Horse racing takes place at Golden Gate Fields with no fans present due to concerns about the coronavirus in this archival photo taken on March 19, 2020, in Berkeley, California.
Justin Sullivan / Getty ImagesA group of animal rights activists demonstrated at Berkeley’s Golden Gate Fields – the horse racing center that is also being used as a COVID-19 vaccination site – resulting in the cancellation of 200 vaccine consultations on Thursday afternoon .
“Golden Gate Fields firmly believes in the right to protest,” Golden Gate Fields’ official Twitter account said in a tweet on Thursday afternoon. “However, the protesters’ current actions have forced the closure of the COVID vaccination clinic on site, and hundreds of people have already had their vaccinations canceled.” The Berkeley Department of Health confirmed to KRON4 that about 200 consultations had to be canceled.
Activists protested the death of horses at the facility over the past year and were able to stop the horse races scheduled for the afternoon.
Images on social media show that a group of four activists locked themselves while lying on the tracks.
A larger group brought signs and asked city officials to close the facility.
According to the California Horse Racing Board, five horses have died at Golden Gate Fields so far this year, and 27 died there last year. Three of the five deaths this year occurred over a four-day period.