Anonymous for Animal Rights

The concept

Anonymous for Animal Rights was established in 1994 and became Israel's leading animal rights organization. We chose the title "Anonymous" as an expression of deep solidarity with those sentient, nameless beings, known to us only by their incomprehensible numbers, who are subjected to systematic abuse. Their suffering cries out for us. They are imprisoned in laboratories, circuses, municipal pounds – but above all in factory farms. They are all Anonymous. They all need our help. We believe that animals of other species should not be left to serve us humans as mere means for food, clothing, entertainment or research objects. Our treatment of other animals should be governed by compassion and by equal respect for their needs and interests. Any lesser attitude would qualify as racism equivalent. A genuine change in the fate of nonhuman animals can come about only if we adopt a more considerate and cruelty-free lifestyle.

Our way

A long-term change can only be achieved through a radical mind-shift among human beings. Therefore, education and grassroots activities have always been the focus of our work. These promote both public recognition of animal rights, and endorsement of veganism and vegetarianism. Our regular activities to promote cruelty-free lifestyle include lectures in schools on a virtually daily basis, daily tabling around Israel, producing and distributing leaflets, booklets and videos, maintaining an extensive website in Hebrew, and distributing a weekly e-magazine to over 15,000 subscribers. Still, nonhuman animals are suffering right here, right now. Therefore, Anonymous for Animal Rights also focuses on short-term goals and campaigns. In our campaigns we foster favorable public opinion by street tabling, creative demos and close work with the media, combined with professional lobbyist and legal work that promotes animal protection in municipal and national-level initiatives.
Both courses of action are supported by our research of animal exploitation in the filed and in literature. Anonymous' activists have visited and documented in video and stills dozens of facilities: hens in battery cages, male chicks left to die at the hatchery, sows and calves in individual cages, the violence in the foie gras (goose liver) industry, ritual slaughter, and more. Pictures we took appeared and made a strong impact in national media, in the Knesset (Israeli Parliament) and in the courts.

Making a difference

Our successful campaigns include:

• Banning the use of wild animals in circuses all over Israel, and banning the use of any nonhuman animal in the cities of Tel-Aviv and Herzelia
• Banning animal dissection in all schools
• Stopping the construction of a primate breeding facility for experimentation
• Banning the tail docking and dehorning of cows without using anesthetics
• Banning the force-feeding of geese and ducks
• Banning water deprivation from veal calves and their isolation in crates

Above all, we strive to enroot the concept of animal rights in the Israeli public. Witnessing a constant rise in media attention, institutional recognition, personal interest from politicians – as well as an expansion of vegetarianism and veganism – we do believe that we are making good progress.

Good Will

The industries we oppose are well financed and deeply established in our society. Our strength comes from our deep belief in justice and from the dedication of our many activists. Most of our humble budget is based on small contributions from individuals. Anyone can help the struggle for animals: there are infinite ways to make a difference; joining activities and providing resources are two important ones. For donations or further information please contact us at: