Veganism (B&W)

8/9/2019 Veganism (B&W)

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VeganismA guide to nonviolence


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1: Based on the 2007 United Nations Food and Agriculture report. Figures considered for a two second timespan.

Over 50 billion animals are killed

every year worldwide.

In the time it took to read thatsentence, 3,163 chickens, 170

ducks, 87 pigs, 36 sheep, 40

turkeys, 25 goats, 19 cattle, and 1

buffalo were killed across the globe1

Our relationship with animals

Veganism

Animals are constantly a part of our lives. They share our homes, sleep

in our beds, and may even greet us at the door. We turn to them for

emotional support, consider them members

of the family, and mourn their deaths whenthey pass. These animals may not be able to

balance a checkbook or speak our language,

but we love and value them highly. We

believe they enjoy their lives as much as

they enjoy the company of others. For

other animals who are, in many ways, no

different from dogs or cats, we stick forks

and knives into their cooked bodies and

wear their skin as clothing. If we believe

violence just for enjoyment against a dog

or cat is wrong, how do we reconcile

what we do to other animals? We

certainly do not need animal products

to be healthy; we consume animals out

of habit and because we enjoy the taste or convenienceof their products. This strange contradiction is our moral

schizophrenia. If we want to overcome our social

affliction, we must take the first step in being

nonviolent and become vegan.

Veganism is not a diet, but a way of life

which excludes the use of animals for any

reason. This means a vegan does not eat, wear,

or use animals or their products. Instead, vegans thrive on

diverse plant-based foods, animal-

free clothing, and find

a l t e r n a t i v e

ways to doinganything that

would involve an

animal.

Amothersowinagestati

on

crate.


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The following pages provide

examples of how animals are used

and why veganism is easy, healthy,

and necessary if we claim to take

animal interests seriously.

Do not let new welfarists [or anyone else]

convince you that veganism is hard or

that vegans think that they are special.

Veganism is increasingly easy in the 21st

century. Whats hard is being a nonhumananimal whose property status robs her of

any meaningful moral consideration.

-Roger Yates

What about humanely-Raisedproducts?

Cantwejusthavebetter welfare?

Never doubt that a

small group of thoughtful,committed, citizens can

change the world. Indeed, it is

the only thing that ever has.

-Margaret Mead

An increasing number of consumers attempt to

address the devastation we cause to animals

not by going vegan but by purchasing productsadvertised as humane or as produced

ethically. However, as youll see, these labels

are practically meaningless. The conditions of

humanely-raised animals are no more of an

improvement than putting air fresheners in

a torture chamber. Meanwhile, these products

encourage the public to believe it is okay toexploit animals simply because we enjoy it.

When our habits are

threatened by our instinct to

do what is right, we often

try to rationalize ourselves

out of breaking our habits in

order to avoid this conflict.

One of these rationalizations

is to believe the solution for animals, if welfare regulation fails, is simply to

have better welfare. This is the vicious cycle of animal welfarism. As youll

see in the succeeding pages, the past three hundred years of animal welfare

laws have shown as long as animals are property, they cannot have rights.Without rights, their exploitation is not only continued but protected by the

mantra of their increasingly better conditions. We all know the property

status wont go away overnight, but with veganism, each one of us and the

friends we encourage can gradually reduce the very demand for their

exploitation in the first place. Going

vegan is easier than you think and

this guide will help you through it.

?


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But you dont have to killthe cow for milk, right?Some people may choose to avoid eating meat

because they do not want to hurt or kill animals. However,

these same individuals may also consume

non-meat animal products (e.g. eggs or milk)

thinking there is no wrong done to the animals who

make them. Truthfully, there is no moral difference

between eating a slab of steak or drinking a glass of

milk. The life of a dairy cow, for example, involves

a tremendous amount of suffering. When we find

someone is being treated in such a way that they

are suffering, well naturally want someone else

to step in and stop the cruelty. However, in the

case of the animals we use for food, entertainment,

and so many other purposes, they suffer not because people are failing to better

the treatment but that they are things we use in the first place. So in the

case of the dairy cow, her labor begins with being raped by human hands and

bovine semen. Her babies are taken away from her to be raised as veal calvesand after she has endured a life of forced milking and confinement,

she and her babies are taken to slaughter. All of

this happens because we raise these

mothers so we may take their milk

for ourselves. This is not a matter of

misbehaving dairy farmers but what is

necessary to get us the milk, flesh, or whatever

else we want from these animals. The dairycow is only one example of why our treatment

of animals is not the problem but that we use

them as property in the first place. So the first

thing we must do as nonviolent people is to go vegan.

