Winter 2011

Welcome to the Winter 2011 issue of Compassionate Times. If you'd like to receive email when we publish each newsletter, you can sign up here.

In This Issue

Dear Animal Advocate,

Thank you for being here with me on this journey as we advocate for animals. I have exciting developments to celebrate with you!

My first is a story about how we successfully worked to secure more vegetarian options at the University of Minnesota's Twin Cities campus. A student named Jenny lived in the dorms during her first year of college, and had a hard time finding enough vegetarian options. We started a campaign to get the University to provide more options by participating in Meatless Monday, and we got several more students got involved: Jake, Sofia, Jodie, Tyler, Sarah, and Caroline. Caroline is a new student and the only one of this group living in the dorms, and we knew we needed her help to demonstrate the demand.

We wanted the University to provide one all-vegetarian meal once per week in one of the dining halls. We saw this as an opportunity to lessen animal suffering by providing more meat-free options. We knew there were students looking for those options, and we also know there are students who are flexible and happy to eat vegetarian food if it is offered to them.

When we first contacted the University, they were not open to making any changes. We decided to pursue a petition drive, and quickly collected 300 petition signatures asking for a vegetarian meal. We also got an article in the paper about our efforts. Once we had the signatures, we set up a meeting with the University.

Before the meeting, Caroline was in the office with me and expressed how nervous she was. At the meeting, the University immediately accepted everything we were demanding! We were surprised and elated; we had just heard that they were reluctant (at best), and now we didn't even have to wonder about a compromise. After the meeting, Caroline told me, "I feel like an adult."

I am thrilled about the success of the campaign. As you see,

• Fewer animals will suffer and die because of the expanded serving of vegetarian meals to hundreds of students
• Volunteers were empowered to find their own voice for animals, and come together to find a way to make a difference
• We continued to be respectful, positive, and forward thinking to make changes for animals

These elements are the power that Compassionate Action for Animals has to help animals. It's a wonderful feeling to be a part of it.

• In other news, we're hosting our first ever Twin Cities Veg Fest on July 14, 2012! We expect more than 1,000 people to attend this one day festival, which will include great food, speakers, and fun!
• Bridges of Respect had another successful year of empowering junior high and high school students to make compassionate food choices. Read a detailed report about this year's efforts.
• We did our first paid-per-view screening of Farm to Fridge. We received funding to pay $1 to watch the video and see the realities of factory farming. It was a huge success! We showed the video to over two dozen people. I asked one person what she thought of the video, and she said "It wasn't worth the dollar" because she was horrified to see how cruelly animals were treated. She then signed up for our mailing list and expressed interest in eating more vegan food!
• We hosted another bake sale, handed out leaflets, hosted our annual Thanksgiving Potluck, and held a cooking class.

Please mark your calendar for our Annual Banquet for April 5, 2012!

Thank you for you believing in the potential for people to come together and compassionately advocate for animals. Your persistence has paid off. Please consider making another donation this year to ensure a successful 2012.

Yours for the Animals,

Unny Nambudiripad
Executive Director