"I grew up eating dog meat and didn't really think much about it until I started working at Duo Duo Project's shelter " - A-Mei, our Yulin staff member and volunteer. Yulin, China is where the infamous dog meat festival is held.
Thanks to your donations, we established a shelter and hired A-Mei as our doggie caretaker. The up-close and daily interactions with our dogs totally transformed her.
After she had her second child, A-Mei had to quit as a staff member and stay home. But she became one of our devoted volunteers. She took Andrea, our ED, to visit local farmers and communities. She would help out at our events educating Yulin people about how the dogs and cats they eat are stolen pets. She has become our top advocate in Yulin.
"I regret so much and hate myself for eating these wonderful creatures in the past" - A-Mei.
A-Mei has also become one of our undercover agents. She has often gone to the market to take photos of dog and cat meat vendors during the Yulin festival day. There are always many plainclothes police officers in the market to prevent out-of-town activists from entering the market to protest.
One time, an officer wanted to take her phone away. She told him, "If you come one step closer, I will scream and claim sexual harassment!" As you know, it's very risky and takes a lot of courage to stand up against authority in China.
We are so proud of you, A-Mei, and happy Woman's History Month!
The Duo Duo Project Team
P.S. It's Women's History Month! During the month of March, we are spotlighting our female volunteers around the world. In case you missed other volunteer spotlight, click here.