Anti-chicken elitism in the court of public opinion

[atlantachickenwhisperer]

Hey BYC Members,

Based on the title of this thread, I thought you might like to know that Reese Witherspoon keeps backyard poultry. Yep! In fact, she has talked all about it on David Letterman. She has been nicknamed the "Chicken Lady" by all her friends acording to a recent news article. Mainy because she takes fresh eggs to all her neighbors and friends at her children's soccer games.

I have been in contact with her publicist in Los Angeles about being a guest on my national radio show. I would love to have her on the radio show "LIVE" to tell the world why she keeps backyard poultry.

I will keep you all posted on my progress.

You can listen "Live" here...

Monday through Friday at 12:00pm EST here: www.blogtalkradio.com/backyardpoultry

Saturday at 9:00am EST here: www.americaswebradio.com

You can also follow the Chicken Whisperer on Twitter here: www.twitter.com/backyardpoultry


Thanks for listening!

Chicken Whisperer

 

[Rillion]

Quote:
Reese Witherspoon has a farm. Yes, I see your point that hey, celebrities keep chickens too, but I don't think it's exactly accurate to say that she has "backyard chickens." If I were to tell people that residents of our nice neighborhood should be able to keep chickens because Reese Witherspoon has some, that's what they would tell me-- "Then go raise them on a farm, like she does."

 

[atlantachickenwhisperer]

Hey Rillion,

If you call a 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom house on 6 acres a farm then I guess she lives on a farm, but that is not my definition of a farm.

Good Luck,

Chicken Whisperer

 

[Rillion]

Quote:
Well, she also has pigs. "Farm" wasn't the word I chose, but that or "ranch" were the words that came up in the articles I found after a Google search.

Not saying you shouldn't interview her or anything-- not at all! I just think her situation is a little different from those of us who live in the city or suburbs and want a few hens for our yards.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

I believe Hulk Hogan also keeps/kept chickens in his suburban Hollywood(?) home. I don't recall the result, but he was citied for having poultry where it was not allowed. I'm pretty sure his property was about 1 acre.

 

[Davaroo]

When I move to an area, I look for a few houses with old cars being worked on, someone grilling in the front yard and people walking the streets and waving.

When I see that, I know it's an area for real folks to live.

 

[valereee]

I live in a suburb of Cincinnati that describes itself on its website and letterhead as a "Premier Residential Community." It's probably one of the four most "upscale" suburbs in the area, and in general people here are very concerned about appearances. When a woman here in town recently asked if it was legal to keep chickens, the city discovered it was...and promptly made them illegal! BUT: we very politely are fighting it, and when the issue got referred to the Planning Commission, we managed to turn the PC from 5-2 against to 6-1 in favor by providing them with a TON of research presented in a professional way. Their recommendation (no more than six chickens, no roosters, enclosures to adhere to setbacks and property maintenance code, and enclosures not be visible from the street) is going back to City Council now, and we are very optimistic. We are taking the approach that our government is =US= not =them=, that our representatives are generally intelligent and well-meaning people who just need to be educated on the subject of chicken-keeping, and that we as a community can find a solution to this potentially divisive issue. We've avoided being confrontational, and we've worked within the system. I believe that snobbery and elitism can be turned around to FAVOR allowing chicken-keeping by educating government representatives on the fact that raising a little of your own food is an upscale activity that educated people want to do for environmental and food-quality reasons.

Quote:

 

[redlawyer]

The first time I ever learned of non-farmers raising chickens in their backyards was in Martha Stewart Living years ago. She had a "palace de poulet" in her yard with various breeds. And her house was in Westport Conn! You can't get much more elite than Westport.

So now, people are saying its too trashy to have chickens?? I think it has more to do with what type of structure they are housed in, are they secured in a run and whether roosters are allowed.

 

[Preservation Acres]

As a former resident of Texas, I always found the Dallas area to be seriously overtaken with delusions of grandeur. The worst of the worst is Plano. It's all about putting forth an image that you're better than your neighbor. Even people who have NOTHING work constantly to get others to believe they have everything. It's a pretty sad goal to devote your life to, but they seem to think it's the best way to live.

 

[Davaroo]

It is all about impressions and "delusions of grandeur," as you put it.
It doesn't help, though, that chickens are associated with filth and lower class living. To the general public, chickens are something of a last ditch thing, that which only 'po folks' do.

That they are wrongly associated with farm living and disease is the real CHALLENGE to overcome. Working to bring them into the mainstream is the best purpose we can have.