A n i m a l W r i t
e s © sm
The official ANIMAL
RIGHTS ONLINE newsletter
Publisher ~ EnglandGal@aol.com
Issue #
07/14/02
Editor ~ JJswans@aol.com
Journalists ~ Park StRanger@aol.com
~
MichelleRivera1@aol.com
~ sbest1@elp.rr.com
THE SIX ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE ARE:
1 ~ ParkStRanger Goes To Washington
2 ~ Prayer Alliance Returns
3 ~ Who's Who in Animal Advocacy
4 ~ Click Here, Feed an Animal in Need
5 ~ Before I Die
6 ~ Memorable Quote
*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´³¤³´`*:»³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`´`*:»«:*³¤³´`³¤³´`³¤³´`*:»³¤³´`
~1~
ParkStRanger Goes to Washington:
A
Subjective Report on Animal Rights 2002
By Greg Lawson - ParkStRanger@aol.com
I
can only hope that I will have a few more experiences in my life that match the
AR2002 conference which was organized by Alex Hershaft and his group FARM,
( FARM (Farm
Animal Reform Movement) Home http://www.farmusa.org/ )
which ran from June 29 through July 3. It was vegan heaven to spend a
week surrounded by more than a thousand like minded animal advocates while we
occupied a Hilton Hotel just outside Washington, D.C. Practically everyone I
made eye contact with smiled and said hello. I knew that they were
thinking the same thing I was - Here.... I am not alone in a crowd of uncaring
carrion eaters. Here, I am finally with my friends.
I arrived late on registration day, received my info packet and joined the
reception. While munching down on the hors d'oeuvres, I glanced around at
name tags to see if I could spot a familiar name. Michelle Rivera
"Greg!"
"Michelle!" We hugged. Although we had worked together
for Animal Rights Online for years, we had never met.
"Have you seen Karen Dawn yet?" she asked.
"No, I haven't." Karen and I have been email friends since
before she put together her wonderful DawnWatch project. DawnWatch helps
activists give feedback to the media about their coverage of animal issues.
DawnWatch
- An Animal Rights and Welfare News and Meedia Watch
http://www.dawnwatch.com/
"She's around here somewhere. Tall, black hair, beautiful."
"I'll keep an eye out."
I scanned the room and before long I saw someone who matched that
description. I moved closer, looking at her name tag. She saw me
and did the same.
"Karen!"
"Greg!" We hugged, the second of many hugs I was to share in
the days which followed.
"It's so good to meet you at last," she said. "Greg, I
want you to meet Peter. Peter, this is Greg Lawson."
I looked at his name tag as I shook his hand. Peter Singer.
OMG. The man who wrote Animal Liberation, the book that made me go
vegetarian in the mid seventies. Then Karen made the most absurd
statement I could have imagined. "Greg is a terrific writer with
Animal Rights Online," she said to the father of the AR movement.
Sure. I imagine "ParkStRanger Goes to the Dentist" will be
remembered right along with Rattling the Cage and Diet for a New
America. Needless to say, I couldn't sleep that night, replaying that
moment over and over in my mind.
The next morning, Saturday at 9 A.M., the workshops began. Every hour on
the hour four different workshops were offered and we had to decide which one
to attend. The decision was often very difficult as so many interesting
topics were covered from hardcore AR to companion animal issues, from how to be
a better speaker to how animals communicate. One hundred and twenty-two
workshops were presented during the week, each one usually featuring three or
four speakers.
At one o'clock we took an hour for lunch at the Hilton's restaurant. The
staff prepared delicious vegan buffets each day for lunch and dinner.
Then it was back to the workshops for the afternoon. After dinner, the
evening sessions featured talks by some notable people in the movement: Peter
Singer, Tom Regan, Jim Mason, Kim Stallwood, Ingrid Newkirk, Howard Lyman,
Karen Davis, Robert Cohen, Paul Watson and so many others including our own ARO
journalist, Steve Best.
Saturday at 4 P.M. I gave my first talk in a workshop called Slaughter in the
Fields, during which I described the annual slaughter of the bison of
Yellowstone and the activist group Buffalo Field Campaign. Buffalo Field Campaign
http://www.wildrockies.org/buffalo/
After the workshop, a man from the audience approached me and said, "I
would like to talk to you more about the bison situation. I want to
help."
