PETA Volunteer Spotlight: Abby Casarella

The following article was written by Jessika Lauren, PETA's Action Team coordinator for volunteers in the southeastern region of the U.S. from Mississippi to Pennsylvania.

Abby Casarella is an activist and a vegetarian living in Frederick, Maryland. She recently received a Certificate of Appreciation from PETA for her hard work leading her first protest against Cole Bros. Circus, which garnered great media coverage. Abby studied equine science and worked with horses for seven years before switching to a career in sales for a local brewery.

In addition to her animal rights activism efforts, she is involved with the Frederick Giving Project, a local philanthropic group, and spends her free time enjoying live music, hula-hooping, and practicing yoga. Abby shares her home with her two cats—Augusta, whom Abby rescued and bottle-fed as a baby, and Leroy Brown, who lives up to his namesake song as "the baddest cat in the whole damn town.

Here she is in her own words:

You recently organized a protest against Cole Bros. Circus in Frederick that received great media coverage. Being interviewed is something that requires a lot of confidence and a strong dedication to speaking up for animals! Was this your first time protesting? How did you feel about your experience? What made you want to do it?

Being a first-time protester, I really did not know what to expect. I knew that I felt passionate about animals and exposing how they are treated for entertainment purposes, but it did not truly hit home until I saw that circus poster hanging in my town. The fact that Cole Bros. boasted about having a baby elephant was the real tipping point. Thinking about the suffering that the baby elephant will have to endure being treated as if he or she does not have a soul was heartbreaking. The support that I received from friends and family and from people I did not even know was truly amazing. The printed material we received from PETA made this protest possible.  

Are you vegan or vegetarian, and if so, what's the story behind your decision?

The decision to abstain from eating meat was a long time coming. The support from a coworker who has been vegetarian for more than 10 years was just the kick that I needed. Learning more about factory farming and the mass production of meat made my decision much easier. Luckily, my roommate is a great cook, and she is always willing to eat vegetarian foods with me. This year, we were able to put in a small aboveground garden in our backyard. This being my first garden, I am excited about being able to go out in my backyard and pick my own dinner! We are also part of a local community-supported agriculture (CSA) program. Buying locally and with the seasonal harvests is a great way to start changing your eating habits.

What would you say to encourage someone who's never participated in a protest or an outreach event?

If you are passionate about it, GO FOR IT! A few like-minded people coming together can really make people stop and take notice. My full-time job requires me to talk to both large and small groups of people, so interaction with the public is not something that intimidated me. My main concern was that people were not going to show up, but once the local newspaper got hold of the story, it really took off. The one thing I would have done differently in organizing my protest would have been to spend even more time pre-planning. The time between when I saw the poster advertising that the circus was coming to town and opening day gave me only about two weeks. Having more time to plan can certainly make the experience less stressful. At the protest, we did have a few people shout "Get a job!" at us or other negative things. However, for every negative comment, there were 10 honking horns, thumbs-up signs or waves from our supporters. Not everyone will understand why you would hold a protest, but keep in mind that there are more people out there that do support you.

Thanks so much for chatting with us. Is there anything else that you'd like to add or say to the World Wide Web? 

It is all about education. It's important to know about the products you use and where your food comes from. PETA's list of companies that do not use animal testing is a great tool to get you started. I am lucky to have a co-op in my town. I can get organic food, and they offer educational classes as well. When I first started this lifestyle change, I started out with the 80/20 rule. Whether you are going vegetarian or vegan or just making sure that the chemicals in your house are cruelty-free, it is a great way to dip your feet in the water. For those of you wanting to switch to a plant-based diet, try making 80 percent of your meals vegetarian or vegan. Once you make that initial transition, I think you will find it easy to move to 100 percent!

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Interested in getting active? Contact Jessika at JessikaL@PETA.org and join the Action Team!