Animal rights protesters storm the court at NBA playoffs, consequences vary

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On four separate occasions, protesters attempted to disrupt 2022 NBA playoff games featuring the Minnesota Timberwolves. Soon enough, it became clear the protests were coordinated by animal rights activists objecting to Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor’s ownership of a factory farm. 

Key Players

The Minnesota Timberwolves, a franchise in the NBA, play their home games at the Target Center in downtown Minneapolis. 

Glen Taylor has been the owner of the Timberwolves since 1994 and also owns Rembrandt Farms, a chicken farming enterprise described by ESPN as “a large-scale factory farm that produces tens of millions of eggs each year.”

Direct Action Everywhere (DxE), an animal rights organization, describes itself as “using nonviolent direct action and community building to create revolutionary social and political change for animals.” 

Further Details

On April 12, 2022, Alicia Santurio, a DxE protester, attempted to glue herself to one end of the Target Center court during a play-in tournament game between the Timberwolves and the Los Angeles Clippers. 

A video posted by Bleacher Report shows Santurio being promptly removed by arena security. Immediately, the incident went viral, with social media users coining the hashtag “GlueGirl.” FoxNews.com and other outlets reported that Santurio was wearing a shirt that read “GLEN TAYLOR ROASTS ANIMALS ALIVE.” 

DxE told the Washington Examiner that the removal of Santurio’s glued hand from the court caused her to suffer torn skin that required stitches. In the wake of the incident, DxE released a statement decrying “a recent mass killing of 5.3 million chickens following an outbreak of ‘highly pathogenic avian influenza’ (HPAI)” that took place at Rembrandt Farms. 

Four days later, Zoe Rosenberg entered the court at the FedExForum in Memphis, Tenn., where the Timberwolves were the visiting team in Game 1 of the playoffs against the Memphis Grizzlies. During play, Rosenberg walked onto the floor and threw what FOX13 Memphis called “political flyers” across the court. She proceeded to wrap a chain around herself and the base of one of the baskets. Rosenberg wore a shirt with the same message as Santurio. 

Security officials managed to cut through the chain, and CBS Sports reported that players attempted to clean the flyers off of the court. When interviewed, Rosenberg cited Taylor’s ties to alleged animal cruelty as her motive. Notably, Rosenberg pointed out that this was the third time she had been arrested for protesting animal cruelty at sporting events. 

FOX13 Memphis noted that an affidavit claimed Rosenberg’s protest “created a disturbance and made the area around the basketball goal unsafe for players and fans.”

On April 21, 2022, at Game 3 of the series in Minneapolis, DxE member Matt Johnson was stopped by security before he could reach the court, according to ESPN. Two days later, at Game 4, Sasha Zemmel, dressed like a game referee,  rushed the court during play and attempted to approach Taylor but was immediately tackled by security and arrested. Video of the guards’ quick reaction went viral. 

DxE published a press release stating that Zemmel wore a referee jersey that “had the jersey number 5.3 displayed on the back, in honor of the 5.3 million chickens killed at Rembrandt.”

Outcome

Protesters receive varying degrees of punishment, protests end as Timberwolves eliminated

For gluing herself to the court, Santurio received a trespass warning and a one-year ban from the Target Center. Rosenberg was escorted out of the arena by police and faced charges of trespassing and disorderly conduct. The charges were dropped in January 2023 after Rosenberg served a 30-day probation period, according to ABC/24. 

Johnson was charged with disorderly conduct, to which he pleaded guilty in December 2022. ESPN reported that he was also banned from the Target Center for a year.

Because she attempted to confront Taylor directly, Zemmel faced the most severe consequences. She was charged with disorderly conduct and fifth-degree assault. Later in 2022, Zemmel reached an agreement with prosecutors in which she pleaded guilty to entering a restricted area at an entertainment event, Minnesota court records show; other charges were dismissed, and she was sentenced to community service.

The Timberwolves were eliminated from the playoffs by Memphis on April 29, 2022.