2010-07-22
Anthony Marr's CARE-7 tour blog #25
The Animal Rights National Conference 2010 in DC.
(Caroline Tirrel, VP, Anthony Marr, President, Catherine Garneau, VP, of the Global Anti-Hunting Coalition (GAHC))
The much anticipated AR2010 conference has come and gone, and when it came to going, it was all too fast, and all too soon. What it did leave, however, is a very tangible and vivid memory, bolstered by a set of photographic images detailing every occurrence and nuance and impression and emotion. I have since uploaded almost 150 pictures into my Facebook site (Anthony Marr), of my personal friends and myself at the conference . These and what they represent I will cherish past my dying day.
(1000 strong)
As with every passing conference, I enjoyed this one more than its predecessors, partly due to my knowing more and more people with every succeeding year, but also due to a great plenary assignment (Compassion into Action), the presence of my lady love Catherine Garneau, long time friends Caroline Tirrel, Jerry Cook, Steve Ember, Doris Lin, Julie Henry and Kari Bagnall, Dr. Steve Kaufman, among others, and newer yet dear friends Shannon Morgan, Lt. Col. Robert Lucius, Debbie Kowalski, Lyn Stires, Charlotte Cressey, Melissa MacDonald and Jason Miller, among others, as well as people at the conference who have won my admiration, respect and affection, including Camille Hankins, Lorri Houston, Karen Davis, Rick Corbett, Michael Budkie, Nathan Runkle, Bryan Monelle, Jan Haagensen, Darius Fullmer, Jenny Brown, Adam Weissman, Odette Wilkens, Dallas Rising, Shirley McGreal, among others, and, to round it off, Dr. Alex Hershaft, Dawn Moncrief, Jen Riley and the entire FARMUSA crew (for pictures of these great people go to www.ARConference.org). Regrettably, My good friend and colleague Peter Muller, due to health issues, could not attend the conference, though thankfully he is on a slow yet definite road to a full recovery.
(Dr. Alex Hershaft)
Alex generously donated a booth to the Global Anti-Hunting Coalition, and we made a beauty of it.
(Anthony Marr - founder and president of GAHC)
(Catherine Garneau and Caroline Tirrel - co-vice-presidents of GAHC)
In AR2007 and AR 2008, I was given a dozen speeches each to make, and it proved somewhat too hectic, so, for AR2009 and AR2010, I've asked Alex (Dr. Alex Hershaft, head of the conference) to assign me the optimal amount - about 7-8 speeches - and they are what I was given, whereas Alex himself gave well over 15, while most other speaks received about 3. I also played some music on my electronic keyboard before the Opening Ceremony on Thursday evening.
(Painting of tigress Sitas by Catherine Garneau)
My speaking schedule is as follows:
7/16/2010, 10:32 AM: Individual Activism
(leafleting, letter writing, calling, T-shirts/stickers, workplace outreach)
Other people assigned to this session:
Jon Camp, Email: jon@veganoutreach.org
Rae Sikora, Email: rae@plantpeacedaily.org
7/16/2010, 5:01 PM: Abuse of Wildlife on Land & Water
(videos and Q&A about extermination of free animals on land and water)
Other people assigned to this session:
Brian Vincent, Email: brian@bigwildlife.org
7/17/2010, 9:45 AM: Compassion Into Action - plenary
(accounts of inspiring individual accomplishments for the animals)
Other people assigned to this session:
Leanne Hilgart, Email: leanne@vautecouture.com
Robert Lucius, Email: robert.lucius@us.army.mil
7/17/2010, 11:31 AM: Abuse of Urban Wildlife
(abuse /killing of rodents, feral cats, deer, geese, other urban wildlife)
Other people assigned to this session:
Becky Robinson, Email: brobinson@alleycat.org
7/17/2010, 5:01 PM: Global Issues Affecting Animals
(impacts on animals of protective laws, fur trade, world hunger, global warming)
Other people assigned to this session:
Dawn Moncrief, Email: dawn@farmusa.org
Siobhan O'Sullivan, Email: siobhano@unimelb.edu.au
Michael Zhao, Email: zhaoyunfeng78@gmail.com
7/17/2010, 5:04 PM: Wildlife/Fur Campaign Reports
(reports on campaigns to stop extermination of animals on land and water)
Other people assigned to this session:
Shannon Keith, Email: shankeith@mac.com
Shirley McGreal, Email: smcgreal@ippl.org
Simone Netherlands, Email: simone@respect4horses.com
Adam Weissman, Email: adam@wetlands-preserve.org
7/18/2010, 5:02 PM: Movement Networking
(magazines, listservs, conferences, speaking tours)
Other people assigned to this session:
Dawn Moncrief, Email: dawn@farmusa.org
In addition, I spoke three more times in a plenary setting, once on Friday to announce coming events, and twice during the awards banquet - see below.
The speech I most looked forward to was my Saturday morning plenary speech [Compassion into Action], MCed by Jenny Brown,
who introduced my great new friend Lt. Col. Robert Lucius of the U.S. Marines as the first speaker.
I brought up the rear, and half expected someone from the dark side to boo me, but all that came my way were loud applause and some spirited whooping.