[]

Left: ringworm infections consume a veal calfs

face. Most veal calves are the babies of dairy cattle.

Cowstaggedandstandingintheir

ownfilth

There is no meaningful distinction between eating flesh and

eating dairy or other animal products. Animals exploited in

the dairy industry live longer than those used for meat, but

they are treated worse during their lives, and they end up in

the same slaughterhouse after which we consume their flesh

anyway. There is probably more suffering in a glass of milkor an ice cream cone than there is in a steak.

-Prof. Gary L. Francione


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Anyone whos ever owned anything wouldnt think

its strange for a property owner to want to take care

of his or her property, especially when that persons

money comes from keeping these possessions in good

condition. This is the case with animal property as

well. Its in the best interests of an animal owner to

take care of the animal when it helps to make more

money or keeps costs down. Humane treatment

laws tend to actually benefit producers by getting rid

of wasteful methods while comforting consumers

to believe they can still exploit animals in a way that

is ethical or humane.

How humane is humaneslaughter?Objects of property cannot truly have

rights. To have a right is to have a

certain kind of freedom which cannot be

taken away simply for someone elses

enjoyment. When we make somethingor someone our property, any attempt

we make to ensure the best welfare (e.g.

bigger cages, less painful slaughter, etc.)

cannot interfere with our interest in getting what we want from

the thing or person. Animal products labeled as more humane still use an animal

as property. Treatment cannot be so improved that the animal products are

unaffordable to consumers or

unprofitable to producers. This iswhy humanely-raised animals

end up on the same trucks to

the same slaughterhouses as

conventional animals. In fact,

many laws against inhumane

treatment simply do not apply

during transport and other times

when the law would prevent theprofitable use of animals. For these

reasons, its not that welfare laws

dontbut cantmeaningfully protect

animal interests. In any case, being

property means not having rights.

Actual diagrams for

humane slaughterby designer Temple

Grandin

Humane treatment laws still treat animals as

objects of property and actually economically

benefit the production of animals by legislating

against wasteful practices.

[The use of humane slaughter methods]...results in safer and better working

conditions...brings about the improvement

of products and economies in slaughtering

operations; and produces other benefits

for producers, processors, and consumers

which tend to expedite an orderly flow of

livestock and livestock products...

-United States Humane Methods of SlaughterAct.


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Birds are raised from hatcheries

where male chicks (useless for egg

production) are killed immediately.

This process may involve suffocation,gassing, or even being ground

up alive. Female chicks endure

Free Range/Cage-Free

Veganism is an act of nonviolent defiance.

It is our statement that we reject the

notion that animals are things and that

we regard sentient nonhumans as moral

persons with the fundamental moral right

not to be treated as the property or

resources of humans.

-Prof. Gary L. Francione, Distinguished

Professor of Law, Rutgers University

Hatcheries

While the atrocities of a hatchery are reason

enough to abhor bird production, some

consumers attempt to lessen the harm ofanimal exploitation with the purchase of free range or cage-free

bird products. These labels have little to no legal meaning and may simply

refer to a small outdoor concrete enclosure or

a cageless but filthy and overcrowded barn.

As for egg production, chickens enjoy eating the

unfertile eggs we take away from them. Free

range or cage-free birds come

from deadly hatcheries. They may still be

debeaked, crowded, and cut off from light.

These birds end up in the same transport to the

same slaughterhouse as any other chicken. This

improvement is akin to putting nice paintings

in a torture chamber.

overcrowding and are debeaked via

pressing a hot plate directly to the beak to

be singed blunt. This is a painful process

often resulting in infection and an inability

to eat or drink. Whether a chicken comesfrom a backyard coop, a free range or a

crowded, filthy enclosure, birds are the result of

the standard industry practice of hatcheries. This

cruelty exists despite laws passed supposedly

to minimize the suffering of animals. Animal

welfare laws many of us believe protect

animals actually do nothing to prevent many ofthe painful and deadly practices necessary to

efficiently profit from animals.

Abirdrescuedfroma

slaughterhouse

Inhatcheries,malechicksareimmediatelykilled.

o


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Sentience

The animals of the world exist fortheir own reasons. They were not

made for humans any more than

black people were made for white,

or women created for men.

