Or so we say.

But there is a big difference between saying something and doing something. You see, your mind has the incredible power turn reality into fantasy, because inside your mind is a marvel of the human psyche called compartmentalization. Compartmentalization can be beneficial but it can also be detrimental to ourselves and others. It can be a brilliant psychological defense mechanism created by our brains so we might avoid something called cognitive dissonance, defined as “the discomfort and anxiety caused by a person having conflicting values, cognitions, emotions, beliefs etc. within themselves”.

When we compartmentalize conflicting beliefs, our brains are attempting to construct a rational framework under which our irrational and incongruent beliefs can exist harmoniously.

Humans have a deep desire to believe the best about themselves. We like to think of ourselves as good, smart, kind people. We like to be right. However, whether we are actually right is inconsequential, because believing we are right is more important to us than actually being right.

This is true even of people history remembers as bigots, tyrants, and murderers. Though it’s undeniable that horrible atrocities have occurred thoughout history, in the minds of the people executing these horrible deeds, their actions were just, good, and right. For example, white racists in the southern states of the U.S. in the 1950’s didn’t believe their treatment of non-whites was morally reprehensible. They rationalized their illogical and flawed beliefs by citing all kinds of irrational “reasons” to justify their racism from intelligence to attractiveness to the law of nature to the law of god and anything in between.

When racists are confronted with the reality that there is no reason their race is better than any other race and that treating members of other races differently is unjust, their twisted minds rationalize their immoral and negative beliefs in a way that makes them appear moral and positive so they can still feel that their problematic beliefs and actions are good and right. Can you think of any other historical oppressions and the rationalizations used by those in power? Okay, what does any of this have to do with animals? To illustrate how this relates to animal rights we have to acknowledge how we compartmentalize groups of animals. There are the animals we love (pets), the animals we admire and seek to preserve (wildlife), and the animals we choose to ignore (food/fashion/etc.). Melanie Joy talks about this in her book Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows: An Introduction to Carnism. We separate animals into these groups to avoid having to recognize that our actions and professed beliefs of kindness and compassion are out of sync with one another.

Humans actively search for ways to explain the absurdities of life because we can’t bear the thought of living in a world devoid of purpose. If the world has no purpose, maybe we don’t have a purpose either. That’s a pretty scary thought for most people. So we give purposes to various things in our lives from the people we know (friends, family, enemies), to the activities we do (work, fun), to the animals who share this planet with us (friend, food). But because we are the ones giving purposes to everything and everyone around us, the purpose is almost always one that relates to how it affects us and neglects to acknowledge everyone else’s right to define their own purpose.

Just as a racist would rationalize that the “purpose” of non-whites is their utility to whites, or a misogynist would rationalize that the “purpose” of women is their utility to men, speciesists rationalize that the “purpose” of non-human species is their utility to the human species. Speciesism is just as real as any of a wide variety of oppressive beliefs including racism, sexism, heterosexism, and classism. It’s a very ego-centric way of viewing the world and if we were to eliminate it, we would see many of the world’s most pervasive problems disappear completely.

Just as racism is the belief that your race is superior to all other races because you are a member of that race, speciesism is the belief that your species is superior to all other species because you are a member of that species.

Treating someone cruelly who has done nothing to deserve such treatment other than being born of a different species (or race, or gender, or sexual orientation, or class, etc.) is absurd to say the very least, so we rationalize these attitudes in a way that preserves our self image as a good and logical person. We tell ourselves that if using animals for human purposes was wrong, there would be laws against it or massive public outcry.

But we forget that it was only within the last hundred or so years that groups of people who have been systematically oppressed for millennia are finally starting to receive the respect they deserve, and we still have a long way to go until things are equal. Laws can be changed and improved-upon; they are not written in stone.

