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Animal Rights Activist Being Sent to Jail: “The Animals Have it Far Worse.”

June 8, 2015 by Leave a Comment


The News

Amber Canavan is spending the month of July in jail. Her crime? Entering a foie gras facility, where tens of thousands of ducks are intensively confined and force fed through metal pipes, and rescuing two of them.

Amber Canavan entered Hudson Valley Foie Gras to document and expose the cruelty

Amber Canavan entered Hudson Valley Foie Gras to document and expose the cruelty

“We still live in a world where people who commit the abuses are victims and those who expose them are criminals,” said Ms. Canavan. “I don’t want to go to jail, but my time there will be a cakewalk compared to what animals are forced to endure in foie gras factories.”

Ducks cower in fear at the side of their cage at Hudson Valley Foie Gras (photo: still shot from footage taken by Amber Canavan)

Ducks cower in fear at the side of their cage at Hudson Valley Foie Gras (photo: still shot from footage taken by Amber Canavan)

In 2011, Ms. Canavan and another activist whose identity she has protected paid a late night visit to Hudson Valley Foie Gras in upstate New York, the largest foie gras producer in the United States. While there, she documented the “deplorable” conditions in which the ducks are kept. The footage she captured was used in a foie gras exposé produced by the Animal Protection and Rescue League and narrated by actress Wendy Malick.

In February, the NY Times published a lengthy story about the incident, which linked to the video and informed readers about the “force feeding” required to produce this “controversial” dish. “I take comfort in the fact the NY Times article and the footage that I took have helped to expose the atrocities being committed against these animals,” said Ms. Canavan.

Excerpt from NY Times story about Amber Canavan and Hudson Valley Foie Gras

Excerpt from NY Times story about Amber Canavan and Hudson Valley Foie Gras

After several weeks of intensive care, the two ducks rescued by Ms. Canavan recovered from their injuries and are “flourishing” at a sanctuary, where they have access to fresh air, proper care and water for swimming. Ducks and geese are aquatic animals, but they have no access to water in foie gras factories.

Ducks are aquatic animals but have no access to water in foie gras factories. These two ducks were rescued by Amber Canavan.

Ducks are aquatic animals, but they have no access to water at Hudson Valley Foie Gras and other foie gras producers. These two were rescued by Amber Canavan.

The campaign to expose foie gras cruelty and hold restaurants that serve it accountable has intensified in recent years. Since 2014, activists in the U.K. with Hertfordshire Animal Rights and London Vegan Actions (LVA) have compelled at least 10 restaurants to stop selling foie gras. In recent months, LVA has staged provocative disruptions inside of establishments that refuse to remove the “delicacy of despair” from the menu.

Amber Canavan will complete her jail term at the end of July, but her punishment won’t stop there. For the next five years, an order of protection – a penalty intended to protect victims of stalkers or domestic violence – will prevent her from campaigning against Hudson Valley Foie Gras. Ms. Canavan hopes that the court’s breach of her civil liberties and “heavy-handed” jail sentence backfire by triggering activists to convince as many restaurants as possible to drop foie gras.

Your Turn

Amber sacrificed her safety, freedom and financial security to expose the plight of animals exploited and killed for foie gras. Now, she needs help. Please make a tax deductible donation to her legal defense fund.



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TheirTurn.net Comments

  1. J says:

    It people need to eat animals to survive, and be health , emotional and physical. A duck can never feel as much pain as a human being

  2. “Not to hurt our humble brethren is our first duty to them but to stop there is not enough. We have a higher mission, to be of service to them wherever they require it.” St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226)

    “Compassion with love and tolerance, watching over all who are so innocent and vulnerable makes us human. Give with your whole heart as it is a joy and a blessing. As guardians we love, cherish and protect all that is life, precious life.” Emmie Nelson

  3. Rea Shaw says:

    My heartfelt love and support goes to Amber Canavan! I support what you did 1000%. Just because the laws of man violate what is morally and intuitively right, does NOT mean we must follow them. I fully support breaking the law passed meat eaters whenever it violates an animal’s right to live without suffering. Jail is a terrible price to pay, but lift your head high because any suffering you experience in jail is nothing compared to what the ducks must suffer each and every day of their short existence.

  4. jearhan uding says:

    God gave is the animals for consumption but he did not give us the right to subject these animals to maltreatment. That is why we have HALAL food as muslims. Subjecting these animals to such cruelty is INHUMANE. People doing these should also be treated INHUMANELY.

  5. James Shaffer says:

    Poor ducks and a poor activist. Life is unjust and it looks like some people have hearts made of stone. I have never thought of animal rights movement before I came across this post of sample research paper http://place4papers.com/samples/animal-rights-research-paper that contains tons of useful info.

  6. Ji youn Kim says:

    Suppliers
    we should protect ducks from that action. That is very babarian action. We are not babarians any more. People who will eat foigras should think of the feeling and emotion of ducks. They feel like human do. People who like to spend th e meat must stop their eating and be mature human

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  8. Jo Ardell says:

    Amber is not, a criminal. She cares, for Animals, and
    the suffering, of Animals. It is the laws, which protect the abusers of Animals, that is wrong.

  9. Janice Wilson says:

    You’re my hero, Amber. Thank you for your dedication to this and all the other issues of totally unnecessary terror and pain for truly countless animals. You are an inspiration and we in the animal advocacy community are proud of your tenacity and courage. Kudos to you.

  10. beth riso says:

    Ms. Canavan is a hero. She should be put on a pedestal, not put in jail!!!!

  11. Thank you TheirTurn for sharing this story. http://www.upc-online.org/ducks

    “We still live in a world where people who commit the abuses are victims and those who expose them are criminals,” said Ms. Canavan. “I don’t want to go to jail, but my time there will be a cakewalk compared to what animals are forced to endure in foie gras factories.”

Comments are closed.