Transcript of Bruce Friedrich's Live ARZone Guest Chat 2011

[Carolyn Bailey]

Transcript of Bruce Friedrich’s Live ARZone Chat

26 February 2011 at:

5pm US Eastern

10pm GMT

27 February 2011 at:

8am Australian Eastern Standard Time

 

 

 

Carolyn Bailey:

ARZone would like to welcome Bruce Friedrich as today’s Live Chat Guest.

 

Bruce Friedrich is Vice President of Policy and Government Affairs for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PeTA).

 

Before joining PeTA more than a decade ago, Bruce spent six years running a shelter for homeless families and a soup kitchen in Washington, D.C., as well as leading demonstrations on behalf of unions and other causes.

 

In 2002, as Director of Vegan Campaigns, Bruce wrote, directed and produced “Meet Your Meat”, a video about animal agriculture, narrated by Alec Baldwin.

 

Bruce is a frequent contributor to the Huffington Post, was a contributor to the book “Terrorists or Freedom Fighters” (2004), wrote the forward of “Striking at the Roots”  (2008-), and co-authored (with Matt Ball) “The Animal Activist’s Handbook” (2009)

 

Bruce is a frequent lecturer and debater on college campuses in the United States, including Harvard, Yale and Princeton Universities.

 

Bruce welcomes the chance to engage ARZone members today on a range of topics, from PeTA to his extensive advocacy to his philosophies in general.

 

Would you please join with me in welcoming Bruce to ARZone?

Welcome, Bruce!

 

Jason Ward:

Welcome Bruce!!

 

Tim Gier:

Hello Bruce!

 

[e-mail]:

Ahimsa!

 

Kate Danaher:

one of our most talented voices for animals!

 

Sky:

hello bruce

 

Mangus O’Shales:

hi Bruce

 

Lisa Viger:

welcome bruce!

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Hey there everyone! It's great to be here.

 

Barbara DeGrande:

Hello!

 

Sadia Rajput:

Hello and welcome

 

Will:

hey up

 

Luna Hughes:

Hello Bruce

 

Brooke Cameron:

Hi, Bruce, and welcome!

 

Ben Hornby:

Thanks for being here, Bruce

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Bruce  will be responding to his pre-registered questions first, and then we’ll open the chat up for all members to engage Bruce.

Please refrain from interrupting Bruce during his first session, and feel free to send a private message to an admin if you wish to address Bruce at any time.

 

I’d now like to ask Bruce his first question.

 

You regularly participate in vegan outreach; what is your objective in performing outreach, which form of outreach do you find most effective, and why?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

It’s tough to know what’s most effective, but what I most enjoy is wearing my “Ask me why I’m vegetarian shirt” and putting a vegetarian bumper sticker on my laptop so people ask me “why are you a vegetarian?” or say “I love that sticker,” and that starts an impromptu conversation. I feel like conversations are probably the most effective form of activism, but they’re a bit tougher to initiate than passing out leaflets. I can pass out 400 leaflets in an hour in a lot of spots, but the most real conversations I can have is far fewer. I do LOVE leafleting—it gives me such a sense of empowerment to think that based on what my wife, and few friends, and I do in a few hours, some people are going to have their lives transformed forever, and animals will be better off as a result.

 

Some other easy things that are great to do: post a video on your auto-signature and Facebook page, work to increase vegan options at restaurants, etc.

 

Matt Ball and I talk in more depth about our favorite forms of vegan advocacy in our book, The Animal Activist’s Handbook (www.AnimalAdvocacyBook.com).

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks for that, Bruce!

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thanks for the question.

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Barbara DeGrande would like to ask you a question next, thanks, Barb.

 

Barbara DeGrande:

Hi Bruce. Thanks for your time. In  an article in Huffington Post (8/5/10) you concluded: If we believe that we should try not to cause people to starve OR we oppose cruelty to animals OR we(this is out of order, sorry) we believe that people should try to protect the environment, the only ethical diet is a vegetarian one. Yet vegetarianism certainly does not address issues of changing attitudes towards animals as commodities nor does it address the suffering of animals used in the dairy industyr, nor does it address the exploitation of animals. It would seem that such a statement might confuse the public and lead people to believe that there is something justifiable in the use of animals in the dairy and egg industries. Why did you not use the term vegan?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thanks very much for the question, Barbara. I actually don’t think most people think that much about it; I spend a lot of time leafleting, doing radio interviews, and traveling with my “Ask me why I’m vegetarian” shirt, and the bumper sticker on my laptop, and I think your question assumes a level of engagement in the general public with this issue that is (sadly) not yet there. What the word vegetarian does is to raise the issue in a way that is less threatening,

 

The word vegetarian gets our foot in the door. Or as Matt said in his chat, it allows us to begin at the beginning, not the end (or something like that). I think he was quoting Jonathan Safran Foer.

