Make the Connection on World Farm Animals Day, October 2

by Michael A. Weber · 2009-09-18 05:29:00 UTC
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Guest contributor Michael Weber coordinates events for World Farm Animals Day and FARM.

Each year, more than 55 billion cows, pigs, turkeys, chickens, and other sentient land animals are abused and killed in the world's animal farms and slaughterhouses. Since 1983, World Farm Animals Day has been dedicated to exposing, mourning, and memorializing their needless suffering and slaughter. It is a day for all to speak out against the atrocities and brutalization inflicted on animals raised for meat, eggs, and dairy.

October 2, 2009, will mark the 27th annual observance, and events will be taking place from late September until the start of November. Coordinated by Farm Animal Rights Movement (FARM), and drawing support from In Defense of Animals, Compassion Over Killing, Mercy for Animals, and over a dozen other leading animal rights organizations, this year’s WFAD is gearing up to be especially eye-opening.

FARM assists activists in organizing grassroots actions across the country, ranging from simple leafleting or information tables to dramatic cage-ins, die-ins, and acts of nonviolent civil disobedience. As with all of our campaigns, World Farm Animals Day advocates shifting towards as a vegan diet (and lifestyle) as the only way to end animal abuse.

Some of FARM’s dedicated supporters have been setting up public information tables every year for over a decade, while the more outraged activists have climbed a McDonald's roof to display a banner and blocked transport trucks from entering slaughterhouses. FARM’s founder and president, Alex Hershaft, has been arrested several times for peaceful actions during World Farm Animals Day observances.

Anyone who wants to get active can request free literature, posters, stickers, and more -- and this year we are offering up some new outreach tools. FARM has teamed up with Mercy for Animals to provide free copies of the award winning documentary Fowl Play for activists to do screenings of.

Additionally, FARM and Mobilization for Animals have created compelling new materials for a campaign calling on people to “Make the Connection.” The handouts and poster (pictured below) contain a series of images staging humans in scenarios that farmed animals endure. The powerful visuals compel people to imagine themselves in such horrific scenes. We are also offering softer, less graphic handouts.

Whether you are a seasoned activist ready to stage a large protest or a veg-newcomer who wants to do some friendly outreach, World Farm Animals Day is the ideal time to get active for animals. Check out the website, register an event, or e-mail me directly at outreach(at)wfad.org with additional questions.

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All images courtesy of FARM

Michael A. Weber
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