Thursday 2 February 2012

Why the hate?

I came out of my January hibernation (thank goodness that month’s over with…) renewed and ready to work towards a more compassionate 2012.  Unfortunately, good old Twitter had other ideas, and threw an article my way that made me feel more frustrated than ever about contemporary attitudes towards veganism.

Sali Owen published an article on the Guardian website yesterday posing the question: ‘So, what is an ethical vegan?’, hoping to distinguish this stance from people who are vegan for health and fitness reasons. What I want to discuss is not the article itself, but the absolutely astonishing reaction to it from readers of the paper. You can check out the comments here (I warn you, though, have a stress ball handy!), but to sum them up, they range from the standard base jokes we experience all of the time from meat-eaters (the top rated comment being: ‘I don't discriminate against farmed species - they all taste lovely’) to accusations of moral superiority: ‘It's just another way for them to worship at the altar of Better Than You.’ There are also comments that contain arguments so ridiculous that I am genuinely surprised these people are allowed to vote (one can only hope that they are really vegans writing satirically):

'What about the countless bacteria you slaughter every time you wash your hands?'

'If it is the fear of death in your food source which is the issue, then surely picking on a carrot is discriminatory on species with no concept of their own life?'

'Do Vegans oppose Breast feeding? Presumably they do. If its wrong to drink cows milk it must also be wrong to drink Human milk' [Sic] (Despite reading the Guardian, the rules of grammar and punctuation are evidently lost on this poor fellow.)

Countless other commenters make unsubstantiated and ignorant protestations about how vegans are denying what is ‘natural’, as if factory farming is in any way, shape, or form reflective of nature. There could be nothing less natural than the lives these animals lead. There could be nothing less natural than the average consumer’s complete and utter detachment from the source of the food they are eating.

What’s a vegan to do? I just cannot understand why articles like this get such a hateful reaction from the meat-eating community. And why all these accusations of moral superiority?! I can only conclude that these feelings come from within the meat-eaters themselves, because there is nothing ‘preachy’ about Owen’s article, and anyone that is vegan will know that if moral superiority were really what we were after, there are much simpler and less stressful ways to get it (for instance, abstaining from watching Celebrity Big Brother).

Perhaps most annoying of all the comments are the ones that rant about how they are ‘sick and tired of this holier-than-thou claptrap’, as if it’s so hard being a meat-eater, as if the whole world – the government, the food industry, restaurants, family, friends – aren’t on their side. Oh, it must be so hard for them to have all that choice on the menu, to be in the majority, to be catered for. It must be so hard when the one vegetarian in their circle chooses their dinner and they have to sit opposite a plate of roasted vegetables. How awful and offensive. And then the poor, persecuted meat-eater has to eat their dinner without being questioned about where they get their protein from. I honestly don’t know how they cope under such oppression! And the bullying continues, as after all this hardship, they have to endure reading an article (free from graphic pictures and full of comic references to ‘hummus wells’) in which someone discusses their ethical stance against animal cruelty! I mean, really, it’s surprising there are any meat-eaters left with all they have to cope with. They must feel so harrassed.  Maybe someone should set up a charity?

The injustice of factory farming is intolerable and incomprehensible. I cannot understand how anyone could defend such cruelty, nor can I fathom why these commentators are full of such spite towards people that are just trying to act kindly and compassionately. I guess what I'm really wondering is: Why the hate?

Something needs to change. Veganism needs to move into the 21st century. It needs to be normalised, mainstream, catered for. There needs to be a bridge between veggies and meat-eaters that overcomes all this rubbish about moral superiority, so that we can discuss this issue properly, and have an informed debate in which each side is respected and listened to. Surely most human beings want to end injustice, and create a kinder world for people and animals? That’s all us vegans are after. We don’t want to lecture you, we don’t want to make you feel bad, we don’t want to steal your favourite food - we want to usher in more compassion in the world and defend those who can’t defend themselves. Surely we can all agree that that’s something worth fighting for, and find a way to work together to achieve this?

Thank goodness, there was some light amongst those dark, Daily Mail worthy comments. In her article, Sali addresses the question of caring about multiple issues, arguing that it’s not an ‘either/or’ situation. She writes:
There doesn’t have to be a competitive element to compassion. We don’t have to pick sides. “Sorry, I’m afraid I can only care about one thing at a time, and today’s thing is sustainable recycling in Honduras. Now be a dear and pass me the stilton.”
One commenter agreed, beautifully expressing the idea that ‘The more love/compassion you give, the more you have and the more there is in the world! Love/compassion is not a finite resource. Caring is not a zero-sum game…'

Indeed it is not.