Furthermore, we forget that for most of history, challenging things like racism, sexism, and heterosexism was seen as extreme and irrational behavior, much like how challenging speciesism is seen today. We know that harming others is wrong because we empathize and recognize that we would not want to be harmed in such a way ourselves.  This is the essence of the Ethic of Reciprocity, a.k.a. The Golden Rule: “Treat others how you would like others to treat you.” Almost every religion has some variation of it, yet how can we explain all the wars and crimes committed in the name of religion?

Furthermore, almost every religion has laws regarding whether harming animals is permitted at all, and if so, the manner in which it must be done to be considered “humane” and “ethical”. This is because it is a generally subconsciously recognized, though seldom acknowledged fact that harming a living, feeling creature, especially when it is absolutely unnecessary, is unethical. Keeping this in mind, there are two important things to note:

1. Though speciesism continues to be a permeating and normalized force in modern society, consider that many religious texts were written in a time when racism, sexism, and heterosexism were not viewed in the same way they are today. In fact, there are many verses of texts from various religions detailing how to discipline human slaves, how to beat your wives, how to sell your daughters, and how to kill non-believers, just to name a few.
2. The religious laws that explain how to “ethically” and “humanely” slaughter animals are all operating under the incorrect assumption that the consumption of animal products is necessary for survival (and though one can make the argument that the Inuits of the Arctic or the Zulu of the African bush rely on meat for survival, for the vast majority of people reading this post from a computer screen, this argument simply doesn’t apply). Furthermore, this flawed logic reasons that ethics are contingent on convenience or cultural traditions.

One quick note on unethical cultural practices: I feel it’s prudent to note that while it’s important to respect and preserve the wide variety of cultures that exist around the world, any aspect of a culture that is harmful to anyone who can feel pain should not be tolerated, human or non-human. I see very few people jumping to defend female genital mutilation, child marriages, or child prostitution. Some of these cultural traditions have existed for thousands of years, but because we recognize they are undoubtedly harmful and unethical, we speak out against them. We don’t make excuses for them or try to reason that condemning one harmful aspect of a culture is the same as condemning the culture as a whole.

It is also worth noting that it is much easier to condemn an aspect of a culture we are not a member of than it is to condemn an aspect that is found in our own culture, such as the exploitation and consumption of animals. This is something worth thinking over if you happen to be someone who is against the genital mutilation of human females (for example), but then doesn’t give a second thought to the genital mutilation of male pigs who are castrated without anesthetic as part of the hog industry’s standard animal husbandry practices.

How many of you support cruelty to animals?

If you were to address a group of people with the question “How many of you support cruelty to animals?”, what results would you find?  Almost certainly you would not see a single hand go up and would instead receive looks of confusion and disgust while people murmur to each other “What kind of question is that? Only a horrible person would wantonly be cruel to animals!”. Even if by chance there happened to be someone there who acknowledged that they harm animals on a daily basis (such as a person who gets “free to a good home” animals off craigslist.com and then tortures and murders them — yes, this actually happens), they would be very unlikely to raise their hand because most of us recognize that harming others is not something people typically brag about in society.

What these people would invest no thought in is their role in the deaths of billions of animals around the world every year for food, fashion, experimentation and entertainment. Their perceived involvement in the deaths of the billions of animals executed each year is severely diminished by:

1. The staggering number of animals who are harmed by these industries
2. The staggering number of people responsible for this harm by funding these industries

We convince ourselves that our vote for our favorite (or least hated) political figure counts for something, but refuse to believe that we are directly causing environmental devastation with every bottle of water we purchase and subsequently send to somewhere like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch (a floating mass the size of a continent in the Pacific Ocean literally made of non-biodegradable microscopic plastic garbage). We prefer to think our chances of winning the lottery are much greater than our chances of being diagnosed with cancer, though real-world statistics prove otherwise. Even though we are aware of our own mortality, it’s looming inevitability rarely enters our thoughts.

We have to do this because if we don’t we would be so consumed with worry and anxiety we wouldn’t even be able to attend to our basic needs for survival. Why worry about things we have no control over? This forces us to focus on things we can change rather than things we cannot, which keeps us productive and better able to use our limited energy efficiently and effectively. We have evolved this way and for the most part, it has served us well.

The problem is, our brains aren’t evolving nearly as quickly as our society. Though many are the same, the problems facing society today are exponentially larger and more complex than the problems faced by society even a few thousand years ago. A thousand years may be a long time, but it’s a drop in the bucket in the grand scheme of evolutionary history.

Furthermore, in the span of a few thousand years the human population on this planet has skyrocketed from a few hundred million to several billion. So when you learn that almost seven billion people around the world (including you, your friends, and your family) are responsible for the deaths of over fifty billion animals every single year, we shut down. How are we supposed to wrap our minds around numbers that large? — We can’t.

“One death is a tragedy; one million is a statistic.” ~ Joseph Stalin

You can try your hardest to convince yourself you’re just an innocent bystander by claiming “I just don’t want to get involved”, but the truth is whether you like it or not, you already are involved. By simply living in society you are involved. And you are responsible. If you’ve ever been confronted with evidence that you are not the same person in reality as the person you envision yourself to be — when a deep-seated belief that you view as being integral to your character as a person (such as “I am a good person” or “I am compassionate toward others”) is challenged — what was your first reaction?

More than likely, your first instinct was to jump to denial, rather than self-reflection. We know these things about ourselves; they are subconscious mantras we replay in our minds each day. How dare anyone presume to know us better than we know ourselves! They clearly have no idea what they’re talking about. So what do we do when confronted with the truth that we are in fact playing a crucial role in the perpetuation of suffering on a mass scale?

Outright denial:

• “I’m an animal lover.  I would never hurt an animal. Just because I eat meat and other animal products doesn’t mean I’m hurting animals.” (The murdered pig in your ham sandwich begs to differ.)
• “Animals can’t really feel pain.” / “Animals can’t understand what’s happening to them anyway.” (Actually, they can.  Still not convinced?  Watch this.)
• “Conditions for animals are not as bad as people claim.  Those undercover investigations are just isolated incidents that are manufactured by crazy animal rights extremists.” (How many “isolated incidents” does it take for us to recognize that a problem is actually widespread? Furthermore, why do you suppose states like Iowa and Utah have enacted controversial Ag-Gag laws to make it illegal to film in places that exploit animals? If they have nothing to hide, why are they so afraid of people filming their supposed humane treatment of animals?)
• “I hardly ever eat any animal products — I’m practically vegan anyway!” (It’s hard to know exactly how many animal products you consume until you make a conscious effort to eliminate them from your diet. There are hidden animal products in things you consume on a daily basis that you have no idea are actually animal products. It’s amazing how many people don’t know that whey and casein come from milk, or that gelatin is the rendered bones, hooves, and ligaments of slaughtered animals. These are things most people don’t know about because they have no reason to know — it’s just not on their radar. Furthermore, this goes beyond food. What about leather, fur, silk, wool, down, pearls, etc.? What about cosmetics and household cleaners that are tested on animals? What about rodeos, horse races, dog races, cockfighting, dog fighting, the circus, and aquatic parks like Sea World? Animals are exploited and oppressed for more than just food.)

Shifting the blame/focus:

• “I’m not physically killing animals myself.  I just buy it from the store.  They do it.” (The person wielding the knife is paid on your dollar.  That’s like hiring a hit-man and saying the murder was his idea.)
• “You kill plants so who are you to lecture me on ethics?” (Read this.)
• “Maybe I’ll care more about animals once we fix all the problems affecting humans first.” (You mean to say you believe humans are the most cognitively advanced species on Earth, yet we still haven’t figured out how to do more than one thing at a time?)
• “I’m only one person out of millions.  Changing my lifestyle won’t change a damned thing anyway so why even bother?” (So by that logic, if fewer people decided to drive while drunk the number of hit-and-run fatalities wouldn’t drop even slightly? At the very least, this is a matter of personal integrity. You should want to do the right thing because you would not want to personally be involved with something you claim to be against.)
• “I did the vegan thing for X years/months/weeks/days and I felt really lethargic/sick/hungry/unhealthy so it doesn’t work for everyone.” (Read this.)

Romanticizing problematic choices:

• “I get enjoyment from eating animal products. It makes me feel good.” (First, using the argument of “violence is morally acceptable for the sake of my own pleasure” echoes the same logic used by bullies as benign as internet trolls to bullies as vicious as rapists and murderers. Second, there are many vegan foods that are very enjoyable. Many things you already eat are vegan or could easily be made vegan with simple substitutions: chips with salsa and guacamole, cereal with non-dairy milk, various pasta dishes, fruits, veggies, etc.)

Just a few examples of delicious VEGAN food I’ve eaten:

What we need to do, if we are truly the intelligent species we so fervently claim to be, is to look ourselves in the mirror and really see the person who stares back at us. Have we been wearing a mask so long that even we have started believing it’s our own face? Beliefs, morals and ideals should be more than just conversation topics or fluff to make us feel and appear as though we’re doing good in the world.

And the moment you convince yourself you’re doing enough is the moment you allow that mask back onto your face to hide the arrogant complacency beneath.

Instead of reacting to our realization of conflicting beliefs with denial and rationalization, shouldn’t we be taking responsibility for our actions and changing our actions accordingly? Talking about how good a person you are doesn’t change anything. You have to live it. You have to be it. You have to constantly improve upon it. Because when that mask starts slipping and you begin to see the person you really are under there — the person whose actions are in direct opposition of their words — how are you going to react?

The post I Hope This Post Makes You Uncomfortable appeared first on Vegan Rabbit.

The thing is, this wasn’t an animal sanctuary and these chickens were not viewed as individual beings with their own right to govern their own bodies — to be the autonomous creatures they were born to be. Instead, I was at a backyard egg producer. They even named the birds and had “favorites”, got to know each chickens distinct personality and behavior.

All might seem peachy keen on the outside, but when you dig a little deeper, the truth becomes more and more apparent and increasingly impossible to ignore.

I’ll start from the beginning of the chickens journey from the hatchery to the backyard egg producer’s home. Keep in mind, this is a typical example of the life of a backyard chicken and is in no way isolated to this one particular backyard egg producer.

The chickens are purchased from a hatchery which is usually located out of state (in this case, from Illinois). A box containing eggs (however many the person orders) is sent to their address (in this case, California). A disclaimer is packed with the box which informs the customer (the backyard egg producer) that only half of the eggs will hatch because not all of the eggs will survive transport. So there is already half of the chickens, dead for no reason at all. Of those chickens who are fortunate or misfortunate (depending on how you look at it) to hatch, half of those chickens will be roosters (males). Because males don’t lay eggs, they are either discarded right away or they are allowed to grow large enough to be slaughtered and eaten. So only about 25% of those original eggs will be female, egg-producing hens.

Those hens are allowed to live a seemingly nice life where they are allowed to attend to their basic needs such as dust bathing, preening, pecking at the earth, and other chicken activities. They are permitted to do these things only until their production declines or stops completely. Many of these breeds of chicken have been bred for so many years and artificially selected to lay more and more eggs to such an extent that their reproductive system shuts down after a few short years and they become known as “internal layers”. This is just one of many medical issues hens get between 2-5 years of age, regardless of how “happy” a life they had in their early years. Keep in mind, when properly cared for even chickens with medical issues can live 15-20 years. But because this is a backyard egg producer we are talking about, a hen who won’t lay is a hole in their pocket. In the words of this particular egg producer, “They eat my food but don’t give me anything back so they have to go.” They said this meaning they have to be killed.

