0:00:14.751,0:00:16.502
"Where's Papa going with that axe?"

0:00:16.503,0:00:17.783
said Fearne to her mother

0:00:17.783,0:00:19.961
as they were setting [br]the table for breakfast.

0:00:19.961,0:00:22.626
Fearne's mother explains[br]that a piglet was born a runt

0:00:22.627,0:00:24.253
and is unlikely to survive.

0:00:24.254,0:00:26.221
Fearne's father intends to kill him.

0:00:26.222,0:00:27.549
Fearne runs outside.

0:00:28.784,0:00:30.990
"Please don't kill him. It's unfair!

0:00:30.991,0:00:33.098
He couldn't help[br]being born small, could he?

0:00:33.099,0:00:36.015
If I had been very small at birth,[br]would you have killed me?"

0:00:37.432,0:00:41.405
"Certainly not. A little girl is[br]one thing, a runty little pig is another."

0:00:42.873,0:00:43.896
"I see no difference.

0:00:43.897,0:00:47.030
This is the most terrible case[br]of injustice I've ever heard of."

0:00:49.599,0:00:52.298
Maybe it was those lines[br]from "Charlotte's Web"

0:00:52.299,0:00:54.782
that made an impact on me as child.

0:00:54.783,0:00:58.010
Just as Charlotte's web[br]was woven to save Wilbur's life,

0:00:58.011,0:01:00.667
my mind started to think about[br]how we're all connected.

0:01:01.507,0:01:05.474
Or maybe it was Disney's fault[br]for helping me see and hear

0:01:05.476,0:01:08.305
Bambi's fear after losing[br]his mother to a hunter.

0:01:09.185,0:01:11.376
Or the tears[br]streaming down Dumbo's face

0:01:11.377,0:01:15.434
as his mother caressed him with her trunk[br]when she was chained in a circus car.

0:01:16.228,0:01:19.673
It could have been growing up in Texas[br]and seeing the cows in the fields

0:01:19.674,0:01:22.956
and imagining, "What would it be like[br]if one of them didn't come home

0:01:22.957,0:01:24.989
because of my hamburger?"

0:01:24.989,0:01:27.908
The worry, the fear[br]the others would experience.

0:01:28.988,0:01:31.409
Or perhaps it was my parents' divorce.

0:01:31.411,0:01:34.410
I can't say that it was just one thing[br]that started me thinking

0:01:34.411,0:01:37.940
about the families of all sentient beings,[br]but it is a part of who I am

0:01:37.941,0:01:40.586
and helps form the choices[br]that I make in my life.

0:01:43.025,0:01:45.938
The thought of losing my mum[br]or one of my sisters

0:01:45.939,0:01:48.080
was a real fear for me growing up.

0:01:48.081,0:01:50.680
I was even hurt when my sisters[br]went away to college.

0:01:50.681,0:01:52.280
This was my family.

0:01:52.281,0:01:54.355
I didn't want us to be separated.

0:01:55.282,0:01:57.375
Whatever the cause,[br]I decided at a young age

0:01:57.376,0:01:59.750
that I would help make choices[br]that would minimize

0:01:59.764,0:02:01.341
the suffering of sentient beings.

0:02:01.342,0:02:04.070
Such as wearing non leather boots.

0:02:04.071,0:02:07.299
If you remember one thing[br]from my talk today let it be this:

0:02:07.300,0:02:11.835
uninformed food choices can contribute[br]to the suffering of sentient beings.

0:02:11.836,0:02:14.902
Therefore, your food choices[br]can change the world.

0:02:16.504,0:02:19.384
I went vegetarian for the first time[br]when I was young.

0:02:19.385,0:02:24.847
My mother told me that the chicken[br]I was eating was, well, a chicken.

0:02:26.087,0:02:29.100
I remember being in line[br]in elementary school in the cafeteria

0:02:29.101,0:02:32.964
and asking the server not to put meat[br]on my cheese enchiladas.

0:02:32.965,0:02:34.915
She asked if I was a vegetarian.

0:02:34.916,0:02:36.405
In my young mind, I wondered

0:02:36.406,0:02:39.685
why she thought I was old enough[br]to take care of sick dogs and cats.

0:02:39.686,0:02:40.904
(Laughter)

0:02:40.905,0:02:41.940
I told her no.

0:02:43.544,0:02:46.886
When I was a teenager, I was able[br]to stick with my commitment better.

0:02:46.887,0:02:51.072
My mum would make me a separate meal[br]such as enchiladas with corn inside.

