Luxembourg: Marche contre la FOURRURE

(see official website here)

This weekend I trekked out to Luxembourg (4h drive from Paris) for a march & tabling event against the fur industry with the organization I've been working with : Fourrure Torture. Because the AR movement and activism in general is not as developed in Luxembourg as it is in a super-urban setting like Paris (according to the people I spoke with there), I think it made quite an impact even if it was smaller than most of the events I've attended before.

There were about 8 organizations tabling, and there was vegan food up for sale, thanks to an organization from Luxembourg called SAVE ANIMALS:

Deets for the Eats:

1euro for a bowl of vegan pasta and 2 euros for a large plate. Basic white-flour noodles with carrot and cucumber bits and a creamy vegan sauce. Preserved in monster tupper-ware-ish boxes. I can't imagine that costing too terribly much, and think I'm going to look into doing that for another event.

Another thing to remember! Activists need to eat, no matter what, so why not bring your vegan catering to non-vegan events? That's a form of activism in itself and shows people that vegan food is not only edible but damn tasty!

However what was super about these guys were that they were environmentally friendly and they bought actually dishes and silverware so as to avoid buying disposable plates and dishes. Really smart idea, and they just added a deposit fee so that people don't forget to bring back the dishes. They went to their home in Luxembourg and washed them allll around 6pm and then served us dinner at the bar/café at 8pm (where I did not take photos, sorry). Dinner was a pumpkin soup of heaven with super-oily, therefore delicious home-made croutons and parsley garnish.

Requirements: Crockpot + silverware + dishes and they were ready to get the vegan party started.

Signs from a German Org:

Above: "Fur Trade is Death Trade / Boycott the Murder of Furbearers"

Right: "Don't say you didn't know about it!"

There was one German AR org who REALLY had their shit together : TierFreunde (which means Friends of the Animals). I was quite impressed. Check it out:

They were playing Earthlings from the TV screen in the back of their car!

(English is one of the languages they speak, in addition to French, German, & Luxembourgeois.)

TierFreunde had

• an official-looking banner
• traps with [fake] stuffed animals
• orange umbrellas and tables to match their theme
• professional looking signs (see 2nd photo)
• an old van that they converted to an AR-Mobile!
• Lots of Pictures

**super idea for stands, if you have a tent: clothes line/string + clothespins + pictures = more visuals for your table!

Here were the rest of the orgs:

Fourrure Torture (FR) (DE)

Animal Justice (LUX) Bite Back (Dutch)

------------------------ Bite Back -------------------------

Regarding the image of the halloween mask + fur coat: not a bad display, I must say . I think the best part was when these giggly 13-yo/14yo girls walked by and wanted to take a picture with it. They walked up to it to take a picture and then were like "Oh! This is AGAINST fur?" I'm pretty sure that made my day. I couldn't believe that a halloween mask had the ability to be ambiguous.

Some Snapshots of The Protest

I don't think there were any welfarist groups present (which was kind of nice... as much fun as it is to hear people hypocritically chatting about how horrendous it is that cat and dog fur is secretly used in fur coats.) There was a slight tension, as always, between the more radical and non-radical groups. For instance, when there was chanting "One Struggle, One Fight! Animal Liberation, Human Rights!" or "ALF! ALF!" my friend and I looked at each other and kind of scratched our heads.

Unfortunately, the Animal Rights Movement is not one struggle and I don't think it ever can be. There are and will continue to be moments when we can work together for the most part, but of we all had the same ideas, we would only be one organization with multiple subgroups. Also, we see these kinds of divides in pretty much every social justice movement ever (ex: women's rights, civil rights, etc.) If you ask me, it's somewhat problematic to go through the streets chanting things about the ALF because the ALF is technically an illegal organization. I'm making no comments whatsoever about my own support or non-support for the ALF, but there is something to be said for allowing moments for non-radical AR groups to do their thing.

Albino

This German hiphop artist was kind of amazing -- really eloquent lyrics that tie speciesm to other methods of oppression such as sexism, capitalism... all with some ass-kicking beats. I would definitely go see this guy perform. If you can understand German, *please* check out some of his lyrics here or the music here.

