We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Christopher Eubanks a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Christopher, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

In 2016 I watched the documentary “Cowspiracy” and was immediately impacted after learning the negative impact raising animals for our food production has on climate change. I immediately stopped consuming all animal products and began organizing animal rights activism. During this time I began to notice the mainstream animal rights movement lacked diversity so I developed my non profit APEX Advocacy to help increase the amount of people of color advocating for animal rights.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I was born in Cincinnati, Ohio but I was raised in Atl, Ga. Around my early teenage years I began to become highly aware of racial injustice and this laid the foundation for my activism roots. After using hip hop as an outlet to express my anger and frustrations I began to feel the need to use my energy in a different capacity for change. I would eventually understand that the systems that exploit humans and marginalized communities also exploit trillions of animals yearly and I felt the need to raise more awareness around this issue. My non profit creates initiatives that empower BIPOC advocates who are fighting for animal rights. I am most proud of the work we are doing to help BIPOC communities fight back against the negative impacts animal agriculture has on their communities. The industries that exploit the bodies of animals to produce food cause environmental racism, support the school to prison pipeline and create food deserts. Our non profit has a collective liberation approach and we feel that human rights are intuitively connected to animal rights and that no being is free until all beings are free, human and non human.

How did you build your audience on social media?

Before I began doing animal advocacy I didn’t have any intentionality behind my social media presence and I used it mainly as a way to stay connected with friends and family online. As I began to advocate for animal rights my content became less general and more focused. This new focus alongside me showcasing my quick-witted way with words via twitter helped my social media presence to explode. My social media became a tool I used as a form of animal advocacy which led to my content being widely shared, various media requests and speaking engagements. I began to understand how to effectively use my social media to not only advocate for social justice but also help propel my presence to benefit the development of my non profit. My advice to anyone looking to grow their social media presence is to find something you are passionate about and match that with a platform that feels natural for you to use.

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

For over 3 years animal activism was my “side hustle”. Although I never had any intent to be compensated for animal advocacy I did dedicate all of my spare time to community organizing, volunteering and learning all I could to strengthen myself as an advocate. I took every effort to minimize my monthly expenses and live below my means to afford me more time to do advocacy work. It took three years before I would receive a donation or any form of compensation for my advocacy work. As I began to receive small donations it led me to focus on turning my advocacy into a career and I began to only apply for jobs in vegan/animal rights spaces that matched my moral stance. In 2021 I was granted a one year fellowship at an animal rights non-profit. This helped me to gain the experience and confidence I needed to develop my own non-profit.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.apexadvocacy.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soul_eubanks/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SoulEubanks/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-eubanks-%E2%93%A5-382117110/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/soul_eubanks
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxm_fHiiMNKS_kv_btSbK5Q
• Other: www.souleubanks.com