Veganuary is not what you think
I went vegan in 2014 and every year since, around Veganuary, I’ve written a plea encouraging friends, family and acquaintances to try initiating the same journey in their lives.
As well-meaning as these pleas are, they inevitably risk coming across as rabid screeds to my unsuspecting Facebook friends. I’m not even sure that my past, ‘pre-gan’ self would have responded well to them.
It’s not that I was more closed-minded back then. It’s just that such an undertaking is a daunting prospect, due in part to a number of ideas about veganism that I have since happily found to be misconceptions.
So, this year I’ll try and address some of these misconceptions, which should in turn unlock some exciting implications.
Misconception #1
“Veganism is virtue signalling for privileged white people.”
This is the misconception that I’m writing this to brag about how pleased I am with myself. And in a similar vein, the belief that veganism is for do-gooders or people who are naïve about the world.
Veganism is not an entirely selfless pursuit, that much is true. There are many benefits for the vegan. However, in my view, the individual benefit of going vegan is not to become a hero in your own story. The goal is to contribute, as an individual, to the collective change you want to see, by living in accordance with the values most of us already have but fail to act on.
Most people would agree that it is undesirable to encourage or participate in violence towards those more vulnerable than ourselves, to harm sentient beings for reasons other than self-defence or self-preservation. And most people would agree, I hope, that the way we presently live in the West is not sustainable.
In this light, I would argue that the principal gain for the individual in going vegan lies in joining a movement that aligns with your values and experiencing the hope and collective agency that this brings.
White saviourism is of course a real phenomenon, which manifests in many areas, of which veganism is just one. But when it comes to veganism, Black Americans are the fastest growing demographic. And it does not need to be an expensive pursuit. Most cultures in the world have had long periods where their diet was focused mainly on the consumption of vegetables, grains, fruit, nuts and seeds, probably because these foodstuffs are so healthful and easy to come by.
Is it naïve to champion animal rights? Some of history’s most celebrated thinkers have been vegans or animal rights advocates. In 1944, Nobel prize-winning writer George Bernard Shaw was an early supporter of the fledgling Vegan Society. About a thousand years before him, philosopher Al-Ma’arri, regarded among the greatest classical Arab poets, was a vegan avant la lettre. And the list of historic geniuses who banished animals from their plates — from Pythagoras to Da Vinci to Einstein — is long. Idealists, maybe. Naïve, I think not.
Misconception #2
“Veganism is a form of martyrdom or self-denial.”
Or, the subtext: “Why are vegans trying to take away the stuff I like when the life is hard enough already?”
It is hard to imagine divorcing oneself completely of certain aspects of our culture that have become engrained over centuries. But the belief that this is necessary is where the misunderstanding arises, I think, and the reason some people perceive veganism as extreme or self-flagellating.
Rather than a penance, veganism is a shift to a mindset where more is possible. For example, one doesn’t give up dairy in exchange for nothing. One swaps it for different eating habits and a more progressive way of thinking about food (culture) and our relationship to the global ecosystem.
You don’t miss dairy in the moment that you are enjoying other foods, just as you don’t miss old times when you’re enjoying the present.
Likewise, one doesn’t give up leather shoes to walk with bare feet; one pursues alternatives that are less damaging to the planet and its inhabitants.
Rather than denying yourself things, you are encouraging yourself to open your mind to the many other ways of eating, taking care of yourself (cosmetics), clothing yourself and entertaining yourself. In this sense, it’s about abundance rather than limitation. It’s about giving yourself permission to deviate from the norm.
Misconception #3. “All or nothing.”
Another binary notion that makes us averse to change is the all-or-nothing mindset. We are afraid of being locked into an untenable regime. But the intention with veganism is to make changes insofar as possible and practical at this point in time.
For example, I am fully vaccinated, despite the Covid vaccines having had to pass animal testing. In this example I’m choosing self-preservation and a reduction in deaths and hospitalisations from transmitting the virus. Similar choices are made by vegans with regard to other medical interventions.
In the future I hope we will progress to better ways of verifying the safety of medical interventions, such as computer modelling, which is already in use.
Even if you slip up as a vegan, it does not negate the positive impact you have already achieved: savings in terms of animal lives, forested area, water, grain, energy. Each step in the right direction adds up, as does the positive influence on yourself and others.
Misconception #4.
“Moving away from meat and dairy harms traditions and livelihoods.”
You don’t have to make do with the world you’re born into. The conservatively minded will scream that such a mindset threatens the very lifeblood of society, culture, etc. But traditions don’t die from being changed, they die from not being brought forward. They die from going stagnant and becoming irrelevant.
Change happens constantly, every day, with us or without us as individuals. But our existence as individuals is an opportunity to be a part of that change and collectively guide it. It’s an opportunity we rarely seize upon because we are busy living on the path of least resistance. This is understandable, since life is challenging enough as it is.
So, why stick your neck out for veganism? Veganism is a battle worth picking because unlocks so many other paths toward positive change, personally and globally. It’s an important step towards human liberation, because it gives us insight into power dynamics and resource management. It’s an important step towards restoring biodiversity because it emphasises that we are not superior to other life, that our survival is linked to that of the living world around us.
The better parts of our nature
By making conscious decisions every day about my impact on the world, my mind has been opened up to so many other injustices, beyond animal suffering, that we have the power to act upon. This is both frustrating and liberating. Frustrating because I realise there are things we cannot achieve (fast enough) as isolated individuals, and liberating because I realise there are many things we can do both as individuals and, more powerfully, as part of a movement.
The cliché holds true that every journey begins with the first step. For me that step was committing to trying veganism, and I’ve not yet encountered a compelling argument as to why I should retrace my steps. Rather, this one step has propelled me forward and allowed me to connect more firmly with the better parts of our nature: empathy, hope, resolve in times of adversity, the importance of community and, by extension, an awareness of the existential dangers of only looking out for yourself.
If my message rubs you the wrong way, then I’m sorry — my intention is not to antagonise. But if it says something to you, then give Veganuary a try.
