Enewsletter

Notes from Vegan Outreach

Activist Profile: Jeff Boghosian

As we continue to profile our top Adopt A College leafleters, this week we turn to Richmond, VA activist, Jeff Boghosian. During the 2004 – 2005 school year, Jeff handed out a total of 4,997 Vegan Outreach booklets directly to college students. When not leafleting at colleges by himself, Jeff is actively involved with Compassionate Action For Animals out of Richmond and also involves himself with human rights causes. Below are some excerpts from our interview with him:

What made you decide to start leafleting and if you were nervous the first time, how did you get over it?

I decided to start leafleting because I was searching for new ways to reach people in an effective and direct way...

I was definitely very nervous in the beginning. Regrettably, my first box of Why Vegan? booklets sat in my closet for close to a year before I started. I got over my nervousness by realizing that it's just something that has to be done if we want more people to go vegan. I recognized that the VO brochures were accurate and effective, and also that there is nothing wrong with offering people information in a friendly way. I think most people don't want to cause animal suffering, and even though they may 'like the taste of meat,' they will be open for change if we present it the right way.

In my first time leafleting, I started small. I first searched for a place where I'd feel comfortable. I leafleted from the side of the sidewalk, skipping anyone who was in a hurry or who looked even remotely intimidating, and especially looking for people who made eye contact. I found that some people were curious and wanted to take a brochure regardless of what it was, while others didn't want one. Once I started, the nerves (mostly) went away.

What would you say to individuals hesitant about leafleting?

... I was also personally hesitant because I know learning about factory farming will undoubtedly cause anguish and anger in people, and I'd rather not be the messenger. But animal suffering is real, and needs to be addressed both for the animals' sake and because most people aren't living true to themselves when they support factory farming. So even though the brochure will evoke uncomfortable feelings and possibly anger, I think most people will ultimately think it a good thing to have personally addressed the issue.

Read the entire interview here!

Product of the Week: Chik'n

Both Joe Espinosa and Gil Schwartz recently wrote to rave about Boca, which has recently reintroduced their Chik'n patties and nuggets without the eggs and milk products they previously had.

Send your nominees for Product of the Week to product@veganoutreach.org; previous products can be found here.

Notes from All Over

Vote Now for VegNews Veggie Awards!

Vegan Outreach is on the ballot for Favorite Website (question 36). Go to the Veg News homepage, and click on the "Vote for the 2005 Veggie Awards" icon.

Animals, My Brethren

by Edgar Kupfer-Koberwitz, written in the Concentration Camp Dachau, in the midst of all kinds of cruelties.

"You asked me why I do not eat meat.... I refuse to eat animals because I cannot nourish myself by the sufferings and by the death of other creatures. I refuse to do so, because I suffered so painfully myself that I can feel the pains of others by recalling my own sufferings. ... These creatures are smaller and more helpless than I am, but can you imagine a reasonable man of noble feelings who would like to base on such a difference a claim or right to abuse the weakness and the smallness of others? Don't you think that it is just the bigger, the stronger, the superior's duty to protect the weaker creatures instead of persecuting them, instead of killing them? 'Noblesse oblige.' I want to act in a noble way."

Blank Park Zoo Pig Exhibit Generates Controversy

"Two sows are kept in farrowing stalls, also called 'crates,' that confine the animals and restrict their movements. ... But hog producer Phyllis Willis of Thornton calls the crates unethical. ... 'I have a problem seeing an animal locked up like that,' Willis said."

Notes from Our Members

I went to the Warped Tour and was handed the pamphlet. I had no idea this was going on. I am now a vegetarian and will do whatever I can to help end this cruelty.
-LS, Northville, MI, 8/1/05

Paul [Francione, at right with a body-screen TV; click on the picture for a larger version, to see the looks on the people's faces] and I agree that it was our best leafleting so far. We handed out more than 250 pamphlets in less than 1.5 hours. At times, I couldn't even get through the crowd anymore because it was so packed (I took the pictures when it was less busy). People were actually raising their hands to make sure that they get a pamphlet. Reaction was pretty much the same as usual: indignation, shock, some tears, but also a lot of thumps-ups for what we were doing. At any rate, it was a smashing success today!
-Niels Feuerhahn, Montreal, QC, 7/25/05

I learned about Adopt a College at the recent Animal Rights conference here in Los Angeles. Today was my first time leafleting at Cal State LA, my wife's alma mater, and it was a fantastic experience. I spent the first hour getting reacquainted with the campus and the second hour giving out 191 Why Vegans, mostly to high school kids. I couldn't believe how polite everyone was, especially in contrast to protests. And it seemed like almost everyone was reading it. One young lady carrying some bags took one and began reading it as she walked. When she approached the trash can she shouted "Oh God!" and threw something in the garbage. When I went to get the pamphlet out for possible reuse, I realized that it was her chicken lunch which she had discarded.
-SS, Burbank, CA, 7/29/05

If you've missed an issue of Vegan Outreach's enewsletter, you can see them here.

Vegan Outreach is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing the suffering of farmed animals by promoting informed, ethical eating. All donations are tax-deductible. Vegan Outreach POB 30865, Tucson, AZ 85751-0865