I don’t know what a ‘vegan revolution’ would look like, but I know it needs to happen. We need to break through the stereotypes, the ignorance, the barriers that stop us reaching out and spreading the idea that life is worth something. Life has value. And that every sentient creature, human and non-human, has the right to live the life they were designed for, and not be tortured, oppressed, or exploited.

How we live the life we have been given can change the lives of others, for the better or for the worst. Let’s work together, support and help each other to make veganism an approachable and fun way of life. This isn’t about being perfect; it’s just about caring that we’re not.

Something has to change.

As always, peace and love to you all. x

9 comments:

  1. Superb article!

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  2. Great blog, and I'm really glad you liked my article. x

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  3. Generally speaking, people don't defend themselves unless they believe they're under a legitimate attack. Now, we vegans are definitely growing in number, but we're still a mere fraction of society. Also, for the most part, we're not intrusive about our beliefs in the company of omnivores unless invited to discuss them specifically. So...where's the threat? And who's instigating it? It might be far-fetched, but I have a theory that omnivores do a lot more thinking about the source of their food than they might reveal. How could you not look at a bloody piece of steak on the grill and not, at least occasionally, wonder about the animal whose life was taken away? After all, most of us ate meat before converting, right? We had that proverbial "moment of clarity" when everything clicked. Is it not possible that some people are resisting that epiphany in their own lives? Perhaps we're the innocent bystanders to their own internal struggle. When a co-worker orders off the vegan menu at lunch and you're steak arrives, it's awfully hard not to put two and two together. The vegan doesn't have to say anything and already the omnivore's conscience is humming away. Perhaps this isn't the case, but I can think of no other reason why it seems to be so permissible for vegans to be assaulted for no reason of their own. Great blog! Thanks for shedding some light of this subject.

    -Loren

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  4. Very interesting article! I definitely have different views about the role of animals based on my interpretation of the Bible, but I love keeping an open mind and exploring new ideas. I think that attacking someone because they have different beliefs is deplorable, and I'm truly sorry that you experience this not only as a Christian, but as a vegan as well.

    Can't wait to read your next post :-)

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  5. Really great post, I couldn't agree more! Love your blog by the way :)

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  6. Thank you for the support, everyone! It's so great to know that people are reading the blog and that my posts aren't just disappearing into the digital ether.

    Loren, I hope that the next post ('Interview with a Meat-eater') will in some way respond to your thoughtful comments!

    All the very best to you all (and I'm so glad it's not just me who hates tofu...)
    Peace and love
    xxxx

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  7. An interesting, revealing and entertaining article! I couldn't agree more, I've recently 'come out' as a vegan to my friends at Church and my parents and was surprised to find that largely the reaction I got was an aggressive one, apart from my mum who was very supportive. The nasty mocking comments are just so unhelpful. It's amazing how the concept of veganism makes people go into attack mode. I've always found that when people get angry or aggressive, it's because they have no valid arguments left...

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  8. All Christians were Vegan, yet they crucified that part of it. (John 3:16) This is so important to me because I do care. I don't want something to happen to you. Look at it closely. Share it with the family. This is the key to the real ancient Jews. I would like to send you this; it is important. Here is the quail that the people with Moses ate, one of the cleanest animals in the Bible. The Jews ate the quail and died spiritually, although they were allowed to.
    (Numbers 11:31-35) In the Law of Moses, all animals which ate meat were considered unclean. If a bird ate meat, then it was unclean. The people were allowed to eat animals if they were clean, but in the Bible, to eat means to read. (Revelation 10:8-11) (Ezekiel 3:1-2) What it meant is that if the animal was clean, then the people could read it, and follow its eating habits to find healthy food to eat. I am a real Jew, spiritually and in lineage. Not something to be great by. It is a simple truth. Jews didn't eat meat, they were all Vegan. (2 Corinthians 4:3) That is the truth about Jews. I have also been studying the Talmud on Apostacy and eating meat. This isn’t an attack. Apostacy came upon by going back to meat, even though they were forced to when taken to Babylon. They forgot and went back to sleep like in the book of Jeremiah. All Jews were Vegan. They did not murder animals, and they did not steal from animals. Homey meant wisdom. And milk meant the pure love of scripture, as well as there were other types of milk that the Jews made.

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