activism

[skunkpumpkin]

Are any of you active in animal rights? Is there any advice you could share? I'm only 15 so I don't have freedom of transportation or very much money, so I really don't know what I can do. Anyone have any experience/ideas?

[CharityAJO]

You're 15 - so I assume you're in high school. One of the best things you can do is organize an AR group at your school.

At the University of Maryland, I work with a group that does activities such as:
-Visit animal sanctuaries and volunteer
-Have vegan potlucks, organize trips to vegan restuarants (for peer support, member recruitment, and just, well - to remind people that eating vegan is eating tasty)
-Feed-Ins: Usually themed, for holidays, such as Thanksgiving. We pass out free samples of vegan food, along with literature. We get to talk one-on-one with people about the vegan diet, and our reasons for maintaining it. And we send a huge message: Vegans eat a variety of tasty foods. Not just salad!
-We've done campaigns on various issues particular to UM.
-Letters to the editor - very big! Everytime something anti-AR happens, we flood the campus newspaper with letters
-And of course, general tabling and leafletting with lots of literature on AR issues.


Of these, I think that for a high school group - The feed ins would definetely be possible. They could even be converted into a bake sale. It's pretty easy to bake up a few batches of vegan brownies and cookies. And these things will DEFINETELY sell to hungry high schoolers who forgot breakfast. Just include a little info packet, or hand them a Why Vegan. (BTW - much literature is available for free, just look around online. Try Vegan Outreach and Peta.)

If you have a school paper, or even a local paper - write a letter to the editor about an issue that bothers you.

Set up an information table at the next basketball game. Heck, have a bake sale at the next basketball game!

(If you want some tips on funding, or getting food/ingredient donations, PM me)

[Tiggzie]

Um yeah what charity said. Hehehe. She summed everything up well. If you haven't already check out PETA2.com. The boards kinda suck and what-not but I think peta has the best literature and if you email them they will send you some for free. Plus they always have poster giveaways and crap like that. Also peta and some other organizations have email lists that you can subscribe to where they send you action alerts. Usually all you have to do is write letters but it can help keep you on top of what's going on.

[epski]

I would suggest you find out what local organizations already exist, or see if there's a national organization you could align yourself with locally. There's already too many orgs out there, and they need your help. The Internet is a great way to research this information.

I've done some things (from basic volunteer stuff to video editing) for Last Chance for Animals (lcanimal.org), and they (as well as other orgs) can provide you with a lot of the info you need to be active locally.

[vegansurfer]

I don't really know if what I am doing would be considered animal rights, but it is definately playing a role in animal population (of salmon). One of my classes is called CEDAR, which is a class where we find problems out in the community, and design a project to fix that issue. This is my second year in it, and I am working on salmon restoration. My partner and I mount salmon scales that are taken off salmon spawning up a creek near us and we analyze the scales to determine age composition, time spent in salt water and time spent in sea water. We compare the data of hatchery fish and wild fish to determine which kind is doing better, and to figure out where there are holes in the restoration project.
That is one of my little things that I do to help the animals.

[skunkpumpkin]

Hmmm, I suppose I could start by forming a "club" at my highschool (our schedules are becoming more & more club-oriented, however, nothing in place really interests me.) I had been thinking of doing this anyway, thanks for bringing it up and making it seem possible. I have to think about how to go about this; flyers are definitely a good choice of media, don't you think? Also, my school has silent video announcements that play all day long in a cycle. I could request an announcement there. However, lots of work would have to happen behind the scenes. I'd have to plan each event, request space. Maybe I'd need a unique name to call the group, some catchphrases/rhetorical questions to put on the flyers. To anyone whose organized this in a highschool environment: How much time did it take? Was your message heard? Did you recieve lots of interest? rebuke? No matter what you say, I'm planning to do this, but I just want to get a sense of what I'm getting myself into here. hah. Thanksya all.

[maple_syrup]

epski you have the same birthday as my mom! but arent you a grownup? AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!! *runs and hides under couch*

theres nothing really that i know where i live. i just kinda spread the word and send peta their nickel back every time they give one to me to "remind me of all the poor suffering animals". like i need to be reminded.

[VeganChick15]

hi maple_syrup!!!! i do the same stuff as maple_syrup my bestest friend! we both aspire to be in a flash protest(thats the right word right? i hope so) one day though.
i wonder if it would count for service hours?

[Rebel Girl]

yeah i wanna do something with my high school or something, but im only a freshman, and i dont know exactly what the reaction would be, or even if i would have enough people to come and do stuff...what would we do? no one is old enough to go to animal shelters and volunteer. its dumb. any other ideas? :confused: