Home  Chapter Sections  1. Undercover Investigator  2. Video Activist  3. Animal Friendly Traveller  4. Preacher  5. Animal Rescuer  6. Investigative Reporter  7. Media Watcher  8. Philosopher  9. Flyer  10. Personal Activist  11. Animal Lawyer  12. Politician  13. Prisoner Supporter  14. Public & School Speaker  15. Aerial Snooper  16. Scientific Investigator  17. Solo Information Worker  18. Street Theatre Actor  19. Teacher  20. Voluntary Worker Abroad

How to Do Animal Rights - and Win the War on Animals Chapter 4 Activities for Animal Rights 14. Public & School Speaker As an animal activist you might be called some day to speak for animals. You could give talks about animal rights to schools and community groups, professional associations and to any society that wants an interesting speaker at their meeting. There is scope for you to be an independent speaker. Or you could speak on behalf of an animal rights organisation; some organisations even give you training. Once you get into your stride you may find that you are a naturally gifted public speaker and that giving talks is a bracing and worthwhile craft. Titles for Talks You may want to develop a few specific stock-in-trade titles and you could ask patrons whether they would like something specific, tailor made for their particular activities. Your own titles could be something like: What are rights and what do people gain from animal rights? Is animal rights based on inane thinking or critical reasoning? Is vegetarianism immoral? Why did philosophers from ancient times to the Renaissance condemn animals? Are animal rightists anti-human? Is factory farming moral farming? What is animal testing and is it good for people? Why promote animal rights? How does property status affect animals? Is wearing fur good for us? Shaping the titles of your talks in the form of a question, like the ones above, will help you focus on what exactly to speak about and will give your talk a direction. By posing a question you give your audience an augment with a conclusion that may be controversial and that they can agree with or dispute. It makes your talk more interesting than merely describing a situation or rolling out a list of facts with no clear finale. So begin your talk with a question and end it with a conclusive answer. Do not just tell your listeners; convince your listeners of the rightness of your case! What You Need to Be a Speaker You will need certain personal qualities for giving talks to audiences. You should: Enjoy speaking in front of a group of people. Have a good knowledge of animal rights issues and/or specialist knowledge in your particular field of animal rights. Have good presentation skills. Be able to empathise with diverse kinds of audiences. Have the ability to deal with questions from your audiences. If you think you do not have these qualities then you may be able to develop them. While some people are naturally accomplished speakers, the art of public speaking can be learned and improved with experience and there are many clubs, books, web sites and courses on the subject. The key requirements are enthusiasm and persistence. Getting Material for Talks Ask established animal rights organisations for their material that you could use in your talks: videos, DVD's, leaflets, posters and any merchandise. Many organisations would be happy to recruit you to distribute their stuff and you could also offer to fundraise for them through your talks. Preparation You must plan your presentation to carry it through effectively; you cannot just turn up hoping for the best. (A presentation is a talk plus anything else that goes with it, such as showing a video or hosting a question and answer session at the end of your talk.) For a one hour talk you may need to put in several hours of preparation. Talks lasting one hour, however, may be exceptional. Aim to keep your talks short. Depending on who you are addressing, talks could last 15 - 20 minutes for school children or 30 - 45 minutes for adults. It is useful to bear in mind that the more you pack in to your talk the more your listeners will forget, even by the time they walk out the door. Your most important point might simply be to make a good overall impression and you do not need to prattle a long time to achieve that. At the composition stage of writing your talk think about the characteristics of your audience. What is their age group? How much might they already know about animal rights? And whether they might be inclined for or against rights? A class of young school children, a meeting of farmers or medical students pose different challenges. Seeing things from their perspective will help you prepare. A key question to consider is what impression as a whole do you wish to leave them? Research the topic for your talk, look out for specific illustrations that strengthen your argument, and use reliable sources of information. Remember your sources in case someone questions them during your talk or wants to follow them up. Statistics? Detail will probably bore your audience and they will forget it quicker than you can spill it out. They will remember best an understandable, clear and striking visual graphic. For example, when talking about vegetarianism or factory farming you could display a graph of the annual number of animals people consume against the increasing human population. Draw everything simple - and extra big so that people at the back of a hall can see clearly. Anticipate questions that your listeners might ask at the end of your talk and devise reasonable and impartial answers. Finding good answers will further your understanding of your subject. Your knowledge will also help keep you calm and unflustered during your talks because you know you will be able to cope with questions. Your confidence will enhance your credibility with your audience as well as the standing of animal rights with them. However, no one knows all the answers and if during a talk you do not know how to reply, say so and that you will find out and get back to the questioner with an answer. During Your Talk Knowing your talk thoroughly will increase your control and poise during your presentation. It is said that Winston Churchill spent one hour rehearsing for every minute of his important speeches. This will be too much of a chore for most speakers. Simply know your talk from top to bottom so that you can deliver it without reading from notes, although an occasional glance is in order to remind you of major points and changes in