Disagreements in animal rights ideologies are often
shunned as "infighting" and in this case, the
difference between vegetarians and vegans is
considered a "divide" as in some political battle.
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I was once a vegetarian who believed so strongly in vegetarian education, I continued to recommend others go vegetarian even when I was a vegan. Eventually, I came to my senses and realized the ethical implications of a vegetarian diet are no better than an omnivorous one.
Yet advocates today are happy to tell people to go vegetarian due to some faulty logic which I will examine. Advocates believe vegetarianism is useful because it leads to veganism and anyone who disagrees is "infighting."
I've been accused plenty of times by vegetarians of being "anti-vegetarian," I was once a vegetarian myself and I wish someone would have written this article for me. For those of you who truly take the rights of animals seriously, I'm asking you to read this article with an open mind.
Should animal rights activists promote vegetarianism?
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Of course, advocating an entirely vegan lifestyle can be overwhelming to some but should advocating vegetarianism be our response? While an individual may not be persuaded to give up all animal products, we should keep our message vegan, never recommending vegetarianism as a step. I will explain why I believe this momentarily.
Truly, there are no sets of animal products which are more ethical to animals than another set. All require exploitation which puts an animal in the situation in which poor treatment is inevitable. The general public is lead to believe, for instance, dairy can't be so bad because you don't have to kill the cow to get the milk.
However, pretty much all food animals will end up in the slaughter house once they no longer fulfill their previous role as existing for our use. When a cow stops giving milk, a bird stops producing eggs, an elephant stops doing tricks, what do you suppose a business which relies on these functions will do?
In the case of dairy cattle, you can also add the physical torment of bruised and infected udders, paralysis from long-term standing, and consider the suffering and death inflicted on the calves produced from keeping that cow pregnant. Just like a human female, constant lactation requires constant impregnation. Calves of dairy cattle are sent to veal farms where they are locked up and eventually killed.
What if they just won't go vegan?
So to this person who simply doesn't want to go vegan, I would not say to them "would you at least go vegetarian?" because this implies there is a moral distinction between the effects from vegetarian and an omnivore. Some advocates do recommend vegetarianism because they wish to ease them in with a gradual approach. I also support gradual approaches but vegetarianism is a poor one. Instead, I would tell them, in so many words, to be as vegan as possible.
If you are as surprised as many of my readers are by the statement that there is no moral distinction between the effects of a vegetarian and an omnivore, consider what a vegetarian is asked to do. Vegetarianism essentially says that only food consumption and only food in the form of meat is unethical. This is simply not true. Animals are used for a variety of purposes like labor, chemicals, textiles, entertainment, and research. Meat is only one such product that comes from animal use. All require torture, all require death. Even the supposedly ethically higher-ranking use of animals as domesticated pets.
The fundamental inconsistency of vegetarianism
Vegetarianism does not even demand that an individual eat fewer animal products. In fact, vegetarians often consume more because they are replacing their diet with secondary animal products like dairy and eggs. So vegetarianism is a rule of consuming animals as much as one wishes as long as its not in the form of meat. This does not prevent or speak out against animal exploitation whatsoever.
You may suggest that someone will inadvertently consume fewer animal products as a result of vegetarianism. While that is highly unlikely, an individual will consume fewer animal products not because they're a vegetarian because they're eating fewer animal products. If someone inadvertently consumed fewer animal products because they started eating at a different restaurant, should we advocate to people to eat at a different restaurant?
You may also suggest that vegetarianism is a "step" towards veganism in that it eliminates a part of one's animal palate in preparation of a vegan diet. Indeed, this is the only way it could be a step towards veganism. However, why should meat be the first wave of elimination? I believe it would be more practical for us to tell an omnivore to take out as many animal products from their diet/life as possible.
If we instead tell them that specific products should be eliminated, what does this tell them about these products over non-food animal products and non-meat food animal products? And if we tell them to stop eating meat, we may have missed an opportunity to bring someone to veganism by having them remove other things they could easily get rid of right away!
