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WORCESTER TIMES Emily The Emissary of Compassion She was a cow before her time By Steven Baer It must have taken all she had – she must have been clearly aware of the fact that “it was now or never.” Emily bolted from the killing floor, and with her 1,600-pound physique focused upon survival, the former dairy cow jumped a 5-foot high gate and escaped into the two foot deep snowy woods. The jump and escape were tantamount to you as a dark haired political prisoner passing armed guards and security fences, and then negotiating your way through a country of light haired people with whom you have a language barrier. Emily eluded police, slaughterhouse workers and animal control officers for 40 days and 40 nights.
It was amid the chaos of this assaultive violence that Emily decided she had seen, heard, and smelled enough to know that this was the type of treatment she did not want to experience. In a traditional “fight or flight” decision, Emily concluded that it was not in her best interest to pursue an aggressive, non-cooperative demeanor, so she optioned for flight. And fly she did. Emily was minutes away from becoming another nameless, faceless casualty in the line of violent attacks and deaths at a Massachusetts slaughterhouse when she made her leap on November 14, 1995. By jumping the 5-foot gate at the slaughterhouse, Emily bound her way to freedom. She escaped from the sounds, perhaps the farewell pleas, of the other cows she may have known, who were calling out in fearful agony. Perhaps the connection between the smells of torn flesh, nervous sweat, and the feeling of anxiety as desperate calls from cows turned silent motivated her to search for an exit and flee. Over a 5 foot gate leading out of the building Emily dove, and into the woods of a suburban area. What happened next is remarkable. Emily needed to learn how to survive – and quickly. Winter was already upon New England. There was an early frost that November. On the farm, cows are given hay; there is little need to forage. On Factory farms, cows aren’t allowed to forage, it takes too much effort to move the cows, or what businessmen refer to as “the milking units” into the barn to be milked. She probably only knew a life of being portioned food by an agribusiness farmer. Being able to find her own food in the snow and cold was required now for her survival. Compounding her poor chances of survival were the people from the slaughterhouse who were looking for her, and there were town officials looking for her, and there were opportunists who wanted her for reward money or worse…. for her body parts. But there were also friends. People who would set out food for her, and people who were searching for her to protect her from our violent society… a society so ingrained with abusive and harmful thoughts about animals that they felt justified in their unflinching belief that a cow has no right to exist except as a vehicle for the next glass of milk, or the next burger at a fast food joint… billions and billions sold - on the idea that killing innocent life is acceptable, millions and millions dead because unlike Emily they weren’t able to jump to freedom. Emily managed to evade them all for 7 weeks. Judging from her tracks in the December snow, she joined a herd of deer – an association that afforded her a level of safety in numbers from a number of predators – including human. Emily, the fugitive, became a local folk hero aided and abetted by local residents who began watching out for her and leaving offerings of hay out for her and the deer in their back yards. But with the arctic temperatures of early December already gnawing on face and foot, who among the cow-friendly community would adopt her and provide her with shelter? 
One family who was searching for Emily had long before recognized
the connection between human suffering and animal suffering, between
nation at war with nation, and human at war with animal, between social
injustice and injustice to animals – that family was the Randa’s of
the Peace Abbey. Meg and Lewis Randa set out to make a difference
in Emily’s life. They decided to bring Emily home to a sanctuary,
away from suffering. To insure Emily’s safety, to insure that the slaughterhouse would not try to claim Emily if the Randa’s managed to encourage Emily to come out of the forest with them, the Randa’s first had to show tolerance for the unjust rules of the land – the rule that says animals are considered property under the law. Laws which are bourn of people who surround themselves with the notion that the emotional and physical needs of “the other” are inconsequential, or that consideration for “the other” should be quickly dismissed as childish, are subject to great correction in the light of a bit of education. Whether it is the institution of slavery in the 1700’s, or the mistreatment of women in the 1800’s or the abuse of animals in the 1900’s, it is the unjust rules of the land, laws biased in favor of the insensitive, popularized by threat of force or convenience of personal gain, that allow for the continuity of immoral and unjust considerations to occur. Why was it just to treat a black man as property in the 1700’s? Why was it just to treat a woman as property