Vegan activists are fuming after Yarra Trams cancelled their ads at the last minute, ruining the centrepiece of their Melbourne campaign.
The eight-week ‘animal equality’ Be Fair Be Vegan campaign began on January 15, timed to coincide with the Australian Open.
Featuring provocative images of animals alongside vegan slogans, the campaign paid for advertising space on a tram passing busy Flinders Street Station.
Vegan activists are fuming after Yarra Trams cancelled their ads at the last minute, ruining the centrepiece of their Melbourne campaign (pictured is an artist impression of the tram ad)
The eight-week ‘animal equality’ Be Fair Be Vegan campaign (pictured) began on January 15, timed to coincide with the Australian Open
Featuring provocative images of animals alongside vegan slogans, the campaign paid for advertising space on a tram passing busy Flinders Street Station (pictured is one of the ads)
Only days before the rolling billboard was scheduled to appear, Yarra Trams pulled out, saying the ads did not comply with their guidelines, The Age reported.
‘They could have told us right away that they wouldn’t do it,’ said Be Fair Be Vegan spokesperson Angel Flinn.
‘It took us a long time to get that answer, so we ended up losing out, but we are hoping that this incident will cause people to see the hypocrisy.’
Yarra Trams’ guidelines prohibit ads for political or activist campaigns, or show images showing violence against animals or that demean or denigrate animals.
‘Yarra Trams provided feedback about how the artwork could be modified to adhere to our advertising guidelines, and we are yet to receive revised artwork,’ said a spokersperson for Yarra Trams.
Only days before the rolling billboard was scheduled to appear, Yarra Trams pulled out, saying the ads did not comply with their guidelines (pictured is one of the ads)
‘It’s hard to imagine advertisers are subject to such restrictions when their ads show animal bodies on a barbecue or on the end of a hook,’ Ms Flinn said.
The campaign chose Melbourne as it is one of the world’s most vegan-friendly cities, but claimed their efforts had met with ‘considerable censorship’.
The slogan set to run on the tram said: ‘See them for who they really are, not what we force them to be. All prejudice is learned, it’s time to unlearn speciesism’.
‘They could have told us right away that they wouldn’t do it,’ said Be Fair Be Vegan spokesperson Angel Flinn (pictured is one of the ads)
Be Fair Be Vegan states: ‘The movement for the emancipation of nonhuman animals is now the biggest social justice movement since the abolition of slavery’.
Their Melbourne campaign aims to use billboards, posters and ‘guerrilla style urban media’ to challenge attitudes and outlooks and fight for animal rights.
Daily Mail Australia contacted Yarra Trams and Be Fair Be Vegan for comment.
Yarra Trams’ guidelines prohibit ads for political or activist campaigns, or show images showing violence against animals or that demean or denigrate animals (pictured is one of the ads)