Building a Pro-Animal Future Getting the Public to Care about Animals: Episode 2
Sep 24, 2025
Dive into the fascinating world of animal activism! Eva Hamer shares her journey from grassroots efforts to launching Pax Fauna during the pandemic. Discover how survey contradictions reveal the public's mixed feelings about animal welfare and the surprising power of framing in discussions. Learn about effective messaging strategies that balance facts and emotions to inspire change, and why portraying food-system transformation as an evolution can spark hope. Plus, uncover the most persuasive arguments that resonate with everyday people!
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Journey From Concern To Direct Action
- Eva describes joining DXE after feeling alienated at a Thanksgiving with many animal bodies on the table.
- She moved into organizing and later worked for DXE full-time in Berkeley before noticing stagnation.
Growth Often Outpaces Organizational Capacity
- Initial explosive growth in activist networks often fizzled into stagnation due to conflict and disillusionment.
- Rapid expansion without organizational readiness led to membership waning across groups like DXE and Anonymous for the Voiceless.
Consumer Frame Blocks Systemic Messages
- Pivoting messaging from individual diet change to systemic change failed because audiences still mentally framed food as a personal consumer choice.
- Changing banners to 'animal liberation' didn't overcome the consumer frame that frames food as individual choice.