How do they do this? An inverted traffic cone out back holds the chickens upside down with their head sticking out the bottom. The cone keeps their wings from flapping as they would naturally struggle to save themselves from death, as anyone would. Chickens aren’t interested in dying, and they aren’t stupid. They know what death and suffering is when it’s dealt to them. The egg producer “lovingly” bends the chickens neck back and slices it open with a sharp knife, letting the chicken slowly bleed to death. You can find youtube videos of “humane chicken slaughter” which show this method of slaughter frequently used by backyard butchers. You will see the chickens writhe in pain and frantically kick their legs. You will see them try to flap their wings in a vain attempt to escape. You will hear the guttural noises emanating from their throats as they try to cry out in agony. There is no such thing as humane slaughter. Even in places like these.

So the cycle goes every couple years. Another box, more dead chickens in eggs, more dead roosters, and soon enough, more dead hens. All in the name of greed, gluttony, food addictions, willful ignorance, selfishness, and a complete disregard for the rights and feelings of each creature to own their own life and to be free from exploitation.

Thankfully, they let me have three of their older chickens (just a few years old). Two hens and one rooster. The hens were no longer producing eggs and the rooster was getting “old” so they wanted to make room for the “new” ones. So instead of being turned into chicken soup, these chickens are able to live out the rest of their lives in a safe place. All three chickens have new homes. The two hens are living out their lives in an animal sanctuary with the resources to tend to their reproductive medical needs. The rooster is living with another vegan animal rights activist on two acres of land. He should have a flock of hens joining him (rescues) very soon. And to think these beautiful beings would have been someone’s meal. They are so much more than that.

If you aren’t already vegan, know that you have it in you to change if you want it badly enough. Align your actions with your beliefs. If you don’t believe you are a cruel person, but you are still participating in a system which is inherently cruel (even in the most “humane” places), ask yourself “Am I okay with being ethically inconsistent?” If actions speak louder than words, ask yourself, “What do my actions toward animals say about me as a person?” If you consider yourself a rational person and yet you find incongruence between your beliefs of compassion toward others and your actions of causing harm to others (by paying for someone to be killed), wouldn’t the logical and rational next step be to stop causing harm to others? All of the vegans in the world are living proof that this option is absolutely possible and I don’t know a single vegan who would deny someone help with transitioning to a vegan lifestyle.

The world is changing. Can you keep up?

More info on backyard eggs and “humane” meat.

The post “Humane” Meat, Local Free-Range Eggs, and Backyard Chickens appeared first on Vegan Rabbit.

To my dearest Shfanfi,

You were the most precious soul I have ever had the pleasure and honor of calling a friend. Thank you so much for letting me into your world for these past nine years; for trusting me completely and for being the truest friend I have ever known. I have never known so deep or profound a connection with another living soul as I have known with you.

You were the one who showed me my purpose in life: to fight for the rights of all animals. I would not be where I am today had you never come into my life. I am forever in your debt and you are forever in my heart.

I’m no poet and I know this simple poem is far from perfect, but it’s from my heart and I wrote it in your memory.

Epitaph to My Best Friend, A Rabbit
From the moment I met you, we shared a bond,
a bond I can’t explain.
And through the years you were the one,
who helped me through my pain.
In my arms you slept soundly,
and never left my side.
And when I’d cry you’d lick my tears,
until my tears were dried.

I’ve never known another soul,
with whom I’ve shared so much.
And what I’d give, what I’d sacrifice,
for just one more touch.
Now you’re gone but I’ll always remember,
your loyal amity.
My only hope is that I gave you,
all you gave to me.

Goodnight, my perfect little prince. You live on in my memories.

