Artist Insists Censorship Violates First Amendment Rights and Will Exhibit "When the Circle of Compassion Extends to All" in both Shows.
••••••••••••••••
September 18, 2008, Tipton, PA - Artist Tamira Ci Thayne, formerly known as Tammy Grimes and founder of Dogs Deserve Better, will be featured in two one-woman art shows during Pennsylvania Week for the Animals. During the exhibits at Chatham University in Pittsburgh and The Rotunda in Philadelphia Thayne will exhibit a piece entitled "When the Circle of Compassion Extends to All", a work which a Blair County, PA Judge has attempted to censor.
"When the Circle of Compassion Extends to All" has previously won an Honorable Mention at the Blair County Arts Festival.
Thayne created the piece based on her experience in rescuing a dog who lay chained and unable to stand, flailing about in the mud and his own feces. When police refused to charge the owners with cruelty and insisted Thayne (then Grimes) return the dog to its abusive situation, she refused, and was thereafter convicted of theft for helping him.
Video of the dog was withheld from the jury by the judge as well as 'after' photos and video of him standing and walking again. The judge subsequently ordered Grimes to remove all images of the dog from the Dogs Deserve Better website and her art. The case is currently in appeal.
Thayne has removed the dog's photos from items for sale on the Dogs Deserve Better site, but has refused to remove the dog's images from its history of the case page or her artwork, citing violations of first amendment rights.
Thayne states, "Doing what any concerned citizen should have done for a suffering animal was not wrong and will never be wrong—no matter what a corrupt 'justice' system says. I feel this in my gut. I have been subjected to what amounts to emotional torture as a result of helping Doogie—yet I could have done no other.
Creating a piece of art based on my experience which speaks to a time when animals will be treated with the reverence they deserve is my right as a human being and an American citizen. I will continue to show "When the Circle of Compassion Extends to All" on my website and at any shows where I am able. I am no criminal."
20 pieces of Thayne's work will be shown Saturday, September 20th from 4-8 p.m. at Eddy Theatre at Chatham University, Woodland Road, Pittsburgh. The show runs with three films shown, I Am Unseen by Dogs Deserve Better, The Witness by Tribe of Heart, and Uncaged, Second Chances for Puppy Mill Breeders by Ann Metcalf and Chris Shaughness.
The works will show in Philadelphia from 6-9 p.m. on Tuesday, September 23, at The Rotunda, Walnut Street, also in concurrence with I Am Unseen and Uncaged.
To view Thayne's art, visit her website at http://www.littlegirllooking.com. 20-50% of all proceeds from sales of Thayne's art benefit Dogs Deserve Better.
Thayne can be reached at 814.941.7447 or Tami@littlegirllooking.com for comment, and is available for art shows, commissioned works, or interviews. She holds a B.A. in Visual Arts from the University of Maryland, and a B.S. in Naturology from the American Institute of Holistic Theology.
Dogs Deserve Better was founded in 2002, is an international nonprofit with 140 area reps in the U.S. and Canada, and works to bring dogs out of the backyard and into the home and family. The site can be viewed at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Sunday, September 14, 2008
DDB Puddles Paks Provide Humane Ed for Prepubescent Pupils
'Puddles Paks' Provide Phenomenal
humane education props for prepubescent pupils
'Paks' press home issues plaguing companion puppies and prime classroom pontification
September 15, 2008, Tipton, PA—Dogs Deserve Better, a non-profit bringing pups out of backyards and into the presence of people, today made public its Humane Education 'Puddles Paks' for prepubescent pupils. (Or students in Grades 2-6 for the layperson who might not do P-speak...)
Tamira Thayne, founder and CEO of Dogs Deserve Better, states, "Our 'Puddles Paks' will provide phenomenal Humane Education props for pupils in grades 2-6 (and try saying that 3 times fast!). We've noted the absense of a plethora of humane education props for our issue, that of chaining dogs for life, and so promptly set out to produce our own peppy program!"
'Puddles Paks' consist primarily of a new paperback printed precisely for Dogs Deserve Better, Puddles on the Floor, penned by Lorena Estep and pictured by Thayne herself. They are parceled with a CD of 3 Powerpoint Presentations, one which puts forward the pictures and captions manually as presenters read to pupils, a second which autoforwards and is read by Thayne for a stand-alone performance, and a third which speaks to chaining in an age-appropriate primer. Pupils are prompted to pontificate on preferred patterns of possible pup care by the book and CD. The CD also plays Puddles as an audiobook.
Thayne continues, "We are most pleased at the perspicacity of the puppy issues presented in Puddles, including overpopulation, spay/neuter needs, misuse of caging, chaining, and problems of stray pups. The Paks combine the paperback, the CD, and other paraphernalia including DDB stickers, rescue angel temporary tattoos, DDB brochures, Buddy Unchained books, and DDB posters. We hope many humane educators, classroom teachers, and parents take advantage of these packages to promote better treatment of Man's Best Friend. The preponderance of laws limiting chained and penning of pups nationwide—3 states and over 120 communities—postulate chaining will soon be a predicament of the past. We must prepare our children on proper puppy parenting posthaste!"