 

For years, I wore “Ask me why I’m vegan” shirts, and the questions that followed were inevitably about whether humans need dairy to survive or about bread ingredients, people were generally not excited about having a conversation about animal rights, etc. They wanted to know what to put in their coffee (an okay topic, but not the best place to start). Now, I wear “Ask me why I’m vegetarian” shirts and the conversations totally focus on what you (and I) want them to focus on: animals as commodities, animal suffering, and animal exploitation. The idea that animal corpses are not meat is better for that conversation than forcing people to grapple with dairy and eggs as their entree into the topic (I think).

 

I’d say that moving to the word vegetarian, from vegan, was one of the very best decisions I ever made (I now regularly convince people to adopt a vegetarian diet in one conversation; that never happened with veganism), so

I'll bet that makes a LOT more vegans, too, since vegetarianism is often a transition phase to vegan and is far better for animals. Remember that the average meat eater consumes, each year, about 35 birds, one-third of a pig, one-tenth of a cow, and one-thirtieth of the output of a dairy cow (plus who knows how many fish; estimates vary).

 

So for most people, this is an entrée. I hope that makes sense. Thanks for the question.

 

Barbara DeGrande:

I would like to ask a follow up

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Of course.

 

Barbara DeGrande:

You did not answer my question; is this not a confusing message rather than a clear message? I have found people quite fascinated with veganism. Why promote something that exploits animals?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Well I don't encourage people to eat dairy and eggs! I just focus on the first step, rather than the last step: I found, based on years of using the word vegan, that the word vegetarian is far more effective at promoting compassion for animals, empathy for animals, and even veganism: Since a vegan saves 1 more animal than a vegetarian, and since one conversation can often put a person on the path to veganism, I think the word vegetarian is much more effective for us, as animal advoctates.

 

Tim Gier:

Thanks Bruce, Jordan Wyatt has the next question but can't be here, so Roger Yates will ask it in his place. Please go ahead Roger.

 

Roger Yates:

As an Abolitionist Vegan, I find many aspects of PETA off-putting and offensive, for myself as a young man, to women, to nonhuman animals. Picking just one aspect for my several sentences ending with question marks, how do you feel about Welfare Reform for larger cages, or "better ways to kill” while you are with the particular animals involved?  I look after Chickens, they are my wonderful, fine feathered *friends*.  I find it productive to share videos of them living their lives online, to promote respect of all animals, human and nonhuman: https://www.youtube.com/jaywontdart#p/u

 

I've seen many human friends go "gaga" over them, "ohh, look at their feathered feet!", "I love the way they eat bread from your hand!", "can I pat them?"  But then my human friend will drive home, and eat, you guessed it, Chicken flesh, whether out of tradition or perceived pleasure, sometimes straight from the cardboard box, they think its ok to kill other, nameless, faceless Chickens.  Faceless because their heads have been removed - "humanely" I'm sure -, before serving.  They see a difference between Chickens who were never loved, "Factory Farm", "Free Range Farm", "small scale slaughterhouse" or not, and their new Chicken Friends who they've met. I strongly believe imagined "good lives and being Put To Sleep in a petasecond*" fairytales are to blame.  When Animal Rights groups hand out euphemistic labels, and talk of "another victory for the cause!" with every appearance on the non profits' own aircraft carrier, what really changes for these Chicken Not-Yet-Introduced's?...

 

With your belief in a right way to kill another animal, could you kill these beautiful, gentle beings yourself?  Or is it actually "Happy Meat", desperately convincing ourselves 2+2=5, while wonderful Chickens are "fried", and we, as their oppressors, get "rich"? Its not very difficult to move Chickens from "fried" to "friend", it generally takes a single keystroke, and promoting Veganism as the least others deserve. I hope PETA will also decide to promote *Veganism* through creative, non violent education. Thank you for your time.

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thanks for the comments. There are a fair number of issues you've raised. I'll address two of them, and then if you want to follow up, that'll be great. First: feminism—Two of PETA’s three board of directors are women; the other is a gay man. PETA’s top two people (Pres and Exec VP) are women, and are four of our top six people (the other two are gay men).that was supposed to be "as are four of our top six people" (of course).

 

Other than feminist organizations, I think you’d be hard pressed to find a better place to work, as a woman. Assuming that feminism is about actions, it seems to me that PETA is about as feminist as it gets.

 

Regarding our use of sex in our campaigns:

 

1) We use anyone famous who is willing to do it. Our most recent shoot was with Baltimore Ravens star Willis McGahee (which delighted me, because I live in Baltimore). We've used as many men as women, perhaps more.

 

2) Sex sells and isn’t offensive to most people. That’s the super-brief reply to that question.

 

Re: happy meat and the “right way” to kill an animal: I don’t believe in happy meat or the right way to kill an animal, as I discuss here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bruce-friedrich/humane-meat-a-contrad... and here:Eating Animals is Indefensible:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bruce-friedrich/resolved-eating-anima... and here:An Advent Reflection on God and Animal Cruelty:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bruce-friedrich/an-advent-reflection-...

