One recent afternoon I was finishing Charles Patterson's book "Eternal Treblinka: Our Treatment of Animals and the Holocaust" when I came across an eye-catching chapter. But it wasn't the title: "Hitler's Baby," which caught my eye. It was the name immediately following it: Liesel Appel. Liesel Appel? Where had I heard that name before? I thought I remembered the name from Facebook, of all places. Sure enough, when I checked my Facebook buddies, there was Liesel Appel. But wait... Hitler's Baby? I quickly read through Liesel's chapter and immediately sent her a message inviting her to do an interview. It turns out that was a wise decision.

Liesel and I met when the animal rights activist and attorney Wayne Hsiung, who I co-produce a YouTube channel with, was on trial in North Carolina for rescuing a sick goat. I don't recall us having an actual conversation, though. I'm pretty sure if we had, I would have remembered it, because there is something about the way Liesel speaks that commands attention. She is kind, soft-spoken and unassuming, but there seems to be poignancy behind every word she utters. At least that is my experience during this conversation. When I invited her to be on my channel, she also informed me she had written several books, including an autobiography. I ordered it and was floored by the richness and depth of Liesel's story.

I was deeply, deeply honored to speak with Liesel for this channel, and if you listen to the contents of the interview, you will understand why. The story she tells is utterly spellbinding and, in fact, we barely scratched the surface. For that reason, Liesel and I intend to continue the conversation, so stay tuned for part 2! This conversation is also available on YouTube here.

Liesel's memoir "The Neighbor's Son"

"Eternal Treblinka" by Charles Patterson

Earthlings Documentary

Earthlings" is the film which first linked for me the concepts examined in "Eternal Treblinka" and is the reason I went vegan. Vegan Linked did an outstanding video profile of Liesel.

YouTube video of this conversation. Upon my arrival in Berkeley, California for my first look into Direct Action Everywhere's press operation, one of the first people to greet me was Michelle Del Cueto. DxE's international coordinator and I were easy friends. She, along with DxE's press coordinator at the time, Matt Johnson, were my two steady companions during that first visit. And despite several years of friendship, I had never really gotten Michelle's personal story.

What I knew about Michelle before was her bravery and dedication to animal rights. I knew her to be outspoken and unwavering in the face of injustice. I knew she also is the person behind the lens of some of the most iconic photos and videos in DxE's history. I knew that if you drive a car after she's been in it to turn the radio down as fast as you can, lest you lose your hearing. But what I learned about her during this conversation, especially her background in Mexico City, only makes me admire her all the more. Michelle is a genuine badass.

This video is also available as a podcast, wherever you download them.

Register for the convergence

The Yes on J website

Right to Rescue website

DxE's website

Michelle's IG

DxE's IG

DxE's X/Twitter

DxE's FB

DxE's YouTube

Punk Rock Vegan Movie

Dominion Documentary

Earthlings Documentary

Just as Hunter S. Thompson put it in his seminal 1970 article about the Kentucky Derby, sled dog racing is decadent and depraved. Decadent: characterized by or reflecting a state of moral or cultural decline. Depraved: morally corrupt; wicked. (Oxford Languages) So apt is this title that the whistleblower describing to me in vivid detail the deplorable treatment of dogs he witnessed during his time working for a musher characterized these conditions as "above average" in the industry. Yet, he still felt the need to alert the authorities to what he saw. Mac Thompson recalls his time in the sled dog industry in Minnesota and his time working in a roadside zoo in South Carolina. I sincerely thank Mac for shedding light on this often-overlooked example of mankind's arrogant, speciesist attitude towards our fellow creatures. Such a sorry excuse for entertainment, a practice future humans will look back on with utter contempt.

