Tom is an internationally acclaimed artist, published author, and social justice activist. He is an expert and consultant on animal liberation history and strategy, and the global animal rights movement. His first book, Your Neighbour Kills Puppies was released in March 2024. The book is the previously untold story of one of the world’s most powerful social justice campaigns, Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC). Tom became involved in the animal liberation movement at the age of fifteen when he attended his first hunt sab. Over the years that followed he devoted his life to helping animals and co-founded one of the UK`s most successful regional animal rights organizations, SARC (The Southern Animal Rights Coalition). Tom is a regular contributor to Forca Vegan magazine, and other periodicals. Under the professional name ‘Tattoo Tom‘, Tom has also achieved a highly successful and acclaimed career as an artist.
In Sentientist Conversations we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “who matters?”
Sentientism is "evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings." The video of our conversation is here on YouTube.
00:00 Clips!
00:49 Welcome
- Nicola Harris and Anita Krajnc episode @PlantBasedTreaty
03:18 Tom's Intro
- 20 years in the #animalliberation movement
- Founding the Southern Animal Rights Coalition
- Closing a military research facility, a puppy farm, several chicken units
- Getting fur and foie gras out of shops
- #SHAC (Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty) co-ordinators "the largest and most dynamic grass-roots animal liberation campaign"
- "The model we came up with was so effective... that the American and British governments were both really terrified... while I don't think any of us necessarily set out to create a blueprint that could end capitalism... I think we probably came dangerously close"
- "The government in the UK essentially framed us and set us up on bogus blackmail charges... I received a 5 year prison sentence for... a lawful campaign... I served 2 years."
- 3 years on bail before-hand and 2.5 years on license afterwards with a tag "which was probably the toughest bit... I wasn't allowed to talk to my brother... a constant threat that they were going to send me back to prison."
- Since release, finding a very different animal liberation world
- Lord Sainsbury's intention "to eliminate the anti-vivisection movement... he succeeded for a good decade"
- "The movement I knew didn't exist... new groups like the Save Movement, Animal Rebellion, DxE... started forming"
- Taking up tattoo artistry because "I was essentially banned from talking to any other activist... any other vegan... all of my friends I wasn't allowed to talk to them"
- "Stabbing people for money" :)
10:10 What's Real?
- "I actually dropped out of a philosophy degree to do more animal rights activism"
- Growing up in a non-religious family, probably atheists
- Christian grandparents "it was good for them... I saw the positives"
- Cartographer dad, psychologist mum, quite analytical / logical focus
- "I didn't learn when to stop following that logical path"
- "I was raised to be kind to animals and respect nature... to value life"
26:13 What and Who Matters?
01:04:53 A Better Future?
01:45:00 Follow Tom
TomHarris.me
Shacjustice.com
@Tattoo_tom
...and much more. Full show notes at Sentientism.info.
Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” More at Sentientism.info. Join our "I'm a Sentientist" wall via this simple form.
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--- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/sentientism/messageConsciousness Live! - with skateboarding philosopher Richard Brown - Sentientism 195
A Truly Humane Education - Laura Chepner - The Vegan Society's Education Officer - Sentientism Ep:194
Imagining Ethical Schools - Sentientism 193
Is Veganic the Future of Farming? "We grow plants using plants" - Jimmy Videle - Sentientism Ep:192
Half-Earth Socialism - Troy Vettese - Sentientism Ep:191
"A new world of animal justice" - Sabine Brels of World Animal Justice - Sentientism 189
Talking to Humanists about Sentientism - Cross-post bonus from Podcast for Inquiry - Sentientism 188
"What if we saw ourselves as species diplomats?" - David Peña-Guzmán of Overthink and SFSU - Sentientism 187
Could animal farming be good for the animals? The Logic of the Larder - with Nick Pendergrast - Cross-post bonus episode from 3CR's Freedom of Species radio show and podcast - Sentientism 186
"If you combine rationality and compassion you have the essence" - Jonathan Leighton of OPIS - Sentientism 185
Is veganism a moral obligation? Ghostless Machine cross-post bonus - Sentientism 184
Don't underestimate your influence! - Chris Bryant of Bryant Research - Sentientism 183
160: "Mother Cow, Mother India" - Yamini Narayanan - International Development A/Prof - Sentientism
Waking Cosmos - a cross-post bonus episode - Sentientism 182
Christof Koch & IIT - "Consciousness is not a computation... it's a state of being" - Sentientism 181
S-Risks with Tobias Baumann - "Avoiding the Worst... a moral catastrophe" - Sentientism 180
Melanie Joy - "How to End Injustice Everywhere" - Sentientism 179
178: "A commitment to solidarity and a stubborn commitment to hope" - Defending Animals Author - Kendra Coulter - Sentientism
177: "Vegan Reflections" on animals and systems - with Jordi Casamitjana from Vegan FTA - a cross-post bonus episode
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