 

And in lots of other places all over the Web. There are no counter-examples.

 

PETA does promote veganism, probably more than any other organization in the world.

See: www.GoVeg.com  (most popular veg site on the Web) www.Meat.org  (most popular vegan videos in history)

http://www.peta.org/issues/Animals-Used-For-Food/default.aspx  (the “animals used for food” link from PETA.org)

Thanks for your comment.

 

Tim Gier:

Thank you Bruce, Ben Hornby would like to ask the next question, Ben?

 

Ben Hornby:

Thanks, Tim!

 

In your previous ARZone chat, you said “It’s a start! People have responded favorably to the “Meatless Monday” concept and once they realize that they don’t miss meat for one day, they’ll stop eating it for two or three, and so on

 

This sounds good to me but is there any evidence that once a person gives up eating other animals on a Monday that they really do stop on Tuesdays or Wednesdays too?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thank you very much for the question, Ben. I’ve met quite a few people who started with one day and kept going. For many people, the idea of going totally vegan (or even vegetarian) is simply too daunting.

 

Giving up meat for one day per week shows them that it can be done. And then they try 2-4, and before they know it, they’re at 7. I have a cousin who went vegan this way, and I’ve met quite a few other people who had similar experiences. It makes sense: It’s easy to say “well I’ll do this one day/week.”

But then you realize that one day/week of doing something because it’s the ethical (or healthy) choice isn’t enough. There’s a book that I can’t recommend highly enough, by a vegan a.r. activist from Philadelphia, called Change of Heart. It explores the psychology of activism, and we should all read it, to be as effective as we possibly can be:

http://www.amazon.com/Change-Heart-Psychology-Spreading-Social/dp/1...  It’s also worth nothing that Meatless Monday is something that institutions can endorse: For example, the Baltimore Public Schools, with 90,000 students, does it. So these students are introduced to the idea of eating meatless, and the reasons for it. Even Oprah Winfrey and the AARP (with about 15 million members in the U.S.—by far the largest member organization here) is promoting it (you can bet they would not promote veganism or animal rights): http://www.aarp.org/food/cooking/info-02-2011/meatless-mondays.html

 

So I think that for animals, it's pretty great.

 

Ben Hornby:

Thanks, Bruce!

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thank you.

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks, Bruce. Roger Yates would like to ask the next question, thanks, Rog.

 

Roger Yates:

In PeTA’s report, “Controlled Atmosphere Killing -v- Electric Immobilization,” there is the following claim: “With CAK, workers never handle live birds, so there is no chance for abuse” (p.5). Can you clarify that this is talking ~only~ about events at the slaughterhouse end of the system - and not about the farm end. In other words, chickens will still be subject to being ripped from cages and into transportation crates?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thanks Roger. Not ripped from cages, because these are broiler chickens. But yes, you’re right that this is purely an issue of slaughter.

 

Right now, chickens are dumped from crates from 3-4 feet high. Then they’re slammed into metal shackles by their often-broken legs. Then they’re electrically shocked with a charge that immobilizes them but doesn’t render them insensitive to pain. Then their throats are sliced. All of this happens, of course, while they’re still conscious. In the U.S., millions/year are flapping around and miss the electricity, so they have their chest cavities sliced open, or a leg or wing sliced off, and then they’re boiled alive, again, while fully conscious.

 

And every time PETA investigates, we find hideous and sadistic intentional abuse of chickens—blowing them up with homemade pipe bombs, ripping them limb from limb, piling them up and jumping up and down on them, and so on. The suffering of birds at slaughter is beyond anything any of us can possibly imagine.

 

CAK would eliminate humans from contact with animals at slaughter and would eliminate all of those abuses, for 10 billion animals/year in the U.S.

 

Every activist of whom I’m aware who has ever worked undercover in a slaughterhouse thinks it would be the most important step toward lessening animal suffering ever.

 

Roger Yates:

A follow-up please, young sir...

 

Bruce Friedrich:

But of course!

 

You're younger than me no?

 

Roger Yates:

You say broiler chickens - but aren't "spent" hens subject to CAK, but since you are talking about the slaughter end in the report it is rather misleading, no?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Well, we're advocating on-farm CAK for spent hens, but more and more, spent hens are just killed on farm.

 

Sorry, though, I'm not clear on what you say is misleading. Can you clarify, please?

 

Roger Yates:

That it implies that there is no contact between workers and chickens but that is JUST at the slaughter end of the process

 

btw - I'm 53 young man!

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Oh, well since we're talking exclusively about slaughter, I'd be surprised if anyone thought we were referring to gathering. Though we do advocate manual gathering from sheds, too. That's a bit closer to reality over here.

