By Dr. Alei Fan, Guest Contributor

A team of researchers at Purdue University is conducting a survey about consumer behavior, specifically, people’s “green” (e.g., pro-environment/pro-social) consumption tendencies based on their diet preference (e.g., vegetarian).

You’re invited to participate! If you choose to take the survey, you’ll answer several questions about your diet and consumption preference or pattern.

It’ll take about ten minutes to complete the survey. Your participation in this research is confidential.

Please contact Dr. Alei Fan at [email protected] with questions or concerns.

By Victor Sjodin, Director of Outreach

We’ve got big plans to save a lot of animals this semester!

Vegan Outreach’s Outreach Coordinators have their vehicles packed—with thousands of leaflets and plenty of good vegan snacks—and are hitting the road to begin their spring semester leafleting tours.

Trailblazing Jamila Alfred will resume her tour of historically black colleges and universities in the Southeast. Yuri Mitzkewich will also be in the Southeast territory, but he’ll add many Texas schools to his spring tour—a first for him.

Steve Erlsten will be promoting peace on the plate all over California, southern Oregon, and Reno, NV. And rookie-no-more Sean Hennessy, has a big semester planned in Ohio and the surrounding areas.

Kimberly Moffatt will leaflet Virginia, Upstate New York, and Pennsylvania. Lori Stultz is also back in action—she’ll cover Colorado, Wyoming, and Arizona.

Rachel Shippee will be making sure that everyone in Michigan hears the vegan message. And Lana Smithson will cover Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and parts of the Boston, MA area.

We’re happy to announce a few new additions who will help leaflet in the remaining areas in the U.S. Longtime volunteer, John Deetjen, will cover the Upper Midwest, and Chris Shapard will be in Eastern Washington, Idaho, Utah, and Montana. The dedicated Cristina Myers Cuadrado will be leafleting in several states, including Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgina, and Florida.

Our stand out volunteers, Victor Flores and Karla Reyes, will visit schools in their home state of New Mexico, as well as Oklahoma and the cities of El Paso and Lubbock, TX. Past volunteer, Alexis Clark, will be in New Jersey, and in New York City and Long Island, NY.

Outside of the United States, Emmanuel Márquez will lead another tour all around Mexico—focusing on cities that have not been leafleted much in the past.

Jevranne Martel is starting off in British Columbia and will continue to spread the good word across the continent all the way to Halifax, NS. Jev’s tour will be a special one for Vegan Outreach, as she’ll visit schools in far east Canada that have never been leafleted before.

Sam Tucker will again hit the Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney metropolises in Australia. He’ll also be in Auckland and the rest of New Zealand. Pooja Rathor will be distributing booklets in the Indian states of Punjab, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan. Siddharth Sharma will cover Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand states in northern India.

Everyone here at Vegan Outreach is super excited about this spring’s outreach team! We want to give a huge thank you to everyone—donors, hosts, and volunteers—who supports these hard working and dedicated activists. You all play a vital role in our work.

Safe travels everybody!

By Jen Bravo, Guest Contributor

This post is the first in a series on the history of women in the animal protection movement, gender and animal advocacy, and stories of the women striving today to make the world a better place for animals.

Animal advocacy has a long and complex history—a history in which women have played a central and integral role as writers, speakers, organizers, and activists. An intersectional history in which feminism and animal advocacy go hand in hand, along with other progressive social causes.

As the foot soldiers of modern animal advocacy, it’s empowering for women to understand our history and embrace the legacies of the women who came before us. In that spirit, this post shares the stories of just three women who embody courage and dedication, and forged a path for animals in the 1800s and very early 1900s where none existed.

Women and Animal Advocacy in the 1800s

Frances Power Cobbe and Anna Kingsford are two names every animal advocate should know.

Frances Power Cobbe

Frances Power Cobbe was a women’s suffrage and anti-vivisection advocate who founded the National Anti-Vivisection Society (NAVS) in 1875 and the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection (BUAV) in 1898—two animal protection groups that are still around today (BUAV is now Cruelty Free International). Both organizations were firmly rooted in the early social justice movements of the 1800s, which included women’s suffrage, property rights for women, and opposition to vivisection (that is, the use of living animals in experiments).

Frances began her career as a writer, publishing articles on women’s property rights, domestic abuse against women, and the economic dependency of women on men in Victorian England. In 1863, as a writer for the London Daily News, she witnessed animal experiments and became a staunch opponent of vivisection. Her strident anti-vivisection work led directly to the passage of the Cruelty to Animals Act of 1876, which was intended to regulate vivisection by requiring physiologists to obtain licenses and for the animals used to be anesthetized. Frances and the NAVS claimed the Act was weak, and in fact, the number of vivisections rose following its enactment.

Anna Kingsford

Anna Kingsford met Frances Cobbe in London in 1872 when Frances published an article on anti-vivisection in The Lady’s Own Paper—a weekly magazine that covered social reform issues—which Anna owned and edited. Anna quickly became an anti-vivisection advocate, and decided to study medicine so that she could advocate for animals from a place of expertise.

