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13 May 2001 Issue
The Milk of Humane Kindness?

Mother's Day and the Cow Connection
by Park [email protected] 

We celebrate Mother's Day today, but it's also the day of the National Veal Ban Campaign, which is coordinated each year by FARM (Farm Animal Reform Movement), a nonprofit group which works to expose the harmful effects of factory farming on human health, the environment, and animal well-being. FARM chose Mother's Day as the day for this event because the cow is a symbol of motherhood around the world. And yet we treat this animal with incredible cruelty.

National Veal Ban Campaign Director David Pryor has explained that the gross violation of the sacred bond between bovine mother and child led to scheduling the national protest on Mother's Day. David has said "We hope that Americans will honor their mothers on this day by refusing to eat veal."

You are concerned about animal welfare and animal rights or you wouldn't be reading this newsletter. You wouldn't consider eating veal. You know how it is made. You know how the baby calves are taken away from their mothers soon after their birth and placed in small crates and fed a liquid milk substitute lacking in iron to make them anemic so their flesh is white and preferred by the compassionless gourmands of the world.

You know how they are chained by the neck to prevent movement, so that they can't turn around, or even lie down, so that their muscles can't develop, so that their flesh stays tender.

You know how these poor animals are fed large amounts of antibiotics to combat the filthy, diseased conditions they are raised in. You know how the residues of these antibiotics are passed on to humans making them less immune to infections.

You know how these calves never see the sun, never walk in the fields, never graze in the meadows, never even suckle at their mothers' breasts. You know how these babies are slaughtered after sixteen weeks of torment.

What you probably don't realize is that veal is a by-product of the dairy industry, and that by using dairy products you support the veal industry. To make dairy cows produce milk, they are made pregnant once a year for the five short years of their lives. Cows can live beyond twenty years of age but their production of milk decreases, so most are turned into hamburger after five years. The female calves are raised as milk producers to replace those overworked five year olds, most of the males become beef
and veal.

For twenty years I was an ovo-lacto vegetarian, and I only faced the fact that I was still part of the cycle of cruelty four years ago. I regret that I didn't see the light much earlier. You know the facts, please go vegan this Mother's Day. Write us for assistance, we want to help you help the animals.

Milk, it Does No Body Good.

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