Me (xray-righthand)


Veganism

Veganism is a life philosophy of compassionate non-violence. Most people realize that non-human animals, like humans, have sense organs and can suffer (i.e., are sentient). However, most people do not fully realize that harming non-human animals is unnecessary. A vegan avoids products/ingredients that directly result from and/or promote animal suffering. This includes meat in all forms (beef, fish, fowl, etc.), eggs, milk, gelatin, leather, wool, silk, fur, many cosmetics and other products. One might also consider this as a comprehensive boycott of suffering-based products (using personal finances for harm-free plant-based alternatives instead). Vegans differ significantly from regular Vegetarians (also known as lacto-ovo-vegetarians), not only in terms of food choices, but also in that Veganism is an all-encompassing philosophy that extends to non-food products and activities.

Certainly, this kind of reverence for other life forms has existed for many centuries (several eastern religions [loosely] espouse this paradigm, such as Buddhism and Jainism), but the industrial revolution has made paradigm even more compelling. With industrialization and capitalism comes the maximization of profit and thus the minimization of expense. This created the massive industrial complexes used for most meat, egg and dairy production. Thousands of animals are crammed into holding areas with little or no room to move, let alone live a life. Billions of animals are slaughtered each year for human convenience and pleasure. Picture-book family farms where the chickens, pigs and cows can roam around the yard/pasture freely are far from the norm. To large agribusiness [factory farms], animals are no different than toilet paper, just a product to pump full of chemicals, cut-up and sell. These processes have been hidden from the public eye, which encourages extreme detachment from these productized animals. Most people have never witnessed an animal slaughter and think nothing of the origins of the meat they are eating, unlike the olden days when the meat most likely would have come from a nearby farm (and thus at least there was a glimmering of awareness). Sadly, most animals today are slaughtered by some overworked, underpaid and uninsured bludgeoner who kills hundreds of animals per day, sweat stinging his eyes, missing on occasion, insensate to the sheer brutality and gore of the slaughter.

Why did I become a vegan? As a child, I was very sensitive and empathic. I always liked animals and when I first really thought about how meat was made out of animals (I think I was around 12), I was appalled. I recall a discussion at the dinner table about the fact that meat comes from animals where my two sisters and I all said we wanted to be vegetarian. Our parents said no way, not until we lived on our own. On my first day of orientation at college (August, 1994), they asked who was vegetarian and I raised my hand and never looked back. As I learned more about vegetarianism, I realized that there were health benefits (the heart disease, obesity and cholesterol problems that plague America are much less of a risk for vegetarians) and environmental benefits (vegetable crops take much less land than cattle grazing, which is very damaging to the land, air and nearby rivers). Also, I experienced a new form of persecution at the hands of meat-eaters: at the mere mention of my vegetarian state, many people would become very defensive and/or attack me as if my diet was an affront to them. One of the most common things I heard was "but you're wearing leather shoes..." pointing out a supposed hypocrisy, a flaw in my lifestyle. Others simply claimed it was unhealthy or unnatural. My parents, especially, tried to convince me I was wrong, that I should eat meat, even on a few occasions trying to trick me into eating something with meat in it. Then my middle sister, who became vegetarian shortly after me, gave me a hard time about a pair of blue suede shoes I bought at a thrift store over break [from college] and feeling horrible, I asked my mom to return them for me. I began to rethink my lacto-ovo leather-using vegetarianism, and also had some enlightening conversations with vegans I knew at my school. I learned that the animal compassion, health and environmental benefits were much bigger for a vegan diet than for just vegetarian, although the enactment was much more difficult. I gradually stopped wearing leather shoes (throwing out my old shoes seemed too wasteful; I waited until they wore out and didn't buy more) and experimented with soy milk and other vegan alternatives for nearly 1 year. I decided I liked it, I felt better, and it gave me a ready response to the nay-sayers who tried to point out my hypocrisies; these shoes are NOT leather.

As of September, 1995, I have been vegan. I read ingredients on everything I buy and ask questions in restaurants; if I know some animal was harmed for it, I won't buy it. Mostly my friends have been supportive, though many of them don't understand it. My parents at first were extremely upset and as I was only 17 and still living under their financial umbrella, this created many problems (including a forced regimen with a school nutritionist and something like 20 supplement pills a day, until I was feeling sick and refused to keep it up). I think, however, that time has proved that my lifestyle didn't kill me and that it wasn't just a rebellious whim, so they've come to accept it, if not like it. One of my sisters is now vegan, the other a vegetarian.

For the record, I know that humans are biological omnivores. They are adaptable, they have sharp teeth for flesh and flat teeth for chewing plant materials. Although the easiest source of nutrition is a diet consisting of both meat and plants, clearly there is a choice. Omnivores can live off plants and humans, unlike other animals, are capable of conceiving and enacting complex moral theories such as veganism. Modern technology and transportation systems make the just-plants option easier than ever in the past. With a little bit of care (you must be sure to get enough calories and nutrients, as with any diet, but the vegan diet may require larger quantities and diversity than an omnivore would expect), you can survive and even thrive on a vegan diet. If you can thrive and you care about animal suffering at all, then why not?

What is the problem with dairy? Some people do not realize this, but dairy cows, like other mammals, only produce milk when pregnant and for a short time afterwards (enough time to wean a baby calf), so they are forcibly impregnated multiple times in order to keep lactation going. You might wonder what happens to all the baby calves - well, the male calves are sent to veal crates or otherwise disposed of (no good for milk) and the female calves are cycled in to the same process as their mothers. You might also wonder what happens when the milk production starts to fade (after 4-5 years) what happens to the cows? They are slaughtered. It's also worth noting that, to maximize production/profit, most dairy cows are pumped full of hormones. Like other factory farm animals, they are often kept in dirty and crowded complexes and given little/no exercise and the cheapest unnatural "food" and therefore, these health-challenged creatures are dosed with of antibiotics to minimize disease (which promotes the development of new anti-biotic resistant strains of diseases).

