Rutinel routinely spoke at conferences hosted by radical vegan organizations, drawing praise from a Germany-based group fighting for the ‘recognition of animals as sentient beings’
Colorado Democrat Manny Rutinel, a congressional nominee running in a swing district heavily reliant on ranching, once boasted that his “entire” job working for a far-left environmental group was to “take on large meat corporations and sue them for all they’re worth.”
“Before I was a legislator, I was an environmental attorney with Earthjustice. My whole job was to take on large meat corporations and sue them for all they’re worth, to defend low-income people of color that were subjected to the environmental injustices of those factory farms that they were responsible for holding up,” Rutinel said at the Animal Legal Defense Fund’s 2024 student convention. The hosting group argues that animals should be recognized as legal persons and filed a negligence lawsuit in 2018 on behalf of a horse as part of that effort.
Rutinel wasn’t just blowing smoke: In at least one instance, he helped win a lawsuit that forced the EPA to enforce stricter regulations on slaughterhouses.
The student convention was just one of Rutinel’s eight speaking engagements at conferences and events between 2022 and 2024 organized by radical vegan and animal rights activist groups that aim to stop the human consumption of animals and give them the same legal rights as humans. His more recent appearances raise questions about his July claim—in response to Reddit posts unearthed by the Colorado Sun in which he voiced support for giving animals the same legal rights as people—that he hasn’t “been a vegan for several years.”
Rutinel has regularly given talks at the Animal & Vegan Advocacy Summit, which hosts activists working toward “one shared vision: removing animals from our food system and other human uses,” according to its website. His remarks at the May 2024 event drew praise from the Germany-based Animal Society, which describes itself as “the world’s first animal rights organization to advocate for their political representation” and wants them recognized “as sentient beings.” It campaigns for a “Ministry for Animals” that would “give the millions of affected creatures a credible voice” and “successfully called for the creation of an EU Commissioner for Animal Welfare.”
While there doesn’t appear to be a recording or transcript of Rutinel’s appearance, Animal Society called his “talk on politics and legislative policy for animal advocacy” “a standout.” His was one of just three lectures Animal Society highlighted following the summit, which it said showed “that the political turn is finally reaching the animal movement.”
“He shed light on the mechanisms of navigating the political landscape to enact laws that protect animals,” the group’s LinkedIn post read. “A call for the politicisation of the animal movement.”
Alongside Rutinel, Animal Society praised a speaker from Animal Think Tank, a group that wants “a law that bans animal farming,” for her lecture on “crafting persuasive narratives for animal freedom.” It called another session “a profound exploration” of how “animals communicate their needs and experiences,” which “underscored the necessity of listening to and understanding our fellow beings to advocate for their interests effectively.”
Following the 2023 Animal & Vegan Advocacy Summit, Rutinel, an avid karaoke singer, posted that his “biggest regret” was missing a workshop called “Creative Practices For Your Advocacy Toolkit.” The seminar was “grounded in the principles of improv theater” and “used the powers of play and connection to kickstart conversations about how we can incorporate more creative skills and mindsets into our animal advocacy.”
Details of Rutinel’s appearances at the conferences come amid his attempts to distance himself from his activist past as he vies to unseat Republican Rep. Gabe Evans in a district where ranches and other animal-based agriculture generated roughly $1.2 billion in 2022. Since launching his campaign, Rutinel has called himself a “friend” to the district’s ranchers and said he started eating meat after being vegan since he was 14 because “it’s important … to be able to enjoy the delicious products that Colorado ranchers make.” He dismissed his nearly decade-old Reddit posts as “the views of a 22-year-old kid.”
But his radical animal activism continued until at least October 2024, just a few months before his 30th birthday and the launch of his congressional campaign. In fact, his talk at the student convention was one of two that month. At the second, also hosted by Animal Legal Defense Fund, which declined to comment, he joined a panel titled “Navigating Politics to Protect Animals,” which aimed to provide “an overview of the ways animal advocates can engage with politics and public policy,” the Washington Free Beacon reported.
Throughout his conference appearances, Rutinel was routinely introduced as the founder and CEO of Climate Refarm and pushed his firm’s mission to incentivize institutions like hospitals and schools to shift away from offering animal-based products. He complained that “meats produce a lot of emissions” and suggested those institutions introduce “a meatless Monday program” to drive down that pollution. He also said “we’re taking up huge amounts of land just for livestock,” meaning “that land can’t grow forests that could otherwise be sequestering carbon at immense rates.”
Rutinel’s animal activism dates back to his college years, when he stripped his shirt and donned a People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals sign to promote veganism. A few years earlier, he wrote blog posts with headlines like “The 5 Stages of Becoming a Vegan” and “What Would Jesus Do? Socialism.” He has since denied being a socialist.
Read the full article here
