There are already lots of books on activism out there. Why a book on animal-rights activism?

While it’s true there are some great books on activism, I don’t believe there’s another book that addresses the unique concerns of animal-rights activists. For example, activists in this movement have to cope with a tremendous amount of stress, grief and the consumer behavior that keeps animals enslaved. Also, animal-rights activists are often misunderstood to be “terrorists,” and that’s such nonsense. Yes, some activists have used intimidation tactics, but by and large, animal-rights activists are engaged in very peaceful, non-violent strategies.

Also, in 2006 Label Networks asked people in the 13-to-24-years age group which non-profit they are most interested in volunteering for. Nearly 30% of those who responded said People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. This was by a wide margin the most popular answer, which says there is a strong interest among this demographic in being active for animals. But what really caught my eye in this survey was that when this same group was asked why they are not already active, the number-two open-ended answer was “I don’t know how to get started.” Clearly, many people want to take action for animals but either don’t have the necessary knowledge or don’t know where to look for it. I’m hoping Striking at the Roots will give these and other people a place to go for answers.

You mentioned grief and stress as being problems for animal activists. How bad is it? What other issues do they face, and what resources, if any, does your book provide to help them cope?

Burnout is one of the larger issues facing the animal-rights movement, and I dedicate an entire chapter to the emotional challenges activists must often endure. I interviewed some activists well known for their insights on this – people like Carol Adams and Pattrice Jones, who was trained as a therapist – but I also spoke with many other activists who are out in the trenches doing some of the really hard work. I think the advice they offer is very sound. While it’s glib to say “Take care of yourself,” this is actually more difficult than one might imagine, though it’s critical to do so. I think it’s helpful just reading the words of fellow activists who experience grief, guilt, anger and such on a daily basis. You read their words and think, “I guess I’m not alone in this, and here’s how someone I admire manages to cope.”

It’s from something Henry David Thoreau wrote in Walden: “There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root.”

What was the biggest challenge you faced in writing this book?

My main concern was to write a book that would be useful to the widest possible audience. Although the vegan and animal-rights audience is large, not a large percentage of these people consider themselves to be activists. So I wanted to create something that not only appealed to those who already considered themselves activists, but also inspired people who didn’t know how to get started or may think activism is difficult or not for them.

Any other challenges?

It was something of a challenge to distill all the great input into a 300-page book. I interviewed something like 120 activists around the world, and they all had incredible comments to offer. It was tough not to include every single word, but sometimes one activist would say something that repeated what another activist had already recommended, so I had to decide what to include.

Were there any activists who would not speak with you?

Yes, I contacted a few people who do undercover video at slaughterhouses, vivisection labs and other places where animals are abused. Due to the nature of their work, they did not want the public – especially animal enterprises – knowing who they are and how they do their work. But they all wished me well with the book, and I understood their concerns, of course.

Your book deals with a lot of models of activism. Which one do you regard as the most effective?

I think it’s very important that the animal-rights movement uses a number of different kinds of outreach methods to address the public. You never know when and where the message is finally going to click for someone. Having said that, I think that if an activist can only spend a little time on outreach efforts each month, it would be hard to beat leafleting. It’s easy to do, and it helps disabuse people of the myth that activists are somehow different from the mainstream. If I can do it, anyone can.

In what ways has animal activism changed in the last decade?

The Internet has revolutionized activism. Activists can go on sites like Google Earth to locate factory farms, they are posting undercover videos on sites like YouTube and they are using their own Web sites to spread the word about animal exploitation. Moreover, the Internet has made it much easier to send letters to editors and policymakers, to organize campaigns and to keep abreast of what agribusiness and other animal abusers are doing. In fact, I probably could not have written this book without the Internet, because it allowed me to connect with activists all over the world very quickly. The phone number for Animals Rights Africa, for example, was a couple of clicks away. I think the Internet has allowed animal activists to feel like they are part of a larger whole, not just an individual activist struggling against cruelty in their community. It’s really helped us get our game together.

