Animal rights group hosts annual 'cruelty-free' dinner
by ELIZABETH TAUFA Reporter

Amherst resident Jayson Simpson samples some humus at the Annual Vegetarian Thanksgiving Potluck Dinner on Sunday. The event benefits the Animal Advocates of WNY. Photo by John Rusac Purchase color photos at www. BeeNews. com

For more than 20 years, Amherst residents Nan and Walter Simpson have coordinated a pot luck dinner around Thanksgiving.

But there's a twist.

The dinner, held Sunday, Nov. 18, is a vegan potluck, which means no meat of any kind, no dairy products and no eggs, which doesn't leave room for many of the traditional Thanksgiving favorites.

"It's a way to celebrate Thanksgiving non-violently," said Nan Simpson. "We don't want to focus so much on the gluttony aspect."

Over the years, the Simpsons have seen every kind of Vegan food available, including a Tofurky, a turkey made out of tofu, complete with vegan stuffing.

Other foods have included several Thai and Indian dishes made with tofu and other ethnic food favorites, like lasagna, with a vegan twist.

And anyone interested in a jello mold or marshmallows on their Thanksgiving yams are out of luck as both products contain gelatin, which is a meat product.

But real turkey isn't always absent from the event.

In years past a live turkey made an appearance at the event and ate dinner along with the participants rather than being eaten.

"It was quite funny," Simpson said.

The dinner isn't just a community activity though. It's also a fundraiser for the Animal Advocates of WNY, a group that the Simpsons founded over 20 years ago.

"We promote animal rights and raise awareness about factory farming and animal slaughter," Simpson said of the organization. "We also talk about humane alternatives and provide programming for schools."

The Simpsons no longer run the organization, which has a president and a board of directors from all over Western New York, but have instead moved to climate change education.

"More species are threatened by global climate change than anything else," Simpson noted. The couple, who have been educated by Al Gore in Tennessee, according to Simpson, have begun campaigning in the area to reduce carbon emissions. They remain active in environmental causes but remain loyal to animal advocacy.

"The focus is a little different than animal rights, but it's still there" Simpson added. e-mail: etaufa@beenews.com