UEA and Redwings launch ‘kindness to animals’ pledge inspired by Black Beauty author
By: Communications
A new animal welfare pledge has been launched by Redwings and the University of East Anglia (UEA) to honour the legacy of Anna Sewell, the author of Black Beauty.
The Black Beauty Pledge is inspired by the Bands of Mercy, an organisation established during Anna’s lifetime, to promote kindness to animals – especially among children and young people – using education and direct action.
Everyone who signs up on the Redwings website will receive a certificate and key ring, confirming they have made the pledge.
Anyone who goes on to show the charity what they have done for animals will also receive a prize of sweets by local producer Sweet Smiles of Norfolk, a copy of the Black Beauty book and a collectable Schleich horse. They will also be featured on a special gallery of people who have done something positive for animal welfare on the Redwings’ website.
Find out more and sign up to the Black Beauty Pledge
Prof Thomas Ruys Smith, Professor of American Literature and Culture at UEA, said: “We are so excited to launch the Black Beauty Pledge, two years on from the publication of our special edition of Black Beauty, our first collaboration to raise funds for Redwings.
“We hope this will inspire everyone who signs up to think about the welfare of the animals in their life, and those they encounter, and consider their behaviour towards them with that animal’s welfare in mind.
“Anna Sewell wrote Black Beauty at a time when horses were relied upon in many aspects of people’s lives, not as a work of fiction but as a tool she hoped would change hearts and minds and lead to improvements in their welfare. We want to honour her legacy through this Pledge.”
Redwings
A horse welfare charity, Redwings is the custodian of Anna Sewell House in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, where the author was born.
Two years ago, the charity collaborated with UEA on a special fundraising edition of Black Beauty, and the partnership has continued to further Anna’s legacy.
Nicola Knight, Redwings Head of Communications and Campaigns, said: “The Bands of Mercy groups were incredibly popular in their day. They had a similar promise that we wanted to reinstate for the modern times.
“The idea is that the Pledge, to promise to treat all animals as you would like to be treated if you were that animal, gets us thinking about what a particular animal needs to be happy and healthy.
“We hope that by signing up to the Black Beauty Pledge children and young people especially will be motivated to take action to be kind to animals.”
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