0:02:51.073,0:02:54.147
When I was in high school,[br]she just learned to make quiche.

0:02:54.148,0:02:56.547
And then, I went vegan.

0:02:57.485,0:02:58.919
She said, "I give up."

0:02:59.361,0:03:02.504
I told her, I'll eat peanut butter[br]and jelly sandwiches every day

0:03:02.505,0:03:05.161
if I have to to stick[br]with my commitment to go vegan.

0:03:05.911,0:03:08.954
Over time, I've learned more[br]about the tragedy of the separation

0:03:08.955,0:03:12.601
of these animals and the bonds [br]that exist when they're together.

0:03:12.602,0:03:15.309
I've adjusted my choices[br]not to contribute to this.

0:03:16.466,0:03:18.977
Mother cows, used in the dairy industry,

0:03:18.978,0:03:21.824
have their babies[br]taken away from them after birth.

0:03:21.825,0:03:25.559
Because these large, magnificent mothers[br]will fight to be with their babies.

0:03:26.346,0:03:29.301
In Southern Georgia,[br]I had the heartbreaking opportunity

0:03:29.302,0:03:34.105
to videotape a mother cow crying[br]after she'd been separated from her baby.

0:03:34.106,0:03:36.906
Her calf would bellow,[br]and she would respond.

0:03:36.907,0:03:39.907
(Cow laments)

0:03:40.847,0:03:43.178
I sat in the meeting[br]with a small dairy farmer

0:03:43.179,0:03:44.848
from Washington who told a story

0:03:44.849,0:03:48.007
about a cow who had enough of him[br]taking her babies away.

0:03:48.732,0:03:51.455
According to him,[br]the cow had given birth to twins

0:03:51.456,0:03:54.116
and when he couldn't find[br]one of them, he went looking.

0:03:54.958,0:03:58.029
He eventually found[br]that she had hidden one of them.

0:03:58.030,0:04:01.488
According to him,[br]she was trying to protect her baby.

0:04:02.328,0:04:04.363
I've since learned this happens often.

0:04:04.843,0:04:06.236
But it's not just cows.

0:04:06.237,0:04:08.366
Pregnant pigs[br]in a more natural environment

0:04:08.367,0:04:12.308
build nests before they give birth,[br]collecting branches in their mouths.

0:04:12.918,0:04:15.460
Mother hens will use[br]different vocalizations

0:04:15.461,0:04:17.797
to protect their chicks from predators.

0:04:17.798,0:04:21.845
Just like any mother, they want[br]to protect their babies from harm.

0:04:21.846,0:04:25.326
Just like human animals,[br]these animals feel pain.

0:04:27.310,0:04:30.201
We are so detached[br]from animals in our society,

0:04:30.202,0:04:33.970
and we are also so detached from the means[br]in which our food is produced.

0:04:35.057,0:04:36.559
I eventually made a decision

0:04:36.560,0:04:39.059
that I wanted to focus[br]my energy on our food choices

0:04:39.060,0:04:40.924
and how they can make a difference.

0:04:40.925,0:04:42.366
We eat several times a day,

0:04:42.367,0:04:45.647
and each food choice[br]says something about ourselves.

0:04:45.648,0:04:50.071
I believe, our individual food choices[br]and collective voices can have an impact.

0:04:51.486,0:04:53.647
By going vegan,[br]I knew I was doing my part

0:04:53.648,0:04:56.815
not to contribute to the suffering[br]of non human animals.

0:04:56.816,0:04:58.674
But what about my food?

0:04:58.675,0:05:00.842
What about the farm workers?

0:05:00.843,0:05:04.107
I can simply stop eating animals[br]as a means of not contributing

0:05:04.108,0:05:05.707
to their suffering.

0:05:05.708,0:05:07.871
But it's not as easy with farm workers.

0:05:07.872,0:05:10.181
Everyone needs[br]their fruits and vegetables.

0:05:10.991,0:05:14.108
In the US, millions[br]of farm workers pick our food.

0:05:14.109,0:05:17.169
Not just the food of vegans,[br]but all of our food.

0:05:17.759,0:05:22.923
It is estimated that approximately 400,000[br]of these farm workers are children.

0:05:24.751,0:05:29.126
In California, many farm workers[br]live in substandard labor camps,

0:05:29.136,0:05:32.391
[or] are homeless along our creeks[br]and our rivers.

