Animal rights demo in Wigan town centre shocks shoppers

The Cube of Truth demonstration was held in Market Place where 12 members of Anonymous for the Voiceless, clad in black clothes and masks, stood back to back in a square formation holding laptops and tablets playing continuous footage of graphic factory farming practices.

Meanwhile an outreach team without masks stood outside the cube engaging with curious members of the public about the footage they had been shown.

Sarah Vidler, the organiser of the demonstration, said: “The Cube of Truth is a peaceful animal rights demonstration, akin to an arts performance.

“We hope to raise the general public’s awareness of the exploitation and suffering of animals raised in factory farms and sent to slaughterhouses, and promote a vegan lifestyle.

“The masks and silent demonstration of the people standing in the cube helps to attract attention and draw people in, then the laptop and tablet footage shows the truth of why we are here.”

Demonstrations such as the Cube of Truth, which was being staged in Wigan for the first time on Sunday, aim to educate the public on the realities of some types of farming and play a huge part in encouraging people to go vegan.

Wigan activist Robyn White said: “I initially went vegan for health, but then I made the connection that animals suffer and I’m paying for that suffering.

“I wished I’d known sooner. Myths were dispelled.

“We are trying to get people to make a more informed choice because they might not know what they’re paying for.”

Daniel Dydzinski, from Wigan, said: “I’ve been vegan for one and a half years.

“When I heard about hormones being pumped into cows, I didn’t like the idea of putting those hormones into my body.

“I’m a spiritual person and this is not good karma.”

Veganism, the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products, particularly in diet, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals, is very much on the rise at present.

More than 3.5 million UK residents (around seven per cent of the population) now identify as vegan, according to a survey by comparethemarket.com.

The demand for vegan food has been noted by UK food chains including Greggs’ Pound Bakery and Boots.