The South Bend Tribune carried a heart-warming and inspiring article on Tuesday about a 10-year-old girl who learned about MFA’s undercover investigation at Hy-Line hatchery and turned her tears and anger into compassionate action.The article states:
Like many, probably, Emma Burdett was upset by last week’s Tribune story depicting baby chicks being tossed into a grinder for disposal.
Unlike many, the 10-year-old Cassopolis girl decided to do something about it. She launched a petition drive protesting the practice, shortly after making telephone calls to The Tribune announcing her intentions.
But the calls to The Tribune weren’t her first reaction, said her mother, Tracy Burdett.
“When I showed her the story, she burst into tears. I didn’t realize she’d react that way,” she said.
For animal lovers like the Burdetts and perhaps even non-animal lovers, the story was disturbing. It likely was made more so by the image from a video shot by Chicago-based Mercy for Animals that showed a male chick sorted from a conveyor belt being flipped into a chute for channeling into the grinder.
We hear about Emma’s quest to protect animals, which has led her to a petition drive:
Emma said she already has accumulated more than 50 signatures from shoppers at Rite Aid and Harding’s Market, some of whom told her that disposing of chicks in such a manner should be considered animal cruelty.
This young animal advocate clearly sees the connection between the cruel disposal of male chicks and the need for consumers to move toward a vegan diet:
According to Nathan Runkle, the executive director of Mercy for Animals, the organization’s ultimate goal in releasing the undercover video was to get people to stop eating eggs. Emma said she doesn’t like eggs much anyway and she doesn’t intend to eat any more.
We can all take the lead from Emma’s compassionate example by removing eggs from our diet. To get started, click here to view a short video outlining quick and easy tips for baking without eggs.