0:05:32.392,0:05:34.963
They don't make enough[br]to put a roof over their head,

0:05:34.964,0:05:37.607
and yet they put food on our plates.

0:05:38.133,0:05:42.050
They work in extreme temperatures,[br]exposed to agricultural chemicals,

0:05:42.051,0:05:44.499
many can't even afford or have access

0:05:44.500,0:05:47.715
to the types of fruits[br]and vegetables they're picking.

0:05:48.645,0:05:50.573
It is estimated in California

0:05:50.574,0:05:55.365
that the average life span[br]of a strawberry picker is 49 years.

0:05:57.209,0:05:59.418
Groups like the Coalition[br]of Immokalee Workers

0:05:59.419,0:06:01.301
are making great strides in this area

0:06:01.302,0:06:05.108
by using consumer pressure[br]to get corporations to make changes,

0:06:05.109,0:06:08.572
such as getting tomato buyers[br]to pay just a penny more per pound

0:06:08.573,0:06:10.833
for the tomatoes that they pick.

0:06:10.834,0:06:15.460
My organization, Food Empowerment Project,[br]organize a school supply drive

0:06:15.470,0:06:18.822
to help with the education[br]of the children of farm workers.

0:06:19.482,0:06:21.960
So that they can choose an easier life.

0:06:22.905,0:06:24.948
I still struggle with what more I can do.

0:06:30.438,0:06:33.169
When people eat chocolate,[br]they're eating my flesh.

0:06:34.151,0:06:38.248
That is what one farmer slave[br]told a reporter when he was asked

0:06:38.250,0:06:40.500
what he would say to Westerners

0:06:41.267,0:06:42.567
who eat chocolate.

0:06:43.487,0:06:48.499
In West Africa, 1.8 million children[br]in Ghana, in the Ivory Coast,

0:06:48.501,0:06:51.127
are victims of the worst forms[br]of child labor.

0:06:51.834,0:06:54.668
[Hawa] picking cocoa[br]for the chocolate industry.

0:06:55.542,0:06:58.620
Here, they are forced[br]to work with dangerous equipment

0:06:58.621,0:07:03.099
such as machetes, some children[br]as young as seven years old.

0:07:03.985,0:07:08.619
Many children have been documented[br]with scars on their arms and their legs.

0:07:09.345,0:07:13.129
If they don't move fast enough[br]while carrying these heavy cocoa pods,

0:07:13.130,0:07:14.371
they're beaten.

0:07:15.672,0:07:19.910
Many children are locked in over night,[br]and if they try to escape,

0:07:19.911,0:07:21.952
they're beaten or killed.

0:07:24.708,0:07:27.723
We all have families, biological or not.

0:07:27.724,0:07:29.793
So let's make choices[br]that respect families

0:07:29.794,0:07:31.466
and the bonds that they share.

0:07:31.467,0:07:32.882
How can we do this?

0:07:32.883,0:07:34.766
If you have access to fresh produce,

0:07:34.767,0:07:36.061
go vegan.

0:07:37.188,0:07:38.958
Support the rights of farm workers

0:07:38.959,0:07:41.919
through legislation[br]and corporate campaigns

0:07:42.919,0:07:44.841
and stop eating chocolate.

0:07:45.466,0:07:46.537
OK, OK, OK.

0:07:47.641,0:07:49.570
You don't have to stop eating chocolate.

0:07:49.571,0:07:52.049
But please, only buy chocolate[br]that's not sourced

0:07:52.050,0:07:55.209
from the worst forms[br]of child labor in West Africa.

0:07:55.210,0:07:58.251
You can use our list at foodispower.org.

0:07:59.084,0:08:02.021
I make the most informed[br]food choices that I can make

0:08:02.022,0:08:05.309
because I want to lessen[br]the suffering of sentient beings.

0:08:06.415,0:08:09.622
I wanted to turn this pain[br]I felt into power.

0:08:10.420,0:08:12.497
So much of this has been about loss,

0:08:12.498,0:08:15.703
and what I gained was the feeling[br]that I could make a difference.

0:08:16.311,0:08:19.692
I hope you will join me[br]and put your ethics where your mouth is.

0:08:19.693,0:08:23.091
To me, these issues[br]are as connected as Charlotte's Web.

0:08:23.092,0:08:26.270
You and your food choices[br]can change the world

0:08:26.271,0:08:28.784
and mitigate suffering the world over.

0:08:28.785,0:08:29.946
Thank you.

0:08:29.947,0:08:31.536
(Applause)