This conversation on YouTube. Links: Sled Dogs 2016 film (free with ads) Sled Dogs film trailer YouTube playlist on sled dog industry Whistler Sled Dog Massacre Humanemushing.org Mac Thompson's YouTube Dominion Documentary Earthlings Documentary

Almira Tanner is someone who makes me optimistic that we will achieve animal liberation. Almira is the lead organizer of the global animal rights organization Direct Action Everywhere (DxE), a role she's occupied for around five years. I feel deeply honored to have been able to work alongside her on several occasions, and I personally witnessed how dedicated and hardworking she is. I witnessed Almira working deep into the night, after days of countless meetings, activism events, and signature gathering for a ballot measure in Sonoma County, a person leading by example. Almira has many strengths (organizational skills being one of the more obvious) but what really makes her an impressive leader is her ability to keep focus during tumultuous events. Whether it's facing felonies, answering to cascades of animal industry disinformation, dealing with internal disputes, or simply managing a day-to-day schedule that makes me pale in the face, I have seen Almira as a steady hand with a unique ability to navigate all of this and still make DxE into one of the most potent vehicles of change for animals. It is my humble opinion that DxE is in great hands with Almira Tanner. In this conversation, I find out more about Almira's backstory, how a woman from Canada found herself at the helm of a grassroots animal rights juggernaut that has so disrupted industry and authorities for its ability to draw media attention and pressure the entire structure of the animal exploitation industry, and most notably the broken legal system that, instead of regulating it, is propping it up. I ask Almira about how she has handled the many controversies she's had to address at DxE, and what keeps her going through it all.

YouTube video of this conversation. Almira mostly wants people to know about the convergence to end factory farming in Sonoma County, CA. The first link below is a link to register to join that effort on August 23-27 in Petaluma. Register for the convergence The Yes on J website Right to Rescue website DxE's website Almira's IG Almira's X/Twitter Almira's Facebook DxE's IG DxE's X/Twitter DxE's FB DxE's YouTube Dominion Documentary Earthlings Documentary

I was a subscriber to Daynesh's YouTube channel long before I reached out to him for support for the Ridglan beagle rescue trial. And when I did, I already felt like he was an old buddy of mine. That's the strength of Daynesh. He has a powerfully relatable approach to vegan activism that just makes you feel like you've known the guy for years. But not only is he friendly and humble, he's also very talented at making videos and put together one of the best explainer videos about the Ridglan trial for us. I was thrilled to have Daynesh on my channel and get a chance to learn more about who he is as a person. So how did Daynesh go from one of the most respected universities to a corporate world position to leaving all that behind and focusing his attention on the animals? You'll just have to listen. Or watch the video on my YouTube channel.

Links:

Daynesh's YouTube

Daynesh's IG

Ridglan trial explainer

Daynesh's wedding video

Daynesh recommends Vegan Power Lab

It's funny, we talked about the show Hot Ones and how we'd go on there if we could and recommend the vegan wings. Since we did that interview, F1 driver Lewis Hamilton did just that

As always:

Dominion Documentary

Earthlings Documentary

I joined the worst sex cult ever, and chose his birthday to interrogate him and finally bring him down. It took years, but I finally got him. In all seriousness, Wayne Hsiung is actually the co-founder of animal rights groups Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) and The Simple Heart Initiative. He doesn't run a sex cult, as some people would choose to believe. Or if he does, I wasn't invited to that (sigh). What we do instead is try to help animals, and few people I have met have done more for animals than Wayne Hsiung. We co-produce, along with other talented members of his team, his new YouTube channel, and I'm thrilled to have him on my channel. About an hour before we were to have this conversation, I learned it was Wayne's birthday, so I rushed out to get him a vegan cupcake (which I ate, lol). Wayne's a dear friend, and I hope you'll enjoy the conversation as much as I did. Happy birthday, Wayne. You're an inspiration.

Justin Jacobs, Debug Your Brain on YouTube, makes outreach videos that are useful not just for the casual viewer, but for activists as well. He often describes in text what he's doing, or attempting to do during outreach, and why. Justin gets a lot of bang for his buck during outreach. A simple conversation with a passerby can turn into a useful tool for activists and the public in general. And I love to see someone being so analytical and strategic with their outreach and their content. Even when we roleplayed an outreach conversation and I wanted to stump him, he neutralized even me pretending to be difficult by asking such methodical questions that it was impossible to do anything but follow his logical reasoning to its ultimate conclusion: veganism. Justin's not only a great activist but a genuine, kind person. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did.

Activists notched a huge win over the fur industry this week when Marc Jacobs announced he was dropping fur after weeks of relentless pressure from Animal Activism Mentorship (AAM) and the Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade (CAFT). I mark the occasion with some foxy co-hosts. I also joined a long list of activists from Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) disrupting a celebrity chef on his book tour.