Fat Gay Vegan by Sean O'Callaghan

Author:Sean O'Callaghan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fat Gay Vegan
ISBN: 9781848993518
Publisher: Watkins Media
Published: 2017-10-20T16:00:00+00:00

I couldn’t list the ways in which mainstream veganism objectifies women and powers sexism and misogyny. Men dominate speaking panels, women are expected to silently organise, and veganism is sold particularly to women as a weight or body modification tool in order for them to live up to unrealistic physical expectations.

The plight of women who are sexual assault and abuse survivors is appropriated to inject emotion into the animal rights struggle by equating forced insemination of dairy cows with human rape. Women’s bodies are used as props to both grab attention for campaigns and titillate consumers into buying plant-based food and clothing.

Basically, we vegans do to women what the rest of the world is doing to them but we dress it up as compassion.

Ableism within the vegan community isn’t always as obvious as people using oppressive language and slurs, although of course you should be all over any situation like that or look for support if you need it when challenging people. As allies of people with disabilities we should be addressing lack of representation and visibility in what is advertised to us and the events we attend and host. People with disabilities are rarely asked to participate in panel discussions or consulted for perspectives on vegan campaigning, meaning their life experiences and opinions go unvalued and unnoticed.

Some vegan campaigners will also denigrate non-vegans living with illness as if they are responsible for their situation for not living completely plant-based. I’ve seen this first-hand when a vegan man publicly shamed a celebrity who had been diagnosed with breast cancer. This man’s take away was not in any way compassionate, instead he used his platform to suggest the celebrity would not be in the situation if she had cared about animals and stopped consuming them. In how many ways can we agree that is horrific?

Toxic masculinity is a buzz term thrown around a lot but you had better believe it is ripe and rampant amongst vegans and activist circles. This culture of hypermasculinity erodes social cohesion by promoting the dominant view that to be seen as masculine is the most desirable trait in a human. An approach like this leads to the ridiculing of LGBTQ+ people and women. Vegan advertising and representations of vegan men in the media collude to perpetuate this damaging approach by championing ‘tough’ athletes, using sexist and misogynistic language to demean men who do not conform to ideals of masculinity, and even making suggestions that you are less of a man if you are unable to please women sexually.

It all comes together in a ‘toxic’ cocktail of oppression that harms all society including cis-gendered men who identify as straight.

IS YOUR FOOD REALLY CRUELTY-FREE?

Food injustice, food security and farm workers’ rights are all topics every vegan should prioritise. Millions of people around the planet are working in exploitative conditions to get kale and carrots to your vegan table. People in your own city and town do not have access to affordable fresh fruit and vegetables. Your vegan lifestyle

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