Demonstrations, Protests and Cage-ins

Demonstrations

A demonstration is a great way to express outrage towards an establishment or company, highlighting their treatment or policies regarding animals in order to raise public awareness about the inherent cruelties in raising animals for food. It can also generate a lot of negative publicity for your target, if well-thought-out.

Hold animal agribusiness accountable by organizing a demonstration at one of the industry offices in your area. By naming and shaming animal agribusiness for their indefensible acts, lies and public manipulation, you can turn the tables and force industries to be held publicly accountable for their deeds. FARM will send press releases out for your event, so make sure to register your protest and email us!

Here is a list of industry offices listed by state. Click on the your state to see the cloest target:

States A-H
States I-M
States N- R
States S- Z

When planning your protest, be sure to read up on local ordinances regarding the size, location, timing, and noise levels of protests. Depending on local laws, you may need one or more permits. If you are not planning to engage in civil disobedience then remember to stay on public property.

1) Determine your place and time-This is important because the location and timing affects the amount of people reached. It is more “news worthy” if a demonstration is in reaction to a mainstream news item, such as swine flu or large meat/dairy recalls, etc. For example, in the wake of the largest beef recall in U.S. history, FARM staged a protest outside the USDA demanding that USDA recall ALL animal products because they all come from sick, abused and exploited individuals.

Location: Good locations for protests and demonstrations are: slaughterhouses, fast food chains, or offices of meat/dairy/egg industry. The more foot and car traffic the better.

Time: Depending on the location you choose to protest or demonstrate, the time may very. For instance, if you plan to protest at a office, then early morning or lunch time would be the best time. If you are protesting at a fast food chain, lunch or dinner rush would be better to maximize impact the protest or demonstration has on the target.

2) Register your event with us and request an Event Pack for materials - This also publicizes your protest or demonstration to get more people to either help plan or at least participate. Your event will be searchable by city and state on the international events directory.

3) Request a permit (if needed based on anticipated numbers) - You can request permits from the city or county where the protest is being held. Generally, if you expect more than 25 people for a legal protest or demonstration (not civil disobedience), you would need a permit. The number varies from state to state, county to county, so check your local laws and ordinances.

4) Do outreach to local veg and animal-friendly groups to gather participants - Good places for outreach are local listservs, animal rights/vegan meetups on meetup.com, social networking sites such as Facebook or Myspace as bulletins or events. This also helps with estimated participants.

More information on effective outreach is available here.

5) Send a news release to local media.

Click here for more information on local media.

6) Please TAKE PHOTOS AND VIDEOS of your activities and send copies to us.

Photos: high resolution jpgs by email are best

Videos: e-mail a link from uploaded video on Youtube or equivalent site.

There are different types of add-on activities to complement demonstrations, such as information tables, leafleting, cage-ins, and civil disobedience.

History

Civil disobedience is the active refusal to obey an unjust
law or to accept an unjust practice, without resorting to physical violence. The tactic was popularized by Henry David Thoreau in 1849 and used most effectively by American revolutionaries in 1773, by Gandhi in gaining India’s independence from British rule in 1948, and by the U.S. civil rights movement in the 1960s.

Civil disobedience has been used a number of times in past observances of World Farm Animals Day. There were at least four instances of blocking trucks hauling animals into a slaughterhouse in Smithfield and Timberville (VA) and in Petaluma (CA). There was a blockade of the main entrance to the USDA Washington headquarters and a sit-in in the office of the Secretary of Agriculture. All these actions were designed to create the drama that calls public attention to the tragedy of animal agriculture.

Preparations

Selecting a Target. The ideal target would be a meaningful structure or event readily accessible to the media. Unfortunately slaughterhouses and stockyards are distant from major media, and most media cities do not have meaningful structures or events, so a compromise is required.

Selecting date and time. The date should be a weekday on or about October 2nd, to make sure that both the target and the media are operating at full strength. To accommodate media deadlines, the action should be completed well before 3pm. The event itself, like trucks entering the slaughterhouse at dawn, may dictate a different time.

