Lately there have been quite a few snarky articles denouncing the horror that is veganism and the people that promote it.  We are an insensitive lot, they relate, that try to force our will on unsuspecting omnivores, who want nothing but to be left alone with their personal choices.  One article denounced masked vegans who threw a cayenne-laced pie — evidently that reader did not understand that true vegans do not resort to violence, it is antithetical to a belief in non-exploitation, respect and non-violence; I would denounce them too.  Yes, some very well-know groups call themselves animal rights groups and they do use unsavory tactics like sexism and assaultive techniques, but most self-respecting vegans I know distance themselves from such organizations.

Another young woman, after insulting a vegan friend she had invited along for a campout who refused to eat animal products — well, she totally trashed her friend. Of course, it was this pesky vegan that was sooo difficult. Maybe she was, but was publicly trashing her the right way to work things out? This is a peaceful process?  Then followed an article that was a very sarcastic piece about how even eating plants was not kind so she would eat only fruit that fell from the tree, but then she would waste all those seeds so….maybe she would just quit eating.  Do these people think vegans have never heard this kind of nonsense before? I get an occasional tweet like that, you know the kind, “So you hate plants?”  “What about the death of carrots; don’t you care?” Really, is that the best you have in your mental arsenal?

This brings the strangest scenario to mind. When I was a young child, I can recall seeing grown adult men having to be held back from a tiny little girl trying to attend school in Alabama. I was horrified and mystified. What was wrong with these grown men to act so stupidly? How could they stand themselves?  I just heard that the little girl was praying for her tormenters; she said they needed it. Indeed.  But this was right before the old ugly business of Jim Crow was about to die and only a few decades before our first African American president was elected. I know this is hard for some folks to understand, but I was so overjoyed when that happened, I never thought I would live long enough to see it. We beat the drums and danced and wept for four hours. It was incredible. The old ugly was gone, or dying at least — the death throes of ugliness are never pretty.  And the meanest spirit and the worst of ignorance are raising their desperate destructiveness once again. I remember Ruby, that tiny little African-American child, so full of wisdom in the face of an entire culture set against her. I try to think peaceful thoughts to those who are promoting death and destruction, too.

Maybe all the fear, hatred and hanging onto dead culture and cruel tradition will end the same way, with people refusing to see what is all around them. Perhaps they will keep denying their own cruelty and complacency, and just want things to go as they always have (which is really only in very very recent history, but theirs nonetheless).  Maybe all this crankiness is a sign that this change too will happen rather rapidly.  We are ready for it, the animals are ready for it, the planet is ready for it.  But from what I know of the vegan community, the vegans who are thoughtful, non-violent abolitionists, will not waver.  They will keep trying to open eyes and let the personhood of each animal be seen and appreciated. They will continue to respect life and remain non-violent and as non-exploitative as they are able. They will keep a positive thought in mind for those misguided souls who so enjoy bashing us vegans.

I want to be fair, so here are the rules if you want to bash a vegan:

1) Explain how it will save the planet to use animal products.

2) Tell us how eating animal products is not causing an epidemic of obesity, heart disease and cancer.

3) Give a detailed account of how trapping, torturing and killing innocent living beings will help make the world a more peaceful place.

4) Let us know how your God wanted you to disrespect the creation he left in your care, how delighted he would be at the suffering and degradation you are causing.

5) Advance the cause of exploitation, whether it be child trafficking, sexism, gender stereotype and homophobia, racism, or speciesism. Explain how that improves the quality of life for the bulk of living entities. Or even your own.

6) Inform of us how personal choices can be made that affect only you and not the rest of the planet. How is it that eating another being has no impact on that being, on the waste he gives off, on the water and grain he consumes, on the life he must endure and the death he must experience?

7) Tell us where you are going to get the 5 or 6 other planet Earths that you will need for everyone else on the planet to eat as you choose to eat and live as you choose to live.

Most of us vegans are not omnivore bashers. Most of us love omnis up close and personal; some of us are even married to them. They are our parents, our siblings, our children. While we wish they would stop exploiting animals, we know that all we can do is provide information. We really have no concerns for what you eat, but we do care about whom you exploit.  So, vegan bashers, we will not bash back. We believe in respect. Really. We just want you to awaken.

