AR-News: ANIMAL RIGHTS ONLINE newsletter - Part 1 - Issue # 02/01/04

Sun Feb 1 22:42:03 EST 2004

  A n i m a l   W r i t e s © sm

                                                The official ANIMAL RIGHTS ONLINE newsletter

Established 1997

Editor ~ JJswans at aol.com
Issue # 02/01/04
Part 1 of 2

Publisher   ~ Susan Roghair - EnglandGal at aol.com 
Journalists ~ Greg Lawson   - ParkStRanger at aol.com
                 ~ Michelle Rivera - MichelleRivera1 at aol.com
                 ~ Dr. Steve Best  - sbest1 at elp.rr.com

THE ARTICLES IN THIS ISSUE ARE:

1  ~ Live Nude Girls: A Feminist AR Activist Tells Her Story
2  ~ Chickens Killed Inhumanely in a Woodchipper and The Role of the AVMA
3  ~ Job Opportunities
4  ~ Animal Activists Call For Change
5  ~ Free Me
6  ~ Website of Note
7  ~ Animal Writes Community Calendar
8  ~ They Wonder
9  ~ Memorable Quote

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Live Nude Girls:
A Feminist Animal Rights Activist Tells Her Story
By Trulie Ankerberg-Nobis - truliea at hotmail.com

I am an animal rights activist. I am also a feminist: I believe that women’s interests deserve equal consideration in all of life's circumstances. I also am a PETA supporter and have volunteered for many of their "eye-catching" demos. I have dressed in a cow's suit and a fur coat with a bag over my head.  I have also worn a pleather “dominatrix” outfit to educate about the cruelty in leather and protested the circus as a tiger in a cage wearing orange body paint, pasties, and underwear.  Most recently, with PETA I helped distribute Tofurkys as a “sexy Santa” in a mini skirt, crop top and high-heeled boots. 

In cities throughout the Midwest we asked people to consider the animals this holiday season by going vegetarian.  Many local activists were very helpful to us; their desire to help animals was very apparent. But we were not met with open arms at every location; in fact, some animal rights activists found this an occasion to protest us by not participating and emailing their condemnation of what they claimed is a “sexist” and “exploitive” kind of activism. I know that many take issue with "sexy" demos and ads for animal rights because this is believed to not be in keeping with a feminist perspective. However, as a woman and feminist, I believe that these demos are very much in sync with feminism. They are created by and volunteered for by women, smart women who realize that these costumes get valuable attention.  The media is more impressed with demos where activists are in these costumes than others. This is a simple fact and PETA generates more media attention from their demos than many others. Obviously when the media is involved, more people are exposed to the message. I think that potentially exposing tens or hundreds of thousands to the AR "go veggie" message is better than the few hundred we will encounter on the street.  If a woman has the ability to create a demo and she or other women want to volunteer for the demo, then, to be given equal consideration as feminism dictates, these women have a right to contribute to the movement in this way.  In fact when people say that PETA “uses” women they are relegating women to the very role we have fought to be rid of, namely, “things” that need to be ordered around and kept in their place. 

It’s ironic that none of the activists offended at my sexy costume spoke to me.  My male companion was the only one to hear their objections.  I may have been considered too submissive and un-opinionated to have an answer and they “respect women” too much to discuss the issues with me.  They may have been afraid to hear what I might have to say.  Maybe they thought I was chained up and gagged by PETA since they were “using and objectifying” me?  Did they think that I was nothing more than a sexual piece of meat who didn’t know what was being done to her or able to make her own choices?  This thinking further perpetuates the idea that women are incapable of taking care of themselves and taking on very serious activism for animal rights.  

So I ask each of you, when you see women dressed “sexily” for activism, do you see a victimized woman with nothing to offer the world other than her body? Or do you see a woman who intelligently and freely chooses to use her body to make a point? Your answer may lead you to your own hidden sexism. We all have different ways to contribute to animal rights activism. PETA’s eye-catching demos are just one way to further the message that animals are not ours to eat, to wear or to experiment on.   I found my role as the “tiger” in a cage wearing nothing but body paint, underwear, and pasties to be a very moving experience. Yes, I was very self-conscious and very cold. But I have never really understood what it must be like to be an exploited animal in a circus until that moment. I have never known what is a lifetime of suffering for tigers in circuses until my experience in that cage being gawked at and laughed at. The only difference was that, unlike the animals, I was able to emerge from that cage unharmed.  

I am grateful for that experience whether or not it was effective to convince my onlookers of the evils of animals used for entertainment.  I am angry that others would have it that I should not have been allowed to participate in that demo.  In fact, I am a better person having done this demo.  I saw many young girls looking at me with wide eyes in my Sexy Santa costume. This to me is a true test of my feminist ideas. If I can look at what I am doing and think that I am emulating what it means to be a positive role model for the women of tomorrow, then I am being true to myself and to women. I hope that they saw a woman with a loud voice who is not afraid to stand up for what she believes in. I hope they saw a woman who promotes compassion and peace for all living beings. I hope they saw that the female body and being sexy is nothing to be ashamed of and that striving to be healthy and fit is a good goal to have. I hope that they saw that not being waif-like skinny with the media portrayed idea of female beauty does not mean that you cannot be proud of who you are and how you look.   

