I went to jail
For a good reason :)
Today I was put in jail in Wisconsin for rescuing beagles from a factory farm. The jail only kept me for a few hours, so I have my freedom back now (but not my phone, which they are keeping as “evidence” apparently). I also have a court date, so hopefully will get a chance to argue in court that the breeding facility was committing animal abuse.
“But Lincoln! You’re the founder of a billion-dollar company, you are working on important time-sensitive projects to save democracy, and are involved with several illustrious nonprofit organizations! Why would you take a risk like this?”
The beagles I am rescuing are a tiny, tiny drop in the bucket: our society intentionally commits horrific incarceration, torture and slaughter of billions of animals. I decided to rescue these beagles because I think they’re a powerful messenger, but if I could I would unlock the cages of every factory farm in the entire world. Standing by in the face of this abuse is not something I am ok with.
Most people agree that animal abuse is bad. But most people don’t do anything about it. Through this action I wanted to show that there are things that any person can do, namely show up for stuff that’s annoying, unpleasant or even scary. Many such things can be quite impactful if enough people show up, and in some cases change can only be made through mass actions. It’s easy to complain on the internet about the way our society is going, but painfully few of us are showing up in person to do anything about it. The numbers absolutely do matter and we all need to show up sometimes.
I think some altruists suffer from lack of moral courage. Especially those of us who work on tech: we often have lots of moral conviction, but are typically wealthy and aren’t usually risking much personally, and I think that’s a gap. I want to be asking more often, “how can we be more altruistic?” One answer is to challenge ourselves to do more and more courageous things.
I don’t know if there will be another rescue anytime soon, but if this inspires you or you want to hear more, stay in touch. It’s been tremendously fulfilling for me today.
I think it's kind of a donut-hole thing: people who have very little to lose and people who have enough to support themselves more or less forever have the easiest time doing risky things, but people in the middle who would be ruined by a criminal record's effect on their employment have the hardest time.
Heck ya! Totally agree about the value of embodied ways to advocate for animals. Bearing witness to such places changes us and, in my experience, increases our capacity to use our voices and resources skillfully (and often with greater generosity). Inspired by you, Wayne, and others today.