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August 14th, 2012

On Saturday, July 28, six members of ARC’s Outreach Team stood outside of the M.A.C store on Hennepin Avenue in Uptown Minneapolis and passed out cruelty-free cosmetic samples to passersby. Along with the cruelty-free samples, they also passed out “Dirty Dozen” cards, which listed the top twelve companies guilty of testing their products on animals. M.A.C, along with its parent company, Estee Lauder, shocked its customers by recently changing from not testing on animals, to testing on animals. This sad fact makes no sense, given the irrelevance of testing cosmetics on species who would never wear cosmetics and the many cruelty-free alternatives to testing on animals.

To protest the company’s change in ethics, team members explained to passersby why they were standing in front of the store, what they were handing out, and what people could do to help. They asked passersby to boycott companies such as M.A.C. and suggested where to go to buy cruelty-free products. After all 275 Dirty Dozen cards and samples were passed out within 20 minutes, the team passed out stickers about animal testing and leaflets about animals abused in entertainment and Premarin. The traffic in the area was heavy and the team passed out more than 500 pieces of literature overall, and had many conversations with women who were shocked and angry about M.A.C.’s decision and promised not to go back to M.A.C. as long as they were testing on animals. This outreach event was a huge success and we plan to do another soon!

July 19th, 2012

Huge thanks to Ecopolitan restaurant and everyone who came out to support their fundraiser for the Animal Rights Coalition’s many animal advocacy programs on Thursday, August 9. So many people enjoyed Ecopolitan’s delicious organic raw cuisine that the kitchen actually ran out of food! Please continue to visit Ecopolitan, Minnesota’s only 100% organic vegan raw restaurant, bar, and natural home and body goods shop.

July 1st, 2012

Come on out to ARC/Ethique Nouveau at 317 W 48th St. in Minneapolis on Thursday, July 12 at 6:00pm to hear author Christine Heppermann read from her new book City Chickens, which is all about Minneapolis’ own Chicken Run Rescue, the only urban shelter in the country exclusively for chickens. Christine will be available to chat and sign copies of the book after the reading.

Christine will be joined by Mary Britton Clouse and Bert Clouse from Chicken Run Rescue. Over the years, Mary and Bert have given hundreds of homeless birds a safe place to rest until they can be adopted by caring families.

City Chickens is a moving and at times humorous story that will open young readers’ eyes and also inspire them to help all creatures great and small. Many photographs document the “guests” (as Mary calls the chickens she cares for) as they prepare for new lives as companion animals. Come along and find out why lovable chickens are actually, according to Mary, “the ones who need friends the most.”

May 30th, 2012

The Minnesota Legislature has created a wolf hunting/trapping season that ignores the 5-year moratorium that was supposed to protect the wolf for 5 years following delisting. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is accepting comments through June 20th. Anyone may comment – click the “Take the Survey” tab in the fourth paragraph of the second block of text on the DNR Wolf Management page. The survey is biased towards accepting the plan; however, you can leave answers blank and the last question allows you to submit a statement.

The DNR is proposing that 400 wolves be killed and the use of snares be allowed in addition to legal firearms and archery. Minnesota’s wolf population (estimated to be 3000 wolves) has been relatively stable for more than a decade with no significant change in the number or distribution of wolves in the state. There is no scientific evidence to support the need for a recreational hunting/trapping season.

May 23rd, 2012

Update: The Annual Global Vegan Waffle Party just keeps getting better and better! Over 50 people braved the torrential rain in their quest for the perfect waffle and tasty toppings. Thanks to our many volunteer bakers for keeping those waffle irons fired up. And it was great to see all the new faces interested in learning more about a plant-based diet.

It’s time for the Third Annual Global Vegan Waffle Party on Saturday, May 26 from 10:00 to 11:30am in the Fuller Park building at 4800 Grand Ave. in Minneapolis (corner of 48th and Grand).

The purpose of the Global Vegan Waffle Party is to promote friendlier, healthier, and more sustainable living via a significant decrease in animal product consumption. A Waffle Party is a fun, non-threatening way to generate broader awareness about where our food comes from and how our food choices affect the world around us.

