Poughkeepsie, NY Representing For Bunnnies!
Here are a couple pictures from that beautiful city of Poughkeepsie, New York!
First, take note of the giant bunny and Robin Henderson, a PETA2 College Leadership program participant, protesting Wet Seal at the Poughkeepsie Galleria on a slightly chilly day earlier this month. The campaign is growing strong with the support of college students across the country! Drop us a line at PETA2@peta.org to get involved.
Rabbits are extremely social animals, living with their families in underground burrows called warrens. They can hop faster than a cat, human, or white-tailed deer can run. Rabbits love nibbling on alfalfa, timothy hay, apples, carrots, and crisp, green veggies, and they chew vigorously to trim their front teeth, which never stop growing. They communicate through body language, marking their territories like cats by rubbing their chins on twigs, rocks, or other landmarks. People who have adopted domestic rabbits from shelters know that they can be extremely affectionate, snuggling with their human companions and gently nuzzling their necks. Rabbits are sensitive, smart animals with individual personalities, just like dogs and cats. They make lifelong bonds with other rabbits and humans, play with toys, and can even learn to use litterboxes.
Like other animals “farmed” for their fur, rabbits—who are extremely clean by nature—are kept in tiny, filthy cages, surrounded by their own waste. They spend their entire miserable lives standing on the thin cage wires, never having a chance to dig, jump, or play. The methods of slaughter are inhumane—they are killed by having their necks broken or having their skulls beaten in before being strung up by the legs and having their heads cut off.
Also, make note of Robin’s brilliant work in setting up this anti-fur display right near her college’s fashion department! This panel, discussing the cruelties of the fur industry, is one of three large visuals that will reach thousands of students, faculty, staff, and visitors!
Thanks to everyone working to help those bunnies! Seriously, could they get any cuter? Have you seen their noses?
Posted by JoelBartlett at 05:43 PM | Comments (0)
December 30, 2004A Veggie Christmas
Penn State student-activist Jessica Parry recently wrapped up a 'Sexy Santa' tour where she helped to reach tons of people across the Northeast with a compassionate holiday message.
Jessica gave out free Tofurky and Vegetarian Starter Kits to enthused passers-by in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York. You may have seen coverage of her events on your television or in your newpaper, or even heard about it on the radio.
See you in 2005!
Posted by pulinm at 05:11 PM | Comments (0)
November 23, 2004Vanderbilt University - Off to a Great Start
Students at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee are off to a great start with their student organization. The Vanderbilt Vegetarian Society email list has grown to over ten times what it was at the beginning of the semester, a number of students have helped set up info tables around campus, they held a campus-wide Tofurky contest in time for the holidays, and there was even a huge picture from a recent KFC protest in their student paper!
Betsy Thomas, a junior originally from the DC area, submitted an excellent letter to the editor. You can read it here. For her efforts, she gets any item under $10 from PETACatalog.org.
Congrats to the students working hard over there. If you want to get more involved on your campus, drop us an email at PETA2@peta.org and we'll send you all the free posters, stickers, and info you need to get started!
Posted by pulinm at 03:23 PM | Comments (0)
November 17, 2004Demand Liberation!
What do you get when one crazy chicken, ten Coronel Sanders look-alikes, 30 student activists and the best animal rights organizers meet at the Harvard Law School?
If you guessed Demand Liberation -the nation's best student animal rights conference - then you are correct!
This weekend, students from Virginia to Maine met in Boston for coalition building, strategy workshops, hands-on trainings, one amazing KFC protest and tons of fun! Presentations included campus organization building, public speaking, organizing demos, working with the media and tips for effective advocacy.
You can check out the Student Animal Rights Alliance Blog for pictures from the conference. Here's what the students attending had to say:
"Very positive/uplifting, motivating."
"Out of all the conferences I’ve been to, I feel like this is the one I’ve learned the most from."
"Everybody here was so hot!!"
"I really appreciate this conference. Larger conferences are great too, but I feel like so much is accomplished in this small setting. The food was incredible. Yum. Thank you so much to the organizers and presenters for all you do."
Want to catch the next Demand Liberation? We'll be hosting three more conferences in February 2005: Gainsville, Austin & Minneapolis!
Posted by loringh at 05:11 PM | Comments (0)
November 12, 2004Humane Week
Last week Protecting Animal Welfare and Safety (PAWS) of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island hosted the first ever Humane Week.
The week of vegetarian activism kicked off with "The Veg Pledge", which encoruaged student to try vegetarianism for one week. The efforts of PAWS activists were bolstered by the Dining Service Management who agreed to serve no fewer than three vegetarian entrees at every meal.
The Humane Week also featured a presentation of "Goodbye, Green Pastures!" -a survey of the environmental impacts of factory farming by Loring Harkness of PETA.
The following night students enjoyed screenings of the movies "Peaceable Kingdom" and "The Witness" while munching on soy milk and vegan cookies.
Activists also braved the sleet and cold to host a vegan BBQ, where they invited fellow students to try free samples of Gardenburger Vegan Riblets. One activist dressed in a pink pig costume and held a sign that read, "No! I don't have any spare ribs!" Activists distributed over 150 samples and received press coverage by local radio stations and newspapers.