"Great," I said. "Let's get together later."
"Sure, maybe at dinner or in the bar after the evening sessions."
"Sounds good." I am glad to have met Dean. He does
fundraising for animal issues and wants to build a coalition to buy out the
cattle ranchers who graze cows on bison migratory land just outside Yellowstone
National Park. Cattle grazing in the area is the main reason why the
state of Montana is killing the Yellowstone bison. If we can get the
ranchers to accept a buy out of their grazing permits we may be able to end the
slaughter. I will be working with Dean on this plan in the weeks ahead.
On July 1, I attended two workshops on public speaking. Josephine
Bellaccomo spoke at both and she reminded me of some important concepts about
giving speeches, things I had forgotten since my college speech classes.
She also provided new information I hope to use in the future to improve my
presentations. I eagerly await her new work from Lantern Books,
"Move the Message: Your Guide to Making a Difference and Changing the
World," due out in the fall. I'll make sure ARO does a review of
this important book.
The next day I was able to use advice from Josephine in two workshops.
Information Programs featured Mary Finelli of Farmed Animal Watch, Karen Dawn
of DawnWatch, Kim Stallwood of Animals' Agenda and me of Animal Rights Online,
each talking a bit about our organizations and publications. During the
workshop Movement Communications I discussed how to shoot and edit digital
video for animal causes.
The first couple of days of the conference I found myself repeating the same
litany to several people, "Hello, Steve (Hindi of SHARK) or Eddie (Lama of
the movie "The Witness") or Kim (Stallwood of Animals' Agenda), I
really appreciate the work you do." Somehow, in my infinite modesty,
it never crossed my mind that it would happen to me. After my talk about
ARO, a girl approached me in the hallway and said, "Hello, Greg, I just
wanted to tell you I am a big fan of your articles in Animal
Writes." Wow. That really made my day.
There were a multitude of booths and information tables in the Exhibits area
with books, t-shirts and other items for sale, free literature, food samples
and more. We all spent a lot of time browsing those rooms, learning,
tasting, buying and stuffing our AR2002 tote bags with literature. Pangea
had a small store set up. a 7-11 for vegans where one could buy items such as
shoes, non-leather jackets, lip balm, soap and other personal items, donuts,
dog biscuits (the Hilton had bent the rules for us and allowed dogs to attend
the conference), candy, vegan jerky and other snacks for nibbling on between
those all you could eat vegan buffets. Did I mention the phrase Vegan
Heaven? It's time to go back on my diet.
On Sunday, June 30th, I was in the Exhibits area, browsing and tasting and
buying and stuffing, when a new friend, Mike Hudak of Public Lands Without
Livestock came up to me and said, "Greg, see that guy over there in the
tie? That's Don Murphy, editor of Meat Marketing & Technology
magazine. He's one of the opposition speakers at this evening's
session." Alex Hershaft had come up with the amazing idea of having
an evening session with three of our "enemies," a man who writes for
a meat industry publication, a scientist who tests on animals and a zoo
director. Give them a microphone and put them in a room with a thousand vegans.
Chomp, Chomp. Somebody call hotel security, quick!
"Greg, you should go interview him for your newsletter," Mike said.
"Eeww, no. I prefer to stay with my own kind," I reacted.
But then I realized that this was a great opportunity to talk to the man, get a
good story to share with my readers, perhaps plant a seed in his mind about
vegism, show him that some AR activists were likable normal type people - and
if all that failed, shove a carrot up his behind.
"Hello, Don, I am Greg Lawson, president of the Vegetarian Society of El
Paso (I didn't want to tell him that I was also a journalist planning on
writing about this conversation). I just wanted to thank you for joining
us at this conference. I know you must feel like Daniel in the lion's
den."
"Hello, Greg, good to meet you. I want you to know that I really
respect the work some of you people are doing to make improvements in the meat
industry. I am here to learn, and I hope that together we can make some
progress in animal welfare."
