By snoadmin
The humid Monday morning is making me grouchy and I’m running late. It’s 10:50 a.m. and I am without a digital voice recorder. I have an interview with Cease Animal Torture (CAT) co-founder Nicoal Sheen at 11 a.m., and I’m desperate.
There’s something about the last few weeks of school that make us all go berserk. As a journalist in the making, there’s something bizarrely attractive about the drama of said berserk moments.
Within 15 minutes and with a recorder in hand — thanks to Daily Forty-Niner Assistant News Editor Antoinette Luzano — I’m sitting in front of Sheen. With her cool demeanor and fashionable sunglasses, she looks like she’s ready for a night out at Que Sera.
For the last three semesters Sheen and other Cal State Long Beach vegans, vegetarians and animal rights defenders have made it their mission to inform us about animal cruelty through their collective organization.
You might have seen them tabling around campus, passing out fliers and passionately talking about the issue.
A couple of weeks ago, CAT hosted Animal Liberation Forum 2009. Like many other student organizations with ethical and moral beliefs, CAT has faced constant indifference from fellow classmates.
Sheen said people are sometimes too disassociated and lack information regarding the issue of animal cruelty.
For Sheen, becoming a vegetarian in high school was more than just following a growing fad.
“It’s more than just a dietary choice,” Sheen said about her decision to go all the way and transition from a vegetarian to a vegan. “It’s speaking out for the animals that don’t have a voice because they only have so many ways to defend themselves against a human with a bolt gun.”
Though she doesn’t agree with the sexualized marketing campaigns of PETA, Sheen is quite content that the message of animal cruelty is getting out there.
I for one cannot imagine life without meat. Or could I?
People like Sheen remind us to watch what we eat not only for health reasons, but also for the moral and ethical issues behind animal cruelty — and to let me know how that piece of steak gets to my plate. It’s up to me if I want to look the other way and hope that no cruelty was involved in the process.
“Humans are animals too,” said international studies major Micah Scott, who has been a member since the beginning of CAT. “Extending the compassion to that other group makes you better at addressing both human and animal issues.”
If you’re thinking of becoming a vegetarian or vegan, there’s a bunch of “celebrity-approved” websites that can be quite helpful.
Goveg.com advises that sampling vegetarian microwaveable meals and trying a variety of meat-free ethnic food is a great way to begin the transition from meat-eater to vegetarian.
Regardless of what you choose to put in your body, CAT is open to everyone who feels strongly about animal rights — vegan or not. After all, we share this beautiful Earth with them. Why not give them a shot at having a decent life before we devour them. Or whatever.
-Julio Salgado