The six 'Puddles Paks' can be perused and purchased on the website at dogsdeservebetter.org/puddlesbook.html
Puddles on the Floor is available wholesale to rescue groups and non-profits for fundraising programs. Phone the organization at 814.941.7447 for pricing.
Dogs Deserve Better is a 501c3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Tipton, Pennsylvania, is the 2003 First Place Winner of the ASPCA Pet Protector Award, and currently has over 150 area reps in 38 states as well as in Canada.
humane education props for prepubescent pupils
'Paks' press home issues plaguing companion puppies and prime classroom pontification
September 15, 2008, Tipton, PA—Dogs Deserve Better, a non-profit bringing pups out of backyards and into the presence of people, today made public its Humane Education 'Puddles Paks' for prepubescent pupils. (Or students in Grades 2-6 for the layperson who might not do P-speak...)
Tamira Thayne, founder and CEO of Dogs Deserve Better, states, "Our 'Puddles Paks' will provide phenomenal Humane Education props for pupils in grades 2-6 (and try saying that 3 times fast!). We've noted the absense of a plethora of humane education props for our issue, that of chaining dogs for life, and so promptly set out to produce our own peppy program!"
'Puddles Paks' consist primarily of a new paperback printed precisely for Dogs Deserve Better, Puddles on the Floor, penned by Lorena Estep and pictured by Thayne herself. They are parceled with a CD of 3 Powerpoint Presentations, one which puts forward the pictures and captions manually as presenters read to pupils, a second which autoforwards and is read by Thayne for a stand-alone performance, and a third which speaks to chaining in an age-appropriate primer. Pupils are prompted to pontificate on preferred patterns of possible pup care by the book and CD. The CD also plays Puddles as an audiobook.
Thayne continues, "We are most pleased at the perspicacity of the puppy issues presented in Puddles, including overpopulation, spay/neuter needs, misuse of caging, chaining, and problems of stray pups. The Paks combine the paperback, the CD, and other paraphernalia including DDB stickers, rescue angel temporary tattoos, DDB brochures, Buddy Unchained books, and DDB posters. We hope many humane educators, classroom teachers, and parents take advantage of these packages to promote better treatment of Man's Best Friend. The preponderance of laws limiting chained and penning of pups nationwide—3 states and over 120 communities—postulate chaining will soon be a predicament of the past. We must prepare our children on proper puppy parenting posthaste!"
The six 'Puddles Paks' can be perused and purchased on the website at dogsdeservebetter.org/puddlesbook.html
Puddles on the Floor is available wholesale to rescue groups and non-profits for fundraising programs. Phone the organization at 814.941.7447 for pricing.
Dogs Deserve Better is a 501c3 nonprofit organization headquartered in Tipton, Pennsylvania, is the 2003 First Place Winner of the ASPCA Pet Protector Award, and currently has over 150 area reps in 38 states as well as in Canada.
Friday, September 05, 2008
Chaining Dogs, Good or Bad? It's a No Brainer
I don't normally ask for 'favors' from you all, but this one is so easy and can REALLY bring awareness to our cause. Based on video I've taken from my latest foster dog, I put together a very short, 45-second 'ad' for chained dogs and the work of Dogs Deserve Better. It's short and sweet, and If EVERYONE watches this ad and passes it along, it will get a ton of views and will start hitting 'your average joe' who doesn't even know about our cause.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBgna_M-50M
Our vet bills are at an all-time high, with new requests for vet help from area reps coming along daily. We cannot fulfill all this need as it stands now! But if we are able to get people to really understand chaining dogs as an issue and start supporting this cause, we can meet the immense needs of our foster dogs.
So, please take one minute of your time for Chained Dogs! Watch this video, and then pass this along to your list and ask them to watch too. I would be very grateful, and so will the dogs we'll help.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBgna_M-50M
Tamira Thayne, founder, Dogs Deserve Better
http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/donations.html
You can also donate at 877.636.1408
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBgna_M-50M
Our vet bills are at an all-time high, with new requests for vet help from area reps coming along daily. We cannot fulfill all this need as it stands now! But if we are able to get people to really understand chaining dogs as an issue and start supporting this cause, we can meet the immense needs of our foster dogs.
So, please take one minute of your time for Chained Dogs! Watch this video, and then pass this along to your list and ask them to watch too. I would be very grateful, and so will the dogs we'll help.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VBgna_M-50M
Tamira Thayne, founder, Dogs Deserve Better
http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/donations.html
You can also donate at 877.636.1408
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)