10 Questions: Vegan Rockstar with Jodie Wiederkehr

Jodie Wiederkehr is a friend of mine and I am grateful for that for a few reasons: she is a terrific person, I learn a lot from her, she manages to be both fun and dedicated, and her example inspires me. On the other side of that, I am grateful that Jodie’s my friend because I would not want to be on the wrong side of this peaceful fighter against injustice. I don’t know anyone who is as fiercely committed and tenacious as my friend Jodie, and I would really hate to piss her off. As executive director of Chicago Alliance for Animals (CAA), Jodie did what so many other communities have tried to do: defeat the cruel but somehow nostalgic horse-carriage industry and get them banned from Chicago. She did this with the help of CAA activists but it was her unswerving leadership and indefatigable commitment that really made this possible. Please join our Facebook group to learn what CAA and Jodie are up to next.

First of all, we’d love to hear your “vegan evolution” story. How did you start out? Did you have any early influences or experiences as a young person that in retrospect helped to pave your path?

From a very young age, I remember caring deeply about animals. I grew up in a small farm town about three hours west of Chicago. Many neighbors kept dogs on chains or in small kennels, which upset me greatly as our dogs and cats were a…