ARC Volunteer meetings are held every Wednesday from 7-8pm at our
office at 317 W. 48th St. in south Minneapolis. Everyone is welcome -
you don't need to be an ARC member to attend.
ARC
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Chicken
Run Rescue
End Pound
Seizure Minnesota
Ethique Nouveau
HumaneMyth.org
Minneapolis
Vegan Meetup
Rhymes With
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If an animal's life is in immediate danger, please call 911. Read this
section for more information.
If you can no longer keep your companion animal and need to find a home
for him or her, please read the information in this section.
Mission
Statement and Core Value
The Animal Rights Coalition is dedicated to
ending the suffering, abuse, and exploitation of non-human animals through
information, education, and advocacy. We believe that animals matter for
their own reasons and that they should not be used by human beings for
profit, pleasure, amusement, or simply because it is our habit to do so.
Read our Core Values here.
The Past ... and
the Future
The Animal Rights Coalition is the oldest and most successful animal
rights organization in Minnesota, with over a quarter century of helping
animals. ARC was founded in 1980 and formally incorporated in 1981. ARC's
membership has grown significantly over the years and it is a locally
and nationally recognized voice for animal rights.
Some highlights of past campaigns include stopping the University of Minnesota Medical School from using live dogs in cardiology laboratory exercises, persuading the Animal Humane Society to discontinue using a gas chamber for euthanasia, successfully suing the University of Minnesota for access to records concerning the use of animals in research, persuading several local school districts to recognize students’ rights to non-animal alternatives to dissection, breaking the story that caused the Make-A-Wish Foundation to ban hunting trips as part of its program, providing information to local news media which formed the basis of a televised undercover investigation about companion animals stolen for research and the dog auctions that sell these animals, persuading a nationally known annual conference on spirituality to serve only vegetarian meals, and funding the first mobile spay/neuter unit in Minnesota devoted to spaying/neutering of feral cat colonies. For first-person accounts of the early history of animal rights in our community, read ARC History and History of an Activist
In its third decade ARC is focusing on spreading the word about compassionate living. We believe we can continue to achieve our goals through practicing non-violence and compassion for all (including the human animal) and that positive change comes about from connection, communication, and education. Our current programs include:
Community Outreach activities range from booths at large events and professional conferences such as the Twin Cities Pet Expo, May Day Festival, GLBT Pride Festival, Education Minnesota Professional Conference, and Twin Cities Book Festival, to staffing booths at First Avenue concerts, to leafletting at events such as the American Veterinary Medical Association national conference, to helping the hundreds of individuals who call or email us for assistance with animal issues.
Cuddle Coats educates the public about fur and encourages people to donate fur coats to aid orphaned baby wildlife in their recovery at Wildlife Rehabilitation and Release.
Dissection Choice provides information and assistance to students who choose not to dissect and provides information on alternatives to local high schools and colleges (over 50 so far!).
Grillin' Without Killin' BBQ Kits help you introduce family and friends to delicious plant-based foods. We've put together everything you need to encourage people to try vegan cuisine in a relaxed, informal atmosphere. Kits include postcard invitations, a suggested menu, vouchers for free products, coupons for products for guests, information to share with guests, and much more.
Humane Farming Myth challenges the myth of "humanely" produced animal products and is a compelling resource to share with family and friends. We've received requests from all over the country for large quantities of this brochure, most recently from the organizers of a national bus tour promoting the sustainability of a plant-based diet (don't worry - the bus runs on waste vegetable oil).
Rhymes With Vegan, the online cooking show hosted by local chef Meagan Holtgrewe, introduces viewers to the delights of compassionate eating (up to over 600 web site hits in one day!).
Teaching Compassion workshops help kids develop compassion and empathy while empowering them to take action for animals themselves. With presentations at schools, community events, and camps this program has met with glowing reviews from kids, parents, and teachers.