PAWS capped off this amazing week of vegetarian activism by hosting a vegan banquet on Saturday night. Everyone who had taken "The Veg Pledge" was invited to attend.
The amazing response to Humane Week by Brown University students encouraged PAWS to pursue more vegetarian activism in the future. PAWS has already taken steps to make the vegetarian entrees a permanent fixture in the cafeteria and has plans to place newspaper stands full of Vegetarian Starter Kits in prominent locations around campus.
Posted by loringh at 03:07 PM | Comments (0)
November 03, 2004Liberation Now!
It's not every weekend that 300 kids assemble in front of a Nieman Marcus store and in unison chant "Nieman Carcass! How many animals did you kill today?" through bullhorns or 20 activists behind Colonel Sanders masks march in a parade giving out stickers depicting the Colonel slitting the throat of a bloody chicken. Conferences such as Liberation Now offer hundreds of young animal rights activists from all over the world, including star street teamer Kevin Loder from Oregon, a chance to get together to learn, discuss and get active.
Among some of the other exciting events happening this past weekend in Berkeley, California were: Carroll Adams speaking on the link between feminist critical theory and animal rights, one activist dressing up like a giant bunny and handing out "Be a Bunny’s Honey" stickers at a Halloween parade, reflections on the animal rights movement's light-speed progress from Paul Shapiro of Compassion Over Killing, Michael Gregor, M.D., talking on globalization and the animal rights movement, Bruce Friedrich speaking on effective advocacy for animals and Alka Chandna speaking on working for an animal rights organization.
There were tons of workshops on everything from "Pursuing a Career in Pre-law" to "How We Did an Open Rescue". We all had a chance to ask some of the big names in animal advocacy all of those questions that have been eating away at us, while we ate away at some of the best vegan food I’ve had in a long time.
If you’re interested in networking with activists in your area, learning more about effective advocacy techniques, learning more about animals rights, eating great vegan food, or just having fun while fighting for a cause, you should definitely check out DemandLiberation.com and come to one of the regional conferences in Philadelphia, Boston, Gainesville, Austin & Minneapolis.
Posted by dwilson at 02:44 PM | Comments (2)
November 02, 2004Election Day
Today marks our nation's presidential election, and like most Americans you're taking this historic opportunity to raise your voice for animals. But which presidential candidate is the most compassionate toward animals? Look no further than Chris P. Carrot!
Chris P. Carrot’s message of compassion and health has already reached thousands of people across the country. After two rounds of successful campaigning in Beantown and the Big Apple during the Democratic and Republican National Conventions, Chris P. Carrot is now asking Americans everywhere to get back to their roots, not to mention their fruits and vegetables. If everyone took Chris P. Carrot’s vegetarian message to heart, America’s health would improve dramatically and billions of animals would be spared. Vote Carrot 2004!
Posted by loringh at 04:40 PM | Comments (0)
November 01, 2004Veg Nutrition 101
Sick of people asking you about getting enough vitamin B12 or amino acids on a vegan diet? Then take a tip from PSTAR (Penn Students for Animal Rights) and educate your classmates with a quick and easy Veg Nutrition 101 class!
Today members of PSTAR hosted a Veg Nutrition 101 class the University of Pennsylvania. Their 40 minute to 1 hour Powerpoint presentation focuses on all the major macronutrients (carbs, fats, proteins) and the many of the micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) that compromise a healthy vegetarian diet. The presentation also debunks common myths about vegetarian diets, evaulates some of the new fad diets, offers insights to general health issues, and informs students about the vegetarian and vegan options available in the University of Pennsylvania's dining halls.
During the lecture, a PSTAR chef prepared healthy, easy-to-make, and relatively inexpensive vegetarian recipes that any college student can whip up. Samples were distributed throughout the presentation.
After the presentation concluded, students asked questions while they enjoy a FREE VEGAN MEAL (provided by the college house and catered by a local vegan restaurant who agreed to donate the food), and tons of literature. Recipes were also available for the students to take.
Want to host a Veg Nutrition class at your college? Give Peta2 a holler and we'll help get you started!
Posted by loringh at 10:42 AM | Comments (1)
October 29, 2004Speaking Truth To Power
When the CEO of Proctor and Gamble agreed to address alumni of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut he didn't know he would have to answer for Iams cruel animal experiments. As A.G. Lafley took the podium, a peta2 activist stood at the front of the room and shouted:
"Ladies and Gentlemen - The Iams Corporation, a Proctor and Gamble company, kills cats and dogs in cruel nutritional experiments. These experiments are completely unnecessary and can easily be replaced by humane alternatives. A.G. Lafley has the power to stop animal suffering. Please visit IamsCruelty.com for more information. Thank you!"
Everyone in the room was too shocked to respond and the peta2 activist then left the building without incident. Here's to speaking truth to power!
Posted by loringh at 03:16 PM | Comments (1)
October 26, 2004Virginia Tech
I've been finishing up my talk for Liberation Now! - The National Animal Rights Student Conference. My talk should be very good, so if you're going be there I better see your face in the audience (hooting and hollering). There are just a few days left. California here we come!
Oh yeah, and here's another article about vegetarianism that appeared in Virginia Tech's newspaper.
Posted by JoelBartlett at 09:18 AM | Comments (0)