"Don, most of us here don't want bigger cages, we don't want small steps
to improve the lives of farmed animals, but we work towards that goal in order
to improve the lives of the animals and to get media attention. Let me
tell you about the kind of step forward I would like to see. A few weeks
ago, NASA scientists were able to grow fish cells in a nutrient solution.
It was part of a project to grow food for space flights. The day that we
are able to grow meat in the lab without animals - THAT will be an important
step forward."
"I hadn't heard about that," he said. "That's very
interesting." I begin to wonder how much he is in touch with the real
future of the meat industry. I told him that one day, we will have food
synthesizers that replicate meat from the basic molecules just like on Star
Trek, he seemed to identify with Star Trek, the mind meld was a success.
"I don't expect our movement to convert everyone to veganism, that will
happen sometime in the future for economic reasons," I said. "Oh,
Don, something else I wanted to ask you, since you are a journalist, perhaps
you know. What is the status of the legal case against Tyson foods?
Last I read, Tyson was indicted on over 30 counts of smuggling illegal aliens
into the U.S. to work in their slaughterhouses. Has anything else
developed in that case?"
"That matter is still under investigation. I would be surprised if
they were found guilty. It is suspected that INS set them up," he
said.
"Don, they had recruitment offices in Mexico and were providing transportation
to the U.S. and it is alleged they were making up phony paperwork to get
illegals across the border to work at their plants," I said.
"Tyson wouldn't have done that, they wouldn't want the bad P.R. and the
fines that would go along with an operation like that."
"It seems to me that the largest meat packer in the world wouldn't mind a
few six figure fines if it means that they can continue to get cheap labor from
Mexico," I continued. "People who are willing to work at minimum wage
with no benefits."
"Greg, the thing you have to remember is that those Mexicans are better
off in our country than the poverty they live in. It's the American Dream
to move here, get a good job and provide for their families. And it's the
same for many people in the meat industry, they are mostly good men just
operating a business and trying to provide a good life for their
families."
"The same has been said about the plantation owners in the South in the
1800s. The slaves were better off than they were in Africa, we gave them
good jobs and provided for their families. Don, I just want you to know
the kind of arguments you will face tonight. I appreciate you being here
to talk with us and I wanted to warn you that you might face some heavy debate
and booing tonight. It was good to talk with you."
"Thanks, Greg, it was good to talk to you too. Let me say again that
I appreciate the work people like you are doing to clean up the meat
industry."
We shook, and I immediately headed to the restroom to thoroughly wash my hands.
Later that day, Don was a member of a panel of three who spoke at the evening
session which also included Lorraine Twerdok of the American Petroleum
Institute and Cindy Carroccio, director of the Austin Zoo. Don made a
fairly good showing for himself, describing how he has pushed for reforms in
welfare in the meat industry. He made one major gaff when he was asked
"Would you support environmental enrichment for pigs?" He
responded, "What, I don't understand the question. Oh, ok,
environment. Yes, we have a major problem with manure. It is
polluting the environment and..."
The person who asked that question shouted "That's not the question.
Improvement in the environment for hogs. Gestation crates."
"Oh, ok. Blah blah blah." Poor Don. I hope he learned
something from his visit with us.
Miss Petroleum was a fish out of water, pardon my speciesist remark. I
don't know why she agreed to talk to us. We hated her, all one thousand
of us. You could tell that she was nervous, her hands were shaking as she
tried to defend her experiments on animals for chemicals for the petroleum
industry. She did an opaque slide slow presentation that including a slide that
read.....
Without Animal Testing
*we would have no new medicines
*we would have no new cosmetics
She was strongly booed. What an airhead. She said they were looking
for alternatives to animal testing. She should read Dr. Ray Greek's book Sacred
Cows and Golden Geese. It was good to see Ray at the conference, he is a
strong voice for the animals. AFMA - Americans For Medical Advancement
http://www.curedisease.com/
Cindy Carroccio of the Austin Zoo knew how to work the crowd. She said
that her job was to make sure that the Austin Zoo went out of business.
She said that the Austin Zoo didn't buy, breed or sell animals and that they
neutered all the animals that they rescued. Cindy received a well
deserved standing ovation.
