Assemblywoman Loretta Weinberg Speech

Delivered from the front steps of the New Jersey state capitol during Farm Sanctuary's Rally Against Factory Farming in Trenton, New Jersey on April 8, 2002

Marian Wright Edelman once said, "If you don't like the way the world is, you change it." Well, that's exactly what we're doing today. We are beginning to change the way our country establishes quality standards for veal calf animal farming.

You would be hard-pressed to find a single person, aside from someone in the veal industry, who is not shocked and repulsed by the way calves are raised.

I have received numerous letters from members of the veal industry warning that, if my legislation is passed into law, the health and well-being of calves will be "seriously jeopardized". We know better. We know the truth. How is tethering healthy for calves? How is chaining them by the neck good for their well-being? How does restricting their movement keep them relaxed? How are these, as they claim, quality standards?

All this bill requires is that people raising calves for the production of veal must do so in a humane way. And that's the truth.

What are we teaching our children? We place a lot of emphasis on violence in entertainment. But we never stop to think how our treatment of animals influences children. We teach our children to respect others. Yet we treat animals as if they are inanimate objects. Make no mistake about it. This contradiction between what we teach and what we do is not lost on our children.

I need everyone here today to contact their state legislators and tell them to support A-1948. We can't let the veal industry be he only voice lawmakers hear. They need to also hear from you.

They need to hear calves are immediately removed from their mothers after birth. They need to hear calves are fed liquid diets. They need to hear calves are confined in crates measuring only two feet wide. They need to hear calves are chained by the neck so they can't move. They need to hear that more than 20 restaurants in New Jersey have pledged not to serve veal because of the way calves are raised. They need to hear the truth.

So let's listen to Marian Wright Edelman and continue changing the world - just one step at a time.