“We feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow and when she gives birth we steal her baby, even though her cries of anguish are unmistakable. And then we take her milk that’s intended for the calf and we put it in our coffee and cereal.” the actor said while accepting his best actor award.
Vegan actor Joaquin Phoenix gave a moving speech, centered on animal rights, while accepting his Oscar for best actor during the 92nd Annual Academy Awards on Sunday. Phoenix spoke about issues of intersectional oppression that are present in all social-justice movements and his unique position to use his celebrity platform as a “voice for the voiceless.” Amid applause, Phoenix said, “I think whether we’re talking about gender inequality, or racism, or queer rights, or indigenous rights, or animal rights, we’re talking about the fight against injustice. We’re talking about the fight against the belief that one nation, one people, one race, one gender, or one species has the right to dominate, control, use, and exploit another with impunity.”
Phoenix focused particularly on the dairy industry to highlight that all forms of animal agriculture, not just the meat industry, are inherently cruel. “We’ve become very disconnected from the natural world,” the vegan actor said. “We feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow and when she gives birth we steal her baby, even though her cries of anguish are unmistakable. And then we take her milk that’s intended for her calf and we put it in our coffee and cereal.”
The actor offered solutions to move toward a more equitable world through human innovation. “I think when we use love and compassion as our guiding principles, we can create and develop and implement systems of change that are beneficial to all sentient beings and the environment.” To end his speech, Phoenix shared a lyric written by his late brother, River Phoenix: “Run to the rescue with love—and peace will follow.”
Phoenix focused particularly on the dairy industry to highlight that all forms of animal agriculture, not just the meat industry, are inherently cruel. “We’ve become very disconnected from the natural world,” the vegan actor said. “We feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow and when she gives birth we steal her baby, even though her cries of anguish are unmistakable. And then we take her milk that’s intended for her calf and we put it in our coffee and cereal.”
The actor offered solutions to move toward a more equitable world through human innovation. “I think when we use love and compassion as our guiding principles, we can create and develop and implement systems of change that are beneficial to all sentient beings and the environment.” To end his speech, Phoenix shared a lyric written by his late brother, River Phoenix: “Run to the rescue with love—and peace will follow.”
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