-Alice Walker

Fish and aquatic animalsFish are beings with muscles and nerves which allow

them to explore and feel just like land animals2. While

they may not have facial expressions or show emotion in

the same way we do, they have families, fear pain and love life as much as adog or cat. The death of fish for food is one of slow and painful suffocation.

They are decompressed, stabbed, and often cut open alive to bleed to death

in agony. To kill a fish is no more humane than to kill a rabbit or a cow.

Sentience describes a feature of animals (humans or otherwise) which separates

us from things like plants and inanimate objects. Animals are sentient because they

can feel, sense their surroundings, and process this in a brain. While some plants

have ways of responding to predators or the changes around them, these are

chemical reactions and biological events which do not

involve thinking. That is, plants and rocks do not

have a brain. They do not feel pain nor have

emotions or thoughts. Plants and lifeless

objects are not sentient. We could breaksentience into further characteristics

like the thinking abilities humans

have that nonhumans do not (or

vice versa) but when it comes

to having a right not to be used,

what more does a being need than

sentience? When sentient beings are

used, they have an understanding aboutit. They can have negative or positive

feelings about their situation. However,

our obligation is not to ensure animals

have only supposedly positive feelings

about their being used but not

to use them in the first place.

2: Sneddon, L. (2003). The evidence for pain in fish: The use

of morphine as an analgesic. Applied Animal Behaviour Science,

83(2), 153-162. doi:10.1016/S0168-1591(03)00113-8.


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Its not how we treat nonhumans but that we usethem as our property

Ahorselimpsfromaracinginjury.Later,hewillbekilled.

"...In relation to so-called

farm animals, animal welfare

Not only do the welfare groups spend

years campaigning for change, this is

followed by a long period of implementation

and then these same groups spend years

monitoring the reforms they supported,

exposing violations of regulatory laws they

were instrumental in creating.

-Roger Yates,PhD. lecturer in Sociology,Bangor University Ill admit, it all started with a girl. I

first started giving up animal products

because I wanted to impress her. She was my first girlfriend. Gradually,

I came to learn how animal products were saturated in so many things.

I had never thought about how most baked goods, for instance, were

stuffed with all kinds of secretions, enzymes, and random chemicals all from

animals. At first, I was a little worried about giving up some of my favorite

foods. But I learned from her there were plenty of

options available and I developed new tastes

for all kinds of foods I had never tried before.

Looking back, I cant believe I ever thought

any of this would be difficult. When I went

vegan, I just looked for alternatives and gave

it up completely--no excuses. Even though Iwas practically addicted to cheese, I never

missed meat or dairy or anything else. My

body and cravings basically adjusted to what I

was eating. While I changed my eating habits

and my wardrobe, I gradually began to clear

Becoming Vegan

Chile:twohuasos

chaseand

pindownacalf.

The issue is not whether we can

make the process more humane.The issue is how we can justify

any of this under any circumstance.

The issue is not treatment; the

issue is use.


organisations seem to be foreverforced into a never-win situation....


9/16

Lets stop talking about veganism as

a matter of compassion, benevolence

and other nice-sounding, but ultimately

anthropocentric missives. The idea

that we are being kind, acting

compassionately, or saving lives just

by being vegan is misguided. Its also

paternalistic. Veganism is a matter

of justice, and it reflects the absolute

minimum of justice that I owe other

persons (human and non). That

doesnt mean were not compassionate

people. It doesnt mean we cant act

compassionately toward other animals

(human or non). It just means that

veganism is what we owe them. Its

not an act of charity.

-Vincent J. Guihan

my head of this idea that

animals didnt matter--

like they were significantly

different from me in the ways

that matter the most. I came

to understand that we areconstantly thinking of animals in

the same way we think of cars,

cellphones, and music players.

It wasnt until I understood the

pervasive status of animals as

property that veganism was

solidified for me. I love being avegan, I will always be one, and

am never shy to tell my friends

they should go vegan too!

-Adam,

Omaha, Nebraska, USA

At times, individuals considering going vegan look at all the many non-vegan

things around them and wonder where do I draw the line? Indeed, its no

secret we live in a very non-vegan world. But we dont need to define limits

for ourselves to start off doing what we believe is right. If your favorite

snack cookie uses refined sugar, why

not spend the extra

fifty cents to buy

the organic knock-

off product? There

is no vegan police,

yet it is up to us

and only us to know

what we are capable

of doing. Leading anonviolent life does not

mean being perfect,

but ultimately it us up

to us to reject violence

wherever we see it.

