Animal Times - Summer 2003: Wish You Were Here

Wish You Were Here

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Wish You Were Here
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Youíre the largest animal rights organization on the planet.

Your mission: To reach out to today’s teens and 20–somethings and encourage them to take a stand and fight for what’s right.

Mission accepted! We started with an edgy new Web site, peta2.com, geared toward Gen Y rebels and issued an invitation to kids to join the PETA2 posse. Then we hit the road, taking the animalsí message to teens’ natural stomping grounds–rock concerts and film festivals. Hereís our missive from the mosh pit:

Screening at Sundance
PETA2 used “reel” suffering to convince moviegoers to go vegetarian at the Backseat Conceptions Film Festival, a two–day “fringe” festival celebrated during the world–famous Sundance Film Festival. Doug Sakmann, owner of Backseat Conceptions, invited PETA to screen “Meet Your Meat”—our documentary depicting what happens to animals before they end up on dinner tables—after watching it on the Warped Tour. Following the screening, PETA2 and Sage’s Vegetarian Café served up fantastic meat-free food and free vegetarian starter kits.

GETTING THERE
PETA2 is putting together an army of young activists—more than 8,000 so far—who are getting the word out in their own ways and in their own communities. For inspiration, we provide monthly “missions”—ranging from confronting fur-wearers to walking out of dissection class (a surprisingly popular assignment)—and members of our “Street Team” earn points for every action they take, which they cash in for cool merchandise like messenger bags and PETA T–shirts.

Some recent actions:

ï PETA’s Street Team members participated in the first–ever “Cut Class, Not Frogs” Day—and encouraged their classmates to learn about frogs in their natural environment, not in formaldehyde. The result: Many kids report that they’re getting choice policies passed and are convincing entire classes to use non–animal alternatives.

ï As part of a “New Year’s Resolution Swap,” Street Team members persuaded their parents and siblings to try soy milk, try vegan meals and make other animal–friendly lifestyle changes in exchange for simple stuff like washing the dishes and keeping their rooms clean. Know someone you think should go vegan? Ask them to do a swap for a birthday or other special occasion.

Activists are also placing PETA ads in their high school yearbooks, tabling at concerts, veganizing college cafeterias, choosing animal issues as topics for class projects, handing out leaflets about “Kentucky Fried Cruelty” and the sad life of chained dogs, responding to urgent action alerts, writing letters to local newspapers and tons more.

Making Noise at Warped

At the request of some of the hottest punk bands in the business, PETA2 joined the 2002 Warped Tour to let legions of young fans know that it’s cool to question authority. Dozens of bands wore PETA2 Tees onstage and encouraged kids to check out our booth. Which they did! More than 8,000 concertgoers signed up for PETA2’s e–news, and thousands more picked up buttons, pamphlets and other goodies. Said Goldfinger’s John Feldmann, “Punk is in–your–face. PETA is in–your-–face. PETA is a perfect fit for the Warped Tour.”

Gone Phishin’

We landed more support when we followed Phish on tour. PETA2 gave Phishheads a crash course in Veg Ed, letting them know that meat pollutes the planet, sends humans to the hospital and abuses animals.

Liberation: Songs to Benefit PETA

LIberation If you missed PETA2 on the Warped Tour, you can still get in on the action with this benefit CD featuring Good Charlotte, The Used, Desaparecidos, NOFX and a dozen other PETA–friendly punk bands. The CD also includes videos from Good Charlotte, Midtown and Goldfinger, as well as two of PETA’s edgiest ads ever. Look for it this summer in music stores everywhere, or pick up a copy at PETAMall.com.

Boost the Animal Rights Roster
Tell the teens and 20–somethings in your life to check out the goings–on at peta2.com. We’ve also got exclusive interviews with bands and celebs, a boards section to help kids connect with each other, recipes, cruelty–free fashion finds and spotlights on PETA activists.

See the video that’s changing minds. Visit PETATV.com to watch “Meet Your Meat”—or e–mail it to a friend.