A BeaconThrough the Smog

at last, i am not alone. although i wasted 2 precious hours at a review lecture for my biomedical ethics midterm which i took today, and which i could have been more effectively preparing for had i not attended the worst review session i've ever experienced, my lost hope of finding a significant number of people with humane hearts in this university was finally revived during the walk to class in the form of a demonstration being conducted on bruinwalk reminiscent of the peta style i'm so accostomed to hearing about. a person in a chicken suit, another in a cow outfit sitting inside a large dog cage, a table complete with video footage of the atrocities of factory farming, vegan baked goods, and pamphlets, fliers, and stickers galore, and energetic students handing out "YES! on prop 2" information - i could have easily mistaken this beauty for a mirage.

as class was soon about to begin, i made a mental note to speak to these people later on my way back to the dorms. i wish i had walked through the area while the activists were spray painting t-shirts with catchy graphics promoting prop 2, or while their game for a chance to win a shirt or vegan treats was ongoing, but i did catch them in time to ask what i can do to help, right before my hands were filled with a stack of fliers to distribute, a bumper sticker (it's on my tote since i don't have a car), and a bright yellow paper with a picture of those girls hugging ginormous squishy adorable pigs and the directive i needed to enliven my mundane college experience.

on thursday i attended my first meeting of my newfound love, the club Bruins for Animals. the chilly, slightly intimidating room decorated with nothing but a white board and 4 tables arranged to create one large meeting area quickly warmed up with the welcoming attitudes of club members, ranging from the administrative third years including kelleigh (a blonde white girl with far better cause to apply her intellect and compassion to than any other i have seen here), a semi-newcomer named payal who had only been to a couple meetings last year when not even 5 people showed up at a time, a phd student (the only male present haha), our community liaison zoe, other eager first-years like myself, and a mix of girls in-between sharing our love for animals and passion for improving their lives. surprisingly the ice-breaker at the beginning of the meeting did not strike me as a humiliating waste of time as most do, but instead gave me something to talk about that every one of us could relate to, specifically, our wacky pet names.

as the agenda progressed, we discussed reactions to and critiques or commendations of the event i witnessed the day before, and future events in the planning stage like a thanksgiving activity to communicate the dire plight of turkeys murdered by the masses during the holiday season, and upcoming movie screenings of films that appeal to the conscience and graphically document the reality behind human use of animals for entertainment, food, clothing, pets, and labor, as well as lighthearted cinema for any fan of animals. listening in wonder at the enthusiasm and creativity of my fellow BFA members, i felt confident that i had found some true angels in los angeles who would not mock my moral principles and who could help guide me in my personal mission of helping animals in a place where almost no one seems to care.

one of my "friends" from biomedical ethics, a taiwanese international student who attempts to talk and walk with me far too often for my comfort, blatanly responded to my polite request for him to take a few fliers to spread the word on prop 2, "in my home country no one really cares about animals. we have more important things to think about, like national security with china nearby. animals don't matter." suffice to say, i deleted him that day from my facebook friends and will no longer be granting him a casual uninterested smile nor will i be allowing him the privilege of my speaking to him as if i give a damn what he thinks.

barely grazing the better side of timing deadlines again, i reserved a club t-shirt at the end of the meeting on the last day orders were being taken. spending my measly college student funds on clothing with meaning more than makes up for restraining myself from purchasing another UCLA sweatshirt on sale in my size or a pink hollister sweater that would look fabulous on me but can probably be found on multitudes of other girls i'll walk past this winter season.

you may think i needlessly inundated a blog with superfluousnesses describing every aspect so far of this one change in my daily bleak outlook on bruin status, as opposed to a post detailing multiple newfound things to do in kari-style, but when i find something to fully appreciate about people in this school, i cannot take for granted any opportunity to indulge myself in it.

loving BFA,
Juli