A few ARAs felt that having the opposition on the stage was compromising the AR
movement, that we should be working toward animal liberation not welfare issues
and that having a dialogue with people from the opposition was a bad
thing. I don't agree with that position.
By drawing attention to the horrible conditions that our animal slaves are
forced to live under and by calling for reforms, we are enlightening all the
many people who don't even know about the cages. My friend Steve Best,
wrote a piece that everyone should read "Dismantling a False
Opposition," which examines how AR and AW concerns can work together. Animal
Welfare Or Animal Rights? Dismantling a False Opposition By Dr. Steve
Best
http://www.all-creatures.org/articles/ar-welfare-rights.html
After that panel, Ingrid Newkirk gave a wonderful address. She was
applauded so often and so strongly that my hands stung for ten minutes. I
look forward to hearing it again on tape. There are many photos of the
conference posted at this site... Animal
Rights 2002 National Conference http://www.animalrights2002.org/
The banquet on July 2 featured the most elegant vegan meal I have ever
had. Alex Hershaft brought out the chef and his staff and they received
even more applause than Ingrid had been given. It was well deserved.
There were a few tense moments during the conference and unfortunate things
were said. In any cause important enough to fight for, and Animal Rights
is certainly such a cause, there will be infighting. I hope everyone will
remember that the animals are too important for us to allow ourselves to be
divided. We must continue to work together, despite differing opinions,
to improve the lives of the animals and win them the recognition of their
rights.
On July third I gave my final talk about the Yellowstone bison at the Wildlife
Campaigns workshop. I used what I had learned in the public speaking
workshops and felt I did my best presentation at this session. I really
hope I am invited back to speak next year and that I will have good news to
report on the bison situation. Last Wednesday, I spoke on the phone with
D.J. Schubert, an attorney with the Fund for Animals who has been involved in
the bison issue. He gave me hope that progress will be made this summer
to bring an end to the slaughter. I'll report on developments here in
Animal Writes.
It was sad to see the week end and depressing to return to the world of the
meat eaters and abusers. I was inspired by the conference and motivated
to work harder for the animals. I hope the many wonderful people I met
stay in touch and that I run into them again at AR2003.
*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`³¤³´`*:»³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`´`*:»«:*³¤³´`³¤³´`
~2~
Prayer Alliance Returns
Animal Rights Online is pleased to announce the
highly anticipated comeback of The Prayer Alliance for Animals!
Our own journalist, Michelle Rivera, founded the Prayer Alliance for Animals in
April, 1999. Her subscriber list grew quickly and the
"petitions," as the prayers are called, came out weekly. These
are very short, one-paragraph e-mails that announce the issue for the week, and
all the subscribers unite in prayer in their own way to send healing energy and
hope for the animals.
The Prayer Alliance was on hiatus while Michelle promoted her book, Hospice
Hounds, Animals and Healing at the Borders of Death (ww.lanternbooks.com).
However, at the recent Animal Rights 2002 conference, Michelle was
repeatedly asked about the return of the Alliance. Seems there were a lot
of devoted fans. So it is back, bigger and better than ever along with a
new website. And for those of you in South Florida, the Prayer Alliance
for Animals is taking on the task of organizing a vegan outreach supper club so
subscribers can meet once a month and organize grassroots efforts to effect
local changes.
Visit the Prayer Alliance for Animals website at
www.PrayerAllianceForAnimals.com and join this very special animal advocacy
effort.
*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`³¤³´`*:»³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`´`*:»«:*³¤³´`³¤³´`
~3~
Who's Who in Animal Advocacy?
Just
a reminder for those activists in Animal Rights, Veganism, as well as Animal
Welfare - please send your information to EnglandGal@aol.com so we can include
you in this project. We will be compiling an activist listing and
building a website around it. Please note that we are interested in
PEOPLE, not in groups. A great website already on the web is World Animal
Net that lists activist groups. What we are looking for is information so
we can help identify people in the animal advocacy movement. When a name
is listed in a program, for instance, as being a speaker at an event, we want
to offer a website where that name can be listed along with interests and
affiliations. So for any activist who hasn't done so, please fill in the
following and pass it on to other activists that should be included.