Bruges/Brussels

So I went to Bruges / Brussels last weekend...

saw crazy awesome wall art

... saw some all-around beautiful stuff

saw some outrageous propaganda (Chocolate Museum of Bruges)

... and some bizarre images...

such as this one...

and a dead rabbit.

(Purpose? To demonstrate what 20 cocoa beans was worth hundreds of years ago.

Why? Because people don't know what a dead fucking rabbit looks like.

I'm going to write these people a series of letters until this body is removed from the Musée de Chocolat in Bruges )

... and a taste of oppression.

I did, however, see a lot of beautiful things in spite of all the exploitation/oppression... more photos of which are soon to come, after i repose myself a bit.

How To Table : Activism 101

THE BARE BASICS:

- Table (didn't see that coming, did you?)

* lightweight, folding-tables are the best

- Literature

* Know your stuff! If someone asks you a question about your literature, you shouldn't have to reread it. This doesn't mean that there won't be questions you don't know, but you should at least know what you're handing out...

* Have a variety of documents available and remember that your audience is varied!

* A lot of organizations make it really easy for activists to get literature, so just contact an organization pertinent to your cause and see if they can't help you out.

- Donation Can

- Paper & Pen

* to write down the names of other activists who want to get involved

- Permission

I know, I know getting permission to express yourself?? But to maintain a peaceful and effective stand, I recommend asking permission first. It is not difficult to do, all you need is at least 2 weeks before your event. Contact your local government or police office for more information. Make sure to ask what the conditions of your permit are, and what kind of equipment is prohibited.

THE REST:

• Posters preferably at least one with your group's name on it in huge letters :) Doesn't need to be perfect, but a poster is almost a must.
• Petitions
• Email List of folks who want to get involved. (See Paper & Pen above)
• Paperweights (which could be as easy as having more pens)
• Tablecloth
• TV: crappy is fine. TV's are large enough that they capture the attention of the masses quite easily, especially for veg activism. (A laptop can be substituted easily, since they are ubiquitous. However, the mere size of a TV makes it appealing. Save up for one of these bad boys if you can.
• Tent: Makes your tabling experience a lot more bearable, for you, in heat, rain, or shine. Trust me.
• Chairs: This goes along with the whole idea of making your tabling experience comfortable, but it may as well be in the necessary category if you're planning on tabling for several hours on end. Folding chairs, naturally.
• Items to Sell (proceeds can go to whatever cause you're tabling for, or for equipment for better tabling.) Ideas include: Pins, Stickers, Posters, Wristbands, Apparel with your Logo (can be made at a DIY/Printing store). I am personally a fan of the pins, because it allows your org to make $ as well as your movement to grow!
• Food! (Please consider making vegan food because (a) its harder to spoil, since there are no eggs, milk, meaty, whatever, in it (b) it's better for the environment (c) it tastes just as good, if not better. Naturally I'm speaking to people who *aren't* already vegan and/or tabling for veganism, haha.)
• Books Pertinent to Your Cause, to decorate the table & because then you just look smarter...

THINGS TO HAVE HANDY

1. tape
2. rope/cord
3. scissors
4. fat marker and/or sharpie
5. BandAids? Activists mean business ;)

THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND

• Deciding where to Table: Find a central location with a lot of foot traffic.
• If you have not already formed a group, search around for individuals with the same activist interests as you, and see if you can help out. Otherwise start your own group and work on gaining interested activists!
• Do not clutter your table too much
• Smiling is good
• Tabling with 2-3 people is more effective than tabling with one person.
• Take breaks if you get tired out.
• Hand people literature. Do not wait for them to ask for it. People can be hesitant and shy... put yourself out there!
• Tabling around specific events is VERY helpful. Petitions can also be effective.
• Get ready for assholes. They are everywhere, but they make everyone else look better. Also it allows you to become a much more hardy activist.

For Starters...

Well let's see. It's been so long since I've blogged, so let's give this another try.

My name's Lauren and ive been vegan for almost a year now, and am loving every minute of it. It undoubtedly has its ups and downs, but it has been such a rewarding experience. I just feel like there isn't nearly as much dialogue as there should be about vegetarianism---from all perspectives!-- I hope that this blog can ultimately foster some discussion, as well as to simply provide a piece of support for all the other veggies out there. Keep it up!