I'm reminded of a vegetarian friend of mine who was looking over a menu. She read the ingredients of a product and saw it had milk and said to herself "oh, that's vegetarian, I can eat that." So you see that vegetarian advocacy in this particular case prompted the person to abstain from non-vegetarian products rather than to abstain generally from animal products. A false moral distinction is made.
"Veganism is extreme"
Vegetarian advocacy also strengthens the mindset that vegetarianism is the default way to object to animal use and veganism is simply an unnecessary extreme for the truly dedicated. Veganism must be the starting point. Veganism by definition is the only lifestyle choice which seeks to exclude as far as practical and possible all forms of animal exploitation.
Let me suggest to you to just try this. Recommend veganism. If someone asks you about vegetarianism, be politely upfront about the inconsistencies of vegetarianism and see what happens. If you don't tell them, who will? I've been doing this for a long time and I have quickly proven my old mindset incorrect that people will be scared away.
It is for this reason I am passionate about writing these articles. Most of the people to whom I talk about these issues feel offended or that I am fighting with someone who wants the same things as me. However, as you can see, these are important arguments to consider.
I rarely use the word "meat" alone in my discussion of veganism. I think meat consumption is just as unethical as leather, wool, honey, animal-labored, animal-tested products, etc. I basically use the word "animal product" where others say "meat".
As for breaking the mainstream image, I think this person has transcended from one mainstream image to another. Now this person sees "meat" as the culprit of animal cruelty even though animal death is just as involved in the production of other animal products like eggs and dairy, sometimes with even more cruelty.
Are vegetarians more open-minded to learn about other forms of cruelty? Maybe, as they may also be more close-minded for thinking there are the moral distinctions I listed earlier. For the purposes of this discussion, we're considering someone who is a complete omnivore and is not appealing to veganism. We have the choice of accepting their reluctance by recommending them vegetarianism and the abstinence from meat instead, or reinstating veganism as the only starting point and telling them that only the increased reduction of animal products (any animal products) can be a positive step, a choice they can reasonably consider.
Try recommending just eating vegan at their next meal. Tell them they should try having a vegan breakfast or master a vegan recipe they can make from time to time. Tell them where vegan restaurants and options are. If you're satisfied with them being vegetarian, you'll find that someone who 'can't go vegan' will end up vegetarian by these suggestions without your recommendation. In fact, they may end up smart enough to call themselves someone who abstains greatly from animal products (if not completely).
Does vegetarianism lead to veganism?
Often, the "proof" given that vegetarianism leads to veganism is that a certain number of vegans were vegetarian initially. But does this really prove anything? Does it support vegetarianism as an effective technique for vegan advocacy? As I mentioned before, I was a vegetarian before I was vegan. Even if something about one's personal experience helped him/her to become a vegan, this should be considered along with the very negative impacts vegetarian advocacy has. Why wouldn't you switch for a more logically consistent and efficient form of advocacy?
Shouldn't we be working together?
"Infighting" is a word I hear too often. This word is very problematic in its implication of a unified message. Vegetarian advocacy is often performed by groups who have a fundamentally different position than an abolitionist vegan. We are not in the same boat! Most vegetarian advocacy organizations are not concerned with the fact that animals are used but how they are used. That is, these groups find no moral objection to the use of animals. That is an entirely different position which does not work toward the same goal.
Sometimes disagreements come off as harassments but understand articles like these are bold in their disagreements in order to arrive at the truth. Without a sound logical approach, action goes to waste and can even hurt the movement. This may be the first time you've heard such a disagreement and I'm asking you to consider it with an open mind.
Comments
The argument that many/most vegans were once vegetarians works the other way as well. There are countless of former vegetarians who went the wrong way, and are now consuming animal flesh again. It would be the interesting to see the statistics about which way vegetarians go. Perhaps there is statistical evidence to show that vegetarian advocacy isn't effective?
This is a helpful argument for those who adopt a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle for animal welfare reasons. Many people eat fewer or no animal products for different reasons, including personal health and the environment. I'd be interested in seeing you examine these aspects of such diets -- one could argue that an omnivore or lacto-ovo vegetarain eating sustainably-produced animal products is preserving the environment more than a vegan who eats foods that are well-traveled and heavily processed.
