“MOTHERHOOD DOES NOT EXIST TO BE OWNED, COMMODIFIED, OR INVADED.”
Ashley Capps is a writer, editor, and researcher specializing in farm animal welfare and vegan advocacy. She is also the Founder and Director of the Mothers Against Dairy campaign, a powerful anti-dairy campaign. To mark Mother’s Day, we asked Ashley about how the campaign came to be.
You have mentioned it was a bit unexpected to find yourself running a campaign focused on mothers when you yourself are not a mother. Can you elaborate?Read more
On Mother’s Day, many animal rights allies pay respects online to all the parents who had their children stolen by violent industries who don’t respect their bodily autonomy. But those social media posts are harder to find a few weeks later when Father’s Day rolls around.
I’ve talked before about how the reproductive injustice of forced breeding is not limited to only the parent who bears the child, and how semen collection is a violation of the other parent as well. But beyond the sexual violence carried out by human hands, there is a passive erasure of male relationships with their offspring that also occurs.
Father-child bonds exist throughout animal societies, but they are commonly overlooked. Western society often discourages human men from expressing complex emotions other than anger and aggression. Read more
Susan Hargreaves is the Founder of Animal Hero Kids, a charity that empowers youth by providing them with school presentations that highlight animal rescue, advocacy, and promotes a cruelty-free existence by youth. She has been an animal advocate for over 40-years and has been revered by World Leaders and Celebrities across the globe.
Susan Hargreaves of Animal Hero Kids
FWM: What does activism mean to you?
Activism runs the gamut of speaking to the person at the grocery store looking for lactose-free milk, why cows milk dairy is the product of animal cruelty, educating at schools, protesting animal abuse, and speaking up at every opportunity you can, where it may make a difference.
Empathy is the first building block of kindness. Compassion is fostered in the “Animal Hero Kids Voices for the Voiceless “ book and education programs. I present stories of animal rescue and advocacy by youth. These stories, like all well-told stories, put you in the other’s place; understanding of another’s situation is vital-today more than ever.
Compassion being taught to youth is cruelty prevention, bullying and violence prevention. When empathy and kindness are taught at an early age it has the power to change the world. My life’s challenge is to increase compassion for all beings on a large scale. Read more
Ellie Laks is the Founder of The Gentle Barn Foundation, a national nonprofit organization that rescues and rehabilitates unwanted animals and heals people with the same stories of abuse and neglect.
At Freedom Farm, a kid goat rescued from a ritual Passover slaughter mingles with pigs and hens so overfed they cannot stand.
Nir lost part of his leg but can now jog around thanks to his prosthesis. Billy has his own wheelchair. Gali, who is blind, has been reunited with her mother Angela. And Roni was rescued from a ritual sacrifice and now loves nothing more than to jump on the trampoline and make mischief.
These five animals rescued from the livestock industry are living out their days being loved and pampered at the Freedom Farm in Moshav Olesh, on central Israel’s Sharon Plain. Read more
Originally published by Sentient Media February 26, 2020
Noah Bergh was in pre-primary school when he came home one evening in March of 2019 with a permission slip to visit a Brownes Dairy farm. Noah, already vegan for two years, felt sad when he heard about the planned excursion. According to his mother Natalie Bergh, “When he got home, he asked me, ‘Don’t the other kids know they take away the cows’ babies and kill them?’” Noah told the kids in his class that he wasn’t going because he is vegan and “loves cows.” He added, “I thought the farm owners might tell me it was good to kill and eat animals and drink their milk and it’s not even true.” The permission slip outlined that children would learn how “happy, healthy cows give us more and better quality milk.”
Noah is part of a minority of children who understand how much suffering occurs in the dairy industry. Read more
Our world is waking up to the injustices, not only in our backyards, but all over. The inability of adults to care for the health of the planet has left too much responsibility on our children. They are growing up in a scary world. No child should be placed in this scenario. But is it a case of too little too late?
As a mother, I often wonder: how do I reassure my child about the future when what they see around them is terrifying? Years ago, I realized then if I wanted the world to change for the better, it needed to start with me. I needed to reduce the negative impact I have on the world around me, and to share what I learned in an easy and accessible way.
Teaching Kids Empathy and Compassion
As I personally moved towards a compassionate lifestyle, I thought more about the books that could be written to share with others. By reading to your children, books from the Compassionate Press collection, you become a champion in your child’s eyes. Read more
Animal rights and vegan activist Genesis Butler, 13, is shown with rescued duck at the Wetlands & Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach on Thursday, February 13, 2020. Genesis has started a non-profit, Genesis for Animals, to provide funding to animal sanctuaries. In addition, Genesis will be featured on Marvel’s Hero Project which will air on Disney +. Marvel presented Genesis with her very own comic book starring herself as the Super Hero. (Photo by Leonard Ortiz, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Every superhero has an origin story. Genesis Butler’s started with chicken nuggets.
Like most kids she loved chicken nuggets, and as a 3-year-old she ate them almost daily until her mom told her something about her favorite food that horrified her. Read more
“Your creations are such inspirations for children, parents, and teachers everywhere! What an original and substantial way to make people, and children, of all kinds, feel the same and come together for a greater purpose. Kudos to you ladies, what a positive impact on our society!!” Sabra Anne October 2016
“I want to let you know how much I appreciate the safe reading space you provide for the younger set. This dad feels 100% confident in the content of your works, and my child just gobbles up every word. Please continue your excellent work, and we’ll keep reading.” KeithDecember 2017
Violet’s Vegan Comics began six years ago as a result of my own love of adventure comics growing up. When I was, I don’t know, about ten years old, I would eagerly await the landing of Tammy & Misty comics on the doormat every week. I love a good story. Something exciting, gripping, suspenseful; something with intrigue; something funny; something engrossing. Read more
The Baby and Toddler Vegan Feeding Guide by Julia Feliz Brueck is a to-the-point guide for parents looking to raise their little ones safely on plant-based diets. Evidence-based information and dietitian approved! Book trailer below.
