Activist Jailed for Recording Inside a Farm and Rescuing Two Ducks

29 year old  Amber Canavan pleaded guilty earlier this month to second degree trespassing. It all stems from a night in 2011 when herself and a fellow unidentified activist farm entered the Hudson Valley Foie Gras Farm in Ferndale and recorded a video to report the abuse animals were subjected to.

During the declaration, Canavan was asked to explain what she did and saw on the farm. This allowed her to testify at a public hearing on the matter.

In the video published by Canavan, the narrator says that two ducks were rescued, which was what lead her to be criminalized for theft. In later statements, it was also said that she entered an open farm to record the video.

“I take comfort in the fact the NY Times article and the footage that I took have helped to expose the atrocities being committed against these animals,” said Ms. Canavan.

Amber entered the foie gras farm to document the reality.

Hudson Valley Foie Gras is the main producer in the country. “She’s a thief,” said Marcus Henley, operations manager of the foie gras company.

Activists who support Canavan have a different view.

“What happens behind the doors of the farm is considered extreme cruelty by most people,” said Ashley Byrne, from PETA.

Ducks showing signs of intense fear and stress as they try and hide within their cage. Still shot from footage recorded by Amber Canavan.

Canavan has a long history of activism and protest in Syracuse.

Canavan said that once out of prison, she will continue her animal activism, using her degree in environmental studies. “I will be an activist all my life,” she said.

From Animal Equality we would like to express all our solidarity and support towards Amber who has to face the injustice of a system that condemns those who help mistreated animals while protecting the industries that exploit with cruelty.