The study of medicine at this time relied heavily on experiments on animals, mostly dogs and mostly without anesthetic. Anna attended medical school in Paris, completing her degree in just six years, and doing so without experimenting on any animals. Her final thesis for medical school was a paper on the benefits of becoming a vegetarian, which was later published as a book titled The Perfect Way in Diet in 1881. She became an active speaker and advocate for a vegetarian diet and in opposition to all animal experimentation.

Anna exhibited extreme courage in attending medical school at this time, during which she had to witness many experiments conducted on living dogs without anesthetic. She said, “I have found my Hell here in the Faculté de Médecine of Paris.” And she bore the additional burden of being an unwelcome woman in a field dominated by men, experiencing harassment and neglect from her teachers.

Anna persevered, as she knew that her experiences would help her be a better advocate for animals. Unfortunately, Anna developed a serious illness and died at the age of 41, before she could fully realize her life’s work for animals.

The Very Early 1900s

The very early 1900s in Britain and the United States were characterized by a continuation of the anti-vivisection movement—building upon the work of Frances, Anna, and others, as well as the movements for women’s suffrage, peace, and other social reforms. One woman stands out in this period for her courage and tenacity. The British-Swedish powerhouse Lizzy Lind af Hageby.

Lizzy began her career as a writer and lecturer in opposition to child labor and prostitution, in support of women’s liberation, and later in her life in support of animal rights. She was an activist and organizer at a time when women were expected to stay at home. She trained in medicine at the London School of Medicine for Women so she could become a better anti-vivisection advocate.

In 1913, Lizzy represented herself in a libel trial—related to animal advocacy—at a time when women were not allowed to become attorneys. The Nation reported that her representation in the trial was a “brilliant piece of advocacy…though it was entirely conducted by a woman.” Following the trial, a British Colonel spoke about the importance of women in animal advocacy, stating, “The day that women get the vote will be the day on which the death-knell of vivisection will be sounded.” Unfortunately, he turned out to be wrong about that.

The connection between women’s rights and anti-vivisection was particularly strong during this period. The U.S. academic Coral Magnolia Lansbury argued in her book The Old Brown Dog: Women, Workers, and Vivisection in Edwardian England (1985), that the imagery of vivisection—of animals bound and abused—was particularly powerful for women—a symbolic reminder of the treatment of women as objects.

A Legacy of Action

Throughout the 20th century, women continued to be at the forefront in animal advocacy—founding animal rights organizations, exploring the relationships between humans and nonhuman animals, and challenging the status quo that treats living, sentient beings as objects.

In our next piece in this series, we’ll highlight some of the amazing work done by women for animals in the 20th century—a century full of progress—and how that work informs the efforts of the women striving today to change the world for animals.

Editor’s Note: We recognize that the women featured in this post are all white. This is due to many factors, including but not limited to who authors history. In our next installment of Women in Animal Advocacy, we will feature some of the many women of color who have been critical to advancing animal rights throughout the years!

By Jamila Alfred, VO Maryland/DC Events and Outreach Coordinator

As the first black outreach coordinator, hired to help with Vegan Outreach’s focus on diversity and inclusion, I was extremely excited, yet nervous, for my first college leafleting tour.

Much to my delight, I was assigned to leaflet at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) across the Southeast. I knew I would be perfect for the job.

I graduated from an HBCU—Bowie State University—last spring. I understand the importance of attending educational institutions where you’re surrounded by people who want you to succeed, especially because of the color of your skin.

Although I was a commuter and didn’t participate in many social activities on campus, the sense of community in my learning environment definitely pushed me to excel. Now, I want to return the love I received from my people to others beyond my school.

When I graduated I promised myself I wouldn’t take a job until I found the career of my dreams—spreading the vegan message to my brothers and sisters.

I’m now living my dream.

The first leafletings I did at HBCUs in Maryland and DC went smoothly since I was still in my bubble and understood local customs. As I moved south, the sizes of these institutions got smaller and smaller and were in more isolated areas.

Outside of these schools, in their respective towns, I couldn’t help but notice the curious stares and the Confederate flags. I didn’t want to think much about it because I was on a mission and didn’t want any concern to sink in on this grassroots expedition, but let’s just say these places were probably not the best place for a black woman with locs to be at night.

While having a lot of fun, the trip took an ugly turn when my car broke down in Smithfield, NC. This is when I truly realized I was no longer home.

The stares and tensions were menacing as I walked about in a shopping center, desperate to find vegan food. Luckily I was able to find some, but with rude customer service. After a very expensive and time-consuming repair to my vehicle, I rushed out of that town so fast. I was emotionally exhausted.

That experience lingered with me the rest of the week until my car broke down again in rural Albany, GA. Luckily, my car had enough life to get me to a nearby gas station, but the gawks from white townsfolk intimidated me.

