I met up with Glenn Gaetz yesterday in NYC. Glenn was in town from Vancouver, where he runs Liberation B.C. along with his partner, Joanne Chang (from Animal Voices Vancouver). Just as we sat down for our delicious lunch at my favorite hang-out, Sacred Chow, Glenn tossed a ribbon at me. But not any ordinary ribbon … a cow ribbon! The little paper square it was pinned to said this:
“On dairy farms, calves are taken from their mothers at birth. The males are sold for veal or just thrown away. This Mother’s Day, remember who never got to experience the joy of motherhood.”
The cow ribbon — a project of Liberation B.C. — is a small but powerful reminder that human mothers are not the only species we should remember this May 9. As I write this, I’ve been wearing my cow ribbon for only one day, and I’ve already been asked by a few people, “What’s that?” What a perfect teaching opportunity!
In addition to spreading awareness with the ribbons, the cow ribbon website allows you to send an e-card in honor of Mother’s Day. The e-card, like the ribbon, makes the connection between the dairy industry and the exploitation of motherhood.
Of course, egg-laying hens are also amongst the most exploited mother animals; they are also forced to undergo egregious horrors as their reproductive organs are exploited for eggs.
Get your cow ribbon. Wear it proudly.