 

You look great for 53! I'm 41, thought you were younger.

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks, Bruce, and Roger!

 

Time Gier:

Carolyn, you're up with next question, so please continue!

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks, Tim

:

Bruce, you have been supportive of the recent Oprah episode involving veganism,  [http://www.facebook.com/brucegfriedrich/posts/169590553087345],

do you think it’s helpful, as seems to have been the case in the Oprah episode, to present veganism as only a dietary choice? I’ve not seen the episode myself, and have only heard 80% of it; is it true that the person you refer to as advocating for “pure veganism” also believes eating eggs is acceptable? Is that in accordance with pure veganism?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thanks very much, Carolyn. Actually, Kathy advocates veganism and writes and speaks eloquently in condemnation of the egg industry. For example here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kathy-freston/why-vegan-is-the-new-at...  and in her book, which is #2 or 3 on the NYT hardback "how to" section this week:

http://www.amazon.com/Veganist-Weight-Healthy-Change-World/dp/16028...  

 

That said, I’m not sure what “pure veganism” is. Everything we consume involves some animal suffering (even tires have some animal ingredients,

organic foods are made with animal fertilizer, non-organic foods kill bugs and birds with pesticides and herbicides, etc.) This is the basic argument:

http://www.vegtalk.org/animal-rights/personal-purity-effective-advo...

 

The argument is worked into much of a chapter in a book that Matt Ball and I wrote, called The Animal Activist's Hanbook; we admit that it's counter-in¬tuitive, but argue that if our goal is to help animals, we're going to have to ask what's in their best interests as our key concern. Check it out at:

www.animaladvocacybook.com

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks, Bruce. The term "pure veganism" was taken from your FB wall, but I certainly agree that living, in itself, is going to cause harm every day to other animals in some way.

 

Bruce Friedrich:

I didn't use it, did I?

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Yeah, I'm pretty sure you did. I'll double check and let you know though

 

Bruce Friedrich:

If so: Mea culpa. Mea culpa. Mea maxima culpa.

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Tim Gier is up next, when you're ready, Tim.

 

Tim Gier:

In your most recent Huffington Post article you write: “Imagine a political prisoner in solitary confinement who is being beaten every day; do we want that person released? Of course we do, but even if the government won't release her we also want the beatings to stop; we want her released from solitary. We want welfare reforms for her, and we want freedom.” Any reasonable person would agree, but in a situation such as this, advocates for this person would never drop their demands for her freedom, would they? So, when PeTA makes demands of the animal agriculture industry, does it consistently make a demand for total liberation of other animals, whatever other demands they make?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thanks for the question, Tim.

Yes. And all our leaflets about campaigns like KFC and McDonald’s also advocate veganism. But we should also, I think, ally ourselves with people who disagree with us on the end game.

 

I know that people like Michael Pollan and Nicolette Niman, two of the most effective advocates in the U.S. against factory farms that treat animals like inanimate objects, routinely hear from angry vegans who not only are not thankful that they’re fighting for better treatment of animals, but attack them and call them names. I've seen the emails...

 

That strikes me as incredibly harmful to animals, to pillory people who are helping animals, because they don’t share our end goal. They may not currently agree with us on animal liberation, but they do agree—and want to fight for—better treatment of animals.

 

Just to be clear and as noted above: I don’t agree with eating meat—ever. I’m convinced that eating corpses is always immoral. I have a few pages in Jonathan Safran Foer’s book  (Eating Animals) in which I debate the idea of “humane meat” with Nicolette. But it’s worth remembering that in the battle against the huge meat companies; people like Nicolette and Michael are our (very strong) allies.

 

Also see thoughts on previous question.

 

Tim Gier:

Thanks Bruce, may I ask a quick followup?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Of course.

 

Tim Gier:

I'm unclear, does PeTA unequivocally demand an end to animal use even when it negotiates with the industry for changes in current practices?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

We unequivocally comdemn animal use in all situations. I'm not sure what "demanding" an end to animal use would look like in a negotiation with McDonald's or KFC. But we never temper our central ethical message of animal liberation.

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks, Bruce! Al Nowatzki would like to address you now, thanks, Al.

 

Al Nowatzki:

Hi Bruce. My question is in regard to PETA’s resource allocation. If it's true that PETA wants people to go vegan AND they want less animal suffering, and it's true that the more vegans there are the less animals are brought into existence to live lives of suffering, wouldn't it then be the best course of action for PETA to focus solely on vegan education?

 

If Hank goes vegan tomorrow, he removes himself from the demand for chickens (for example) to be raised and slaughtered chicken not brought into existence  (a chicken not brought into existence doesn’t suffer at all). Hank’s decision to not buy chickens’ flesh ideally has an effect on the pocketbooks of those who raise chickens for meat. And while it’s true that more chickens are always being brought into existence - it’s a market that’s expanding, not contracting - Hank’s refusal to buy animal products causes that market to expand at a lesser rate. And eventually, given enough time and enough Hanks (yay, vegan education!), this rate of expansion will level off and then start to decrease.