in the 1800’s? And why was it just to treat animals as property in the 1900’s? Black men had to buy their freedom; women had to negotiate their freedom; and animals… animals are still not free. Perhaps the best chance an animal has to be free is to educate his or her enslavers, to bring awareness to us humans, to narrow the barrier of distance that humans have placed between themselves and the natural world, and let the humans know… Hey! I feel, I think, I bleed, I ache… I am like you… treat me like you treat yourself… treat me with compassion. The Randa’s understood that about animals and people. The paying of money to redeem or save the life of a living being, whether that being is a kidnapped sister or a cow slated for slaughter, wrongfully enforces the concept that a life can be reduced to the level of a commodity, a thing that may be bought or sold or applied significance only in proportion to a monetary worth. No matter how distasteful and unconscionable the philosophy and the practice, it was required of Meg & Lewis Randa under the present system of barbaric laws in this country in order to obtain their right to pursue their desire to protect Emily. Because the Randa’s were respected as people who treated others with compassion and with fairness, and because the community surrounding the slaughterhouse had bonded with Emily through the excellent and sympathetic coverage she received in the MetroWest News, Frank Arena the owner of the Arena Slaughterhouse, in an unexpected twist, agreed to sell the cow valued at $500 for just $1. He said, “those people [the Randa’s] wanted it for a good cause. The Arenas even offered to help find Emily for the Randa’s and capture her. Joanne Arena said her father was moved by all the public support for Emily. Once the legalities were taken care of the Randa’s had to find Emily. With the help of compassionate neighbors Bill and Rose Abbott and Bob Ahern, the Randa’s spent snowy afternoons trying to lure Emily from her hiding place. Then they had to gain Emily’s trust which over the course of days they engaged Emily as an equal – as a spirit who needed loving arms and engaging words and non-violent thoughts. All these the Randa’s provided, and more. On Christmas Eve December 24, 1995 after being in the woods for 40 days and having dropped 500 pounds to weigh nearly 1,200 pounds, Emily accepted a ride with the Randa’s back to the Peace Abbey. A celebratory non-violent meal consisting of vegan foods was shared with Emily by her new family, the Randa’s. Emily finally ended her flight and began domestic life with the Randa’s. Emily joined a horse and 2 goats, as she settled into her barn at the Sherborn Peace Abbey. The Randa's work was just beginning. The Randa’s learned quickly what Emily needed to not only survive but more so to excel. Emily was a patient teacher. Meg Randa was told that, “The Hindu community all think she is a messenger to the world to be compassionate.” Beyond the regular daily care and attention Emily required, and the Randa’s enthusiastically provided, Emily showed an interest in being an ambassador for compassion, so the Randa’s created opportunities for the public relations exposure she craved. Thus she began her life as New England’s most famous cow. Emily had her own newspaper column, appeared as a feature article in People Magazine, and is the subject of an upcoming Hollywood movie, which is still in the works. Emily’s face graced the 1997 Great American Meat-Out poster distributed to thousands of volunteers. She was the campaign’s first ever “poster cow.” The Great American Meat-Out is coordinated nationally by FARM, the Farm Animal Reform Movement, a non-profit public interest organization formed in 1981 to promote planetary health through plant based eating. Emily, as an Ambassador for barnyard animals, never shied from cameras and was always ready to let interviewers know that behind her bright beautiful smile was a mind, a personality, and a spirit that exuded optimism for the day in the future when the human specie that almost butchered her in her youth would become aware of the rights of animals – the right to be free from harm, the right to be unencumbered by humans, and the right to pursue self-interests, and the respect of existence to not be viewed as a commodity for commercial interests. Emily forged many bonds, gave countless people many stories to tell, and made many connections between human morality and animal compassion. “[Emily] is very affectionate and has huge eyes that look through you. Some animals have a deep presence, Emily has her wisdom,” boasted Emily’s adopted mom, Meg Randa From her barn and field on the grounds of the Peace Abbey, Emily was always open to receiving visitors and adding inter-species significance to the Pacifist Memorial that Lewis Randa established. The Pacifist Memorial consists of six long brick walls upon which are placed greater than 60 bronze plaques with the names and quotes of women and men who devoted their lives to non-violent social change. It also has prayers of peace from 12 major religions. The quotes are drawn from such notables as Cesar Chavez, Peace Pilgrim, Martin Luther King, Jr. Oscar Romero, Dorothy Day, John Lennon, Gandhi, and Jesus. Emily was also attentive and loving to the