What is the problem with eggs? The vast majority of egg-producing hens are "de-beaked", which is a painful anesthesia-free process of cutting off most of the beak (with a hot knife or other implement). The majority of hens live in cages often and have their toes cut off as well. Both of these mutilations are done because of overcrowded conditions and the fighting that this stress causes among the "flock". Similar to dairy cows, female chickens actually do produce offspring and these offspring are equally doomed: female chicks are slated to become egg-laying hens, while male chicks are discarded (sometimes killed, other times just tossed in a garbage pile to die on their own). The hens who surpass their egg-laying prime are no longer "useful" and therefore are slaughtered. Since chickens (even most so-called "free range" chickens) are subject to even more filthy and crowded conditions than larger animals (and the same unnatural "food"), they are pumped chock full of antibiotics to minimize disease (which promotes the development of new anti-biotic resistant strains of diseases).

What is the problem with wool? There is a common misconception that sheep "need" to have their wool shorn, which is based in the animal exploitation practice of growing/raising sheep originating from a cold-weather climate in a hot-weather climate (and/or genetically engineered/bred for excessive wool growth). Although the sheep might be somewhat uncomfortable in the hot weather heat with their full coats of wool, this is an artificial problem caused by humans and one not solved by shaving them to bare skin, which can cause many health problems for the sheep (who are then too cold) in addition to the inevitable nicks and razorburn. Any sheep who are "natural" to a particular climate would shed in the hottest months and grow more in the winter as do many other mammals, thus wild sheep do just fine. Because of human exploitation, the shaved sheep are susceptible to disease and parasites (specifically, fleecerot, footrot and flystrike). Mutilations (dehorning, tail-docking, "mulesing" and castration) are typically done without anesthetic. As with dairy cows and egg-laying hens, "used" sheep are prematurely killed (once past their wool-growing prime), most likely for meat.

What is the problem with "humane" animal use? I will use an analogy here - while it is better for military interrogators not to subject people to Catherine Wheels, Iron Maidens and other extreme forms of torture, that in no way justifies their use of waterboarding and "lesser" psychological tortures. Similarly, while causing less harm to exploited animals is better than causing more harm, it doesn't transform the remaining harmful practices into something acceptable. Specifically, all animals used for meat or skin/fur are slaughtered, usually without any or with only ineffective "stunning" procedures. Also, animals exploited for other purposes are still subject to confinement and other conditions deemed "necessary" for that exploitative purpose (for example, most "free-range" egg-laying hens are still painfully de-beaked and kept in ridiculously crowded sheds, even though they may not be in "cages"), result in deaths for at least half of their offspring and are killed well before their natural lifespan. Also, while animals are considered property, there can be no meaningful protection for them as any theoreticical conflict between property owner and his/her property, the property owner will logically win. Humans always have the right to terminate their property (in any societally accepted method) and if an animal's life cannot be protected, then how meaningful can other protections be?

What can you do? You can respect the sentience of animals (rejecting their use as pure resources) and go vegan (or, if already vegan, promote this philosophy to others). Review the links below to learn more about veganism and animal compassion. If you're only half-convinced or not yet ready to make such a big step, you could begin by cutting down on your animal product consumption - try eating vegan one day per week to start with and then work your way up from there. You undoubtedly enjoy many "vegan" foods already without having thought about it (fruits, oatmeal, hummus, bread, falafel, peanut butter, rice, etc.) - you can eat more of those things and educate yourself about other plant-based foods (such as tofu and soy/almond/rice milks). Eat at home more often and seek out restaurants that have vegan options. Also, see my Vegan Quickstart Guide.

For the love of animals: be very careful with companion animals and do not try to force a vegan diet on a carnivore (such as a cat) without doing diligent research. If you want an all vegan household with companion animals, consider getting an omnivore (such as a dog) or an herbivore (such as a guinea pig or rabbit).

History: The term "vegan" was coined by Donald Watson in the early 1940's. It is a sort of abbreviation of "vegetarian" (first three letters and last two), but is pronounced "VEE-GAN (with a hard "G"). It was initially intended to be a shorter term for "non-dairy vegetarian," but quickly grew to define those who do not consume any animal products. The Vegan Society was founded in 1944 by Donald Watson (a long-term vegetarian in England), "to work for a new relationship with the rest of sentient creation in a symbiotic relationship if possible, to 'live and HELP live' rather than to just 'live and let live.'" Donald Watson died in 2005 at the age of 95. Each November 1st is World Vegan Day.

In late 2005, I realized I had practically no vegetarian (and no vegan) friends, so I started a group to meet and connect with like-minded veg folks (specifically post-college urban professionals who were committed ethical vegetarians/vegans, queer-friendly and otherwise open-minded). Our first meeting was in January of 2006 and we met regularly (usually once a month for a meal or social activity) for several years (and I met some good friends).


Cookbook
In 2008, interest in the group seemed to be waning and I started to get involved with the Boston Vegan Association, so was questioning my need for a vegetarian" group. I carried it through the end of the year and finished my cookbook project (recipes from members) and then disbanded the group in early 2009.

 

Animal Information and General Resources (advocacy, community, health)* :

Vegan Shopping (shoes, belts, bags, food, dining)*:

More shoes (regular shops with some non-leather options)*:

*Note: I do not necessarily endorse all groups/sites, but wanted to provide a variety of resources.

Note: cartoon animals are royalty-free public domain images found online (www.clker.com).