Written by: Dayani Guevara, Cisneros Class of 2024
Alex Pacheco was born in Illinois in 1958 to a Mexican father and an American mother. One of three children, Alex and his family relocated to Mexico when he was very young, before moving back to the United States when Alex was in middle school. Alex recalls his childhood in Mexico constantly surrounded by all types of animals as pivotal for nurturing in him the deep appreciation for animal welfare that became his life’s passion/work.
Growing up, Alex felt he was called to do something bigger and decided to go to school to become a priest. Though Alex believed the priesthood to be his calling, everything changed when he visited a friend working at a meat-packing plant. Alex, forever impacted by the animal cruelty he witnessed was quoted as saying he still remembers, “the stench of the blood, the excrement everywhere, the screaming of the animals.” Alex left the meat-packing plant a vegetarian and with a newfound determination. He wanted to give a voice to those who didn’t have one, and as a result, Alex Pacheco, would change the face of animal rights. Beginning his life-long dedication, he attended George Washington University, and majored in Political and Environmental Science. The same year Alex graduated from college, he co-founded People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, PETA.
At its start, PETA had very little traction and was described by Ingrid Newkirk, it’s other co-founder, as “five people in a basement.”
Alex Pacheco infiltrated the Institute for Behavioral Research in Silver Spring, Maryland, as a volunteer. He decided to blow the whistle after witnessing unnecessary harm being inflicted upon research animals. This case became the first ever animal rights case brought to the United States Supreme Court. Though the researchers who were at fault for animal abuse weren’t convicted because the Court found that Maryland’s Prevention of Cruelty to Animals law did not apply to researchers, the publicity of this case sparked a revolution for animal rights. The Silver Spring Monkey Case brought PETA a lot of attention and credibility, proving they could be vital agents of change in protecting animals. The details of this case are still debated, but it is no argument that this case resulted in important precautionary measures for animal rights around the United States. For example, the 1985 Animal Welfare Act and amendments to U.S. public health guidelines for animals are easily attributable to the publicity of Alex Pacheco’s groundbreaking discoveries.
After co-founding PETA and serving as a chairman for over 20 years, Alex Pacheco resigned in 1999 saying, “I left PETA because it had and has drifted far from its base, and because of disagreements over tactics.” Instead, Alex focused his efforts on 600 Million Dogs, and Adopt-a-Pet.com, organizations dedicated to tackling the “global pet overpopulation problem” and finding loving homes for animals across the United States. Throughout his life, Alex Pacheco has gone against the status quo, standing for what he believes in. In this, we can all admire his commitment to groups who don’t have a voice.
Dayani Guevara is a first-year Cisneros Scholar in the Elliott School of International Affairs. From Fort Wayne, Indiana, she is pursing international affairs and is part of GW’s Women’s Leadership Program. Dayani’s views are her own and not necessarily reflective of the Cisneros Institute.