direction. Try to enliven your subject so that you can grab your listeners' attention. One formula is to develop a dialogue; look at individuals and ask them rhetorical questions, like "What do you think happened?" or "How would you react if...?" There are many kinds of technique and you should be acquainted with them and experiment to find which ones work for you. Given the nature of the human onslaught on animals it is easy to fall into the habit of being negative or emotionally charged. However, you must always be upbeat and positive when presenting animal rights. Emphasise solutions to problems and not just the problems or atrocities themselves. Diplomatic tact is a great asset; you should remain calm, factual and professional, especially if confronted by an aggressive student or a disruptive class (see Chapter 4: Teacher, under Disruptive Students). Tips For Presentations Arrive early and chat with some of the audience. Get to know them a little. It will help improve your nerves and limber you up. Speaking to people you ‘know’ is easier than addressing strangers. Make sure any equipment you use, like visual aids, works properly. While checking equipment go over in your mind the important points you are going to make and imagine delivering your opening remarks. The ultimate aim of your talk is to change or strengthen the attitudes of members of your audience in favour of animal rights. So speak from your heart and try to inspire your audience without putting on an overblown act. Concentrate everything on getting your key message (one or two points) across to the audience. That is the reason for giving your talk. Do not be alarmed if you see blank faces. Do not waffle on but interact with your audience. Ask if they understood what you have just been going over and restate or rephrase again if necessary. Showing a PowerPoint presentation will provide added interest to your talk and act as a prompt for points you wish to make. Keep an eye on the clock and do not ramble on past your allotted time or you will risk annoying people. Leave time for a discussion or a question-and-answer session at the end of your talk. Encourage questions and answer them fully and with respect, irrespective of whether you think the questioner is hostile or stupid. You could also encourage questions throughout your talk. Steer clear of inapplicable questions during your talk but you could offer to meet the questioners afterwards to discussion them. Complete silence on closing your talk? Activate blank faces by asking if they agree with such-and-such a point, then pick out individuals and ask for their opinion. Made a mistake or forgot a line? Backed into the blackboard and brought it crashing down? Everyone goofs up occasionally. Carry on and learn from your blunders so that you make a better show next time. At the end of your presentation get feedback by asking people what they thought about it so that you can improve on it. Talk to the organisers or circulate a questionnaire. Approaching Institutions The most direct way for getting engagements is by looking up institutions, schools and colleges, and societies and clubs. Phone them and ask if they would like a speaker. Make sure they know clearly that you speak for animal rights and not about animal welfare, environment, or some related field. When you get to speak at these places ask for referrals to other parties. In addition you could promote your own web site dedicated to animal rights outreach speaking (see Chapter 3: Internet). On your web site tell readers: About yourself and why you speak for animals. Your lecturing experience and relevant qualifications. The typical themes of your talks with examples of their content. The tools you use: videos, booklets, activity sheets, etc. Your catchment area or how far you are prepared to travel to an engagement. How long your presentations last. The age ranges you address. That your talks are free but reimbursement for travelling expenses is appreciated (when you are very experienced you might expect a minimal charge). You may also want to say if and how your talks are adapted to school curricula. You may want to say that you can give references. Make it really easy for readers to contact you by including an online form they can fill in and of course your phone number, email address and any other particulars. An online form for schools should have fields for a school's name, its address, the name of who you should contact, their phone number, and convenient dates they can fill in for when you can give your talk. Alternatively you could volunteer through one or more non-profit organisations that offer animal rights presentations to schools and elsewhere and are looking for speakers. A non-profit organisation might require that you are well versed on animal rights issues and have some experience delivering lectures and presentations. A few non-profits give training and material to their would-be speakers. Better still you can work with non-profits and at the same time promote your own web site. When a school or institution is interested in engaging you, confirm the time and date with them in writing. At the same time you could also find out: The theme(s) they would like you to cover. The number of students in the class. The students' age group. The students' level of knowledge of animal rights. How long your presentation is expected to last. Any special areas that you should cover or avoid. What teaching methods are acceptable, eg lecture, debate, role playing, in addition to straight speaking. Whether you can show videos, illustration, etc. What facilities are available, eg visual aids or video equipment. Whether you can give students leaflets and other literature (show samples) to take away. It may be an idea to put most of this in a booking form to send them when confirming your presentation. Further Development Perhaps you do not want to give talks yourself. Then an alternative approach is to develop a list of experienced people who do want to give talks and market them to schools and societies. Send out letters of introduction with brochures outlining your service and your speakers. If you can afford it consider a full-size four page colour brochure with pictures; it stands the best chance over any other kind of literature of being filed for future action if they cannot use you immediately. Send out newsletters with brochures when you are established. How to Do Animal Rights - and Win the War on Animals. © Roger (Ben) Panaman, April 2008. All rights reserved.