A nonviolent life


10/16

Arent humans naturally carnivores?God loved the birds and

invented trees. Man loved the

birds and invented cages.-Jacques DeVal, Afin de

vivre bel et bien

The small intestine (white) of a carnivore

(left) is considerably shorter than that ofan herbivore and a human (right)

Tiger canines Human canines

Some maintain that, despite the

ethical problem of our use of

animals, humans are biologically

meat eaters and have historicallybeen so as well. They may also point

to a set of teeth in the upper jaw

called canines as proof. However,

humans are not obligate carnivores

but omnivores. We can easily subsist on a plant-based diet. Our canine teeth

are actually very small and blunt. Compare them to real carnivores like

cats whose canines are pointed and

protruding for piercing and shredding.

In fact, we are anatomically more like

herbivores in a number of important

ways. For example, we have jaws

which can move horizontally and flat

molars for grinding plant fiber. Our

intestines, especially the small intestine,

are strikingly identical to those of

many herbivores--long, winding, and

ridged to slowly move plant material and absorb nutrients. The intestines

of a carnivore are short and smooth to quickly dispel meat and its bacteria.

Carnivores are distinguished psychologically as well. For instance, do you

salivate at the sight of blood and screaming? For these and many other

reasons, is it any wonder why we must sterilize our meat (heat) or why

heart disease is the #1 natural killer of human beings? A similar questionmay be: Is it okay to consume animals if other animals kill for food in the

wild? Whether or

not other animals

make ethical choices,

humans can. We can

choose not to exploit

animals. In addition,if we were to justify

our actions this way,

we would also justify

a number of other

socially unacceptable acts of violence.


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Being healthyA vegan diet is one of the healthiest diets in the world and eating vegan

doesn't require breaking the bank or moving to a big city. You can start

today with a balanced and flavorful meal. However, as with any diet, you

should take care to get all the nutrients needed for healthy living. Whilesome will tell you to worry about your protein, most people actually get

too much. A vegan can get all the protein they need from lentils, tempeh,

tofu, beans, nuts, seeds, and even vegetables in marginal amounts. More

importantly, a vegan should pay attention to their calcium, iron, and B12.

Calcium, Iron, and B12A vegan gets his or her calcium from dark green

leafy vegetables like kale or collard greens. Iron can

be found in lentils, spinach, or hummus and is made

more absorbable with adequate vitamin C intake.

Whether or not vegans need a supplement for B12

is a controversial topic. However, we do know

humans need only a small amount over a very long

period of time. It doesnt hurt to take a supplement, butB12 can be found in some fortified foods and nutritional yeast.

A Green LifestyleConsuming a plant-based diet also has a significant

effect on the environment. For instance, the amount

of potatoes which can be produced on an acre of land is

about 40,000 lbs compared to only 250 lbs of cow flesh

which can be grown from the same acre. When we feed

plants to animals in order to eat the animal, we waste an

enormous amount of food. For only one pound of cow flesh,

16 lbs of plant food and 5,000 gallons of water are required.

Compare that to 25 gallons of water for a pound of wheat.

Animal agriculture is also responsible for most of the foodborne illness epidemics from water runoff. Our use of

animals contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions

as well as the destruction of forests for grazing. More than

250 million acres of forests are cleared every year in the US

alone for this purpose.


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Food ChoicesWhile you convert your diet, also convert your kitchen. Keeping your living

space stocked with diverse vegan snacks and meals makes finding good food

at any time a snap.

People are able to do all kinds of horrible things, but the fact that they

can do them should never be accepted as justification for doing them.

The thing we must emphasize is that we can be vegan, and be healthy

and live comfortable lives. That is what is important, so whether meat

is healthy or not is irrelevant. What is relevant is that it is healthy to be

vegan, so we have an alternative to animal exploitation and are therefore

morally obligated to do that.

-Elizabeth Collins

Check out Vegan.FM's vegan

lookup tool at vegan.fm/isitvegan.

Find out if your products, ingredi-

ents, stores, or alcohols are vegan

or tested on animals. You can also

look up vegan locations where

you live.

A transition to a vegan way of living can be

made very easy by stocking up on healthy,

non-perishable foods (seeds, nuts, granola,

dried fruit.) Meanwhile, try making meals

with plenty of servings from each section of

the vegan food pyramid.

Where to eat? What to eat? What to buy?