 

The more vegan education, the more vegans, the sooner this can happen.

 

This would also force a reaction among animal exploiters. If they see a trend toward veganism, they would likely, of their own accord, implement welfare reforms for PR reasons, hoping to regain the dollars of vegans and to keep from losing the dollars of those currently consuming their products. So you'd get it both - vegan education and welfare reforms - but you'd only have to focus your resources on the former. I guess I'm just wondering if/where you find fault with this reasoning.

 

Would you reject the idea that focusing solely on vegan education could indeed meet the goals that PETA has set for itself, i.e. making vegans (that's a goal of PETA, right?), raising awareness of the plight of animals, and eventually liberating animals? Thanks for your time.

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Yay, vegan education indeed! But please allow me to make an observation, to start: I think that if vegans focused only on vegan education, the meat industry would not be encouraged to adopt welfare regulations. You can see this historically: For most of the time there have been animal rights activists, we have focused on veganism, and there was no meaningful welfare reform. In the UK and the Netherlands, where vegans worked on welfare reform, they got welfare reform. Now that we’re pushing for welfare reform in the U.S., we’re starting to get it.

 

I don’t think there are any countervailing examples. i.e., I think that so far, empirically, your suggestion is observably not true.

 

Anyway, we definitely want to turn as many people vegetarian and vegan as possible. A vegan saves one more animal per year than a vegetarian, so it’s worth considering whether vegan advocacy or vegetarian advocacy is more fruitful. But that’s a side-issue: We also care deeply about vivisected animals, animals exploited by the circus, animals killed by the fur, leather, and wool industries, and so on.

 

And we care about animals who are going to suffer in all these industries for years to come. So we have campaigns on all these issues. I recently read a post that I thought likely to be true. It went:

 

 “There are far fewer ‘resources’ without welfare campaigns--money or people. Raise your hand if you got involved because you weren't moved by the treatment of animals? The money raised to attract your attention came from welfare campaign contributions.  As few people as there are, and as little money as there is in this movement, I wonder what it would look like if the message began as ‘end property status’ or ‘go vegan to help animals’ without any of the ‘welfare’ attempts.” I think that’s a fair observation: The welfare campaigns don’t steal money from vegan efforts.

 

Because they help animals, the welfare campaigns resonate with almost everyone who cares about animals, so in addition to being the right thing to do (because they help animals), they also net volunteers and financial support.

 

Al Nowatzki:

Can I have a follow up?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Please.

 

Al Nowatzki:

Thanks.

 

Al Nowatzki:

Back to resource allocation: Approximately what percentage of the PETA budget is devoted to explicitly and singly promoting veganism?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

I'm afraid I don't know. It's certainly our largest campaign (we don't have any other free kits or devoted Web sites that we advertize).

 

Al Nowatzki:

Follow up?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Okay by me.

 

Al Nowatzki:

Sorry, I just wonder if, since it's the largest campaign, that that also means it's what you spend the most money on. Just want to get it clear.

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Of all our campaigns, veganism gets at least twice whatever comes in second. Yes.

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks, Bruce, and Al!

 

Tim Gier:

Brooke Cameron is up with the next question, when you are ready Brooke

 

Brooke Cameron:

Thanks, Tim. I found PeTA’s recent SuperBowl ad (which didn’t air) to be highly offensive. I think it can be fairly described, if not as soft-core pornography, then something approaching it. If the animal rights movement is supposed to be about respecting and protecting the interests of others, how can ads which objectify women, reducing them to things over which men leer and sneer (as in the ad), dehumanizing them into little more than flesh and blood sex toys, be at all consistent with a movement and a philosophy based on the Golden Rule?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Really? I thought it was funny. Anyway, the women at PETA who conceptualized and shot the ad would suggest you’re telling women what to do with their bodies, which could be seen as more “reducing them to things” than the ad (I think).

 

Certainly the women who volunteered to be in the advert would suggest that they didn't feel like "little more than flesh and blood sex toys." And they would wonder at your desire to tell them what to do with their bodies.

 

Sexual attraction is a fact of life, which is why every top 100 magazine in the U.S. and UK (and I assume Australia, but I haven’t checked) is filled with adverts that use sexual attraction (generally, the fact that men like to look at women, but a fair bit of the reverse, too). That’s reality, it seems to me, not objectification. As noted previously, PETA uses men and women in our adverts and our street campaigns; for the former, it’s anyone famous. For the latter, it’s anyone who wants to do it. On my FB page, you can see me totally naked (torso up and then covered by a police jacket) from when I streaked a meeting of George Bush and the Queen at Buckingham Palace. For the record: I didn't feel exploited! :-)

 

Brooke Cameron:

You thought simulating oral sex, with men behind the cameras sneering at them, funny?