I just want to say Bravo to your reply!
I second that bravo!!!!! and
And would also like to point out that there is misleading information though I doubt it was intentional. Cows do not need to be pregnant all the time...just once. It doesn't necessarily change anything but I thought I would point that out.
Once I'd become better informed about the egg and dairy industries, there was no way I could be "just" vegetarian.
The dairy and egg industries are barbaric and have no respect for life.
I was a lapsed vegetarian, who on finding out more about the above resolved to go vegan. I was veggie for about 6 months, then vegan and have been for well over a year now. If you care about doing the right thing and making ethical choices, you should give veganism some careful consideration.
I can see both sides of the debate, though I agree with the article here. Every time I tried to be "just vegetarian", I would eventually give up in despair because I knew I was still supporting animal cruelty, so why bother....it was never enough, was my thought. It just felt like too much and I got discouraged. I agree that animal products can be phased out and it doesn't have to start with meat. I try to encourage people that every little bit helps however. My plan was to try to be vegan one day a week, then 2, and work up from there. Then I read "Skinny Bitch" and it was all over. I went vegan the very next day and haven't looked back. Everything just clicked. But that might not work with my mother in law, say. If, however, I can show her that meat is bad for her, the animals and the environment, I'll consider that a victory. I still think every change, however small, is a positive thing.
Another excellent article Adam! I especially like your suggestion of using the term "animal products" instead of meat, as I think the word "meat" is used so much that doesn't conjure up images of animals anymore, nor does it include eggs, dairy, honey, etc.
I think a lot of people who went vegetarian to reduce animal suffering didn't know about the harm the other industries do to the animals. I know I didn't. Once I found out, I went vegan. I also agree that veganism has to be the starting point; the other way is such a waste of time AND animal lives!
Rhea, you're right, one could argue that an omnivore or lacto-ovo vegetarian eating sustainably-produced animal products is preserving the environment more or even more healthy. It's harder to make that argument if you're diet or lifestyle is motivated by non-violence, compassion and reducing animal suffering.
Spot on. I run vegan outreach in Miami Beach and nobody ever gets away from us believing that vegetarian is anything to be proud of.
In fact all of the posters on our outreach table are specifically targeted at vegetarians. Posters read "All egg farms kill baby chicks", "The Misery behind your Milk", "Dead Calves - Byproducts of the Dairy Industry", (and one on gestation crates). Vegetarians are compassionate people and therefore are the most likely to go vegan, but they have to be TOLD why they have to be vegan. If every vegan outreacher targeted vegetarians in this way, we might be 5% of the population instead of 0.5%.
Dude, you are extreme. You're basically saying that even people who have their own dairy cows are BAD if they drink milk. Even people who have their own laying hens are BAD if they eat eggs. This is not a black and white issue. You cannot seriously think "the ethical implications of a vegetarian diet are no better than an omnivorous one." I don't personally drink milk, but my family has cows who produce milk and I seriously think those cows have a good life. You come across as thinking you are better than everyone else. Get a life.
I believe your articles continually disregard people's psyches. You were vegetarian; I was vegetarian for a while, too, and it WAS a step toward veganism. I know many people who make that step from vegetarianism to veganism. By failing to give people an ounce of credit for giving up something so central as meat and dairy (which is not easy especially if you're a white American raised on cheese and steak), you run the risk of alienating everyone, including potential allies. Worst yet, you run the risk of prolonging animal suffering. Things definitely aren't black and white in this world. Get people to make a small change now, and they are much more likely to make a big change later. The same goes for abolitionism vs. "welfarism"; the EU makes meat expensive with animal welfare laws. Less animals are reared. And now Spain is considering giving personhood to great apes. Do you think the US will get to that point when it hasn't even matched the EU's welfare laws?
Crissy, just wondering, do those people who have their own dairy cows and laying hens kill them after they can't produce milk and eggs? What happens to the male calves and chicks? I'd really like to know.
I personally don't think Adam's criticisms are motivated because he thinks he's better than everyone else, but because a lot of people are either unaware of what happens in the dairy and egg industries or reluctant to give up ALL animal products but claim to care about the animals.
