peta2 Owns the Northeast (LOTS of Pictures!) October 10, 2009

Posted by Ryan at October 10, 2009 9:51 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 2 ) | TrackBack

As you no doubt noticed, I haven't posted a blog in a little while (just flatter me and say you noticed).

Rest assured, there is good reason. I've been racking up the miles cruising around the Northeast, helping to promote our amazingly-successful "peta2 Presents" events on college campuses!

Most recently, we've spent time on the campuses of the University of Pennsylvania, Vassar College, Penn State University, NYU, and Columbia University—drawing big crowds, starting a buzz, and capturing headlines at every stop!

Check out some of the highlights:

Me and my buddy Ben F., chillin' at the University of Pennsylvania.


PETA's resident animal testing expert, Dr. Alka Chandna, speaking at Vassar.


Did I get your attention yet?


Up to no good, at Penn State.


The massive crowd at Penn State, listening to PETA VP Bruce Friedrich slam the meat industry!


Dr. Chandna, laying into animal experimenters.

Pretty amazing, right?

Want us to come to your area? Don't worry—we're just getting started.

Next week, we're making a surprise appearance at the University of Maryland, to support the student campaign to remove McDonald's from campus. Check out this fun flyer!




So where should we come next? I'm all ears ...



P.S. Remember that debate we hosted at Harvard a few weeks ago? Well, one of the hundreds of students that attended decided to film the event, and posted it to YouTube. If you've got 90 minutes to spare, check it out!

Helping Make a Difference One Vegan Pancake at a Time July 30, 2009

Posted by Lara Sanders at July 30, 2009 12:40 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 4 ) | TrackBack

Greetings from our nation's capital! Pop quiz: What do Michelle Obama and PETA have in common? No, it's not our toned biceps. Yes, we are both anti-fur, but that's not what I'm getting at either. It's that we both have volunteered with a great organization called Miriam's Kitchen. Miriam's Kitchen is a D.C. based nonprofit that provides free meals and support services to the homeless.

Since PETA is relatively new to the neighborhood, we wanted to pitch in and help out the community. And what better way to do just that than with vegan pancakes?

Today we had the great opportunity to cook and serve Miriam's first vegan breakfast in the history of the organization.

On the menu:

Fluffy vegan pancakes with strawberry topping and non-Canadian Maple syrup
Fruit salad
Cereal with soy milk
Hearty veggie chili and brown rice
Salad
Coffee with soy milk and orange juice

At first, the vegan breakfast was met with some skepticism, but the empty plates at the end of service spoke for itself. Here are some reviews of some of the people I spoke with:

"It's actually good!"
"I wish they had soy milk every day. I am allergic to cow's milk, and it tastes better."
"They're trying to makes us healthy up in here!"

Indeed we are.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs Post Pro-Veg Blog May 7, 2009

Posted by Megan Rondeau at May 7, 2009 1:52 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 1 ) | TrackBack

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are one of those bands that are just inherently cool. They've toured all over the world and shared the stage with hipster legends The White Stripes and The Strokes. Karen O is a fashion icon who has that seemingly unattainable ability to look good in anything. They've even had a song featured on Gossip Girl this season, which is ultimately what bands should be striving for these days if you ask me! But what's more compelling is that the band is 2/3 vegetarian, and drummer Brian Chase and guitarist Nick Zinner never shy away from a chance to talk about why they choose to adhere to a meat-free diet.

Recently Brian posted a really insightful blog on the band's website regarding his choice to become vegetarian. He did a great job of explaining why vegetarianism is important to him on a personal level, saying that after giving up meat he "became more sensitive" and "felt lighter, more open, and even stronger".

Those are all reason enough for a touring musician to give vegetarianism a shot, but Brian took it one step further in noting the overall impact that eating meat has on the planet we all share. It's important to realize the connection we as living beings have on one another and the importance of living compassionately and coexisting respectfully, or as Brian explained it, "it has to do with making the decision to willingly act for kindness and to renounce violence".

Well said sir! I strongly recommend you check out the rest of Brian's blog here. The band's new album It's Blitz! is in stores now and is just begging to be added to your summer playlists, so get on it!

last.fm/CC

Human BBQ at Princeton University! November 21, 2008

Posted by Ryan at November 21, 2008 3:11 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 8 ) | TrackBack

As frequent visitors to peta2 may already know, the Princeton Animal Welfare Society is the faaaantastic student group at Princeton University.

This week, the group wanted to organize a demonstration to highlight their "College Veg Pledge" campaign, which encourages students to go vegetarian for one day, to see how simple and delicious it is!

They knew it had to be attention-grabbing, since Princeton students are a busy bunch. Did someone say "human BBQ"?

The event was perfectly timed to coincide with an excellent opinion piece written by group members in the student newspaper, The Daily Princetonian, so that everywhere students looked, they saw something about vegetarianism!

