(still) go vegan!

This past weekend, I found myself in a position that I don't often find myself in anymore. Some friends were taken aback at my veganism and my refusal to allow meat into my home.

In a discussion with another friend, Jenny Stench, we touched on this pervasive attitude towards veganism. It went something like this:

me:
"One thing I have noticed from being vegan is how on-the-defensive people get simply at the fact you are vegan.
As if it is offensive... As if it is a threat or condemnation on their way of life... Which, deep down, they know it is because any alternative to the norm cannot be tolerated. "

Jenny:
"wow, just by simply hearing that, it dawned on me, that in fact that's why they get so mad. Because somewhere deep inside they know how horrible it is. But to really change, change everything they've ever known would be so different, and such a task, that by hating it, it's easier to live with themselves.
Before I became vegan I had to avoid thinking about things. I had to avoid reading ingredients because it made me physically sick. But I got so fed up with feeling so horrible about it, not only mentally but physically, that i made myself watch all the horrible videos on peta.com. And after slowly becoming vegan I realized that I needed to buy new household products that were vegan also..."

I don't consider myself some vegan warrior and I don't often really champion veganism but this exchange made me remember how veganism can be part of something big. Something larger than a diet. It is a way of questioning and challenging the bullshit we are fed (literally) by this system.