 

Do you have daughters, Bruce? How would you feel if they began simulating oral sex with vegetables because it was deemed "a fact of life"?

 

Bruce Friedrich:

I did think it was funny, yes. I don't have daughters, no. I do know a lot of young women who think it's great (and none, including the ones in the ad who didn't like it). I am sorry that you don't like it though.

 

Brooke Cameron:

I am sorry that you find it acceptable, but thank you for your response

 

Bruce Friedrich:

The eternal struggle of fathers continues, BTW. :-) Of course.

 

YOU'RE GOING TO WEAR WHAT!? :-)

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Tim Gier is up next with the last "formal" question for today, thanks, Tim.

 

Tim Gier:

Bruce, forgive me, but I do have two daughters and I find the constant barrage of ads depicting women in the way PeTA does is detrimental to young girls' self-esteem and self-worth.

 

In a comment recently you said “My concern is with disparagin¬g welfare reforms, not declining to participat¬e. The only activism this article is questionin¬g is activism directed against welfare reforms.” I wonder then if those same people give PeTA any credit for when PeTA actually get some forms of animal use abolished? For instance, on the “Victories” page of the PeTA website, small “wins” for other animals, such as convincing a school to stop boiling fishes to death (and not using fishes at all) or getting a conference to not use cats in painful procedures (substituting human-patient simulators) are listed along with many others. Is credit ever given where credit is due? –

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thanks very much for the softball question, Tim. We have small abolitionist victories every day (including more than 1 million vegan starter kits distributed annually, the most popular vegan Web site and vegan videos in world history, etc.).

 

Some people who criticize our welfare campaigns certainly recognize that we do more to promote veganism than any other group on the planet (except maybe Vegan Outreach, which also supports welfare campaigns).

 

As an aside, if you agree that veganism includes issues other than diet, then PETA is by far the most successful and vocal vegan group in the world. We’re the only national group in the U.S. that stands up for fish, stands against leather and wool, and so on. So yes, some who oppose the welfare campaigns (or other things we do) grant this, which is nice.

 

Of course, this entire debate is one that takes place among a small fraction of one percent of the population in the U.S. or UK. PETA has a fairly large budget (for an animal group), which comes from our millions of members and supporters who support what we’re doing.

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks Bruce, for some very interesting and helpful replies to some great questions today. We'll now begin a very short open session of questions, as Bruce is very pushed for time. Douglass would like to ask the first question, all yours, Douglass.

 

[e-mail]:

Thank you for taking my question Mr. Friedrich!

 

Bruce Friedrich:

You bet, D.

[e-mail]:

My question will finish with <done>

This is regarding PETA's euthanasia policy with "rescued" animals. First, let's agree on the definition of “euthanasia:”"the act or practice of killing or permitting the death of hopelessly sick or injured individuals (as persons or domestic animals) in a relatively painless way for reasons of mercy."

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/euthanasia  So it seems fair to me, by this dictionary definition, euthanasia is defined by one's terminal lack of health, "hopelessly sick or injured."  An individual is going to unnaturally die and is suffering, so immediately put them down.

 

As you already know, in 2009, PETA euthanized 2352 animals (dogs, cats, and other companion animals).  That's over TWO THOUSAND, THREE HUNDRED animals. Public records also indicate eight animals were adopted out through this same PETA program.EIGHT ANIMALS ADOPTED. Eight animals truly rescued out, and 2352 potentially adoptable animals euthanized is a disgrace for any organization, not to mention for an organization dedicated to "ethical" treatment for animals. Sure-sure, maybe a few of these animals were terminal, but over *two thousand*? I don't think so.

 

If PETA took resources from sexist "rather go naked then wear fur campaigns,"  every animal could have a home.  BTW, I see a *lot* of Facebook people offended by PETA's sexist campaigns. Please don't give me excuses like relieving animals some burden, like a "caged life is no life."  We know this.  Death is no life, too.

 

Before you answer, Mr. Friedrich, I'd like you to think about how you would feel, if you were the next dog to be be put down by a PETA employee.  Put yourself in the dogs paws who's life is about to end at PETA hands. Think about it.  Envision it. Hold that picture.  How would you feel?

 

Now, although I am interested in your overall comments to these points and what you have to generally say, I'm wondering why anyone should take PETA's animal approach (or anything PETA does) seriously, when PETA does not take the lives of these adoptable animals seriously?

Thank you!

 

Ahimsa <done>

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thanks for your question, D, which clearly comes out of a deep passion and love for animals. That said, I have to admit that I believe the question to be based in ignorance, and the way you presented it to be pretty much the opposite of ahimsa.

 

The people who work in PETA's community animal project are the world's saints, and I have more respect for them than anyone else on the planet. They do the hardest imaginable work, and then they get attacked for it by people who (I believe) couldn't or wouldn't do it. I suggest that you read PETA President Ingrid Newkirk's thoughts on the issue:

http://www.peta.org/b/thepetafiles/archive/2009/03/30/why-we-euthan...

