Stumbling Blocks or Stepping Stones? The Problems and Promises of Policy Reform for the Animal Advocacy Movement

Activists rarely get everything they want from law and policy reforms. During the legislative process, proposed laws are negotiated, and what results are compromised versions of the laws activists originally lobbied for. Do these policy concessions create stumbling blocks or stepping stones for activists to pursue further change? The movement for animal protection in laboratory research provides a good case for examining this broad theoretical issue. I examine the influence of federal regulation at the laboratory level by interviewing scientists, bioethicists, veterinarians, and other professionals involved in research with animals. Some types of policy reform created structural access to laboratory decision-making for actors such as regulatory officials and bioethicists. This access facilitated dramatic changes in bureaucratic practices in the laboratory, and the potential for changes in the ethical considerations and attitudes of those involved in animal research. This access also provides institutional opportunities for activists to affect decision-making in the direction toward ending the practices they target.