Joker Star Joaquin Phoenix Attended Pig Vigil After Winning SAG Award for Best Actor

On Sunday, Joker star Joaquin Phoenix won Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role at the 26th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards but while many might choose to party after winning such an honor or at least take some time to celebrate with friends, Phoenix chose a different sort of post-awards activity. The actor chose to attend a vigil with L.A. Animal Save outside a meat processing plant, joining other animal rights activists in offering comfort to pigs set for slaughter.

“Most people don’t really know of the torture and murder in the meat and dairy industry. I’ve seen it for what it is, so I have to be here,” Phoenix told vlogger Jane Velez-Mitchell. “We have moral obligations to talk about it and expose it for what it really is. We are so indoctrinated with these happy images of animals on farms, on the covers of meat containers, at restaurants, and it’s a lie. I think people need to know the truth and we have an obligation to do that.”

According to L.A. Animal Save founder Amy Jean Davis, Phoenix regularly attends the groups vigils both on a local level and worldwide other of The Animal Save Movement’s over 700 groups.

“Joaquin’s regular attendance at our vigils in L.A. has inspired activists both locally and globally,” said Amy Jean Davis, founder of L.A. Animal Save. “We are so grateful for his voice. All over the world, activists are bearing witness to animals bound for slaughter and waking up the world to their plight.”

This is not the first time that Phoenix has been active in an event with connections to the meat and dairy industry. Earlier this month, Phoenix was arrested during a protest on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. after giving a speech at the Fire Drill Friday event. In his speech he asked attendees to reevaluate their stances on consuming meat and dairy products. Phoenix himself has been vegan nearly his entirely life.

This vigil is just the latest way that the actor has attempted to foster change. During his Golden Globe Award speech earlier this month, he opted to encourage audiences to not just vote, but make personal changes in the hope of helping to preserve the planet.

Joker is out now on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD.

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