It never ceases to amaze me how we treat our animals. Remember what Gandhi said—“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” If we do this, we know that we’re absolutely not so great and not so moral. From our factory farms to countless cases of animal abuse and neglect, horse meat, animal races, circuses, zoos, and more—on a whole, we definitely do not treat our animals very kindly at all.

One thing that I just found out that really made me upset is that we still use chimpanzees in invasive research. Chimps have been considered the closest relatives to humans for many years. Their DNA is extremely similar to our own, which is why people justify the research. But with chimpanzees being that similar to humans—very much like human children, or even more advanced, in their thinking, emotions, behavior, and lifestyle—is it really ethical to invasively test on them? It’s very much like testing on our own brothers; indeed, that’s the closest way to describe it.

I remember reading a children’s book to my daughter when she was two years of age. It featured lots of different animals dressed in human clothes, as many children’s books do. She pointed them all out—dogs, cats, zebras, etc. When it depicted a picture of a chimpanzee wearing children’s clothing, she simply said, “Boy.” Take away the social context and we’re left with creatures not much different from our own selves.

In fact, most nations find chimpanzee testing deplorable. The United States is the only remaining developed nation that continues to test on chimps in invasive studies. I know that there are several things we are behind other developed countries in getting accomplished in our own—from gay marriage to universal healthcare to an abolished death penalty—but this one, unlike the rest, doesn’t have any religious objectors at the forefront, so I don’t understand what the obstacle is here.

To help the hundreds of chimps and other primates that are continually being abused in federally-funded research centers across the country, The Humane Society of the United States is sponsoring a nationwide house party campaign through their Party Animals branch. These events will “focus on these magnificent animals and important legislation to protect them,” including the Great Ape Protection Act, which would stop chimps from being used in invasive experiments—as well as retire the 500 federal chimps being used in labs today.

To get in on this action and help spread the word, please consider hosting your own Chimp Retirement Party on May 2. HSUS can get you started with everything you need at their website here, including an important video to share. If nothing else, please be sure to check it out, read about the Act, and offer support if you can. Pass on the link to friends and family to help spread the word, too.