Dropping the activist label
Jan 4th
Over the past few years, I have noticed how many vegans divide ourselves into two categories: the activists and everybody else. Most of the time, the activist category consists of employees of animal welfare non-profits and a handful of “superstar” volunteers. I know some people who are very active in promoting veganism who don’t consider themselves activists. Ironically, some of these “non-activists” do more for veganism than the leaders of some of these non-profits!
LOVE’s FAQ defines veganism as “an active ethical stand against the oppression of any sentient being, human or non-human.” This means, when using this definition, we can drop the “activist” label and simply say “vegan.” Without the burden of the artificial delineation between “real” activists and the rest of us, we can concentrate on working to end oppression. It also means no longer ceding responsibility to “real” activists for change in our communities and instead taking personal responsibility for doing so.
This also means no longer confining activism to the narrow realm of what “real” activists do. So all the conversations we have with friends, family, coworkers, and neighbors about speciesist and other forms of oppression; our efforts to build a community with local vegans; our efforts to support new vegans so they thrive as vegans; the many ways small and large we each work to end oppressive systems – all of this is activism, all of this is the vital, necessary work veganism asks of us.
Last year, Miranda and I met fellow LOVE member S. when they were visiting from Spain. They told us how all the vegans they know in Spain are activists and how there is a culture of activism in that vegan community. When I think about what that would look like here, I feel very inspired. This is the kind of atmosphere I hope we can all help create in our communities. When we stop outsourcing activism, we reclaim the power and possibility of change.
Basing our advocacy on values we actually believe in
about 1 year ago - 1 comment
Many animal advocacy groups emphasize being “normal” or “mainstream” in order to reach a bigger audience, even when being “normal” or “mainstream” means participating in exploitation or excluding some groups. There are many examples of this. Some groups say we should eat honey in public so we don’t alienate mainstream (speciesist) audiences. Some groups say [...]
New video available: “You Can Help Stop This”
about 1 year ago - 2 comments
L.O.V.E.’s new video and pamphlet documenting speciesist oppression, “You Can Help Stop This,” is now available at YouCanHelpStopThis.com. Video subtitles are available in Chinese, Dutch, English, and Greek, with more coming soon (please contact us if you’d like to contribute another); pamphlet translations are coming soon. The video can be watched on Youtube and Vimeo, [...]
Examples of community-based activism
about 1 year ago - 2 comments
In spring 2009 I worked at my university’s writing center in one of the student dorms, meeting with walk-in appointments and basic writing students. One of my regular students, K, was interested in some of the same subjects as I was, and at most of our meetings we talked about those things more than K’s [...]
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about 1 year ago - No comments
This is a guest blog from Chris of the Athens Vegans collective in Athens, Greece. He writes about the importance of creating community and staying true to the vegan theory of non-exploitation. For more information, visit the Athens Vegans’ website at http://athensvegans.blogspot.com. Dear friends in the L.O.V.E. community, hello! I’m Chris and I’m posting on [...]
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about 1 year ago - No comments
Last summer I started working on an activism video to use in place of videos like Earthlings, which many of us have grown to dislike but might still use because there isn’t a great alternative. (I’ll note that I’ve been using slaughterhouse footage from Igualdad Animal in recent months; most of it lacks narration, but [...]
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about 1 year ago - 3 comments
Veganism has been defined as the doctrine that humans should live without exploiting other animals. At LOVE we tend to discuss veganism as a broad, holistic anti-oppression or non-exploitation movement. In these ways, veganism is about tearing down oppressive structures, hierarchies, and old attitudes. Veganism is about questioning the status quo and, often, criticizing the [...]
Political Correctness, Political Expediency, and Veganism
about 2 years ago - 4 comments
This is a guest post from Ida. Ida blogs regularly at The Vegan Ideal, a site that “works to cultivate a process by which theory, learning and skills based on veganism as the principle of non-exploitation are put into practice.” While L.O.V.E. takes an anti-oppression approach based on the vegan ideal of nonexploitation, there are [...]