Graphic by John Colvin

While listening to one of my favorite podcasts, NZ Vegan Podcast, I was amazed at the solid, logical sound of a very young man, 13 years old at the time, who was on fire for animal rights and veganism.  Not only was he intelligent and well-spoken, he was doing something about the injustice he was witnessing.  Sam Tucker is that young man, now 14, and he is already an enterpreneur (having owned a tee-shirt business), a radio host (Food for Thought), a public speaker (at Animal Rights assemblies and on podcasts), and a successful animal rights advocate.  He is also a snowboarder and a musician.  Sam, as you can tell, does not let any moss grow under his feet.  He is part of a growing number of young people who are making enormous contributions to changing the way people think about animals, about food, and about the earth.  Below is a recent interview done with Sam:

Do you have many vegan associates where you live?
I think in total there are less vegans in New Zealand than other places, but I do know several nearby and I am on an email chatroom with about 120 local vegans.

What are your academic interests?  Where do you see this leading you?
My favorite subjects are English, Business Studies and Social Studies. I would love to get involved with things like political science, sociology and philosophy. One day I would like to set up a vegan/fair trade business or do marketing and graphic design.  I would also like to teach philosophy, especially ethical philosophy.

Who do you admire or look up to? Who is the example you most want to follow, in your family or in the movement?
Vincent Guihan, Gary Francione, Elizabeth Collins, Jordan Wyatt and Roger Yates, among many more.

What are your hopes for the future for animals? For yourself?
I hope that animal exploitation and their status as property will be made illegal.  Obviously, that is a long way from where we are now, but I think it is definitely a possible goal to aim toward. In the more immediate future, we need as many ethical vegans as possible.  The more vegans we have, the less animals are exploited. For myself, I hope to become a more effective advocate and convince as many people to go vegan as possible.  Before vegans have any political power, we need to increase our numbers.

I describe myself as an imperfect vegan because I have not yet reached the level of theoretical knowledge where I feel assured  my every move is the right one. I support the abolitionist movement and believe that animals deserve personhood, that a major paradigm shift needs to happen to move people away from the exploitation of animals and earth towards justice, and because non-violence is an important component of doing so. I hope to see a day where humans can respect the natural world and see themselves as part of it, not in charge of it.

As a therapist, there was a tale about a man who was walking on the beach that was told to us as interns.  The man found millions of starfish, dying, having washed up on shore. A man stood there, throwing one after another in the water.  Another man walked up and told him, “What are you doing? You cannot save them all!”  to which our man replied, “No, but I can save this one,” as he saved another life. The story was to help us avoid being overwhelmed by the need and suffering we were soon to encounter. It was also to remind us that, although we could not “save” every single client, each one was worth the effort. We would do the best we could.

I make mistakes and hopefully learn from them. I do not invest time in urging for larger cages for chickens but rather to free chickens from being commodified. I used to support some of the animal protection groups, but now think that vegan education is the single best thing anyone can do to help the most animals in the quickest fashion. No two advocates offer the same combination of perspective, energy, experience or education; that is what makes us a community. We need all of us to pull together to get this done.

Here are some of the ideas I have been learning about activism as well as the activists that keep me sane.

Limit Responsibility

Fighting for a pardigm shift in thinking regarding totally helpless, vulnerable animals can trigger our own vulnerability.  Particularly within our own ranks, negativity and criticism can cause narcissistic injuries that can zap our energy.  A recent podcast by Elizabeth Collins of NZVeganPodcast addressed the importance of allowing the other person involved in any dyad to accept responsibility, positive or negative, for their own outcome.  In a movement that has no designated or elected leader and no absolute rules, this is important to keep in mind. Thanks, Elizabeth.

Drop the Defense

Once in awhile, someone will push our buttons.  If we allow ourselves to go on the defensive, it may feel like all is lost. I recently had a couple of Twitter users make snarky comments about vegans hating plants or tweeting that God made animals out of meat so we would eat them (thanks, Sarah Palin). I sent back a positive message and ended up having a nice comment back, “Nice to share a common interest with an uncommon person,” since we both are photographers. I had to check the defensiveness; I try to do so regularly.  Angel Flinn recently received a lot of negativity (as well as appreciation) for an article about Sarah Palin’s supposed “pro life” stance. I applaud her. Her article was not a personal attack, but questioned the self-imposed title the former Governor of Alaska gave herself in light of her slaughter of Alaska’s animals.  Ms. Flinn is always a positive, talented, gentle advocate for veganism. Thank you, Angel.

