Our Hen House

Teaching the Teachers Who Teach the Animal

Posted on31. Mar, 2010 by Mariann Sullivan.

As a newly recognized field of formal study, the subject of human-animal studies is wide open to different approaches, creative ideas for courses, and interdisciplinary techniques. (Anyone want to take me up on the idea of teaching Moby Dick from…

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Our Hen House Talks to Author Deborah Underwood

Posted on30. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

I have a thing for children’s books. It is not unusual for my  friends and family to see a sweet children’s book — usually one with a pro-animal theme — and pick up a copy for me. I have a…

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Vegan Holy Daze

Posted on29. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Today is the first day of Passover. This year, Mariann and I will be going to two Seders, both vegan. I’m lucky enough that most of my family is vegan, which makes holidays cruelty-free, and — for the most part,…

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Big Money

Posted on28. Mar, 2010 by Mariann Sullivan.

With stakes this high, the competition will no doubt be tough, but I know you are up to it. The Judge John R. Brown Scholarship Foundation is holding a legal writing competition for law students. There is no…

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Episode 11: “… when I die …”

Posted on27. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Welcome to the 11th podcast episode of Our Hen House!

In today’s episode, we will share some personal news pertaining to the legal status of our relationship.Then, we’ll get over ourselves, and we’ll discuss the new term that the Boston…

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Pretty Is as Pretty Does

Posted on26. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

It’s not often I have a facial. In addition to being on a strict budget, I can barely find the time to floss these days — let alone the time to luxuriate in a much-needed exfoliation.

So you can imagine…

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Helping Animals, the Hands-On Way

Posted on25. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

So you’re sick of people. Or, okay, maybe you’re not sick of people, but you have this insatiable yearning to frolic with farm animals. Or, okay, maybe it’s not an insatiable yearning, but you find no greater pleasure or meaning…

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Call for Papers: “Animals in Human Societies”

Posted on24. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Here’s an interesting animal rights themed call for papers from The Brock Review:

The Brock Review is seeking scholarly essays and creative pieces for an upcoming issue on the theme of “Animals in Human Societies.” This issue will focus on

…

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Telling the Truth Through Fiction

Posted on23. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

A third of the way through reading the novel, PopCo, by Scarlett Thomas, I realized why my friend had told me that I absolutely had to read it. In addition to being a really compelling story about a…

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Has Film Influenced Your Veganism?

Posted on22. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Here’s an interesting example of utilizing academic study to benefit animals.

Filmmaker and doctoral candidate Mark von Schlemmer is writing a dissertation on the representation of farm animals in film, with a case study on the films Babe and Charlotte’s…

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LOL Activism

Posted on21. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Funny thing, creative advocacy. No matter what you’re good at, you can turn it into an activist tool. And though vegans are sometimes stereotyped as being humorless (and hey — I’m a vegan lesbian — the ultimate in unfunny, right?),…

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Episode 10: “The thing that differentiates man from animals …”

Posted on20. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin and Mariann.

Welcome to the tenth podcast episode of Our Hen House!

Today, we’ll start off by discussing a few tips on how we like to avoid activist burnout.

Next, we are excited to be joined by vegan chef extraordinaire…

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Veganism to Activism

Posted on19. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

This past Wednesday, I had the honor of presenting a workshop called “Veganism to Activism” at Georgian Court University’s vegetarian club in Lakewood, NJ. I was totally impressed with all the awesome advocacy coming out the vegetarian club, including their…

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But What You’ve Always Wanted to Do Was Blog …

Posted on18. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Vegan Score caught our eye recently, and gave us a relentless yearning to visit Seattle (and get ourselves a few Mighty-O doughnuts — OMG). The purpose of Vegan Score is to highlight everything vegan in the Emerald City…

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Our “Health and Happiness” Interview

Posted on17. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin and Mariann.

We are honored to be spotlighted as part of the Health and Happiness Club‘s women’s history month series. Thank you to Danielle Azoulay for interviewing us. Below is the video interview where we talk about how we got…

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Vegan Equity

Posted on16. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

A vegan investment firm has the power to dramatically further the reach of cruelty-free companies. For those of you with an interest in money management, starting a fund that invests in such companies has the potential to increase capital for…

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Introducing Animals to the Environment(alists)

Posted on15. Mar, 2010 by Mariann Sullivan.