special needs children and young adults of the Life Experience School in Sherborn that Lewis Randa directs. Visitors to Emily have included among others from around the world and locally, eight Buddhist Nuns from the Keydong Thuk-Che Cho-Ling Nunnery of Tibet. The Nunnery of which has a long history of saving animals from slaughterhouses. The Nunnery was founded to pursue fasting and prayers to the deity of compassion for the benefit of the large herds of sheep sent to slaughter in the Keydong Province of Nepal. People came from around the globe, across the nation, and locally to visit with her. Visitors from India came to bless her as a sacred cow and brought her a handmade sacred cow blanket. She was the inspiration for many vegetarian, animal sanctuary, justice, spiritual building, and religious events. She had many friends. “Emily opened the eyes of thousands of people to the cruel treatment of cows by the dairy industry, and the suffering these animals go through,” said Lewis Randa of the Peace Abbey. Then in early March 2003, Emily started loosing weight and her abdomen filled with fluid. Doctors determined that she had cancer. Her treatment would have been experimental and she was getting weaker by the hour. What perhaps sent her to slaughter at the young and tender age of 2 years old was what caused her death at the young age of 10 years old. Because of the cancer growing in her, she was unable to become pregnant and, therefore, unable to produce milk. Thus she must have been sent to slaughter because she was not deemed profitable to the dairy industry. Eventually, the painful cancer grew and prevented her from her normal functions. There was little that doctors could do for her. As the Peace Abbey community held their hands clenched in wishful prayer for Emily to clear another deadly hurdle, the dreaded words were broadcast: “Emily – 10 years old; died in her sleep of uterine cancer.” On Sunday March 30, 2003, Emily died peacefully in her sleep, in her stall at the Peace Abbey, surrounded by her farm animal friends nearby in the barn. Emily’s body was laid in state, so people could come to say their good-byes and reflect about her life. Emily was buried in the field behind Gandhi’s Statue and not far from the Peace Memorial. Shortly after Emily’s burial, on April 1, 2003, a funeral ceremony was held by the bereaved Randa’s at the Peace Abbey. Emily was part of their family. An international community had grown around Emily. The ceremony was open to the world since the world community needed to reflect upon the passing of Emily. Most people could not personally attend because of the travel distance around the globe, and some had commitments they could not break. Emails, letters and telephone calls poured in for Emily expressing condolences and relaying strong emotional ties to her presence in their lives. At the ceremony people packed into the Quaker Room of the Peace Abbey and overflowed out the doors to celebrate the life of Emily, and express and share sorrow for her passing. Represented were people from Animal Rights, Animal Welfare, Peace, Vegetarian, Environmental, and Social Justice movements. There were people from the Religious communities, townspeople, people from surrounding towns, people from the Life Experience School that the Randa’s run, doctors, world-renowned people, and a host of others. Meg Randa in reaching out to the community offered the following words in reflecting upon the life of Emily. “We must learn that animals are thinking, feeling creatures with the same will to live that any other creature possesses. She was an ambassador for all animals and her life and story is a testimony to the fact that all life is sacred.” Lewis Randa summarized in his eulogy over Emily that “Emily was more than just a cow. She was, for people who loved her, an important creature who put them in touch with a greater understanding of animals and how humans should treat them. Her eyes would melt your heart and make you appreciate what animals have to offer. I think she was so inclusive that she made a difference in humans’ appreciation of each other as well.” To others Emily has been a role model. Lewis described a woman, struggling to leave an abusive relationship that was resolved after the woman visited Emily. The woman said, “If she can, I can.” The woman was so moved by Emily’s escape that a few months later the woman ended the relationship. One boy described how he had been working in the field on an icy day, and slipped down a hill and broke his pelvis. Emily mooed and mooed until someone came out and realized that the boy was injured. A woman spoke about how her daughter, who at the time was 19 months old, wanted to be strolled over to Emily as a treat for being good. When Emily would see the baby she would take her big tongue and lap her starting from toe to head and back again. The little girl would laugh with glee. When she turned four, she wanted to be Emily for Halloween, so her Mom made her a black and white Holstein cow costume. She wanted Emily to see her all dressed up. When she walked in front of Emily's paddock, this 1800 lb. cow took her big tongue and licked her from toe to head and back again. The little girl was so happy that Emily liked the costume. The mother had her camera with her, but felt that a picture would never have captured the special moment she had just witnessed. Miryam Wiley in commentary on the death of Emily wrote from the context of how she and her family suddenly realized that Emily was part of their lives, and as she reflected on how she and her family would miss Emily she said she felt that, “Emily was a barometer of all good things.” Alexandra Santilli said, “We love her and miss her. Emily fought so hard to save herself from slaughter but when her message was sent and her job was done she accepted death peacefully. All animals deserve nothing less. Mary Corthell said, “I first met Emily when Kaia was about 8 months old,” nodding toward her 5-year-old daughter. “She was what they called an ‘unsettled child.