1. Your name
2. Your email address
3. [Optional] Your postal address and/or phone number (for safety - no home
addresses please)
4. Your group affiliation(s)
5. Your group or personal website address (animal advocacy or vegetarian
related only)
6. List the interests you are active in (i.e., fur, circus, veganism,
hunting, etc.)
7. List a brief recap of your contributions to animal advocacy and/or animal
protection/care
8. List any books you have written.
9. Other facts that might be of interest to the reader.
*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`³¤³´`*:»³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`´`*:»«:*³¤³´`³¤³´`
~4~
Click Here, Feed an Animal in
Need
Submitted by Greg Lawson - ParkStRanger@aol.com
http://www.animalrescuesite.com/
The Animal Rescue Site
The
Animal Rescue Site is a legitimate website which provides food for animals in
shelters and sanctuaries. Once a day, your mouse click at this page will
provide a bowl of food for an animal in need. The Animal Rescue Site is
affiliated with The Hunger Site (www.thehungersite.com) which has provided over
a million servings of food to people in the last four years.
When you click on the "Feed an Animal" button, you are taken to a
page that shows several small ads for the sponsors. That's all there is
to it. I know it sounds too good to be true, but my research confirms
that this site really works. Bookmark
this webpage or make it your homepage and visit it daily to help the animals.
*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`³¤³´`*:»³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`´`*:»«:*³¤³´`³¤³´`
~5~
Before
I Die
Copyright Jim Willis 2002
http://www.crean.com/jimwillis
'Tis lonely here in prison,
I dream of sun, of fields,
I saw them from a window once,
but I don't know how they feel.
I've never known a caress,
a friend, a bone, a toy,
I'd happily companion,
a human girl or boy.
But some men have decided,
with selfishness and greed,
that my fate shall be a cage,
and for my keep, I'll breed.
What should fuel this folly?
My kind may bark in vain.
We care not for your commerce,
and few know of our pain.
We're hidden well from justice,
for our freedom some may cry.
God grant me, please, just one request -
Let me play once before I die.
*******
Dedicated to the millions of animals who never knew
the sun and fresh air, those regarded as property, and
who profited human bank accounts. Please help change
laws that ignore animals are sentient beings deserving
of guardianship. Help stop the lobbyist and illegal
activities of puppy/kitten mills and petshop trade
associations, and some animal registries that allow
this incredibly cruel situation to continue. Visit the
websites of national and international humane
organizations who are waging campaigns against this
abuse (such as http://www.idausa.org ), then write a
letter to your local editor and contact your
legislators and ask them to pass laws against large
commercial breeding operations, animal auctions, and
petshop sales.
Thank you,
Jim Willis, author of
"Pieces of My Heart - Writings Inspired by Animals and Nature"
http://www.crean.com/jimwillis
*´`³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`*´`³¤³´`*:»«:*´`³¤³´`*:»³¤³´`*:»§«:*´`´`*:»«:*³¤³´`³¤³´`
~6~
Memorable Quote
"A
society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know
they shall never sit in."
~ Anonymous
~
Submitted by Robert Cohen
www.notmilk.com
«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»
Susan Roghair - EnglandGal@aol.com
Animal Rights Online
P O Box 7053
Tampa, Fl 33673-7053
http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/1395/
-=Animal Rights Online=-
&
Advisory Board Member, Animal Rights Network Inc.,
not-for-profit publisher of The Animals' Agenda Magazine
http://www.animalsagenda.org/
The
Animals' Agenda Magazine: WebEdition
«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»§«¤»¥«¤»
(Permission Granted To Quote/Forward/Reprint/Repost This Newsletter In
Whole Or In Part with credit given to EnglandGal@aol.com)
* Please forward this to a
friend who you think
might be interested in subscribing to our newsletter.
* ARO
gratefully accepts and considers articles for publication
from subscribers on veg*anism and animal issues.
Send submissions to JJswans@aol.com
** Fair Use Notice**
This document may contain copyrighted material whose use has not been
specifically authorized by the copyright owners. I believe that this
not-for-profit, educational use on the Web constitutes a fair use of the coprighted
material (as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law). If you wish
to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond fair
use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.