situation escalated when West, who was chanting peacefully near the entrance, was shouted at.

“A woman from the queue ran towards him, grabbed him, and shoved him. She later apologised to me and the team and gave a statement to the police.

Slammed to the ground

“A male individual then lifted Ralph and violently slammed him to the ground, causing a broken hip. He stood over Ralph while Mr McLaren and a circus clown falsely claimed Ralph had assaulted the woman,” said Cupido.

“We later returned with police, who recorded statements from witnesses and identified both assailants.”

He said they then went to a police station to summon assistance and returned with members of the police.

“In what felt like a providential moment, the woman came directly to us — we did not go looking for her. She approached Candice (from Humane World for Animals), myself, and several other protesters and broke down completely. She apologised, was visibly shaken, cried, and entered a state of emotional distress. She made it absolutely clear that she was not assaulted or provoked by Ralph.”

Madeline Mack from Planty, Bru!, who organised the protest, said West was hospitalised with a serious injury.

“He was at the first protest on Friday evening. He was told not to stand on the grass or block the entrance, and he complied, both then and again on Saturday. On Saturday, he was standing in the parking lot, which is public space, not private property. It is anyone’s democratic right to participate in a peaceful protest and to share opposing views. This does not constitute harassment as Mr McLaren alleges.

“It is well known that Mr McLaren contacts the SAPS every time there is a peaceful  protest, not only in Gqeberha but across the country. This has been well reported on and documented. Protesters in Gqeberha have even been accused of stealing his alligator one year, when the circus negligently lost it and later found it again; I believe it was found in a stormwater drain.

“We have video footage from Saturday that clearly shows that the female circus supporter initiated the physical altercation by attacking Ralph. Following that, another man began pushing him until he fell and broke his hip. At the same time, a third man tried to attack another protester and tore his shirt.

“No circus patrons or members of the public were assaulted; it was three of our protesters who were hurt. Ralph is the one most likely to lay charges, but as mentioned, he’s still recovering in hospital.

“No charges were opened from McLaren’s side, likely because the people who were assaulted were from our group. We called the police and gave full statements. We’re now waiting for Ralph to be well enough to proceed, and the video evidence will clearly support what happened. No difference in opinion can justify such a physical assault on anyone exercising their right to peacefully demonstrate.

Hildebrandt denied that circus employees had assaulted West.

West’s wife Sharon confirmed on Sunday night that he was still in the recovery ward after surgery and had been unable to open a case of assault. DM

In a previous version of this article an allegation was made that the assault of West was allegedly perpetrated by a staff member of the McLaren Circus. Daily Maverick apologises to the McLaren Circus for the error. This has now been corrected.