Selecting personnel. The arrestees should be prepared to be handcuffed, transported to a local police station, searched, photographed, and fingerprinted, to spend a few hours in a holding cell, to post bail (usually under $1,000), to return to a nearby court for trial, and to pay a fine (usually under $200 or probation). The supporters should be picketing with signs and bullhorns or candles (depending on desired mood), leafleting, talking to the media, taking photos and video of the action. A couple should stick around to bail out and pick up the arrestees.

Selecting specific action. As noted above, the most frequent actions have been restricting access to people or vehicles or asit-in. Greenpeace has gained fame by climbing large structures for banner drops. Creativity is encouraged, as long as every one stays safe.

Selecting arrest procedure. The other decision is how difficult to make the removal and arrest. This ranges from desisting when the arrest warning has been issued, through staying and cooperating with the arresting officer, going limp and being carried, to prolonging the process by forcing the authorities to use special equipment to separate the arrestees. Each successive level prolongs the process, increases the drama, elevates the ire of law enforcement, and possibly raises bail and fine amounts. In the past, we have always cooperated with the arresting officers.

Making the personal decision. Most of us are raised to obey the laws, so committing an illegal act does not and should not come easily. We feel forced to do it to stop the much greater evil of animal abuse and slaughter. We are mindful that the discomfort of arrest, time in a holding cell, and a fine are trivial by comparison with what the animals go through every day. And we remember to bring a photo ID and bail money (in cash).

Action

If the action is taking place on public property, we favor alerting local law enforcement authorities, without necessarily providing all the details. This fosters a gentler arrest procedure, possibly lower bail and fine, and protection from local yahoos who may wish to take law into their own hands.

Law enforcement authorities will generally attempt to prevent the action, so speed and the element of surprise are needed. Typically, after the civil disobedience begins, the officer in charge will issue a warning to cease the action. When the demonstrators persist, arrests begin.

DISCLAIMER: We don’t counsel anyone to break the law, and we can not offer legal advice. The above account is based on our personal experiences, and may not apply in your jurisdiction. However, we are willing to take calls to provide additional details about our experiences.

Staging a cage-in is a dramatic way to capture public attention and visually demonstrate the horrific treatment and conditions of animals in factory farms. In order to fully convey all atrocities endured by animals raised for food (not only confinement), it is important to include information about transport, slaughter, and other abuses into your event. You can incorporate cage-ins into nearly any other activity, such as information tables, videos, leafleting, protests, street theatre, and/or civil disobedience sit-ins.

For addtional information on how to plan these activities, see our Outreach Guide and our Guide to Planning an Event. Don't forget to register your event to recieve an Event Pack from FARM.

Cage-ins

You can make or purchase cages large enough to fit one or more people, or use smaller props to represent the cages, crates, and stalls used in factory farming. Home Depot, Lowe's, and other home improvement stores have various supplies for both intricate and simple cage props.

Folding crates used for dog training are also an easy and effective means to demonstrate some of the discomfort that confinement brings. If you or your friends don’t already have a crate, ask your local companion animal supply store or look online. This small investment will offer you years of ready-to-go props to use for a variety of campaigns.

Having activists sit in the cages is a very effective way to use the props, especially if they wear animal costumes and/or fake blood. This can be done next to an informative display, or at a symbolic location, such as a slaughterhouse or fast food chain. To be even more dramatic, the cages can be used as part of a sit-in, where the activists refuse to leave a location until they are forced out. Before attempting this, please read our guide to civil disobedience.

Another option is to allow passerby to sit in the cage when they visit an information table. Small consolations, like gift certificates or free food samples can be given to people who sit in the cage. When no activsts or visitors are in the cages, plush animals or animals cut-outs can occupy them. Never leave a caged-in activist unsupervised.

Other visuals add a lot to the educational experience of the passerby. Include photos of animals in factory farms and slaughterhouses, as well as detailed descriptions and signs. Videos can be the most powerful addition to a cage-in.

A banner drop involves the placement of a large banner in a public area. It's a quick way to spread your message to the masses and can be done with just a few people. Check out our guide to banner drops (coming soon), and keep in mind that the legality varies by location. Information about local laws and civil disobedience will be coming soon.