An Inspiring Message

Dear Colleagues:

Yesterday, I posted a blog essay about the need to promote veganism as a baseline moral principle and to reject the negative (but very self-serving) attitude of large animal groups that omnivores simply cannot understand the vegan message. This morning, our site received an email, which was forwarded to me directly, from Professor Andrew Hunt, who is a historian at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada.

Professor Hunt stated:

Hello: I’m a professor of history at the University of Waterloo. Last year at this time, I was an omnivore who loved just about every type of meat under the sun. Now, I’m a vegan (and have been for about 10 months), and Gary Francione played a big role in that transformation. I listened to him and–instead of transitioning through vegetarianism–I went straight to veganism.

I do not know Professor Hunt personally. I have never met him. Before I wrote to him to ask his permission to quote from his email, I never had any contact with him.

Contrary to the propaganda of these organizations, people can understand the arguments in favor of veganism. People can take moral ideas seriously. People can be educated. People want to learn. People can change. Professor Hunt not only became a vegan; he has started a website that promotes veganism, nonviolence, and the connection between human rights and animal rights.

I get many messages like this. They keep me going. Creative, nonviolent vegan education can and does work.

It is not necessary to promote vegetarianism and given that there is absolutely no coherent moral distinction between flesh and other animal products, animal advocates should not do so. And all of the “happy” meat/dairy/other products propaganda has nothing to do with helping animals or achieving abolition. It has to do with making humans feel better about exploiting nonhumans.

The World is Vegan! If you want it.

If you are not vegan, go vegan. It’s easy. It’s better for you and for the planet. And, most important, it is the morally right and just thing to do.