Black-and-white thinking is counter-productive; especially when we want people to adopt more plant-based or vegan lifestyle.
Opting for plant-based diet can feel bit overwhelming. Many mistakenly assume that being vegan is expensive, but it is actually the opposite. This mainly because veganism has become a sign of white privilege. The majority of vegan influencers are white, and so are the majority of vegan business owners. Yes, you hear me right, the West has white-washed eating plant-based. Not convinced yet ? Try searching for ‘vegan’ into image websites, nearly every single image that contained a hand holding an aesthetically pleasing salad was caucasian. It’s almost impossible to find an image that showed a POC holding a vegan meal.
RELEVANT SUSTAINABLE GOALS
VEGAN IS NOT A BLACK AND WHITE THINGS
Veganism is evolving, it is in actual fact an ancient practice in many communities of color around the world. Food ingredients such as rice, pulses, lentils, vegetables, or tofu would be eaten to achieve a plant-based diet.
All of these food ingredients are highly accessible and affordable. However since the west and capitalism have commodified veganism, it has become a lifestyle favoured by certain class and privilege. The West has turned a lifestyle that is ethical, environmentally friendly and kind, into a capitalised trend, that is associated with the rich, the privileged.
On World Vegan Day today, allow me to remind you that veganism is about the animals, the planet and the workers exploited in the industry. It’s not about the intentional lack of desire to spread quality vegan food and fresh produce to all communities, regardless their race, social-economy status and background. Instead, vegan-ism lifestyle is the practice for rejecting harm to living beings as much as is practicable, possible, and sustainable. This extends to humans and non-humans.
Be comfortable with the fact and we aren’t all at the same stage in our vegan journey, we should not see veganism as black and white things. We can be open-minded, encouraging any small steps our friends and family take to reduce their animal consumption. They won’t become our allies in living kinder, less harmful lives if we make them feel like enemies.