A good example of this happened a few years ago when the HSUS asked its supporters to boycott Red Lobster to protest the seal hunt. In other words, stop eating fish and other seafood (they also serve steak there) and if and when the Canadian seal hunt ends, you can go back to eating your surf & turf.
There's a lot of hypocrisy in the "animal rights" movement, whether people realize it or not. This is just a long overdue wake-up call.
So instead of a sect of the population, known as "vegetarians", eating dairy but no meat, you suggest these folks eat meat but no dairy (if they need that intermediate step towards veganism) based on the fact that dairy animals often suffer more or for longer than meat eaters. This is very interesting. What shall we call those who are taking this intermediate step: eating meat but no dairy...?
edit: *"...longer than meat animals"
it is very interesting. You succeed in being both tolerant and coherent. yes you're write, it's better to encourage people to be vegan sometimes than to be vegetarian sometimes. Even if it's really a step : I succeeded in stoping meat, but not stoping cheese yet. But it will happen soon, I know !
because the other name for vegetarians is bullshitarians. It doesn't take that much scratching at the door of food knowledge for anyone to get that animal consumption is not only risky for humans- 1. our growing obesity 2. risk as in you rarely don't what's in it! period; and its unethical in its current state.
if people want to bs themselves into believing while sucking on a cow udder is ok taking a fork to it is not...uhm ok. i've got about as much tolerance for this as people who ask me 'what do you eat?!' or aww man i could never be vegan! really? aww man i could never eat the dead flesh of an animal or drink the milk it made for its babies!
Like you, I dabbled in vegetarianism before I went vegan at 50 because I knew I couldn't kid myself any longer about the dairy and egg industries, which are also terribly abusive to animals. Another thing about lacto-/ovo- vegetarianism is that it can be very fattening and heart disease-inducing because you end up eating even more dairy and eggs to make up for the meat you've cut out.
I think it's important to get over how we feel about a veg*n point and what the intention of the beholder might or might not be, and whether it means we're good enough or not. The vegetarians among us are simply being encouraged to go as vegan as they can. Don't worry that the vegans among us are saying we're holier than thou. Let's just look at the facts and live accordingly, as best we all can. And as Colleen Patrick-Goudreau says in her Vegetarian Food for Thought podcast (she's vegan): if you can't give up cheese, fine. Don't give up cheese. So just give up the rest of the dairy (eggs, etc.) in your diet. You're still making an enormous difference for the animals by drawing that line instead of giving up on veganism just for cheese or ice cream or whatever.
The thing that offends me most is the elevation of lower species to the same level as humans. What would you do, release all farm animals to run wild? You'd still be faced with thinning the herd as is done with the deer population. It's called the food chain. Welcome aboard.
We buy our eggs from a family run farm in the Adirondacks - the hens are hanging outside enjoying their lives. I only buy organic milk where they allow cows to roam. How come this isn't less evil than the "dairy industry" you talk about? Aren't there degrees of cruelty? Is there no in between with you? And as for keeping animals as pets, dogs have been domesticated for many thousands of years. Not keeping them as pets would be cruel - they would starve in the wild.
I don't think advocating vegetarianism is suppossed to be the gateway to vegan. It is the first step you can take for a different, more aware lifestyle. The more people learn and look into their food choices the more likley they are to make a fully informed desicion. I have been a vegetarian for over 10 years. I educate myself on animal rights issues more now than I think I would being an omnivore. You cannot possibly think that a cow or a chicken as a 'pet' leads the same quality life as a cow or chicken in the dairy industry. For that reason, I do eat, in moderation, eggs, and dairy. I am aware the treatment of the animals and plan my meals accordingly. Most of my meals are vegan. I also make equally informed decisions and choose not to buy leather, go to the zoo, the circus or any other thing that would cause pain for an animal.
The agenda of your friends may have been turning the world vegan but it is not everyones. For most, it is a diet difficult to stick to and most only last a year or two. If you want to make a difference choose a diet and lifestyle that is obtainable and practical, not limitations that you know you cant fulfill.
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