Giving meaning to veganism
about 2 years ago - 6 comments
Vegetarians often have an ambivalent relationship with the animal welfare corporation PETA. In the past, I had reservations about that corporation (e.g., the “Holocaust on Your Plate” campaign), yet continued to distribute their literature. And when I did, I had to ignore that unsettling feeling of unwholesomeness, justifying my actions to myself in the name [...]
On not mistaking social service for social change
about 2 years ago - 4 comments
Ida’s recent post at The Vegan Ideal, “The Absurdity of ‘Triage’ and the Need for Social Change” recalled for me Paul Kivel’s excellent essay “Social service or social change?” in The Revolution Will Not Be Funded: Beyond the Non-Profit Industrial Complex. A version of the essay is available online. In this excerpt (this portion is [...]
Holistic veganism
about 2 years ago - 22 comments
As a vegan, I’m interested in more than patterns of consumption. I’m interested in dissolving speciesist attitudes, spreading an anti-oppression worldview, & ensuring respect for all. I oppose human oppression as much as nonhuman oppression. I value honesty, respect, & community. I value discussions about respectful communication, discussions about the confinement of any species, & [...]
about 3 years ago
“I know some people who are very active in promoting veganism who don’t consider themselves activists. Ironically, some of these “non-activists” do more for veganism than the leaders of some of these non-profits!”
I feel this is a pretty big claim; how do you KNOW for certain that someone is doing more for veganism than another? To me that is saying, “I absolutely know what is best and can therefore judge other “activists” based on my knowledge of absolute right and wrong in terms of veganism”
“This means, when using this definition, we can drop the “activist” label and simply say “vegan.”
What about those who are vegan for health reasons and aren’t interested in ending oppression.. I’ve met some “health vegans” who don’t even like animals. To them it’s no different than another diet, such as Atkins. So what do we call these “vegans”, because as of now, veganism is still considered simply a diet by some.
I hope this doesn’t come off as mean spirited. It isn’t at all. Whenever I read something, I react. Since this is an open community that promotes discussion, I wanted to respond to what got my attention.
about 3 years ago
I think this is a great post; I was ‘vegan’ for almost a whole year before I thought to get active beyond my own dietary and clothing choices. Now, however, I see ‘activism’ as flowing naturally out of my stance against oppression (which is also behind my diet, etc.).
One thing–I was wondering how serious to get with the language issues here. I’ve been calling myself a “vegan activist” and calling L.O.V.E. a “group of vegan activists.” Are these labels no longer optimal? Are we just a group of “vegans”? Maybe we are “vegans actively working to end oppression”? I want to honor the definition of ‘veganism’ as an active stance against oppression, but I’m also just wary of connotations of ‘veganism’ the way it’s currently often used.
Input from others?
about 3 years ago
Another voice, thank you for your comment. I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, but the leaders of one animal welfare non-profit (that I know of) have actively discouraged vegans from promoting veganism. Considering this next to the efforts of some dedicated grassroots activists (there’s that word again!) who are promoting veganism, yes, I think it’s fair and accurate to make the statement “Ironically, some of these “non-activists” do more for veganism than the leaders of some of these non-profits!”
As for the comments you and Steven made about the various reasons for which people self-identify as vegans: When I’m in mixed company, I sometimes say anti-oppression veganism as opposed to, say, health veganism, environmental veganism, and anti-suffering veganism.
In spaces where there is agreement on this particular definition of veganism, I drop the qualifier. Even then, there is still sometimes residual confusion between veganism and its colloquial usage as the practice of abstaining from products made from non-human animals.
about 2 years ago
I personally would never be an active “activist” in the sense of being noted for opposing something. Rather, I identify with being kind and loving. In so doing I choose to exclude none from the effect. Albert Schweitzer once said,”Until he extends his circle of compassion to all living things, man will not know peace.”
If asked my reasons for being a Vegan, its easy to say that growing in love resulted in my having care and compassion for all living things. Naturally, I don’t imprison or eat those I have a love for.” Yes, I do live opposed to violence and exploitation, but this is a secondary response to the first calling of loving unselfishly and unconditionally all.