Meatless Mondays in Baltimore Schools Causes Controversy
posted by: Sharon Seltzer 55 days ago
When school started in September, the Baltimore School District became the first in the country to adopt a Meatless Monday policy. That decision has landed the administrators and their 80,000 students’ right in the middle of a heated controversy.
The Meatless Monday campaign is an international movement that asks people to cut out meat from their diet, one day a week. According to their website it is a non-profit organization whose goal is to reduce the amount of meat eaten by 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of the planet. The movement is promoted by celebrities such as Paul McCartney and medical institutions such as the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
And that is what representatives from Meatless Monday told Mellissa Mahoney, Chef and Dietician for Baltimore schools and Food Services Director, Tony Geraci when they met over the summer. Both administrators were impressed with the program and its credentials and agreed to take part.
What they didn’t know, at the time, was that Meatless Monday is also endorsed by PETA. And that missing piece of information has led to critics such as J. Patrick Boyle, president and CEO of the American Meat Institute to urge the school district to drop the program. He believes the campaign is a way for animal activists to brainwash young children.
In a letter to Andres A. Alonso, CEO of the school district, Boyle wrote, “I was disturbed to read about your school system’s decision to bow to an animal rights organization in holding “Meat Free Mondays.” This initiative is sponsored by the Grace Spira Project at the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The name Spira refers to Henry Spira, who is widely regarded as of the most extreme animal rights activists in the 20th century.”
Lucky for the kids in Baltimore, school administrators have not “bowed” down to Mr. Boyle. So from first grade through high school the lunch menu on Mondays consist of items such as meatless lasagna or a cheese sandwich and a bowl of mixed vegetables or broccoli.
Mahoney told CNSNews.com that the new menu has had a positive response from most staff and students. She said, “It’s not the ultimate goal to convert all Baltimorians to being vegans or vegetarians. What we want to do is at the least start the discussion about what you eat and how that affects the community, how that affects the planet, how it affects your health in general.”
Hopefully the school district will also start a discussion about the number of farm animals that can be saved with Meatless Monday. According to GoVeg.com if one person eats a vegetarian diet for one year, it will save the lives of 100 animals.
The original idea for Meatless Monday came about as a war effort to conserve resources during WW I and it turned out to have a tremendous beneficial effect saving the lives of animals.
Ten million families, 7,000 hotels and 425,000 food dealers pledged to remove meat from their menus on Mondays. In November 1917, New York City hotels saved nearly 116 tons of meat in just one week. According to a 1929 Saturday Evening Post article, “Americans began to look seriously into the question of what and how much they were eating. Lots of people discovered for the first time that they could eat less and feel no worse – frequently for the better.”
You can learn more about the global effect of Meatless Monday in a recent story by Care2 writer, Heather Moore. I would love to hear from Care2 members who are currently taking part in the campaign and read about their experiences.
Read more: animal welfare, farm animals, meatless monday, baltimore school district
comments
America consumes more than we should. Milk, chicken, pork, beef etc. In order to produce enough food for the whole country, every day what we consume,...the animals are tourcherd to death just to squeeze a little more money out for greedy reasons. meanwhile your getting ready to have a big juicy steak and tall glass of milk. little do you know ...that cow was waist deep in his own crap. In way too much pain to move, so he lay there. Untill shocked with prods in order to get him to move.
bone appetit if you seen pictures of Land o Lakes cows, you would vomit.
maybe now with people knowing what happens when animals are in high demand because we consume...jenny craig will go out of buesness
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Meatless mondays should be implemented in every school. People should start thinking and being aware at an early age of what they are eating. We grow up eating meat thinking it is just food and not a dead animal. I wish i had meatless mondays in school growing up, i would've went vegetarian long ago instead of just 4 years ago when i decided to start researching and thinking on my own, differently than the rest of my family and the way i was brought up.
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This is really a tough issue. I can see the point that each side is making. I, too, don't appreciate someone telling me what I can or can't eat. But I also think that a meatless meal, or even an entire day, is a very good idea for many reasons, not the least of which is the monetary savings for school systems. It certainly isn't going to do anyone any harm. I am not a total advocate of PETA thinking. I do feel that, if meat must be eaten, or animal products must be used, attain this end in as humane and painless way as possible. I also feel that, since there are differing points of view, instead of just putting the "Meatless Monday" menu into effect without input from the parents of the students, maybe they could have a vote...or an open discussion. And, by the way, I think "Meatless Monday" is a GREAT idea, not only for students, but for everyone.
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Well, this thread certainly became predictably nasty and divided. A perfect example of why this country and planet are at odds. There can be no peace, no true meeting of the minds and no true caretakers of the planet as long as there is no middle ground.
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EXTREME Compassion...for HUMANS is sometimes sorely Needed when all else fails. There is a Very Special Benefit that a Human Recieves when the unconscious addiction to animal flesh is sacrificed. This deep caring for self, the planet and life is A Blessing that too many are missing for wont of a random act of Kindness. Every Vegan has eaten flesh unless gifted from birth. I speak to the Heart of the Pre-Compassionate Eater...I hope in your own way, you Understand...Soon.
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Cindy O., I will state my opinion whenever I choose - and here goes. I looked at your profile. It's funny. You state you're against violence against animals, but you eat them. Not only do you eat them, but you're opposed to children in school having ONE DAY A WEEK, no not one day, ONE MEAL A WEEK, that doesn't contain the flesh of a butchered animal. I also read in your profile that if you were mayor, you would get rid of animosity..... Any blog I've read of yours displays nothing but animosity. You're misinformed and you spout whatever unpleasant opinions come to mind without putting an ounce of real thought into your statements. You might learn something if you actually took the time to have real conversations with others rather than going on the defensive and attacking everyone who doesn't agree with you. One last statement (for now), in checking out your profile, and this is not meant to be mean, just an observation - you are a fair bit overweight. Don't you think that maybe giving up one day a week of eating meat would contribute to your own health?
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Cindy,
What if it was the other way around? What if all the meals in schools were vegetarian/vegan? Do you think that people would be pushing for meat Monday's?
Could you imagine someone saying, "Our children need to eat more cows!" Or, "Our kids need more saturated fat and cholesterol and less fiber in their diets!"
Millions of acres of forests are cleared in the US and in the Rain forests just to make room for cattle to graze. People are dropping dead like flies because of diet related illnesses.
Kids need to learn this so that they can make INFORMED decisions about what they choose to eat.
I wish more adults would do the same.
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Like I said earlier, Everyone has a choice, and I do not believe it will hurt if the child has a choice. Meatless Mondays are like it is being pushed again by the Government telling the families "What" they should be doing, and "When". I did not offend anyone, so I will not apologize for my opinion.
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To Pam King: You actually have no clue, so butt out, and do not comment to me, If you can contain yourself.
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Its a budget helper for the school(s). Beans and rice has all amino acids. The food pyramid says we eat teh great that would have went to the animals. Protein is expensive. Meat you out back.
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