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About Liz Marshall:

Liz Marshall is a Gemini-nominated, award-winning auteur filmmaker who fuses character-driven cinematic storytelling with social and environmental justice issues. Since the 90s she has created a body of documentary projects shot all over the world which focus on a range of subjects including animal use and animal sentience, the right to water movement, HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa, sweatshop labor, censorship affecting writers and journalists, war-affected children, music icons and the written and spoken word. Liz is well versed in the craft of conceptual point-of-view storytelling as a means of exploring complex issues.

About Jo-Anne McArthur:

Award-winning photojournalist Jo-Anne McArthur has been documenting the plight of animals on all seven continents for over ten years. Her documentary project, We Animals, is internationally celebrated and over 100 animal organizations, among them Igualdad Animal, Sea Shepherd and the Jane Goodall Institute, have benefited from her photography. Many organizations have also worked with her closely on campaigns and investigations. The first We Animals photo book is being published by Lantern Books in late 2013. Recent awards and accolades include: co-recipient (with Liz Marshall) of the 2013 Compassion for Animals Award in Toronto, the 2011 Canadian Empathy Award (art category), one of CBC’s Top 50 Champions of Change, Farm Sanctuary’s 2010 “Friend of Farm Animals” award, HuffPost Women “Top 10 Women trying to change the world,” one of 20 activists featured in the book The Next Eco Warrior, and the “Shining World Compassion Award” by Supreme Master Ching Hai.

What is The Ghosts in Our Machine about?

Liz Marshall: The Ghosts in Our Machine is multilayered. Its primary trajectory is to illuminate the lives of individual animals living within and rescued from the machine of our modern world, and to pose the moral question, are non-human animals property to be owned and used, or are they sentient beings deserving of rights?

I grounded this thesis through a character-driven human narrative: the heart and lens of animal rights photographer Jo-Anne McArthur. Through Jo-Anne’s story the audience meets a cast of animal subjects over the course of a year, and each encounter and photograph is a window into global animal industries: food, fashion, entertainment and research. All this is part of an epic photo project called We Animals, where McArthur has documented the lives of animals around the world with heart-breaking empathic vividness. The Ghosts in Our Machine charts her efforts to bring wider attention to a topic that most of humankind strives hard to avoid

What types of images can viewers expect to see?

Jo-Ann McArthur: The “Ghosts” film seamlessly blends its beautiful cinematography with both the images I took while we were shooting the film and images from the We Animals archive. The images are, for the most part, intimate portraits of animals in the situations that we put them, such as fur farms, dairy farms and macaque breeding farms. The photos aim to connect the viewer with the animal, extending the experience of what it must be like to live in a cage, or in an aquarium, or even at a sanctuary where rescued animals live. The images are meant to be beautiful, thoughtful and artful. I’m always trying to make images that draw the viewer in. I don’t want to repel anyone, even with the the heart-wrenching images. The idea is always to connect us to the animals

What inspired you to make The Ghosts in Our Machine?

Liz Marshall: A combination of things, my own journey of grappling with the issues (which I believe we all do when confronted with the staggering realities of animal use and exploitation), of being an animal lover, of believing in social justice, and being in a relationship with a longtime animal rights activist, Lorena Elke, who effectively challenged me to tackle the animal issue in a documentary. So, it’s been a process that began for me when I read Diet For A New America almost 25 years ago. Making The Ghosts in Our Machine has changed me, broadened my worldview considerably

What do you hope to accomplish by making this film?

Liz Marshall: To be part of the zeitgeist of social change that is taking place. We want the film to be a catalyst for change and inspiration. The biggest goal is to affect a consciousness shift.

What makes The Ghosts in Our Machine different from other animal rights films?

Liz Marshall: There are many important animal rights films out there. The Ghosts in Our Machine was created to reach a broader audience. I think it is different in its tone, its form, and because it leaves the audience with open-ended questions. It’s not a polemic style film. It’s a gentle film with dramatic impact.

Did you make this film with a specific audience in mind?

Liz Marshall: A broad and diverse demographic consisting of activists of all stripes, animal lovers of all stripes, and cinephiles of all stripes!