 

If you were to read the reports from CAP, they would break your heart in two.

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks, Bruce. Al Nowatzki would like to ask one more question now, thanks, Al.

 

Al Nowatzki:

Have you ever disagreed with a position or action that PETA has taken? If so, what was it and why did you disagree? And by all means, feel free to list more than one if there are multiple instances of disagreement.

 

Bruce Friedrich:

I would guess that everyone at PETA has disagreed with PETA positions, including PETA's President. But I'm not too excited about getting into a discussion of internal discussions. Thanks for the opportunity though!

 

Carolyn Bailey:

This concludes Bruce’s ARZone chat for today, but, as there are still a number of people lined up to engage Bruce, he has very generously offered to reply to any questions asked of him on the transcript post, which will be published within a few hours of the completion of this chat.

 

Bruce would like to offer a closing first. Go ahead when you’re ready, please, Bruce.

 

Bruce Friedrich:

Thanks everyone. I deeply appreciate being in the struggle with all of you. Any of us who grant that animals deserve rights and should not be used for human ends, is in a small (correct) minority.

 

While I totally support an open dialog about anything and everything (why I like ARZone and am on again), I do wish that we could spend less time arguing (okay, to be totally honest, I wish people would stop using their precious time to criticize other animal activists); on the one hand, open discussion is great. On the other hand, if we make our points and the other side disagrees, there’s a lot to be said for saying “maybe they’re right.”

 

It seems to me that a lot of people in this (and every other, of course) movement are totally convinced that they’re right, and they denigrate people who disagree.

 

I think we could all try to work on our humility and grant the good intentions of people who disagree with us.

 

Regardless of our disagreements, you are all heroes in my eyes, and you are on the right side of history.

 

Thanks very much for your time.

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Thanks, Bruce, very much!

 

I’d like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank Bruce for being here today, replying to some important questions, and being willing to continue the debate afterwards on the transcript.

 

Jason Ward:

Thanks Bruce

 

Will:

Bye

 

Tim Gier:

Bruce, I look forward to continuing this discussion with you in the coming days. Thanks for your willingness to participate.

 

Al Nowatzki:

Thanks Bruce, and I echo Carolyn and Tim's appreciation of you continuing the debate in the transcript. Mighty big of you, I must say.

 

Brooke Cameron:

Thanks for being here, Bruce. I agree with your closing statement! The time spent criticising and denigrating others is time that could be much more productively spent!

 

Carolyn Bailey:

Please feel free to leave any messages or questions for Bruce on the transcript once it is posted. Bruce actually stayed longer then he had planned to today. He was very limited for time, unfortunately.

 

 

 

ARZone exists to promote rational discussion about our relations with other animals and about issues within the animal advocacy movement. Please continue the debate after a chat by starting a forum discussion or by making a point under a transcript.

[Carolyn Bailey]

The questions are now closed for Bruce. Thank you to all ARZone members who participated. ARZone will announce when the questions are posted.

[Animal Rights Zone]

Thanks for the link, Al. That's a great blog post!

 

 

[Brandon Becker]

My last quesstion for Bruce:

Considering that PETA claims to operate under the motto "animals are not ours..." it seems very contradictory to give awards to slaughterhouse designer Temple Grandin, flesh-peddler Burger King, the creator of the RADAR rodent trap that gasses mice, rats, and others to death, as well as recently endorsing the CrustaStun lobster-killing devices and praising chicken-killers Bell & Evans. Why should anyone take PETA seriously as a voice for “animal rights” with this nonsense?

[red dog]

on PETA's part of adopting them out?

Recently ARZone hosted a chat with Nathan Winograd, who helped create a no-kill community in upstate New York. Can you please explain the animosity between PETA and Nathan Winograd, and tell us whether you've ever tried sitting down with him and attempting to address his concerns? What about the many other no-kill advocates who share Nathan's concerns? What are PETA's current positions regarding TNR programs and breed-specific legislation, and have they changed at all in light of new information? For example, more "pit bull" bans have led to more and more dogs being killed in "shelters." They've also led to many friendly dogs being seized from loving homes and held in government kennels for protracted periods while their fate is determined. Is there any evidence at all that they've encouraged guardians to treat their dogs better, or that they've had any positive effects whatsoever?

How do you expect to influence society not only in the United States, but throughout the world, when your homeless animal policies run counter to the values of all but the most backward-thinking and unempathetic elements of society?

[red dog]

Bruce, first of all I want to say that I've learned a lot from your past articles and speeches. With that said, I sadly have to agree with much of the criticism that's come your way here at ARZone. I don't know if Douglass is a real person or if he was serious when he asked you about PETA's policies concerning homeless animals, but his question was a serious one and I think this community deserved a better answer. Could you please clarify what PETA's "community animal project" is, why it exists, and whether PETA actually has any building or holding facility for animals waiting to be adopted? (I don't think so, but all over the Internet there are references to a PETA "shelter" and I find that very confusing.)