Raising a vegan child in a very non-vegan world is certainly no easy task – not because it’s not doable. Remaining strong in one of the most vulnerable times in our lives because of the pressure to conform to what the majority of society deems we should do is no easy feat.
I’ve now been in the midst of raising two little vegans since conception for over four years. Early into that journey and years later I still feel confident that:
“One of the best and most important decisions I have made is choosing to raise both my sons with vegan values. As a vegan of almost a decade, I want to pass on the same values that have made me question my everyday life choices and choose to make my impact on other living beings as small as possible. Apart from helping them develop a connection to other living beings, the most natural way to help them start their own vegan journey is through what they eat.Read more
With a supportive vegan family of six who love sport, Cody Elkins became a noted vegan athlete at an early age. As a junior competing in racquetball, he had already achieved great things. In 2013, aged eight, he was the American Junior champion, and in 2014 he was the California State Champion and finished third in the Junior Olympics. In 2015 he finished third in the World Outdoor Championships and won the World Indoor Championships for 10 and under. Cody also retained his state title. He was ranked #2 in the USA in 2015 in the 10 and under category.
Vegan power!
“I am 100% vegan” Cody told us proudly in 2015. “I was born a vegetarian 10 years ago and my mom read the book “Skinny Bitch” eight years ago and we went vegan the very next day. I have been vegan eight years and feel great about it because I am saving animals.” Read more
Dominika Piasecka Talks About Her Life As A Vegan Activist And Shares Her Stories From The Front Line Of Demonstrations Across The UK.
For many vegans, eradicating animal products from their diet and lifestyle is simply not enough in the effort to save animals from pain and suffering. Even after fully committing to veganism in 2012, student and campaigner Dominika Piasecka felt as though she could, and should, be doing more. She told Vegan Life: “I didn’t want to be a person who was content with how things currently are, so I turned to animal rights. We must actively intervene to stop violence, not just say we don’t want to participate in it.”
After initially getting involved with animal rights and campaigning when she was still a vegetarian, Dominika was encouraged to watch a speech by activist Gary Yourosfky, and was instantly hooked on the idea of veganism.
“Every single sentence he said made sense to me, and veganism became logical. I watched the whole speech and excluded cow’s milk from my diet right away. I could not believe that I was living a lie for so many years – I had no idea about the dairy and egg industries and in the past I never understood why people became vegan.” Read more
Hi, I’m Chloe, the founder of VegYouth. I started VegYouth when I was 16 years old and in the eleventh grade (in August 2013).
Path to veganism:
My story dates back to when I was 3 years old. I had just finished watching the movie Chicken Run and came to the shocking revelation that chicken indeed does come from chickens. I put away the thought for some time.
This thought resurfaced when I was 6 years old, when a book of fun facts about pigs sparked on obsession of them. I read Charlotte’s Web, fiction books about pigs, and one where the main character was a pig who did not want to be slaughtered as well as many other pig books and movies. I decided to never eat pork again, even though my family never ate pork anyway, so this obsession did not really change my eating habits. I also like to say that I became an activist when I was six, because I cried whenever anyone even talked about eating pork and even wanted to start a pig appreciation club. Read more
Since I began working with kids, I’ve gotten used to a lot of unexpected questions. “Why do you have hair?” is one I answered my first week on the job as the public library’s new children’s librarian, directed at me by an accusatory preschooler who did not seem to realize that everyone in the room with him (save a few bald infants) had hair, too. I thought for a moment before responding, “I think we all have hair to keep our head warm. But we can research it together, if you want.” In the time since, I’ve answered inquiries about sharks, Judy Blume, peanut allergies, and everything in between.
But the most common question, the one that every parent and teacher knows well, is “Why?” Read more
Hear Chelsea Pinkham, the incredible fifteen year old vegan animal activist, today and tomorrow’s leader who rescued a Turkey bound for slaughter on Thanksgiving.
Today’s Song by Vegan Smythe“ Chicken Man”
The Audible Kitchen – Thanksgiving Vegan Pumpkin Pie
Buttercup and Ellie
Our world is waking up to the injustices, not only in our backyards, but all over. The inability of adults to care for the health of the planet has left too much responsibility on our children. They are growing up in a scary world. No child should be placed in this scenario. But is it a case of too little too late?
Natalie Portman is not just an A-list actress, she’s an outspoken advocate for human and animal rights, and most recently, a children’s book author. 
“Your creations are such inspirations for children, parents, and teachers everywhere! What an original and substantial way to make people, and children, of all kinds, feel the same and come together for a greater purpose. Kudos to you ladies, what a positive impact on our society!!” Sabra Anne October 2016
Raising a vegan child in a very non-vegan world is certainly no easy task – not because it’s not doable. Remaining strong in one of the most vulnerable times in our lives because of the pressure to conform to what the majority of society deems we should do is no easy feat.
For many vegans, eradicating animal products from their diet and lifestyle is simply not enough in the effort to save animals from pain and suffering. Even after fully committing to veganism in 2012, student and campaigner Dominika Piasecka felt as though she could, and should, be doing more. She told Vegan Life: “I didn’t want to be a person who was content with how things currently are, so I turned to animal rights. We must actively intervene to stop violence, not just say we don’t want to participate in it.”
Path to veganism:
