Gentle Thanksgiving 2006 Report

Caring individuals throughout the U.S. set out this Thanksgiving to celebrate the true spirit of the holiday and encourage others to adopt compassionate alternatives to unnecessarily cruel turkey dinners.

A host of Gentle Thanksgiving activities took place across the nation, with 131 events in 35 states listed on our online Events Directory. This occasion provided activists with an opportunity to dine on delicious cruelty-free cuisine and create awareness about the joys and benefits of a vegan diet. Events included public vegetarian feasts, cooking classes and demonstrations, information tables, exhibits, video screenings, leafleting and other innovative ways to celebrate and get the word out.

Hundreds gathered for meat-free Thanksgivings in Albuquerque, Boston, Chicago, El Paso, Knoxville, Phoenix, Tampa Bay, Washington DC and more! The massive Vegan Holiday Festival took place in Portland, OR, attracting more than 1,000 visitors and dozens of vegan organizations exhibiting and selling goods. Vegetarian restaurants across the country such as Veggie Bite in Chicago, Real Food Daily in locations throughout California, and the Candle Café in New York City set up special Gentle Thanksgiving displays and offered delicious plant-based home-style Thanksgiving dinners. College students coordinated feed-ins and distributed information at Cleveland State University, UCLA, UC Berkeley, Salisbury University, NYC and many more.

Throughout November, activists distributed approximately 6,000 Gentle Thanksgiving handouts, which give fun turkey facts and offer free Vegetarian Starter Kits. The promotion paid off! FARM received 4,200 requests for Gentle Thanksgiving Veg Starter Kits complete with special holiday recipes and information about turkey-alternatives.

Media outreach was a major success this year! Several thousand press releases were sent out to food editors, lifestyle editors, and talk show producers informing the media about Gentle Thanksgiving. FARM wrote a letter to President Bush requesting that he pardon all turkeys this year, rather than just one. Newspaper articles, television features, and radio interviews created much public awareness and promoted free Vegetarian Starter Kits.

Thanksgiving letters were sent to editors of nearly 800 newspapers and our message of compassion was published in 85. Letters to the editor are the second most read section of the newspaper after the front page. They are a most effective vehicle for bringing our message to millions of middle Americans that we don't reach in other ways.

Thanks to each person who opted for a meat-free meal and encouraged others to do the same, many turkeys were spared from the dinner table this Thanksgiving.

Gentle Thanksgiving is a program of FARM (Farm Animal Reform Movement), a non-profit, educational, public interest organization.

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Don’t miss other outreach opportunities! The start of the New Year brings a special occasion to send a caring New Year’s greeting card to your relatives, friends, and coworkers. These colorful cards cite the merits of a vegan diet, offer a free Veg Starter Kit and weekly supportive e-newsletters, and promote the diet as the best New Year’s resolution. Of course, they provide a space for your personal greeting. To request the cards, click here or call 1-800-MEAT-OUT.

This spring, get ready for FARM's upcoming campaign, The Great American Meatout, on March 20th! Join thousands of caring people in all 50 U.S. states and a dozens of other countries to hold informative and educational Meatout events. Events will include colorful ‘lifestivals,” street theater, lectures, public dinners, cooking demos, food samplings, leafleting, information tables called ‘steakouts,’ and a Congressional Reception in Washington, DC. Visit www.Meatout.org for details.