Someone posted PETA's intake statistics recently and I think we're entitled to an explanation as to why so many animals were killed. First of all, how did these animals end up at PETA? Why were they brought there instead of to an SPCA or pound or private vet or rescue group? Your website contains a number of graphic pictures, which are obviously intended to suggest there was no hope for these animals. Can you honestly say that all the animals PETA took in, besides the eight who got adopted, were medically untreatable? If not, and if treatment was deemed to be too expensive, why did PETA take responsibility for these animals in the first place? Couldn't you have transferred some of them to rescue organizations or foster homes, or asked a vet for a discount? Does PETA have any vets on staff?

Can you explain the 2005 court case involving two PETA staff members who were convicted of improperly disposing of the bodies of animals who had been killed? (I think their convictions may have eventually been overturned, but they admitted killing the animals and dumping the bodies.) Specifically, can you respond to allegations that the accused people tricked a vet into turning the animals over for adoption, when there was never any intention

[Jane Summers]

 Peta's website conveys a consistent and clear message to cease the exploitation of nonhumans and provides detailed explanations for actions or activities the organisation conducts.

How much of the Centre for Consumer Freedom's adverse commentary on Peta -including their funded website petakills- has generated negativity towards Peta ?

http://www.consumerfreedom.com/issuepage.cfm/topic/8

Given the CCF's main financial contributors are huge meat and animal abusing organisations, the CCF is strongly motivated to denounce Peta. Therefore Peta's critics indirectly align themselves with some powerful underminers of animal rights. A minority group with such a vital goal should instead be united.  Our battle needs to be fought from different perspectives.

Many animals presenting to no kill shelters have been cruelly neglected and when quality of life is considered then death is often the kindest option. The explanation Peta provides seems entirely legitimate. Show me a 'no-kill' shelter that has not recognised this entitlement and consequently euthanised those ill, frail animals who would instead spend the remainder of their days confined in  shelters.

 

[DEN FRIEND]

Bruce Friedrich was given a harder time and treated less respectfully than Colin Blakemore...

[Brooke Cameron]

Hi Bruce, thanks very much for being willing to take more questions from us. I think it’s important to show that PeTA is willing to be accountable for some of their actions. Well done.

During your ARZone Guest Chat I asked you about the recent PeTA Superbowl ad, which didn’t air. You said that you found it to be funny. As time didn’t permit me to extend another follow-up to you on Saturday, I’d like to do so now.

I’m interested in which parts of the ad you found funny. Was it the instructions at the start in which a male behind the camera asked the women to “pick a vegetable and show us how much you love it”, or perhaps, (my personal favourite), the men behind the camera, noting how much they were sweating, whilst commenting on the women simulating oral sex with vegetables?

You also noted that the women involved in this ad, and other young women thought this ad was great. All animals like to feel they’re wanted, Bruce. All animals like attention. Women, men, babies, dogs and mice.

Do you think that receiving attention for gyrating on the floor with a vegetable in a woman’s mouth is the attention PeTA should be encouraging women to seek? Do you think this is a positive thing; reminding women that their role in life is that of a sex toy? Do you think actions like this reinforce stereotypes? How would you expect a 14 year old girl to react to an ad like this? 14 yr old girls WILL see this ad, along with 14 yr old boys, who will also have the stereotype of “girls are for my pleasure” reinforced.

Do you think PeTA, as arguably the most recognised name in animal welfare, have an obligation to ensure animal welfare be taken seriously? Could you please explain how this ad is a serious attempt to do that?

Thank you for your time, I understand it is valuable.

[Paris Harvey]

Bruce, I feel the religious community is a very important asset to any social movement. I beleive that real change in the past great social  movements like anti-slavery, womens rights, child labor laws, etc., made huge strides when this group of good-hearted, albeit slow to change, group of people got behind an issue. Can you speak to this? What are your thoughts on this? I think more focus should be placed on the obvious duplicity that the religious communites practice on their plates at their church BBQ's! Don't you think it would be good if more activism was done there? Like the great work the Christian Vegetarian Association, and the Jewish Vegetarian Association, and others are doing?

[Brandon Becker]

Another question from me for Bruce:

What's your source for the claim that "a vegan saves one more animal per year than a vegetarian"? From what I've read, the egg industry has a larger death toll than the cow-flesh and pig-flesh industries combined (see: http://www.farmusa.org/statistics9.htm). Even if you are using "vegetarian" in the sense of an animal-free diet, it seems that vegans would still prevent significantly more harm in that we also won't wear other animals' skin and hair, use products tested on them, or support zoos, circuses, and aquaprisons.