Here’s how it works: We make a lot of vegan waffles. You come to the party with a vegan topping to share. We all eat yummy vegan waffles together! (Here’s some suggestions for toppings you could bring to share: fresh fruit, maple syrup, chocolate chips, peanut butter, fruit sauce, compote, Just Like Honey, coconut, nuts, vegan whipped topping.) It’s also great if you can bring your own plate and utensils because it helps us be good to the Earth.

April 30th, 2012

It’s a historic day for animals in Minnesota. Pound seizure, legal in Minnesota since 1949, is now banned under the Omnibus Agriculture bill, HF2398/SF2061, which was approved by Governor Mark Dayton over the weekend. Pound seizure allowed any animal in a publicly funded shelter for more than five days to be claimed by a laboratory for experimentation. The new bill states: “A person must not release an animal seized and held under this section for research or product testing, either directly or through an animal dealer.”

The Animal Rights Coalition (ARC) worked with Howard Goldman, Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) State Director for Minnesota to help bring about passage of this bill.

ARC formed End Pound Seizure Minnesota (EPSM), created a web site, obtained thousands of signatures against pound seizure, and brought awareness of the issue to the public through outreach and education. Amy Draeger, attorney and President of EPSM wrote original legislation and conducted historical research on pound seizure in Minnesota. Over a number of years, ARC made numerous requests for information under the Minnesota Data Practices Act to document usage of the pound seizure law.

ARC passed on all its research on the issue and its original legislation to Howard, who obtained authors for the bill in the legislature and tirelessly lobbied for its passage throughout the two-year legislative session. Howard was able to meet with past institutional opponents of the bill and persuade them not to oppose it, which was a major step towards successful passage of the bill.

We’re so thankful that ARC was able to work with Howard and HSUS in securing this victory for animals in Minnesota – and we’re especially thankful that no longer will lost and unclaimed animals in Minnesota be in danger of being released to institutions for experimentation.

April 18th, 2012

Update: Huge thanks to Celeste Hill and Melissa Swanson, World Wide Vegan Bake Sale – Twin Cities Style organizers, and all the volunteers who staffed the sale. Because of all your hard work we raised over $850 for animal advocacy programs in Minnesota. We were also thrilled at the many new people who stopped in who were considering a vegan diet and wanted to learn more about it.

Don’t miss the World Wide Vegan Bake Sale – Twin Cities Style on Saturday, April 21 at Ethique Nouveau, 317 West 48th St. in Minneapolis. All are welcome! It’s baketivism at its most awesome. All proceeds go to support the Animal Rights Coalition’s animal rights advocacy in Minnesota. (ARC is also the group that keeps Minneapolis Vegan Meetup going, BTW.)

Delight in the wide assortment of amazing vegan goodies – all the delish, none of the effort! Make sure to bring a container to tote home all the homemade goodness. A human who is able to stick to buying “just one” treat at our extravaganza of sweetness doesn’t seem to actually exist. Never been to one of our Worldwide Vegan Bake Sale events? Make plans to attend as it’s not to be missed! We kick off at 10am and the sale runs until 4pm. That’s 6 whole hours of deliciousness!

April 1st, 2012

Thanks to all the volunteers who staffed the ARC booth at the two-day Pet Expo at the Minneapolis Convention Center. We had 91 people view a video about the treatment of animals on farms and gave out over 800 pieces of literature. Great job, ARC Outreach Team!

ARC is partnering with FARM on the Pay Per View Program, an innovative new outreach strategy where people are offered $1.00 to watch a 4-minute video. Pay Per View exposes the public to the harsh reality of animal agriculture in a way that most other outreach cannot. With headphones on and a privacy enclosure around the screen, viewers are intimately engaged in what they are seeing. Viewers often tear up or become angry after watching the video, and our volunteers turn that passion into action by encouraging them to decrease their consumption of animal products and work towards a vegan diet. Follow-up surveys demonstrate that over 50% of respondents reduced animal product consumption after watching the video.