Vegan trips in the Southwest
Last Monday, as I headed to the PETA Bob Barker Building in Echo Park to pick up literature for an on-campus event, I received a promising opportunity for salvation from Los Angeles. Caroline Gardner, the Youth Outreach Coordinator at peta2 and my tour administrator on the Vans Warped Tour, asked me if I would like to manage peta2’s outreach at two concerts for the pop-punk band, Farewell, My Love — in Tucson on Friday and in Albuquerque, on Saturday. Naturally, I said yes.
After arriving in Tucson, I picked up my peta2 package at the local UPS and headed straight to the venue, brimming with the immense excitement that outreach always brings. The two local peta2 volunteers helped me unload the materials. We arranged all of the literature on the table: Guides to Going Vegan, “Save 100 Animals” leaflets, cruelty free shopping guides, “Flesh is for Zombies” Halloween themed leaflets and lots of stickers. We stood with our “Free Stuff” signs in front of our “Help Animals: Try Veg” table banner, alluring people to pledge to try veg in exchange for our abundance of literature.
The campaign urges people to incorporate a more plant-based diet into their lives in a manageable capacity, whether that’s going vegetarian for a week, removing red meat from their diet, or cutting out dairy products on the weekends. Of course the ideal is veganism, but encouraging a steady pace by instituting one or two changes is a more attainable achievement and is usually a necessary precursor for a successful transition to a completely plant-based diet.
Surprisingly, the five-hour show had no more than 30 attendees … The peta2 volunteers and I engaged concert-goers in meaningful conversations about the benefits of going vegan or vegetarian, while simultaneously listening to male singers blow their vocal chords out. Pursuing intellectual conversations while immersing oneself in earth-shattering screams requires a caliber of coordination not to be underestimated.
The next day, the Albuquerque show had almost triple the amount of attendees. Ironically enough, the third volunteer couldn’t make it. Due to the intimate one-room venue, the local volunteer and I reached out to people among the crowd during the transitions between acts, for 10 minutes at a time. We had a high success rate, as measured by the number of texts sent to peta2, possibly as a factor of the vibrant energy remaining from the preceding “moshtoberfest.” I spent Sunday, the last day of my paid work-travel experience, exploring Albuquerque. Midday, I ate at Gatos y Galletas, a cat cafe, in Downtown. I navigated through the many shops in the historic Old Town, strolled through the scenic botanical gardens and ended my day helping an elderly woman escape from a locked bathroom stall — never had I been so frightened upon entering a Holiday Inn bathroom as I was when I heard the screams of that helpless old lady.
When I was in Tucson on Friday, instead of staying at a hotel like I did in Albuquerque, I got to visit my Chicago friends from home at the University of Arizona. The venue was fortunately less than a mile from my friend’s residence.
This adventure-filled weekend was necessary to a wholesome restabilization, especially after two months of containment in Los Angeles. Aside from passionately advocating for animal rights, I got to reconnect with my childhood friends, visit new cities and eat delicious vegan food, all while exercising my independence.
I learned a couple of important lessons. First, it’s vital to remain open to new opportunities, especially when they seem inconvenient, because they make life all the more meaningful. Last but not least, following your passions opens the doors, or in this case, the terminals to a plethora of trips around the globe. Your passport will become chock full of country stamps, and your increasing life-experience will make you a world traveler from your exposure to new situations embraced on a whim.
Tessa Nesis is a a sophomore majoring in NGOs and social change. Her column, “The Sentient Bean,” runs on Thursdays.