Knowledge is power. Or at least Ricky Baum, an Education junior and co-president of Justice For All, believes so. Justice For All is a small animal rights group on campus that works to spread awareness of animal suffering and the meat industry. They will host a free screening of “Peaceable Kingdom,” a documentary about former farmers and farm rescuers next Wednesday. The film recently received the Ojai Film Festival Theme Award for “enriching the human spirit through film” and is being shown at film festivals around the country. In an interview with PLAY, Baum explains why he’s vegan and why everyone should see this film.
PLAY: What do you want Justice For All to accomplish?
Ricky Baum: Make people aware of how animals are treated by the meat industry, the dairy industry, the fur industry. It goes beyond diet, to fur, leather. Once you learn about the industry, you can’t ignore it. I was raised eating steak and drinking milk. My mom is probably the biggest milk drinker born to man; she drinks milk all the time. That’s normal, that’s how I was raised and how I think most people are raised. Then all of a sudden, you know, you see a clip of where the meat comes from. It’s funny because you can sense it, if you really think about it. Then you see it, if you see the animal and can relate it to the animal and see it as one of God’s creatures, you can’t turn away. The first clip I saw of inside the meat industry, that was the beginning of my transition and led me to where I am now with Justice For All.
PLAY: When did you first become vegan?
RB: After Eric Schlosser, who wrote “Fast Food Nation,” came to school last year. That’s when I saw the clip. There was a group there called Compassion On Wheels, which spells out COW, and that’s when I saw a clip about the meat industry. It’s so funny when you think about being vegan. I know what people think; I’m still going through it. It’s hard to answer that question because I still have leather shoes. If you see a movie there’s gelatin in the film roll, and gelatin has animal bones in it. I mean, that’s extreme. I don’t think I’ll ever stop seeing movies; I just hope they start showing all digital movies. But I feel like what I want to say is, being vegan is a process. I really want to emphasize that it’s a fun process. As you start to clear your life of pain you can really start to sense a difference. I say pain because at the University of Minnesota conference one of the speakers was talking about his wedding and said, “My wedding is going to be vegan because I don’t want dead animals all over the place.” When he said that, it is just a different way of thinking. Something clicks and you no longer see chicken as food, but a corpse. It’s a choice. I started just over a year ago. I started with the awareness.
PLAY: Can you tell me some more about “Peaceable Kingdom?”
RB: It’s about a farm where they actually rescue animals as opposed to killing them. They take care of rescued animals. It shows the difference between that kind of farm, a farm that respects the animals, and a farm that doesn’t respect the animals. They save them, and it’s like a sanctuary; it seems like a sacred place. You can go there; people can go there and feel at peace. There’s no predators there, no prey we’re all just one.
PLAY: What do you want people to get out of the film?
RB: I just want people to see it. There is a group in Chicago that we’re working with, and they’re going to be there. Their basic mission is to just show “Peaceable Kingdom” — it is that good. If you have any questions about vegetarians or vegans, or any problems with vegetarians and vegans promoting that lifestyle, come see this movie. If you feel the same way when you leave … I don’t even see how that’s possible. That is why I want people to see it. But the thing is, one of the hardest things about people is how we will not look at something because we’re afraid of change even if it’s the truth. I would encourage those people that don’t want to see it to come. We want people to understand where we’re coming from.
The screening of “Peaceable Kingdom” will be held May 11 from 7:00-8:30 p.m. in Harris 107. A discussion, with vegan cake and ice cream, will be held after the film.
— Carrie MacQuaid