Detour from Drama

The best example I can give of this is the Angel for Animals ad PETA recently released. When viewing a nearly perfect female physique (Joanna Krupa) with a cross strategically placed over her breasts and groin, animals are the not the first things that come to mind.  These tactics offend Christians and detract from the abysmal situation of billions of animals locked into suffering and slaughter each and every day. It does raise interest and money as well as publicity, though. Is that the purpose — self-promotion? For an example of low-key, high-impact advocacy, think of Gary Francione. He is instructive and kind. He has been at this for decades, yet remains a wonderful example of an intelligent, rational advocate with a clear, simple message.  He must have some eternal well-spring of patience from which he draws. Professor Francione is extremely patient and persevering and has helped educate me. Thanks, Professor Francione.

Love (But Avoid) the Haters

I write documentary reviews, articles about parenting, and environmental articles as well as things about animals and veganism.  Recently I encountered a Cyber Sniper on one of my three fan pages, spewing hatred.  I wrote an article about people who love to hate vegans already, but this one surprised me – why become a fan of what you allegedly hate?  I know the answer, but it is still a challenge. Luckily, I have a fan who gives me a thumbs up on nearly everything I post (Thanks, Bjorn).  And I have a podcasting friend who has encouraged me to keep going when I was ready to throw in the podcast (stay tuned), blog and towel — Jordan Wyatt of Coexisting with Nonhuman Animals.  Thanks Jordan. And thank you to everyone who has left the occasional positive comment. It all helps!

Grow Peace

Attacks from within the group serve mainly to alienate those attacked.  It is one thing to attack an idea or an organization, but I find it painful to see the personal attacks of other vegans when there are so many outside the vegan community that should be held accountable for animal exploitation.  I have benefitted by correction done kindly from other vegans as I learn and grow, but please, leave the snarky comments behind.  One of the forums to which I belong recently shut down an article for “drawing enough blood.” While you may disagree with this vegan or that, are those attacks really the best use of vegan advocacy? It is a small enough group already. Professionally, my job was to manage multi-disciplinary, multi-agency programs that required people to see things from one another’s perspective — I had to keep people at the table to keep the program operational.  Those skills really help me in this field, too. When I get skewered, I only have to go to Plant Peace Daily and the wonderful entries of Rae Sikora of VegFund to feel my blood pressure going back down. Thanks, Rae.

The above people have small differences in methodology but remain committed to achieving a just world for all. Our movement needs them, every last one.  If you are not vegan, please become one. We need you, too.  I am here to help — Join the Revolution!!!

I later learned it was a conjoint birthday party, including the birthday of the fishing grandpa.  The boat ride lasted an exceptionally long time, and the returning mariners ended up needing to have dinner about 7 pm.  There was nothing for me, so it was suggested I come over when they were done, about 8:30 pm.  By then, having been up since about 4:30 am, and not feeling terribly welcome, I decided to wait until the next day to give my grandson his gifts. It had been a long day and I did not yet know that it was a conjoint gathering. Had I known, I would have come by to pay my respects to the adults who were celebrating, but I did not yet know. And fourth birthdays have special significance in our family, so at the time, it was a disappointment.

The next day the little one came over with his brother and his father and opened up his gifts.  I had a treasure map to find the pirate ship I purchased for him; he had to search through clues in a half dozen different places to find his gifts.  He and his older brother had a great time.  He said something to me about fishing; I didn’t realize his grandfather would be bringing a little fishing pole for him.  He mentioned that the fish had something red in his mouth.  I asked if it was blood; he said it was a tongue or something, he wasn’t sure, but he made a face.  He didn’t like fishing; he asked me if I liked fishies. I said yes, I like them alive and swimming around and being free. End of conversation and on to playing with his new gifts.

My grandson will have to decide for himself how he feels about bugs and fish and other creatures.  He shows great empathy around me but is adaptable to his circumstances.  I asked my son to please have a birthday for him that did not include harming any animals, but I did not sense much support; at times I think my beliefs about compassion offend the entire world.  I know that missing family gatherings because of vegan values is a common occurrence, but it is painful nonetheless. I think it is indicative of how frequently animals pay the price for human desires, because I know how frequently I am not included in things in life. I try to find ways to participate, to not leave my son in an awkward position because of my beliefs, without compromising my own values. I can only hope there will be more vegans by the time my little grandson grows up – he loves anything vegan, even me. I hope there will be a world left for him to grow into, a kinder world, where other people, other animals are respected and treated with kindness.  Meanwhile, I will miss the party if it includes harming other individuals, be they finned, feathered, or furred. It is a small price to pay to respect my fellow inhabitants.