activism

It’s all over

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After 10 shows in 9 cities, my first ever Vegan Roadshow is all over.

I want to give a massive thank you to all the people who supported our Indiegogo campaign, helping us to cover some of the costs associated with taking a band, a blogger and an activist group on the road.

Fat Gay Vegan Roadshow Poster

Lots of love and appreciation goes out to the venues that hosted our event. Thank you for taking a chance on our unique tour and I hope it was worthwhile for you. Your support was invaluable in helping us spread our message of compassion.

We wouldn’t have had a tour without the attendees. The people who came to the shows were full of enthusiasm and made all of us feel welcome in each city. Thank you for showing up and spending your money on merchandise. We are thankful.

Thank you to the bands and performers who helped us entertain people along the way including the wonderful Chrissy Barnacle and the irrepressible Colour Me Wednesday.

Superstar food providers kept us fed and happy during the tour. Thank you to the wonderful chefs and cooks who came out to each stop of Vegan Roadshow to impress us with their culinary skills.

HUGE appreciation goes to Connor Jackson who not only managed the Animal Equality merch stand at every stop of the tour, but also stepped up to perform at most of the gigs. Connor is an incredibly talented multi-instrumentalist who works hard to spread the vegan message. Thanks, Connor.

Josh Leuner is my partner and he certainly got more than he bargained for with Vegan Roadshow. Josh drove the van all on his own for the entire tour and performed an acoustic set at most of the stops. His unwavering support of my outlandish pursuits is the stuff that makes life bearable. I love you, Josh.

Final thanks to the Vegan Roadshow resident band, Love Like Hate. Sonja and Heather are two of the most passionate, authentic and compassionate people on the planet and I’m extremely fortunate to have shared this experience with them. Their unwavering love of music and doing the right thing pushed them into agreeing to fly all the way from Brisbane, Australia at great personal expense to help me bring Vegan Roadshow to life. I am forever humbled by their musical talent and kindness. Saying goodbye to them as they prepared to return to Australia filled me with a definite sadness. Thank you. Lots of love, always.

Back of the van… Connor, Heather & Sonja

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Compassionate ride

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How charitably-minded were you when you were 15?

If I recall correctly, I was obsessed with Morrissey, Madonna, The Cure and Prince and did very little to help other people. Not that I think I was overly self-absorbed, but 15 was a time of my life where I was trying to work out who I was as I indulged in sometimes garish displays of self-determination. Most of my energy was spent trying to get into gay bars to dance all night to Bananarama, New Order and Neneh Cherry. My exploits didn’t leave much time for helping others.

Memories of how tumultuous my teen years were help me to understand what an incredible act of compassion and drive is about to be performed by Gwen Stanbrook.

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London Animal Charities Fair

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I have ceased overeating for a few moments in order to tell you about an exciting event coming up on the London animal welfare calendar.

London Animal Charities Fair is sweeping into Kings Cross on Sunday November 6, 2011 between the hours of 10am and 4pm. Housed in The Camden Centre, the day-long event is being staged as a fund-raising endeavour for a huge range of animal charities, welfare groups and activists.

Admission to the fair is £2 or £1.50 for pensioners while people under the age of 16 are admitted free of charge. Money raised through admission goes to covering the ongoing running costs of the fair. There will be a children’s activity area and a vegan cafe run by Loving Hut where you will be able to buy hot food, cakes and drinks.

Charities will be hosting stalls selling gifts, books, bric-a-brac and more in order to raise funds for their crucial campaigning. Stall holders will include Animal Aid, The Vegetarian Society, Wild Futures Monkey Sanctuary and Animals Asia. A number of talks will be given, including a session by Darren Collis of Sea Shepherd.

Scribble the date in your diary, tell your friends and put away a few pounds for a good cause disguised as a good day out. I’ll see you there.

London Animal Charities Fair, Sunday November 6, 2011, 10am-4pm

The Camden Centre (Euston Road Entrance opp. Kings Cross St. Pancras) WC1H 9LZ

Visit the official website

Join the Facebook group page

Horses in my dreams

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Non-human animals are mistreated in countless ways all over the planet and sometimes even off the planet. The suffering is immense. One of the most exploited creatures would have to be the horse. Whipped to run. Saddled and harnessed. Left to exposure. Often underfed. Horses, donkeys and ponies are seen as machines to race or work and are routinely disposed of when their usefulness has been sapped dry.

Bobby almost lost a shoe to Peanut the donkey

Horses in the Leeds area do however harbour slight hope for a life outside of suffering. Hope Pastures is a sanctuary for horses and ponies that is situated a few miles out of Leeds city centre. Run by a few paid staff and many caring and dedicated volunteers, the sanctuary caters for horses deemed redundant or left for certain death. I visited Hope Pastures yesterday with Bobby and Stuart. We were overwhelmed by the beautiful animals and the compassionate humans working to give them a happy and safe life.

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