Bruins for Animals Giving School an Education in Compassion
For Immediate Release:
December 16, 2011
Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382
Los Angeles -- For teaching fellow students and faculty members a valuable lesson in showing kindness to animals, the University of California–Los Angeles (UCLA) student group Bruins for Animals (BFA) has just been named as a finalist for a Libby Award for Most Animal-Friendly Student Group by peta2, PETA's youth division. The sixth annual Libby Awards ("Libby" is for "liberation") honor animal-friendly people and products. Visitors to peta2.com/Libbys can vote for their favorites in each category, and peta2 will choose the winners.
"Universities are all about learning, and Bruins for Animals is making sure that everyone on campus learns the importance of treating animals with respect," says peta2 Division Manager Marta Holmberg. "Student groups are on the cutting edge of animal rights, and BFA is among the leaders of the pack."
BFA has organized numerous on-campus events with high-profile speakers, such as The Kind Diet author, Alicia Silverstone, and Skinny Bitch coauthor Rory Freedman. The group also hosted peta2's controversial Liberation Project exhibit, which draws parallels between past moral travesties—such as slavery—and the suffering that animals face today. BFA worked with peta2 to gather more than 1,500 petition signatures from students in support of additional vegan options in campus dining halls, and the group hosted peta2's Take Action Conference, which featured a special acoustic performance of "Free Me" by Goldfinger lead singer John Feldmann.
Twenty-nine Libby Awards will be given out this year, recognizing everything from the most vegan-friendly restaurant chain to the best cruelty-free cosmetics company to peta2's favorite animal-friendly celebrity. Each winner will receive a framed certificate and be featured on peta2.com.
For more information about all the nominees, please visit peta2.com/Libbys.
Voting ends on December 23, and the winners will be announced on January 17. The winners will be chosen by peta2 based on equal consideration of three factors: the number of votes received, the quality of the animal-friendly product or the nominees' enthusiasm for being animal-friendly, and feedback from the nominees' fans.