3 Mistakes I Made As An Activist

Lessons I Learned The Hard Way As An Animal Rights Protestor

Photo by Chuko Cribb on Unsplash

These days, I do most of my campaigning online, spreading the vegan message and educating people about animal right issues via social media — mainly Twitter and this outstandingly fine platform you’re on now.

But it wasn’t always that way. In my twenties, my activism was a lot more… well, active. Most weeks throughout the year, I’d be out in the fields, fells and riverbanks trying to stop hunters, shooters or anglers from murdering wildlife. In between times, I’d be organising or taking part in demonstrations against vivisectors, animal breeders or the meat/dairy industry and during the summer months we’d spend many weeks picketing circuses who still abused wild animals as a public attraction.

I learned a lot during those years — about campaigning, about animal abuse and about the law. But three particular lessons come to mind which I felt might be worth sharing.

Lesson One — Never Trust The Police

This is a lesson I learned very quickly. I remember the very first Hunt Saboteurs’ meeting I attended, in which the group leader announced, “Any respect you currently have for the police is going to evaporate very quickly once you get out in the field.”