Creating Change for Animals Through Animal Activism

Creating Change for Animals Through Animal Activism

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What is Animal Activism?

Animal activism is the championing of animal rights – the idea that all animals regardless whether they are ‘adorable’, useful to humans or an endangered species are entitled to the possession of their own lives and basic interests, such as – perhaps especially - the need to avoid any form of suffering.

The animal rights movement seeks to end the rigid moral and legal distinction between humans and animals and to end the status of animals as property and their use in research, food, clothing and entertainment industries.

Here are five organizations that are doing their best in educating and informing the public, raising awareness and at the same time helping the animals.

PETA

PETA, which stands for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, is an international non-profit charitable organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, with affiliates worldwide and was founded in 1980. PETA is dedicated to establishing and safeguarding the rights of all animals and educates policymakers and the public about animal abuse and promotes kind treatment of animals.

PETA focuses on the four areas in which the largest amounts of animals suffer the most for long periods of time: the food industry, the clothing trade, laboratories, and the entertainment industry.

Some success stories and accomplishments by PETA includes four food and beverages companies agreeing to end their inhumane and fruitless animal experiments after conversations with PETA. Another success story involves the famous Italian brand Gucci announcing its ban on fur – which more often than not, comes from petrified animals who were forced to spend their entire lives inside cramped filthy cages, only to be skinned alive or electrocuted. At PEAT’s urging, Gucci has also agreed to terminate its use of angora in its collection, saving generations of angora rabbits.

Toronto Pig Save

Toronto Pig Save started in December 2010 as a grassroots, animal rights, and vegan group. They use the strategy of bearing witness to animals in their final moment as they approach slaughterhouses. Getting in touch with the community and developing team leadership, the team managed to build a grassroots animal justice movement based on the principles of animal equality and freedom. Their vision is to replace animal agriculture, fields used for feed crops and slaughterhouses into wild spaces, forests and animal sanctuaries.

Animal Hope and Wellness Foundation

The Animal Hope and Wellness Foundation is a non-profit organization focused on rescuing abused, injured and neglected animals not only from shelters or the streets, but also those that had been used and hurt in gang initiations. It provides the mistreated and stray animals rehabilitation services, and then work to find them new forever homes.

More recently, it has been focusing on rescuing animals from the Asian Dog Meat Trade - rescuing dogs from slaughterhouses and torture chambers where the use of brutal and barbaric methods are practiced to kill dogs in order for them to have better tasting meat.  

The Animal Hope and Wellness Foundation is introducing a new program - the Canine Microchip Program – in an effort to protect family pets from being kidnapped, tortured and killed for meat.

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

Sea Shepherd was established in 1977 with a mission to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world’s oceans in order to conserve and protect ecosystems and species. It uses innovative direct action tactics to investigate, document and take action when necessary to expose and confront illegal activities on the seas.

Sea Shepherd is well known for their on-going campaigns against the dolphin hunts in Taiji and for chasing Japanese whalers out of whale sanctuaries. It’s campaigns include  the Operation Milagro IV which focuses on conservation efforts for the endangered vaquita porpoise, a species on the brink of extinction, and the Operation Nyamba, aimed to protect the green sea turtles coming on shore to lay their eggs in Mayotte with volunteers patrolling the beaches at night to protect them.

The Dodo

The Dodo is a digital brand built for everyone who loves animals and cares about their well being.

They goal is to serve up emotionally and visually compelling, highly shareable animal-related stories and videos to as many people as possible to help make caring for animals a viral cause. Their inspirational yet sometimes saddening stories may range from common house pets to farm animals, to the various wildlife.

The Dodo also shares videos of animals who are in need of donations either after surviving different abusive methods or have gotten themselves in trouble, be it having their head stuck between bars, falling to a well, or getting separated from their families. In this way, the Dodo helps create a heightened awareness to animals’ plights and at the same time promoting a greater animal loving community.

Simon Cowell

The American Got Talent and X-Factor judge may be harsh on his contestants with his blunt comments but he has a gentle side for animals, dogs in particular. Cowell is a supporter of PETA and has been known to donate to several shelters. In 2010, he rescued two small terriers who are now living a good and happy life with Cowell. He is an outspoken advocate for adoption instead of buying, the disgusting fur trade, and for people to stop leaving their pets in their cars. Simon Cowell has also pledged to fight for captive whales and dolphins.