the vegan movement is very white
the vegan movement is very white
veganism is not immune to colonization by white people but its origins do not run white
the origins of ethical veganism lie in Black activism and the cultures of People of Color all around the world including the Jainism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Rastafarianism religions, the Diné and Choctaw tribes, and more.
in the zine “Veganism as Anti-Colonial Praxis”, Samah Seger writes “veganism offers an opportunity to disrupt colonial logic by challenging the most basic building blocks of colonialism, which reduce all life forms to mere objects for capitalist exploitation.” she and the other Indigenous authors continue to outline the many horrific ways that animal agriculture has been — and is still used — to further colonial violence.
ideologies like Black Veganism promote food sovereignty and address structural barriers to help low-income communities transition away from nonnutritious but heavily-subsidized meat and dairy products. meanwhile, the devastating result of mass meat and dairy consumption in the west is disproportionately harming People of Color in the Global South.
white non-vegans often tokenize and homogenize People of Color in order to justify their own inaction and lack of responsibility for harm that they choose to perpetuate. white people: romanticizing Indigenous cultures that hunted to survive is a form of covert racism. IT IS NOT ALLYSHIP.
more information / sources
Veganism as Anti-Colonial Praxis: A Collection of Indigenous Vegan Perspectives zine
The Unbearable Whiteness of Milk: Food Oppression and the USDA
Animal Bodies, Colonial Subjects: (Re)Locating Animality in Decolonial Thought
Food Empowerment Project – Because your food choices can change the world
How Veganism Is Rooted in Black Activism, and Why It Isn’t Just For White People
The Anarchist Library: The Radical Left’s Top 10 Objections to Veganism
Vice: This Indigenous Scholar Says Veganism Is More Than a Lifestyle for White People
BBC: Why black Americans are more likely to be vegan
VegNews: 27 Black Vegan Instagrammers You Need to Follow ASAP
Book: Veganism in an Oppressive World: A Vegans-of-Color Community Project
Book: Veganism of Color: Decentering Whiteness in Human and Nonhuman Liberation
Book: Sistah Vegan: Black Female Vegans Speak on Food, Identity, Health, and Society
Book: The Dreaded Comparison: Human and Animal Slavery by Marjorie Spiegel