What was your favorite part of making The Ghosts in Our Machine?

Liz Marshall: All of it! It is hard, hard work that involves hundreds of thousands of details, and attention to scale and to the big picture at all times, simultaneously. I have nothing to complain about. I love filmmaking, I love helping to usher the film into the world, and I love connecting with people, engaging in dialogue, and being part of the change.

Jo-Ann McArthur: I think seeing it come together in the editing suite was the best part. Liz shot 180 hours of footage and seeing it be whittled down and laboriously shaped, piece by tiny piece, into the magic that has become The Ghosts in Our Machine, was a really beautiful thing to behold. I’m thankful that Liz was open to my ideas and thoughts during editing as well, so I got to give my two cents once in a while if I really liked something, or thought something didn’t fit. And then hearing them build the soundscape to the film, which is such an important component, was really cool. The film really came to life when the sounds came in…the sound of pen on paper, the sound of Maggie’s tail cutting the air as it furiously wagged, the sound of Fanny and Blitzen’s sniffing when they first meet. Beautiful stuff!

What was the hardest part of shooting the film?

Liz Marshall: The painful realities of bearing witness to the four main animal industries featured in the film: animals used for food; animals used for fashion; animals used for biomedical research and teaching; animals used for entertainment. Bearing witness happened in very intense ways while documenting the fur farm investigation, and visiting zoos and aquaria, but it also happened while filming mundane urban scenes to illustrate the many ways that animals have been reduced to ingredients and bits and parts.

Jo-Ann McArthur: I actually can’t say that there was a “hardest part” to shooting the film. Perhaps only that I generally fly by the seat of my pants in life, but, we couldn’t do that with the film, as so much planning was involved, and so much was at stake. It wasn’t just me and my camera, or me and an investigator or two, it was a whole team of us, which was an absolutely huge amount of work for us all to coordinate, especially Liz, of course. It wasn’t hard to get used to the cameras either because the team of cinematographers was absolutely stellar. Really unobtrusive people that I felt comfortable with immediately.

What action do you hope individual viewers will take after watching the film?

Jo-Ann McArthur: To face cruelty to animals is to face our complicity and our responsibility in that cruelty. People are hesitant to face these things; both are hard to handle! However, the film unravels in a way that allows the viewer to reflect. We aren’t hitting anyone over the head with a direct message. The film opens doors and opens up a dialogue as well. Are animals sentient creatures deserving of respect, or are they property? I want people to leave the film in a contemplative mood, and I’ll hope that it will lead us all to questions about how we can alleviate cruelty through our own actions. We can stop consuming animals, and products tested on them. We can consume less in general. We can become more informed and responsible stewards of the earth. We haven’t a second to lose; the time to make changes is now, for all the right reasons, and I know that “Ghosts” will be one of the many catalysts in the ongoing global shift to make the world a better place for animals. I hope that viewers will be a part of the change. They’ll see how great it feels to be active, even in small ways, in helping animals.

When can everyone go out and see it?

Liz Marshall: We’re conducting an Oscar-qualifying theatrical release in the U.S. in four major U.S. markets between November and December 2013: New York; Los Angeles; San Francisco (TBA) Chicago (TBA). This follows an 11-city theatrical release across Canada, and 3 prestigious international film festival awards. Here are the dates coming up:

New York: Village East Cinema, November 8-14 (6 screenings daily)

Los Angeles: Laemmle Theatre, Music Hall Beverly Hills, November 15-21 (3 screenings daily)

Buy tickets and spread the word.

If there’s a one-sentence message you want viewers to take away from The Ghosts in Our Machine, what would it be?

Liz Marshall: As consumers, we can all make a difference for the Ghosts, each and every day.