Looks like someone must have checked out our "How to Start a Buzz on Campus" video... :)

Go PAWS, go!

- Ryan!

Meet Cassandra: Lettuce Lady Extraordinaire July 30, 2008

Posted by Ryan at July 30, 2008 1:46 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 3 ) | TrackBack

Meet Cassandra. She's one of PETA's current interns, and a full-time student at the University of South Florida. She's also one of the lucky folks that has chosen to participate in our most recent "Lettuce Lady" tours, offering free gasoline to drivers who try one of our Tofurky-brand vegan sandwiches (since eating meat is the #1 cause of global warming, even more than all of the cars, boats, trains, and planes combined)!

"Naked" demonstrations are always a great opportunity for empowered and confident men and women to draw attention to a very serious issue, using a fun and upbeat approach. It also helps them reach people who may not be generally receptive to animal rights messages, since not everybody will willingly sit down and watch videos of animals being killed. With this approach though, TV, radio, and newspaper outlets have been falling over themselves to cover the events at every stop, which allows the demonstrators to broadcast the benefits of vegetarianism far and wide!

I was fortunate enough to catch up with Cassandra, right in the middle of her current demonstration tour. Here's what she had to say:

What message are you trying to get across with your demonstration?

I'm hoping that people who see our demonstration will recognize that switching to a vegetarian diet is the best thing you can do to help the environment, and to eliminate cruelty to animals. Using a fun way to attract attention to a serious issue is a great way to get people to hear our message, and if I can get even one person to stop eating animals, then I will have accomplished my goal.

What are some of the amazing foods you've been able to eat on your tour?

There is so much incredible vegan food around the country. My favorites so far have been coconut crusted chick'n, a vegan fish filet sandwich, vegan soft serve ice cream, and vegan waffles. Stuffed vegan waffles. They were packed with delicious, melty vegan cheese and tofu scramble goodness. It was like a party in my mouth.

Would you recommend that other students intern at PETA?

Most definitely. Interning has been such an amazing opportunity for me. I get to do what I am most passionate about, helping animals, while doing incredible things and having so much fun along the way. By interning at PETA, you will learn many skills to promote animal rights in your school and community, along with having the experience of a lifetime.

What kinds of things do you have planned when you return to college this fall?

There are TONS of things I have planned. The first thing I am going to do is get a group together on my campus. Through that, I am hoping to launch a campaign to ban KFC from our campus and to get better vegan options in our cafeteria. I also want to leaflet weekly, screen the movie Earthlings, and do some vegan food giveaways. Free food always goes over well on my campus.


Sounds great, Cassandra! Best of luck with the rest of the tour!

- Ryan!

P.S. - Want to get active on your campus? Drop us a line to get started!

Vegan Blueberry Pancakes at School?!? July 17, 2008

Posted by Ryan at July 17, 2008 7:54 AM | Permalink | Comments ( 8 ) | TrackBack

Wouldn't that be a grrrr-eat way to start off the day? Well, if you go to last year's winner of our "Most Vegetarian-Friendly Colleges" contest, Northwestern University, that dream could be a reality!

It's not just Northwestern that's adding amazing vegetarian and vegan options though; it's a nationwide trend! Students are using the free and easy materials from our "Veganize Your Cafeteria" campaign pack to add AMAZING dishes to the menu!

So what we want to know is, how are the options at your school? Do you go to a school like the University of California - Berkeley, which offers Southwest tofu breakfast scramble, and vegan "chicken" nuggets? Does your school at least offer veggieburgers? Comment below to let us know. Make sure to mention your school name, and as many specific dishes as possible!

- Ryan!

Our Response to Gore's Nobel Prize Win October 12, 2007

Posted by Pulin Modi at October 12, 2007 1:42 PM | Permalink | Comments ( 4 ) | TrackBack

Congratulations to Former Vice President Al Gore and the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for sharing the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to spread awareness of the global warming crisis. Activists deserve recognition for helping make the world a better place! The award was announced just this morning, and we immediately sent a letter to Gore offering congratulations on his great accomplishment, but also asking him to do more.

Gore is Chairman of the Board for the Alliance for Climate Protection, where he will be donating half of the $1.5 million prize money. They have created a 7-point pledge that offers a list of steps people can take to help reduce their negative impact on the Earth. We would like for Gore and the Alliance to add an 8th point—to go vegetarian.

In case you haven't heard, going vegetarian is the best thing you can do for the environment. According to the U.N. itself (Gore's partner in winning the Peace Prize), raising animals for food generates almost 40 percent more greenhouse gases than all the cars, trucks, planes, and ships in the world combined. If you need more evidence about how eating animals destroys the planet, just click here.

We urge you to send a letter of your own to Gore, c/o the Alliance for Climate Protection, and ask him to add this essential 8th point to the pledge.

Please write to The Honorable Al Gore now!

Pulin