I ended my speech with a little stunt by asking all in the audience who had compassion in their hearts to stand up (and of course all did),
then by asking those who wanted to turn compassion into action to clap their hands (and of course all did as well),
and then by saying, "Thank you for your standing ovation!"
The high point of the conference for me, by quite an elevation, was during the Saturday evening banquet,
(Catherine Garneau and Caroline Tirrel - the two GAHC co-VPs)
when I was honored with [The Henry Spira Grassroots Animal Activist Award], "presented to Anthony Marr for his outstanding contribution to animal liberation".
(Anthony Marr, Alex Hershaft, Nathan Runkle. Note: "Orb")
Following is the video of the presentation ceremony and my acceptance speech, taken by Caroline Tirrel.
Then came the fund-raising auction, and Catherine's painting of Sita was claimed for $1,000 by my long time friend Steve Ember, who evaluated it as being worth several times that much. It is destined for a gallery in New York City.
(Steve Ember, Alex Hershaft, Anthony Marr)
(Anthony Marr, Catherine Garneau, Steve Ember)
After the banquet, my best friends and I went to the lounge to share a wonderful time into the wee hours of the night.
(Catherine and I)
Sunday brimmed with congratulations from friends and colleagues - in the lobby, hall ways, corridors, elevators, cafeteria and lecture rooms. This was the second award I've received this year, the first being [The Best All-Around Activist of 2010] award by NIO/ALF in January. Both are high points of my life.
(Jason Miller, Anthony Marr, Melissa McDonald)
(Lisa, Anthony, Catherine, Shannon)
After the conference, I drove Catherine to her mother's home in Pittsburgh PA. Along the way, while approaching a rest stop, we caught up with a gestapo truck transporting pigs to slaughter. We followed the truck into the rest stop and, while the driver was in the coffee shop, we took pictures of the pigs through the portholes.
The results were heart-breaking. As I've written before, line up all the pigs killed in the U.S.A. each year in a single file, and it will stretch from Los Angeles to New York back and forth 35 times.
To see all 146 pictures of the conference I have posted in my Facebook site, please go to:
http://www.facebook.com/AnthonyMarr001?v=wall&story_fbid=133642546675144#!/album.php?aid=198510&id=584150862
Anthony Marr, Founder and President
Heal Our Planet Earth (HOPE)
Global Anti-Hunting Coalition (GAHC)
Anthony-Marr@HOPE-CARE.org
www.HOPE-CARE.org
www.MySpace.com/AnthonyMarr
www.YouTube.com/AnthonyMarr
www.myspace.com/Anti-Hunting_Coalition
www.facebook.com/Anthony.Marr.001
www.facebook.com/Global_Anti-Hunting_Coalition
www.HomoSapiensSaveYourEarth.blogspot.com
www.facebook.com (search for “Anthony Marr Heal Our Planet Earth”)
www.ARConference.org
4 comments:
I was glad to hear that you were honored for your efforts Anthony!!
The "Grassroots Animal Activist of the Year" award certainly describes you and your dedication to the animal rights cause!! Be safe on your CARE tour and just wanted you to know how much all of us Virginians enjoyed having you visit.
~Gina~
Anthony Marr begin_of_the_skype_highlighting end_of_the_skype_highlighting is an inspiration to all up and coming activist fighting for our planet and all sentient beings. The "Orb" is quiet fascinating and they said that real "Orbs" do come to places of celebration and events.
# Authentic spiritual orbs do not limit their range to cemeteries and/or haunted mansions.
# Authentic spiritual orbs are often photographed where people or animals are gathered. (Paranormal experts such as those from the television show Ghost Hunters claim that spiritual orbs actually seek areas where human emotions are present.)
# Places and events where the human emotional level might be considered extreme or heightened would include funerals, a baptismal or birth and parties or celebrations.
# Spiritual orbs also appear in scenery, in evening and night photos as well as in day photos, in cemeteries, both inside and outside of buildings, and also in photos with animals—most specifically around cats. Indeed, there have been some reports of cats actually playing or looking at the spiritual orb as it floated across the room.
# Authentic spirit orbs are most often white, but colored orbs also have been successfully photographed.
# Spiritual orbs don't usually appear in clusters.
Anthony Marr must be one heck of a beautiful person for the spirit to come to him at such a special event. I think that the truck with pigs was there because they knew you both be there, and wanted for you to capture their suffering to show to the world. I will be putting the photos into a video, its a MUST SEE for the world.
Thanks you Anthony Marr for all you do as well as Catherine Garneau an angel from heaven sent to earth.
Anthony,
I have always recognized that you were chosen and sent to this Earth with a very special mission. You are a glowing example of what we should all aspire to become...an embassador for the Earth and the animal inhabitants who depend on her for survival. I am so very honored to be a part of your life...and will always look to you as my guide and mentor. No one deserves this award more than you, Anthony, and I know your mom is so, so proud of you.
with love,
Catherine
Well done, Anthony and so very well deserved. You have no idea how much you example and your friendship has personally inspired me and countless others. In direct and indirect ways...through the people you have motivated to action...you have saved countless millions of animals.
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