Here’s this week’s show!
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(If you appreciate this programming, don’t miss this AV show:
Women’s Day: Speaking Up for Sister Species and Mother Nature)
To start the show, Alison cooks lunch for us from the new cookbook — Spork-fed: Super Fun and Flavorful Vegan Recipes from the Sisters of Spork Foods. The team offers our impressions and Alison gives us her insights into the book that she’s been cooking from for the last few months.
Today, we have special programming in honour of November 25th — the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.
First, we have the pleasure of speaking with Lori Gruen about the life and legacy of Marti Kheel, prominent scholar, author, ecofeminist, and outspoken ethical vegan. Most notably, she authored a book called Nature Ethics: An Ecofeminist Perspective (based on her doctoral dissertation called An Eco-feminist Critique of Holist Nature Ethics: Attending to Non-Human Animals) and 1982 she co-founded Feminists for Animal Rights.
To mark a year since her passing a gathering was organized earlier this month at Wesleyan University in Connecticut entitled Finding a Niche for All Animals: A Conference Honoring the Ecofeminist Work of Marti Kheel.
To learn about Marti Kheel read the obituary co-written by Josephine Donovan, Batya Bauman, Lori Gruen, and Carol Adams:
Marti Kheel: A Collective Tribute
“Her compassionate life, like her work, was fully engaged; she didn’t just theorize about non-violence and care, but she lived and died by those values.”
Lori Gruen, PhD, a dear friend and colleague of Marti Kheel, is a Professor of Philosophy, Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, and Environmental Studies at Wesleyan University. She co-cordinates the Animal Studies department there and and Directs the Ethics in Society Project. She is also author of the book Ethics and Animals: An Introduction, published last year.
The Link: Domestic Violence & Animal Abuse
From the National Link Coalition website:
Domestic violence and child abusers may kill, harm or threaten animals to exert dominance and power over their victims and to show them what could happen to them. In this way, animal abuse silences domestic violence and sexual abuse victims, and prevents them from leaving violent relationships. Killing a family pet eliminates a source of comfort and support for the victim.
Phil Arkow is the coordinator and co-founder of the National Link Coalition and a consultant for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Animals & Society Institute. He also chairs the Latham Foundation’s Animal Abuse and Family Violence Prevention Project.
He trains internationally on a variety of topics for animal shelters, child protection agencies, domestic violence programs, adult protective services, law enforcement, judges, and veterinarians. He also teaches Certificate courses in Animal-Assisted Therapy.
To learn more about The Link coalition in Vancouver check out BCSPCA: The Violence Link
Further to interpersonal violence in the home, here is one interesting study which looks at the horrible consequences of the desensitization involved with the extreme animal cruelty of the animal agriculture industry. It shows clearly that slaughterhouse employment is significantly related to higher arrests and crime reports of violent crimes, rape and other sex offenses.
Liberation Songs
As part of our special programming, here’s the excellent song featured at the end of the show!
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