Sue Coe...

is an artist whose book "Dead Meat" was one of the first 'veganized' books I purchased. Her images are haunting and powerful. Wikipedia writes:

Sue Coe (born 28 November 1951 in Tamworth, Staffordshire) is an English artist and illustrator working primarily in drawing and printmaking, often in the form of illustrated books and comics. She grew up close to a slaughterhouse and developed a passion to stop cruelty to animals. Coe studied at the Royal College of Art in London, lived in New York City from 1972 to 2001. She currently lives in upstate New York. Her work is highly political, often directed against capitalism and cruelty to animals.notes that:

I ran across this video over on Our Hen House (created and produced by them) and was delighted to be able to hear and see Ms. Coe talk about her art and her creative process. The analogy she made between witnessing the horror we are visiting upon our fellow animals and looking at the sun was just exquisite. Just like looking at the sun, these things we are doing are so glittering and penetrating in their awfulness we can only bear to look briefly...and then we have to turn away.

The horror cannot be borne....yet it is...by our victims...day in and day out....every second of every hour and no one does a better job of witnessing these atrocities than does Ms. Coe.


Sue Coe: Art of the Animal on Vimeo.

She also talks about the reality distortion and avoidance that we are all exposed to and damaged by and how moving into an ethical vegan lifestyle empowers us to "spit out" the "fodder" of oppression. Good stuff! I would love to have the opportunity to sit down and have a long and winding conversation with this talented and insightful human animal. Thank you Sue Coe.

Consciousness raising...........

Here is a video with no violence or grossness and it presents an instance of cross-species caring and nurturing.

I think the video might offer a vehicle by which some feelings of speciesism  could be evoked, and perhaps examined.  Maybe not, I would welcome you putting your reaction in a comment.

An observation......

I have noticed that I find it almost impossible anymore, to watch videos (or even look at pictures) of some of the grotesque things that human animals do to the innocent animals.......early on in my journey I made myself watch Meet Your Meat and other accurate (but graphic and disturbing) reporting of what happens to our sister and brother animal persons.  I can't do it anymore, it hurts too much.

I don't force myself to do so, one of the reasons I let myself off of the hook is that I actively and conscientiously avoid (as far as I know) using animal people for anything at all (except maybe to caress or pet).

Now, I don't quite have the same attitude toward folks that want to not look at the horrible things human animals do to other animals......if.......that person is continuing to use animals for food or other purposes.

There is something inherently wrong and underhanded and pathological even....to me anyway.....with doing something or paying somebody to do something for you and not being willing to witness what you are doing or having done in your name......stuff that is done to get something for your use or your "pleasure". ........This means if you "can't" give up cheese, or drumsticks, or a fur coat, etc. then you are....to my mind.....engaging in self-deception or something worse if you avoid watching "Earthlings" or "Meet Your Meat" or any of the many documentings of the horrors we pretend are necessary or "normal".

You know, I am still not sure it is an acceptable thing for me to avoid watching the atrocities.....
These events, these doings, should evoke horror and tears and pain and deep deep sorrow....if no one watches.....then who feels for the animal people that are being terrorized and hurt and killed?  Who then witness what happens to the nameless and forgotten? 

These obscene and despicable activities are the product and creation of human animals, I am not sure if it is ok for any human animal face to turn away from them for as long as they go on......I don't know.....I have a lot of conflict about this.