Speak Out for Farmed Animals Month

Speak Out for Farmed Animals is a yearly event dedicated to raising public awareness nationwide about the lack of meaningful laws to protect farmed animals from cruel treatment. Join the Animal Legal Defense Fund for a month of action for farmed animals during October!

Here are a few simple ideas on how individuals can get involved:

• Host a virtual or in-person movie night with friends or colleagues. We suggest:
  • • • The Smell of Money follows Elsie Herring and her rural North Carolina community as they take on the multi-billion-dollar pork industry to demand cleaner air, safer water, and better living conditions. This documentary is available for community screenings.
      • Hog Haven is an intimate and personal story about Hog Haven Farm Sanctuary in rural Colorado, home to over 125 rescued pigs. Hog Haven is a film that advocates for the welfare of farmed animals and making informed plant-based lifestyle choices. The Hog Haven team also offers speaking engagements that can be planned in-person or virtually.
      • Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret discusses the destructive animal agricultural industry and its effect on the animals and the environment. This documentary can be streamed on Netflix through Teleparty. View the Cowspiracy discussion guide.
      • Seaspiracy dives into the harm that humans cause to marine species, including the fishing and aquaculture industries. This documentary can be streamed on Netflix either through Teleparty or in-person through the Netflix Media Center. View the Seaspiracy discussion guide.
      • The End of Meat examines what effect a post-meat world would have on the environment, non-human animals, and ourselves. This documentary can be streamed through Amazon Prime as a watch party. View The End of Meat discussion guide.
      • For more film screening ideas, check out our full list of documentaries. We recommend reviewing the screening rights and restrictions in advance.

• Watch an Animal Legal Defense Fund webinar about factory farming. We suggest:
  • Factory Farm Biogas Is Bullsh*t: Lessons Learned from California’s Low Fuel Standard
  • The Legal Significance of the Challenge to California’s Proposition 12
  • How to Advocate for Animals With or Without a Law Degree: Community Organizing for Farmed Animals
  • Stress and Zoonotic Diseases 
  • Factory Farms: Generating Environmental Injustice in North Carolina
  • False Advertising: How to Protect Animals by Litigating for Consumers
  • From Farmhouse to Courthouse: Applying Animal Cruelty Law on Behalf of Farmed Animals 
• Visit or volunteer at a farmed animal sanctuary near you. Send us your photos and share your experience on social media using the hashtag #SpeakOutForFarmedAnimals.
• Take action!
  • Urge USDA to Stop Its Plans to Increase Slaughterhouse Line Speeds
  • Tell Your Senators to Reject the House Farm Bill
  • Support the Pigs and Public Health Act
  • Tell Legislators: No Tax Dollars for Factory Farm Gas
  • Tell FDA to Disclose When Products Contain Animal Ingredients
• Download ALDF’s Farmed Animals & The Law brochure and share with others!
• Organize a Benefit Day by contacting a local plant-based restaurant or animal-friendly business to see if they would donate a percentage of their total daily sales to help us in our groundbreaking legal work for animals.
• Host a plant-based potluck at work or with friends. Potlucks allow you to build community, discuss thought-provoking topics, share recipes and interests, and learn more about animal law topics. Create and circulate a sign-up sheet in Google Docs with categories for appetizers, main dishes, and desserts. We recommend adding a column to note common allergies, such as nuts and gluten. If you want to add a recipe swap component, ask everyone to add their recipes to the Google Doc or bring them to the potluck.
• Implement Meatless Mondays or Green Tuesdays in your office or at home. Choosing more plant-based meal options spares the lives of farmed animals.
• Team up multiple bar association sections and committees to plan events on related areas of interest. Partnering on events allows bar groups to explore new topics, bring in new audiences, increase attendance, and reduce workload. Some cross-over areas include environmental law, workers’ rights, public health, immigration, food law, and human rights. If you’d like to contact your local bar association animal law section or committee and bring attention to this important campaign, you can find a list of them here.
• Create an Instagram Reel. You can create video content on a farmed animal topic! Use the hashtag #ALDFSOFAM for a chance to be featured on ALDF social media accounts.
  • Video Topic Ideas:
    • 101 on the (lack of) laws that protect farmed animals in the U.S.
    • Animal issues relevant to your local area or state
    • Ag-Gag laws and/or whistleblower protection
    • False advertising and “humane washing”
    • Aquaculture
    • Environment and animal protection
    • Workers’ rights and public safety
    • Animal rescue story or sanctuary animals expressing natural behaviors
    • Farmed animals’ treatment
• Follow ALDF on Instagram & Cross-Post. Be sure to give us a follow at @animallegaldefensefund on Instagram! We will be posting content throughout the month to share and cross-post.