Twin Cities Vegan Drinks is a monthly social networking event for people interested in veganism and animal rights. Vegan Drinks' mission is to bring together a diverse group of people to build new coalitions and promote the sharing of resources.
VegKins is a unique social networking program for families raising
vegetarian/vegan children. This program offers the opportunity to come
together to exchange ideas and information with other parents and build
a community of parents raising compassionate kids.
ARC Speaker Series
The ARC Speaker Series regularly brings in nationally known speakers such
as Dr. Michael Fox, Harold "Farmer" Brown, Karen Davis, pattrice
jones, and Will Potter.
Book Signings
ARC hosts book signings with authors such as Peter Young, pattrice jones,
Hillary Rettig, Karen Dawn, Gene Baur, Tom Regan, Gary Francione, Dr.
Michael Fox, Dr. Andrew Linzey. Dr. Neal Barnard, and many others.
501(c)(3) Status
The Animal Rights Coalition is a 501(c)(3) non-profit tax-exempt organization.
Donations to ARC are tax deductible.
Meet Dallas Rising:
ARC's Program Director
Dallas pictured with her husband, Brandon,
and dog, Max
Chances are, if you’re involved in the Twin Cities’ animal rights and rescue communities, you recognize her dedicated and hard-working face. Dallas is the Program Director for ARC, and we're thrilled to have her with us! “It’s more than a job to me,” Dallas said. “It’s a calling.”
Dallas went vegetarian in the 4th grade, after she made the connection that eating animals meant they were being killed. By 15, she had dropped the cheese and dairy products too, and become a vegan. In high school, she started an animal rights group that worked to get veggie burgers in the lunchroom and vivisection out of the classroom.
Dallas has been active in many local and national animal groups and in addition to ARC, she currently volunteers for Small Dog Rescue, Friends of Kevin Kjonass, and Support Vegans in the Prison System.
A big part of her decision to work for ARC was her belief in animal abolitionism, rather than animal welfarism. As an abolitionist, it was vitally important to work for an abolitionist organization, like ARC, whose values regarding animals, are in line with hers. She explains: “I am of the belief that it is critical that we not compromise our values as animal rights activists in the name of a short term "victory" for the animals.
Running campaigns based on getting universities or restaurants to go cage-free, for example, is a hot trend in our movement right now. But in the end, I think it is wrong to give the impression that cage-free eggs or meat labeled "free range," are okay to purchase and eat. Whether directly or indirectly, any promotion or endorsement of this "happy meat" is not only a betrayal to the animals (who are still kept in horrible conditions, transported in the same way that most farmed animals are, and end up being slaughtered in the same brutal, violent ways that all farmed animals are), but also to consumers who are concerned about the way farmed animals are treated. We cheat both parties when we stop short of advocating for anything other than veganism.”
Dallas is also aware of the divide these different philosophies are causing in the animal rights community: “This [abolitionism] is not a very popular attitude to have right now in our movement's history. It took me a while to get over feeling like the bad guy for "raining on a cage-free parade,” but I am unwilling to compromise my values in the name of a short-term gain. I would rather march forward toward total liberation, no matter how slowly, than to perpetuate the myth that any animal products can be produced in a humane way. They cannot. Period.”
Dallas tries to make it as easy as possible for people to get involved in animal issues, be active, and feel satisfied with their involvement. She focuses much of her work with ARC on educating and involving young people. She firmly believes that if young people are given the opportunity and education to make the connection that eating animals means killing them, they will make the choice not to eat them. “Kids are naturally compassionate.”
Dallas understands the huge challenges in our culture when it comes to educating people about compassion toward animals. But she also has great hope. “We are pulled in to being complacent and unconscious. But, if you think about who you really want to be, most people don’t want to be contributing to cruelty.”
For Dallas, the best way to get the animal rights message across is to ask people if they really want to know. “If they say yes, then they will listen.” She favors a more relaxed approach to animal rights education, and feels it is extremely important to be approachable and available for people.