Determined to have my car fixed, I walked up to the only friendly face in the area who just so happened to be a black man. He directed me to a nearby tire shop where the front desk workers were white and the car repair employees were black. That wouldn’t have been a weird coincidence if the man at the front desk didn’t go out of his way to not look me in the eye while speaking to me, or if one of the women didn’t look square at my name on my ID and call me “Jamaica.” I wasn’t amused.

After this, my trip got better, but I continued to feel like I was different from what is preferable. It wasn’t until my first day leafleting in Atlanta, GA when the stress from my car issues completely melted away. A big thank you to Muki Pederson and her husband for treating me like a princess! I was able to fully relax thanks to their warm hospitality.

Just being in the Atlanta area for a few days made me feel a sense of community with my brothers and sisters—from the schools I leafleted to the city streets. And did I mention the food was fantastic? Every restaurant I dined at was black-owned, scrumptious, and oh-so easy to find.

Unfortunately, I had to end my tour almost two weeks early. I was truly looking forward to finishing this trip with a bang—which I totally did in Atlanta—but the obvious risks, along with racial tensions in the South with the upcoming election, became an inevitable issue.

Although there’s many things I’d do differently about this tour, I’m proud of my courage for speaking up for the animals despite safety risks, especially as someone who’s new to leafleting. I proved to myself that I’m capable of anything and won’t allow racial intimidation to deter me from including the black community in the vegan movement. No one can stop me!

After I returned home, I went straight to working on local community engagement projects. The goal is to create new support systems for people of color who want to go vegan. People of color are typically left out of the equation when it comes to helping people transition to a vegan lifestyle, which is shameful because veganism benefits everyone.

Along with that, my goal is to build a community for vegans who are struggling with the lifestyle. It’s quite common that many vegans experience recidivism in their journeys, and I’ll make it my business to help them stay put.

The trip was a learning experience for Vegan Outreach as well as myself. I had to drive through unfriendly rural areas where the typical white male leafleter would have been safe. As a queer, black woman traveling alone, the threat of a racially-based attack was all too real. And in some places, I could feel that I was not welcomed.

Becoming a more diverse organization means learning, listening, and making adjustments. Campaigns involving one type of employee might not be effective, or even safe. Therefore, Vegan Outreach has decided that in the future I’ll have an intern with me for all of my touring.

We’re excited for my 2017 outreach! Please contact me at [email protected] if you’re interested in accompanying me on my tour!

By Jevranne Martel, VO Canada Outreach Coordinator

Over the winter break I went out with a few friends and leafleted on a few different occasions. Being that it was the holiday shopping season, we took advantage of the busy shopping crowds and leafleted in Ottawa, ON. We leafleted at Hudson’s Bay—a Canadian department store—and at the Mackenzie King and South Keys transit stations.

The experiences were all very positive and we got a lot of support. The crowds were great and positive conversations were generated in multiple instances. The best part was seeing how many people were curious about making more compassionate changes in 2017!

By Jennifer Mennuti, VO Volunteer

Sometimes, it’s a little challenging to get into the holiday spirit in South Florida while it’s 80°F outside. People here do their best, though! They string lights around their palm trees and display inflatable snowmen in their yards.

Many cities in South Florida host holiday parades and other festive events, and Vegan Outreach volunteers had great success leafleting the festive crowds this year!

First, on November 29, a few volunteers and I attended an event in Fort Lauderdale called Christmas on Las Olas. At this event, snow is trucked in to create a small mountain for kids to play on, there are bands and choirs performing, and holiday movie screenings.

Christmas on Las Olas attracts 40,000 people—needles to say, it was a crowded event. Despite all the activity, we dispersed 250 pro-veg booklets!

Then, on December 7, we leafleted at a holiday parade in the city of Boca Raton. I met up with new and veteran leafleters, and we handed out 500 Compassionate Choices booklets!

This holiday parade was the ideal leafleting event. We arrived about an hour before the parade began and approached people from the street as they were sitting along the sidewalk waiting for the parade to begin. Once the parade started, the street was blocked, so we handed off booklets to the spectators from behind.

Both events were a lot of fun and offered great opportunities for a little activism!

And for those of you who leaflet college campuses regularly, this is a great way to supplement your activism in between semesters!

If leafleting at a holiday event interests you, I recommend arriving early, wearing festive attire, and smiling a lot! People will probably be more likely to take a leaflet if you say something related to the holiday. For example, at these events we said, “Happy Holidays!”

With many cities and towns worldwide hosting holiday-themed events—whether it’s the winter holidays or Independence Day festivities—it’s an effective way to spread compassion to a lot of people!

If you don’t have leaflets but are feeling inspired, don’t worry! Vegan Outreach has you covered! Place your order for booklets here. And for a few quick and easy leafleting tips, check this out—you’ll be leafleting like a pro in no time!