Most 12 year old kids go to school, come home, maybe play video games or an after-school
sport, go to the movies with their friends and work on homework. And then there’s Thomas
Ponce, who, by the age of 12 had formed his own lobbying organization and was active in
local government, meeting with congressmen and officials and providing a voice for the
animals. With corporations and the animal products industry having some of the loudest
lobbyist around, Thomas is working to level the playing field and ensure that the animals
are heard. Having started his path to animal activism at the age of 4 years old, Thomas
is no ordinary kid. He’s a veritable force to be reckoned with.
Hi it's Emily from Bite Size Vegan and welcome to another vegan nugget. I’m so excited
and honored to introduce to you, Thomas Ponce. Thomas has received countless awards and accolades
including FARM's National Animal Rights Young Activist Award for 2013 and The Animal Hero
Kids ‘Kind to All’ Award, earning him a feature in the book Animal Hero Kids: Voices
for the Voiceless, PETA’s Compassionate Kid Award when we was eleven, and oh yeah,
no less than TWO awards from the President. Thomas is the second Animal Hero Kid I’ve
interviewed with serious White House connections.
Pretty soon it’ll be time for…
Moving on...
Thomas received a grant from the Pollination Project to make his lobbying organization,
Lobby for Animals, a reality. Never one to stop there, Thomas is now a member of their
grant advisory board for environmental and animal rights related grants. Most recently,
Thomas just had an article published in AV Magazine of the American Anti-Vivisection
Society, which you can find the link to on the blog post for this video, which is
linked below in the video description.
Thomas just turned 15 and remains passionate about the importance of young people getting
involved in activism. Just so you know, the audio at times isn’t too stellar, so if
you want you can always turn on the captions. I really urge you to listen to his words.
This is one incredibly bright young man.
I think it’s important for young people to get involved in their communities. It’s
we that are growing up in this world and we need to get active and involved. And we can’t
expect things to get better if we don’t try to change them.
You know, if we address issues in our communities and the world we live in, it’s each of our
personal responsibilities to do so. If you see something wrong that is happening, speak
up, question, don’t just go with the flow because it’s been the same thing for a long
period of time, you know because it’s a tradition.
If we listen to our heart, if we listen to our brain, then we can do right all the time,
we can make a difference. If we get involved with our communities, that’s one of the
best ways to do so. Finding something you’re passionate about, Googling it, researching it.
Doing whatever you can to get the most information about that subject then act with
that information. Knowledge is the most power you can have in this world, and when you use
it correctly you can make a huge difference.
I asked Thomas about how he got started in his activism.
I got started in my activism when I was about 4 years old. Throughout this time I’ve always
had a love and respect for animals. That love that I had turned to activism when I made
the connection of where our food comes from and the horrors that animals have to go through
every day in order for that to happen.
Once I had that realization, the turning point to become vegetarian was a very simple decision.
As I got older, and as I learned more, I learned that just because I wasn’t eating meat didn’t
mean that I wasn’t still contributing. So, I decided to become vegan,
which would completely cut that off.
Throughout that entire time, I had been attending protests, I’d been signing petitions, I’d
basically been doing anything to spread the word of animal rights, and I was determined
to open people’s eyes to the idea of animal rights.
Lobbying isn’t the most common form of animal activism you hear of, so I asked Thomas how
he found his way to the legal side of animal rights.
When I heard about FARM’s National Animal Rights Conference, I said, “that is something
I need to go to.” So, I was in Washington, DC, it was great, fantastic. I met an attorney
there and she basically, she talked to me about lobbying. It was like a light bulb went
off in my head, and when I got home I started researching more about lobbying. And I actually
took a class through the Humane Society about lobbying and from there on out, I’ve been
hooked. And that’s when I decided to create Lobby for Animals. Basically my purpose with
that is to give people the tools necessary to succeed in the lobbying field.
In case you have no idea what we’re talking about, I asked Thomas to explain lobbying.
Lobbying is basically talking to your legislators it’s, whenever you want to make a change
in law. Let’s say there’s a bill that will completely stop animals in entertainment.
There will be no more animals in entertainment from then on. You can talk to your legislators,
you can call them, email them, write them letters, and schedule a conference with them.
