The Savages (Matt Whyman) by Matt Whyman

Author:Matt Whyman
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Hot Key Books
Published: 2013-06-06T05:00:00+00:00

17

Amanda Dias didn’t look like an impressive speaker. A first-year undergraduate, she was slight in build, with cropped, boyish hair and delicate features arranged around an apparently shy, skewed smile. What silenced her audience was her militant position on the subject of ethical eating, especially those who did not share her views.

‘The hunters,’ she said at one point, ‘should become the hunted.’

Amanda stood with her feet pointed inwards and the microphone clutched in both hands. She turned to address her audience as she spoke, leaving breathy silences between each statement she made.

‘Wow,’ whispered Jack, who had chosen a middle row alongside Sasha. There were in the university’s smaller auditorium, with tables arranged at the flanks offering everything from pamphlets to specialised snacks. ‘This is intense.’

Sasha had spent most of the time noting Amanda’s sense of style. Everything she wore was made from cruelty-free material such as hemp and waxed cotton, as she had mentioned at the beginning as if to establish her credentials. Her navy-blue dress with matching cream cuffs and collar made her look like someone who might’ve been accused of witchcraft centuries earlier and burned at the stake. This martyr look worked well, thought Sasha, while the bold nature of her talk was clearly making an impression. Sasha struggled to get comfortable on the wooden bench. The girl was too good to be true. Off stage, she decided, Amanda Dias was probably one of those people who jealously guarded her food in the fridge.

‘How much of this stuff do you think she got off the internet?’ she asked Jack, leaning across so as not to be overheard. ‘It’s her thesis, no?’

Jack shot Sasha a look that told her he didn’t share her outlook.

‘We live among murderers,’ Amanda continued. ‘We share our lives with them. They walk among us. Is this the mark of a civilised society? We must confront the flesh-eaters. Change their way of life, for the sake of our world … or stop them from causing further slaughter.’

Amanda was the third person to take to the stage that evening. Sasha had listened closely to the two speakers before her. One was from the university’s Animal Rights society, while the other had worked in a hospital canteen until his conversion to veganism, refusal to handle meat products, and subsequent sacking. Until Amanda took the microphone, Sasha had been quietly impressed. It all seemed so grown up, and far removed from sitting on the edge of the skate ramp at school. These were mature individuals with passionate, heartfelt beliefs. This may have been the last place Sasha expected to find herself, but in a way it was beginning to feel like a new kind of home. Having gone without meat for several days, it seemed to her like she had at least earned the credentials to sit here and listen. The Animal Rights speaker made some interesting points, and she admired the stand made by the chef, even if it was pretty clear some drinking issues had contributed to his dismissal.

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