Fats (2 servings)

Fruits (2 servings)

vegetables (4 servings)

legumes, nuts, and

otherprotein-richFoods (5 servings)

grains

(6 servings)

Calcium rich

foods


13/16

Recently, more and more foods are being produced without animal products.

For instance, you can find vegan ice creams, yogurts, cheeses, milks, deli

meats, roasts, chicken, burger patties, meatballs, scrambles, egg replacers,

and more. However, a good vegan transition doesnt mean eating processed

foods. Try these healthy suggestions for planning your first vegan meal.

& Fried bulgur with agave nectar/maple syrup& Vegan cereals or oatmeal with nondairy milk& Fresh fruit& Pancakes or waffles (using an egg replacer)& Tempeh bacon& Tofu scramble

Plan your meal with ease

& Quinoa and mushroom stuffed peppers& Bean tacos with lettuce and tomatoes& Masala dosa

& Black bean burger with sweet potatofries& Sushi (no fish) and rice

Fruit smoothie &Granola &

Celery with peanut butter&

Chips and guacamole &Fried cinnamon tortilla strips &

Soup, salad, and a sandwich &Baked potato and chili beans &

Falafel &Edamame &

3-bean salad &Rice and veggie stir fry &

Dont know how to make these meals or dont know what they are? Visit

www.vegan.fm/plan for details and instructions.

Free vegan recipes

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Snacks and Sweets


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The essence of "Ahimsa"

Becoming VeganSee the back page of this pamphlet

for recommended websites to

learn more about animal rights,

nonviolence, and veganism.

The most important form of incremental

change is the decision by the individual to

become vegan. Veganism, or the eschewing

of all animal products, is more than a matter

of diet or lifestyle; it is a political and moral

statement in which the individual accepts the

principle of abolition in her own life. Veganism

is the one truly abolitionist goal that we can

all achieve and we can achieve it immediately,

starting with our next meal.


Go vegan. Its easy and better

for your health and for theplanet. But, most importantly,

its the morally right thing to

do.


By adhering to ahimsa, meaning nonviolence,

we recognize that treating a sentient being as

a means to our ends cannot be justified simply

because it gives us pleasure. Avoiding theconsumption of any and all animal products

(e.g. wool, honey, silk, etc.) is the first, not

the final step, in embracing the principle of

ahimsa. Most people are born into a habit

of consuming animals at nearly every meal

and are raised to believe our

use of animals is humane

or fair. However, if you

consider yourself nonviolent

and you believe, at least, that

animal interests should be taken

seriously, you must take the step

of going vegan. While vegansare everywhere and there are

plenty of like-minded people to

help you, only you can make

the decision to regard animals not as things, but as persons. Only you

can embrace ahimsa,

Only you can decide to

practice nonviolenceby going vegan and

you can start today

at your next meal.


15/16

This is not a gory video. There is no death or bloodshed--only the panic ofa frightened animal who appears to know its all coming to an end. As you

witness Katies story, think of her before you eat that hamburger, ice cream

cone, or slice of cheese and ask yourself...

is it really worth it?

www.abolitionistapproach.com/video

Below are stills from video footage of the outside of a slaughterhouse.The girl you see turning around never lived with a name, but to those

who remember her, she is known as Katie. Presently, she is afraid

of the sounds she hears. She is confused about what is happening. She

wants to get out, but the walls are so close, she cannot turn around.

Meet Katie.


16/16

animal rightsRead Introduction to Animal Rights by

Gary L. Francione or one of his other works:

Rain Without Thunder; Animals, Property,

and the Law; and Animals as Persons.

Also, see the abolitionist approach blog

at www.AbolitionistApproach.com with

free pamphlets, video, and audio

interviews and podcasts.

Meet VegansA transition to veganism is always

easier when surrounded by like-minded

people. Join an animal rights forum at

www.animalemancipation.com/forum

or www.veganfreaks.net/forum to ask

questions, get advice, or just make newfriends.

Find food and productsAnimal products, unfortunately, are

everywhere. Theyre hidden behind

cryptic ingredient names in the foods we

eat, they find their way into restaurantfood unmentioned, but this doesnt have

to make being vegan difficult.

Search any ingredient name or

alcohol product to see if its vegan or

find your region to see where you

can be accommodated while eating

out. Also find recipes for makinggreat vegan meals at home. Its all at

www.vegan.fm/isitvegan

ForaFreecopyorcopiesoFthispamphlet, visitwww.vegan.Fm/pamphlet

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