And you can let them know your position on this. Because they’re our legislators, they’re
here to listen to us, it’s their job. And if we don’t let them know how we feel, if
we don’t let them know what we want to see in office, then
they have no way of doing their job correctly.
With all the available forms of activism out there, I asked Thomas why he chose
lobbying for his mission.
We can definitely, we can go to protests, we can sign petitions, we can do everything,
but - when we go towards the laws we’re striking it at it’s core. So, we are hitting
the subject right in the center. Laws like the ag-gag bills, and it’s everything like
that that can be combated with lobbying. It can be very much so combated with lobbying.
I asked Thomas to share what victories he’s had in his time lobbying for the animals.
A lot of the victories that I’ve had, I wouldn’t even call them victories, it’s
more like small wins. Whenever I see people who actually get it, whenever I see - let’s
say I schedule an appointment to talk to a congressman, and I’m talking to them and
I know that they’re actually starting to think a different way, or that I’ve at least
opened their eyes up to thinking a different way, then that’s a personal victory. Let’s
say they’re for a bill that’s for vivisection, and then I talk to them, and then they change
their mind and they flip that stance, that’s a personal victory, in my opinion.
During our interview, Thomas and I discussed the power kids and young people have in affecting
change. And how they’re often underestimated in their abilities and what they can handle.
As you’ll see, Thomas proves his own point beautifully.
We do not, and as I’ve said this before, we do not give kids enough credit. They have
the most creativity, they have the best ideas that you can ever see. As you said, adults
have this preconception that, you know, this person’s 6, 7, 10, 11, they are not ready
to see this type of information, they’re not ready to see what’s out in the world.
They definitely are. If they’re passionate about something, don’t stifle it and don’t
assume because they’re kids they can’t understand it and they can’t handle it.
Because there are a lot of kids out there that can definitely comprehend this stuff.
We need to allow our kids to go into the field that they’re interested in, to be passionate
about what they want to be passionate about. Let them research about it, let them learn
about it, let them be interested in what they care about. If we instill the idea of compassion,
then they’ll carry that on with them throughout their lives, they’ll carry that on to their children.
I want to leave you with part of Thomas’ acceptance speech when he received the Animal
Hero Kids Kind to All Award. Mind you, he was 12 years old when he gave this speech.
“Each time you make the choice of what to eat or wear, which products to buy, whether
to attend a circus or marine park, and which companies you choose to support, you have
to realize that your decisions affect more than just you. Remember, there are other
lives at stake, the lives of animals, and one life should not be held more valuable
than another. Just because you are not committing the act yourself, doesn’t mean it’s not
happening or that you are not contributing to it. As a consumer, if you are not making
ethical, cruelty-free choices, you are still fueling the demand. If you do not speak up,
buy differently and demand things be changed, you are contributing to the problem.
It takes proactive people to bring about change. People who will take the time to learn about the
ways in which they can get involved and make a difference for animals, as well as for the
world we live in. The information and resources are out there for whomever wants to learn.
I am a firm believer that knowledge is definitely power and when you speak with knowledge and
from your heart, people will listen, regardless of your age.”
One way to get started is to visit Thomas’ website www.LobbyForAniamls.org, where you
can find guidance in getting active and contacting your legislators. Thomas welcomes emails and
is always ready to help. You can also connect with him on Facebook. See his links below.
I hope you enjoyed hearing Thomas’ story. I’m totally blown away by his activism and
all of the young people I’ve had the pleasure and honor of working with in this Animal Hero Kids series
and my kids interview series. Never think that your age, or anything about you can hold you back.
If you were inspired by Thomas, do give the video a thumbs up and share it around to help
show what kids can accomplish. If you’re new here, I’d love to have you as a subscriber.
I put out fresh content covering all aspects of veganism every Monday, Wednesday and some
Fridays. To help support Bite Size Vegan’s educational efforts, please see the support
links below or click on the Nugget Army icon or the link in the sidebar. Now go live vegan,
lobby for the animals, and I'll see you soon.
Interviewing so many young people who have accomplished so much so early in life...
really makes me feel like I haven't done much.
Where was the internet when I was a kid?!