Multi-Part Series of Courage and Compassion on the Street, Part 16, National Animal Rights March 2023 in London, UK

“Let us end the oppression of other animals and march together for justice, respect, and peace!” The National Animal Rights March in London on August 26, 2023, was peaceful, colorful and vibrant. The theme of the march emphasized the pivotal roles of veganism and animal-people rights in discussions among both participants and featured speakers.

Aura Palmer, a 19-year-old vegan activist and artist, has been a vegan since birth. “If I can give one piece of advice to vegans everywhere is to get involved in your local animal rights activist community. Veganism is a moral baseline. We need to be doing more than just eating the plant-based diet. There aren’t enough activists turning up at events.” Mel Broughton (vegan), a British animal-people rights activist, has been dedicated to animal-people rights for decades, participating in numerous campaigns. His most notable achievement is as co-founder of the SPEAK campaign in 2004, aimed at protesting against animal-people testing at Oxford University. “I joined the animal rights movement at the beginning of the 1980s. My message today is to you. Please do not forget the principles this movement was built on.”

Wendy McGovern (vegan) is a British animal-people rights activist and podcaster, host of the Thrive Vegan World podcast, and co-host of The Animal Rights Show. “Humans downplay the individuality, sensitivity, and creativity, and the emotional lives of other animals. And the violations perpetuated against them through our language, through our euphemisms, our metaphors, our stories and even our humor. Our words reflect and perpetuate human supremacy and speciesism and strengthen our oppressive practices.” “Advocates and activists, this is a call to action. Through our activism including our language, let’s disrupt the norms of this human supremacy and break the trance of speciesism. Let us strive for equality for all our fellow animals regardless of the bodies they are born into.”