For those who refer
to it as "turkey day", the feast of Thanksgiving would leave little to be thankful for without a roasted bird,
plump and aromatic, in the center of the table. But this year
at an unusual farm just west of Watkins Glen, NY there will
be an extraordinary gathering, at which people will feed, rather
than feed upon, domesticated turkeys. While there they may
also take a moment to pet the pigs, visit with the sheep and
goats and observe the cows grazing peacefully in the fields.
This peaceable kingdom is the Farm
Sanctuary, a safe haven
for animals who might otherwise be confined to pens or headed
to the abattoir and the market. In fact, many of them were
rescued from slaughter or destruction following injury and
a few were once given up for dead.
The life of most animals raised for food is brief, confined and purposefully
productive. This has resulted in abundant meat, eggs and dairy products, and
in the United States a lower percentage of income spent for food than in other
industrialized nations. The food chain and the supermarket chain are now efficiently
linked. But the methods of "factory
farms" have their critics, none
as active and prominent as Gene
Baur, founder of the Farm Sanctuary.
There are two Farm Sanctuary locations, in Watkins Glen and in Orland, California.
Their big red barns and sheds are occupied by animals that would have been
someone's dinner but are now able to live out a full and natural life. Life
is not always easy for pigs, cows, chickens and other denizens of the barnyard
since the breed has often been biologically altered for maximum growth and
individuals cannot move easily. For example, nearly all the turkeys packaged
for human consumption were conceived through artificial insemination since
their girth - designed for maximum breast meat - makes it difficult for them
to mate naturally.
Gene Baur has now told the story of his rescue missions, political action and
a real return to nature in a book entitled "Farm
Sanctuary: Changing Hearts and Minds about Animals and Food." It is part autobiography, part documentation
of many battles against factory farming practices (once at a slaughterhouse
he was assaulted with an electric cattle prod) and partly a description of
the nature of domesticated animals when they are allowed to simply survive
and be themselves.
Cattle move with the earth's rhythms in a way that's hard
to describe. At times, I've heard them breathe sympathetically
with people who are in a state of heightened
emotion. Like us, they enjoy pleasant weather, and I've seen cattle in a
state of bliss as they graze on sweet clover or grasses
at certain times of the year.
After a long winter in Watkins Glen, when they've spent the better part of
the last few months inside the barn eating hay, the cattle relish the spring
days. They kick up their feet, run, and jump. At the peak of the summer heat
they hang out under the trees enjoying the shade. I often wonder what the
world would be like if we did more of this ourselves.
--from Farm Sanctuary
Baur's book also contains biographical sketches of some of
the animals at Farm Sanctuary, including Cinci
Freedom, a white
Charolais who made national headlines in 2002 when she escaped
from a slaughterhouse and roamed around Cincinnati's Mount
Storm Park for two weeks.
"Farm Sanctuary" deplores the industrialization of agriculture that
yields greater productivity but has eclipsed the institution of the family farm.
For many people it will be sufficient to do away with the worst abuses of the
food industry. Voters in California recently passed Proposition
2 - with the
active
backing of California native Gene Baur - a public initiative outlawing
many of the enclosures that restrict the movement of farm animals. The organic
farming practices of farmers like Shannon Hayes, author of "The
Farmer and
the Grill" (a guest on OFF THE PAGE in June, 2008) promise both respectful
care and humane
slaughter of animals and a tastier, though perhaps less abundant,
product.
Gene Baur would prefer that everyone adopt a vegan diet, but he writes,
When you talk about food and farming with anyone, you may
step into a cultural, political, familial, religious, and
emotional battleground. We have very intense
feelings about food, founded on myths and identities influenced by where
and how we grew up, our agrarian roots, and an assumption
that humans are different
from other animals.
I recognize the strength of these beliefs. That is why, over the course
of my activist life, I've always tried to be mindful of other perspectives
and
through this to seek common ground.
Gene
Baur joins Bill Jaker on OFF
THE PAGE to tell about Farm Sanctuary, the place and the book, to answer
questions
and respond to listeners' comments, especially concerning
attitudes toward animals and the role of animal products during the
holiday season. To join in the discussion call during the
live
1:00
PM broadcast to 888/359-9754 or post a comment to WSKG.Radio@Gmail.com. |
Off the Page
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