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Help save Pogo – get involved!
Whether you have visited Pogo recently / regularly or not we thought it important to bring to your attention that we are in the middle of a crisis. To date these have come along periodically, but without a doubt this one is a lot more serious than we, as the current collective, have encountered before. Most notably, there is a shortage of volunteers and people who are willing to take responsibility for the day-to-day running of the cafe, coupled with a gaping hole in our finances, this is threatening to force Pogo to close once and for all.
It is really important to keep Pogo open for several reasons. Pogo is world famous in the vegan / animal rights scene and it is often a first stop for vegetarians and vegans from other countries to meet like-minded people. Countless friendships have been forged thanks to Pogo, and so many people have found people to live with, found partners and of course learnt how to bake and cook vegan. The cafe is also a place where you can be yourself with no judgement by other people, hosting benefits to fight against sexism, racism, homophobia and other discriminations that exist in the world outside. Additionally, in a world full of animal abuse, we are one of the very few 100% vegan cafes in the country, where people do not need to ask whether something is vegan or not. Pogo is a project that has more recently been doing more activist and outreach work, hosting animal rights meetings and doing a demonstration outside the local McDonalds with free vegan cupcakes and leafleting to encourage people to go vegan and get educated in the issues surrounding animal abuse.
We don’t believe that closing is an option, but in order to make Pogo sustainable on a long-term basis we are going to have to make some changes over the forthcoming months. We believe that these changes will be for the best and are made solely with our ’survival’ in mind. After all, we want this very special, world famous café to remain open for years to come. Rest assured, however, we will remain an autonomous, non-hierarchical, not-for-profit 100% vegan space run completely by volunteers.
We’re always looking for new input and volunteers, so if you would like to get involved then please do; we could really use any help during this difficult time. It doesn’t matter how you get involved, whether it be you visit the cafe on a more regular basis, volunteer or donate – either financially or with ideas, resources or support – we will be extremely grateful either way.
1 Comment to Help save Pogo – get involved!
by Celia Kelly
On June 7, 2011 at 01:24
YOU WILL STAY ALIVE!!