The Ghosts in our machine are a reality we are seldom faced with.  They are hidden from us and yet they are there, suffering in a seemingly eternal unrest.  Our duty as fellow inhabitants of this planet is to recognize their existence, bear witness to their suffering and take action.  We must always remember that as long as our silence persists, our non-human brothers and sisters will remain ghosts forever.

The post The Ghosts in Our Machine: An Interview With Liz Marshall and Jo-Anne McArthur appeared first on Vegan Rabbit.

Though I have never met you, in many ways, I believe we already know each other very well.   Our struggles have not been identical, yet I am sure we have shared many.  The world is a tough place to live in, especially for a person who chooses not to follow the path of least resistance.  This is why I am writing you this letter: to tell you to never give up.

Fear is a weapon used to keep change from happening, effectively halting progress.  Fear comes at you from all directions.  From the government, giant corporations, your teachers, your friends, your family and even yourself.  They will tell you: “you are just one person, what difference could you possibly make?”, “what you’re doing is far too difficult” and “your actions will get you into trouble”.  Sometimes no matter how long you’ve been in the game, you can feel as though you will succumb to those negative thoughts simply because they never stop.  They replay constantly in your mind, dragging you down until you stand petrified — paralyzed by fear.  This is exactly what they want.

You may feel alone.  You may feel hopeless.  You may feel as though the entire world is against you.  You may feel as though giving up would be so much simpler and easier than continuing to fight.  These are feelings every activist has wrestled with.

I won’t lie to you and tell you that these feelings will ever completely disappear.  The truth is, they are always there in the shadows of your mind, waiting for the moment you are most vulnerable to present themselves.  They grow and fester like a disease in your psyche, whose symptoms go unnoticed at first, but in time grow to become unbearable and impossible to ignore.

This is the life you have chosen.  The feeling of loneliness in a crowded room — of existing separate from the rest — is something that will remain constant.  Seeing life as it really is, rather than the façade you were brought up to not question or look past will haunt you at every turn.   It is a life of conflict, of grief, and often of solitude.

But it is also a life of gratitude, joy and boundless love.  It is a life of honesty and integrity.   It is a life characterized by your unwillingness to turn a blind eye to suffering.  It is a life of purpose beyond the self.

This world needs people like you.  People who are willing to speak the truth no matter where they are or who is listening.  People who are willing to act.  People who always eagerly ask “how can I do more?”.  Because the truth is, these are the only people who have ever changed the tides of history.  The world is full of bystanders; those who see injustice happening right in front of them and are too afraid to stop it; who think “someone ought to do something about this” and not doing something about it themselves.  The world needs people like you, who will take a stand against injustice and oppression.

I would not ask you to be fearless.  To be fearless is to be reckless and in this context is not only unwise but also nearly impossible.  Instead, what I am asking of you is to be courageous.  Courage is not the lack of fear, but the willingness to overcome it.

Fear seeks to control — to immobilize.  In this life you have to learn to challenge your fears so that you can overcome them.  You have to be willing to venture out of your comfort zone, do what needs to be done and be willing to accept the consequences.  The satisfaction you will get from knowing you are true to your beliefs in times of conflict and uncertainty will far outweigh any negativity you might encounter.

So, dear friend, though you do not know me, have never met me and likely never will, take some comfort in knowing that even from separate ends of the Earth I am here fighting right beside you, pushing you to be better and most importantly, steadfastly believing in our cause: the cause of total animal liberation.  We must believe and we must persevere, because to give up means that fear has won, and that is something people like you and I do not allow.

“Few are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, the wrath of their society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence. Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change a world that yields most painfully to change.” ~ Robert F. Kennedy

[This post was inspired by the question: “What would you have wanted to hear when you were a new vegan?  What would have helped?”, asked by Letters to a New Vegan as a part of their compilation of letters from vegans and activists of different backgrounds to newly aspiring vegans and animal rights activists.  They are considering submissions through January, 2014 of letters no longer than 1,000 words.   I wrote this letter to inspire others to be active and vocal and of course, to never give up.]

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