I don’t think that women have achieved all that there is achieve for equality. But I do believe that, at least for women in America, we don’t have that much farther to go. Compare this to the animals who are blowtorched, mutilated, vaginally electrocuted, impregnated to have their babies ripped from them and then tortured for their milk and meat, hacked open for science, and beaten, exploded and tormented for entertainment. In all seriousness, who is the exploited group? Considering the immensity of the problem of animal exploitation, I find that the majority of the complaining about PETA and their “using” women to be a distraction that needs to stop. I don’t believe, and I’m sure that many will be offended at this, that people who choose to make an issue about women in PETA demos and ads have really considered the animals first.  I would suspect that the animals would think that you could help them in better ways than sending off your emails in protest of PETA.

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Chickens Killed Inhumanely In A Wood Chipper
And The Role Of The American Veterinary Medical Association
>From Meowvet at aol.com

On February 20, 2002, approximately 30,000 live chickens were put into a wood chipper and inhumanely torn to bits.  A veterinarian working with the Exotic Newcastle Task Force gave the order to destroy the chickens in the wood chipper, in violation of the American Veterinary Medical Association's humane euthanasia procedures.  All the evidence compiled by the County of San Diego Department of Animal Services points to Dr. Greg Cutler, a veterinarian working temporarily for USDA on the outbreak.  In an interview with Officer May Kay Gagliardo, Cutler admitted he authorized killing the chickens in the wood chipper.  He even described how the chickens would die and, when asked if this was humane, he responded, "absolutely."  When Ms. Gagliardo asked him for his title, he responded, "Emperor of the World."  Later, in an interview in DVM magazine, Cutler expressed that his "only regret" was speaking to the County investigators and the media.

Meanwhile, despite all of the evidence identifying Cutler as the veterinarian who ordered this unspeakable, violent and inhumane destruction of helpless chickens, he still sits on the American Veterinary Medical Association Animal Welfare Committee.  To date, it is unlikely that he will be removed. 

Fast forward to January, 2004.  In an interview with DVM magazine, Dr. Bruce Little, Executive Vice President of the American Veterinary Medical Association, commented that Cutler's removal from the Animal Welfare Committee would not be necessary because the Committee focuses only on companion animals.  Since one of the major functions of the AWC is to review and update animal welfare policies for all animals, including those animals produced for food, either Dr. Little does not understand the role of the AWC or else he is attempting to protect Cutler's position on the AWC.

The American Veterinary Medical Association does not address the humane treatment of animals in factory "farms."  Rather, they currently support hens in batteries and sows in gestation crates.  The American Veterinary Medical Association has had many opportunities to change their inhumane and pro-industry animal welfare policies.   For years, Dr. Holly Cheever has presented scientific evidence that forced molting causes the needless death of many hens in egg-producing factories.   I have twice presented information from meat inspectors on the injuries and death of roping calves in rodeos.  The Animal Welfare Committee has never responded to our concerns.  In fact, the AVMA is more pro-actively anti-animal welfare and aggressively obstructive.  At the last AWC meeting, speakers were not even allowed to hear each other's presentations.

While the American Veterinary Medical Association sponsors various animal welfare forums, no expert on the humane treatment of food animals has been invited to speak at their symposia.  Instead, the AVMA supports all industrial uses of animals.  This year, the American Association of Equine Practitioners, an AVMA supported organization, gave their annual humane award to the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association.  While humane treatment is occasionally mentioned in these forums, the AVMA does little or nothing to change its policies supporting the information therein.

Dr. Cutler is not the only culprit in the inhumane killing of 30,000 chickens.  The American Veterinary Medical Association is a willing accomplice due in part to their archaic and inhumane animal welfare policies.  The AVMA must remove Cutler from their Animal Welfare Committee.

Please call and express your opinion to Bruce Little.

His e-mail address is:  Blittle at avma.org
His phone number is:  1-847-925-8070

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Job Opportunities

FARM is inviting applications for the following positions:

DEVELOPMENT COORDINATOR - Responsible for increasing and maintaining FARM's member base through direct mail, donor relations, and grant solicitation. Position requires some prior experience in member relations and database management, including familiarity with MS Access and e-mail clients.

PROGRAM COORDINATOR - Responsible for coordinating FARM's seasonal programs, including World Farm Animals Day, Gentle Thanksgiving, and Meatout. Position requires creativity, ability to handle multiple tasks, working under pressure, meeting deadlines, and thorough knowledge of the issues. 

OUTREACH COORDINATOR - Responsible for public outreach through fairs, advertising, and the mass media and for liaison with the environmental, social justice, hunger, and peace movements, as well as government agencies. Position requires applicable prior experience and engaging personality. 

BOOKKEEPER (part-time) - Responsible for processing checks and credit cards, entering contributions in database, paying bills, and preparing financial reports. Must be familiar with Quickbooks or equivalent accounting program.

To apply, e-mail resume and a letter noting position(s), special qualifications and interests, availability, and salary requirements to: staffing at farmusa.org. 

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Susan Roghair - EnglandGal at aol.com
Animal Rights Online
http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/1395/
-=Animal Rights Online=- 
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