We are all painfully aware of the backwardness of so many environmentalists when it comes to addressing the animal question, or even when it comes to just recognizing the environmental impact of animal agriculture and other forms of animal exploitation.…

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Upcoming Speaking Engagements

Posted on14. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

I have two workshops coming up and I’d love for you to join me.

First, this week in Lakewood, NJ, I’ll be presenting “From Veganism to Activism” at Georgian Court University. About that workshop:

From Veganism to Activism with Jasmin

…

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Episode 9: “… the health of the chickens.”

Posted on13. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin and Mariann.

Welcome to ninth podcast episode of Our Hen House!

In today’s episode, we will discuss how to react when people tell you how much they “looove” their meat, and what to do when they pull out the “humane” card. Then,…

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Feed Compassion

Posted on12. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Put a group of vegans together, and how many seconds do you think it takes before they start discussing food? Absolutely none; the topic of delicious, decadent, plant-based food is brought up pretty much immediately. “Did you try the seitan…

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Faux Fur for Real

Posted on11. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

If you’re like me, you cringe every time you see someone wearing a zoo of anally or vaginally electrocuted animals, searching frantically in your pocket for a leaflet to hand them. (If you’re like Mariann, you opt instead to

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Fashion and Compassion

Posted on10. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

For those of you with a flair for fashion, you might consider entering the 2nd Annual Fur Free Fashion Competition — a project of Born Free USA and E Magazine. According to the website, “Independent designers are…

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Here’s How You Do the Hustle

Posted on09. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

As someone with a background in performing arts and (obviously) a current passion for animal rights, I have a special fondness for those who find a way to bridge the two. Like Liz Peterson of Dancing for Animals…

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Call for Papers: U.S. v. Stevens

Posted on08. Mar, 2010 by Mariann Sullivan.

The DePaul Center for Animal Law has issued a call for papers in conjunction with it’s upcoming symposium, entitled Revisiting the Line Between Free Speech and Obscenity: U.S. v. Stevens and its Implications for Animal Welfare. The…

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The Smell of Money

Posted on07. Mar, 2010 by Mariann Sullivan.

It was intriguing to hear that plaintiffs in Gentry County, Missouri were awarded $11,000,000 by a state court jury in a nuisance action based on the stench from a local hog farm. It was even more fascinating to discover…

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Episode 8: “The truth will set you free, but first …”

Posted on06. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin and Mariann.

Welcome to the eighth podcast episode of Our Hen House!

In today’s episode, we will discuss our current flirtation with yoga, and the importance of finding a way to take care of your body that comports with your values. We…

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Me on “Going Vegan”

Posted on05. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Jordana Reim of Planet Verge has put together a video series called “Going Vegan.” In it, she challenged The Lives of Famous Men drummer, Dylan Mandel, to go vegan for one month and document his journey…

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How Sweet It Is

Posted on04. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Don’t you just love when people say, “Oh you’re vegan — you can’t eat chocolate …”

Actually, my middle name is Chocolate. And if I ever had a child, I would name it Chocolate. Or maybe not, because it wouldn’t…

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Call for Papers: Women of Color in Critical Animal Studies

Posted on03. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

Here is an important Call for Papers brought to you by the Institute for Critical Animal Studies.

The Journal for Critical Animal Studies (JCAS) seeks essays from women of color scholars and activists across a variety

…

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I’ll Take the Vegan Special, Please

Posted on02. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

My hairdresser recently decided to open his own salon, and, knowing I’m an animal activist, he was excited to tell me that the products he planned to use were all cruelty-free. (I find it almost humorous when people waffle for…

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“Bacon’s” for Vegans: A Recipe for Media

Posted on01. Mar, 2010 by Jasmin Singer.

I am writing this from the Brooklyn Heights Public Library, where I am retina-deep in a book called Bacon’s Magazine Directory (unfortunate name, I know). The book — which, incidentally, is so insanely heavy that just carrying it…

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