‘ I will never forget what happened... (Emily) put her head right through the bars and put her face right up to Kaia and gave her this lick. I expected to hear screaming, but I heard cooing. The connection they had was just so special.” For Sharlet Ramsland, Emily wasn't just an inspiration to become vegetarian: Ramsland and her son Charlie, 5, opened an animal sanctuary to save other animals from slaughter. “She changed us,” Ramsland said, as she fought back tears. “She's very powerful.” Many who attended the memorial for Emily remembered her as an animal with an uncanny ability to touch people's lives. Kathy Berghorn wrote, “[Emily] you were a living reminder that we are all one. You made no distinctions and reminded us to do the same. You catalyzed a new awareness in people by your presence. One look into your large, luminous brown eyes communicated so much more than words ever could. Who can say how many people felt a new awareness of compassion as they stood quietly with you?” Evelyn Kimber, President of the Boston Vegetarian Society and principal organizer of the extremely successful annual Boston Vegetarian Food Festival, the next of which will be held October 18th in Boston, Reflected upon Emily’s life thusly, “It was said by others that Emily ‘put a face on vegetarianism’. That summarized quite well the value of Emily's story in helping people to identify with an individual animal who saw death and wanted life, just as any of us would. Discussions about farmed animals often refer to numbers in the billions, which can numb the listener to the fact that each one is a living, suffering individual who values life and will do everything in her power to save herself. Beyond that, Emily's personality and charisma made people think hard about what meat really is, where cow's milk comes from, and could a taste for those products possibly justify harming and killing a creature like her.” (For more information about the upcoming Boston Vegetarian Food Festival please visit www.bostonveg.org The passing of Emily was noted in the Wednesday April 2, 2003 Society Section of the Boston Globe where the following commentary appeared, “… Last night Emily was remembered at a memorial service in the Quaker Room at the Peace Abbey. “It’s actually been quite beautiful – all the outpourings of support we’ve received – emails from all over the world,” said Lewis Randa who along with Meg runs the Peace Abbey.” A record of Emily’s life resides on a table in the foyer of the Guest House at the Peace Abbey. It is filled with pictures, history, commentary, and the following synopsis of her life: Emily Escaped from the Slaughterhouse 11/15/95 Entered the Peace Abbey 12/24/95 Passed on to greener pastures 3/30/03 Buried behind Gandhi’s Statue 4/2/03 “Emily served as a symbol of courage, inner wisdom, and survival to thousands of people who came to know her. She encouraged many to embark on the road to vegetarianism and cruelty free living while inspiring people to appreciate the sacredness of all life.” The animal rights community is thankful to the Peace Abbey for their understanding that all life is sacred, and for their commitment to the worldwide call for peace amongst humanity, and with animals. For more information about Emily, please visit the Peace Abbey Web site at www.peaceabbey.org The “Emily Project” (www.emilyproject.org) It is speculated that Emily is not the only cow to suffer from cancer. Had she not jumped the gate, her cancerous body parts would have become part of a burger for the unsuspecting public. This raises the question – Are meat-eaters consuming cancerous cells? And what does the consumption of cancerous cells mean for the health of adults and children, of dogs and cats, and of the environment? As a tribute to Emily the cow, and as a tool of awareness about one type of cancer common to cow tissues and human female breast tissue, the Emily Project was formed. The mission of the Emily Project is to foster awareness about Bovine Leukemia Virus and empower people with more knowledge. The “Emily Project” may be found at www.emilyproject.com The Milk Craze – It’s a Killer It may surprise most people, but using cows for milk contributes to the suffering and killing of cows. In 1940 cows averaged 2.3 tons of milk per year; in 1997, four years after Bovine Growth Hormone (BGH) was first used in cows, cows averaged 8.4 tons of milk per year. Some BGH treated cows have been known to produce 30 tons of milk a year. The stress on the cow caused by the