How do you respond to someone who says, “I’m vegan and am already doing my part for animals”?

First of all, I applaud anyone who goes vegan: choosing not to use or consume anything from an animal is wonderful. But if you’ve found veganism is a great path for you, chances are ethics has played a part in that, so why not help even more animals by spreading the good word? I cannot think of an instance in which a person could not advocate for animals, whether it’s writing letters to editors, making phone calls, volunteering at a shelter, leafleting or even just wearing an animal-rights button and making great food for your friends. It all helps. Of course, I should add that you don’t have to be vegan to help animals, though I think there’s something strange about asking people not to exploit animals while you’re wearing leather shoes.

Did anything especially surprise you while writing this book?

Yes, I was surprised by how many animal organizations and activists there are – especially male activists. As disingenuous as this may sound, I had the impression that men represented a fairly small percentage of those engaged in animal activism. Yes, there are people like Wayne Pacelle and Paul Watson and Andrew Tyler, but I thought they were the exception. I found out I was very wrong. Although women do make up most of the animal activists, the ratio is not as lopsided as I thought it was, and speaking with men like Nathan Runkle, Paul Shapiro, Gene Baur, Bruce Friedrich, Andrew Butler and Erik Marcus renewed my hope that we can accomplish something as a team. And those guys are just the more well-known names. For every Tom Regan or Jack Norris there are a hundred guys out there whose names we’ll never see in print, working in the trenches on behalf of animals.

You make a point a few times that advances in animal welfare, such as cage-free eggs, are important but not the ultimate answer. Why do you stress this?

I think it’s important for everyone to do what they can to advance the interests of animals. Anyone who has spent even a moment inside a battery shed, for example, knows the absolute misery hens must endure just so people can save a few pennies on eggs. While I believe it is vital that the public is aware of this suffering and that we get the birds out of these tiny cages – in which the hens are denied almost all their natural behaviors – no activist I know would say that the fight is over once the hens are out of cages. Cage free is not cruelty free. But we have to do something now for these animals, and eliminating battery cages is a victory within our reach, I think.

Do you find any parallels between animal-rights activism and activism for other social causes?

Absolutely. Certainly, an obvious comparison can be found with the US civil-rights movement, which used a variety of strategies to achieve victories, from civil disobedience and lobbying to demonstrations and legislative reforms. The reforms of the 1950s, in particular the 1957 Civil Rights Act, were seen by many as not having real teeth, yet they paved the way for stronger reforms in the 1960s, such as the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This never would have passed a decade earlier. Animal activists are faced with a similar situation: many activists work on reforms to improve conditions for animals in factory farms. Would these activists rather see animals freed from their cages? Of course they would. But it’s not likely to happen overnight, so these activists struggle to ban the most egregious forms of cruelty right now. Some animal activists, particularly abolitionist activists, criticize those working on reforms, regarding them as sell-outs and calling them neo-welfarists. But history has shown that compromise can lead to greater things.

Does this parallel offer any hope for the animal-rights movement?

Ultimately, yes. But I think civil rights leaders did things we’re only beginning to do now, like involving labor and environmental groups in the struggle. As animal activists, we need to reach out to other progressive organizations – the fight against animal abuse is as universal as the fight against racial discrimination.

Is there a model of activism that you believe is misunderstood or under utilized?

I think protesting is one strategy that even activists are intimidated by. Many think a demonstration or protest needs a lot of people to be effective, like the Million Man March. But you can create some wonderful press coverage with just a couple people, and this has been illustrated by East Bay Animal Advocates, Animal Liberation Victoria, PETA and a number of other activist groups. Animal Liberation Victoria, for example, protested against whaling with just one woman at the beach. They put her in a clear box filled with seawater colored red and labeled it with a Web site address. It got plenty of publicity.

What do you hope this book accomplishes?

My goal is to help relieve the suffering of animals, so I hope this book empowers people to get out there and get active. Activism doesn’t require a lot of experience. Anyone can volunteer at a local animal shelter, and most people are capable of engaging in the models of activism described in the book.