forced increased production of milk leads to mastitis, udder ligament damage, lameness, and metabolic disorders. It also means that those people who drink this milk are drinking pus cells, growth hormone, and a known cancer-causing agent. As a result, your little girl may be looking mature at 12 years old, and increasing her chances of breast cancer. A fact of life – a cow must have recently been pregnant to produce milk. In order to maximize milk profits, dairy cows rarely get to nurse their young. One third of male calves are slaughtered immediately, while 40% are kept in individual stalls chained by the neck and fed mineral deficient foods for 18 to 20 weeks. There after they are slaughtered and sold as veal. Looking Into the Eyes of Emily - Who’s Holds the Key? Does the responsibility lie with the slaughterhouse worker? Most workers at the slaughterhouses are doing a dirty job that many of them do not like doing. It is a fast-paced, low-paying job that has a high worker injury rate, a high worker turn-over rate, and is relegated to mainly immigrants and people who force themselves day-in and day-out to destroy the life of another being. No, it’s not the workers responsibility; they are just doing a job to keep their families alive. Does the responsibility lie with the managers? Most managers of slaughterhouses do what they must to keep their jobs, sometimes relieved to be one step removed from the insanity of the hands-on killing and dismembering of cattle. Often though, they must deal not only with the dismemberment of the cattle, but also with the industry’s high injury rate. Managers are encouraged to make workers work faster, hide reports of workers’ injuries, and strong-arm the mostly minority and immigrant workforce to report back to work quickly after injuries or find a replacement for themselves. Overall, the slaughterhouse managers are not the ultimate blame for the vast number of killings of cows and cattle. No, it’s not the managers’ responsibility; they are just providing a service for the farmers. Can we blame the farmers & factory farmers? It is the farmers who rape their cows so they may produce milk and more cattle, about half of which will be cows that will themselves be forced into slavery by the farmer to be used as “milk-making machines.” The other half of the cattle, the male calves, will either be killed immediately, or used for veal after suffering for 18 months on a mineral deficient diet. No, It’s not the farmers’ responsibility; they are responding to a demand in the market. Can we blame the market then? Is it the people who purchase the chopped up cows and bulls that make the farmer bring the cattle to the slaughterhouse where the workers kill and hack animals into pieces? No, the blame is not totally theirs. We want our families to live healthy. We are falsely told that milk and meat are necessary for our health. From the time we enter elementary school, such falsehoods as “milk does a body good,” and “meat gives you strength” are brainwashed into us, thanks to the cattle & dairy industries who have bought their way into the USDA and have paid to have their propaganda in the educational system. Clinical studies have demonstrated, time and time again, that human health is undermined by the consumption of the high fat-low fiber foods that meat and dairy eating offers. The major illnesses in this country – Heart Disease; Bowel, Breast & Prostate Cancers; Osteoporosis; and Kidney Disease – are all directly linked to the consumption of meat and dairy products. As a matter of fact the U.S. has one of the highest incidence of cancer in the world. Do people realize how much cruelty they are supporting and causing themselves when they bite into a hamburger? Probably not. Not much in our social culture tells us emphatically that it is a problem. So can we blame the culture? Nope… despite the fact that the (cattle) culture in which we live drives agencies such as the USDA, the FDA, and the EPA, who are supposed to protect us and keep us informed, and despite the fact that the (cattle) culture is responsible for capital accumulation – a concept derived from determining wealth by counting the heads of cattle – the (cattle) culture is not the final resting place for blame for the killing of millions of cattle. The final blame resides in our ignorance. We want to believe what we are told, if it is not too different from what we already think. Truth of the matter is, we have a lot to learn and a lot of work to do if we want to understand how we are responsible for the day-to-day occurrences in our world. Through the large and beautiful eyes of young Emily the cow, the world was needlessly a violent place. Open your eyes wide – and when you see, you will know what needs to be done…... or you can stay ignorant. The choice is yours. Lives, perhaps your own, will be dependent upon what you do. |
By jumping the 5-foot gate at the slaughterhouse, Emily bound
her way to freedom. She escaped from the sounds, perhaps the
farewell pleas, of the other cows she may have known, who were
calling out in fearful agony. Perhaps the connection between
the smells of torn flesh, nervous sweat, and the feeling of
anxiety as desperate calls from cows turned silent motivated
her to search for an exit and flee. 