There are several reasons to be very excited about the Occupy Wall Street protests that seem to be spreading like wildfire across the U.S. and internationally. One can't help but admire the decentralized, leaderless, grassroots nature of the protests, the creative, uber-democratic and transparent nature of the General Assemblies that are the heart of each occupation, and most importantly, its core focus on social justice, as opposed to the polarizing bipartisan debates that we often witness in the media. Many brilliant minds have written some great articles on what this movement really means, what brought us to this point and where it is potentially headed. A common praise offered is how the protests seem to have emanated from a fundamental sense of right and wrong and recognizing that current political and economic systems are deeply flawed and fundamentally unjust.
So are those of us who include ourselves in the 99 percent finally waking up from a long slumber that kept us oblivious to the widespread inequalities that have surrounded us? If that's the case, then now is the perfect time to expand the borders of our awareness even further, to not only examine the systems of oppression that have led to the economic crisis, but to also unearth the very roots of oppression itself. To truly bring about social change, we cannot simply challenge one oppression at a time or even multiple oppressions at once. We must challenge the mentality that underlies all forms of oppression, because as long as the mentality of oppression remains intact it will give birth to ever-new forms of injustice, from undemocratic government policies to corrupt corporate practices.
I found it interesting that the first official statement released by the Occupy Wall Street protestors reflected this inclusive nature of the movement, as it listed a range of key problems that are caused by corporate greed and lead to mass injustice in the United States and overseas. High on the list was a statement about corporations profiting from the torture, confinement, and cruel treatment of animals. But if we're serious about challenging the mentality of oppression that is inherent in animal agriculture, we must also reflect on our own beliefs and behaviors, and be willing to reexamine some of our personal practices that may contribute to the very inequities we are opposing. Eating animals is just such a practice.
If you look closely, you will find a paradoxical mentality that resides outside our awareness, but informs our choices to eat (certain) animals. Our choices as consumers drive an industry that needlessly and brutally slaughters 10 billion land animals per year, in the United States alone. Eating animals is a practice that shapes and is shaped by the same mentality that enables other oppressions that we accuse governments and big corporations of.
Dr. Melanie Joy, psychologist, acclaimed author, and longtime human rights activist and animal protection advocate has written extensively about the mentality of oppression. She points out that eating animals, when not a necessity for survival (which is the case for much of the world today), is a choice -- and choices always stem from beliefs. In a fascinating new article on One Green Planet, Dr. Joy discusses how carnism -- the term she uses for the dominant ideology that conditions us to eat certain animals -- is an oppressive ism. She discusses how carnism is an interlocking oppression, and outlines why changing our hearts and minds on an issue like eating animals is a fundamental part of bringing about long-lasting social change.
I spoke with Dr. Joy about her thoughts on what the connection was between eating animals and the social injustices that people are protesting against as part of the Occupy Wall Street Movement. "In my research and my experience as an activist for a variety of social justice issues, I have found that when it comes to oppressive ideologies, although the experience of each group of victims will always be somewhat unique, the ideologies themselves are structurally similar," said Dr. Joy. "The mentality that enables such violence is the same. It is the mentality that, for instance, turns someone into something, that enables those with power to exploit those who cannot defend their own interests - and to make it seem as if they don't even have any interests."
Challenging this mentality involves asking ourselves why, for instance, we love dogs and eat pigs and don't know why. Unfortunately, most of us resist making these uncomfortable and inconvenient connections, in part because the ideology that enables us to eat animals is invisible and seeing it involves acknowledging that we can't just vote for change or protest for change and sit back and wait for change to happen; it means practicing change in our daily lives.
According to a 2009 survey, 99 percent of the American population consumes animal products. Understanding carnism can enable us to step outside the system and see who (not what) is on our plates, so that, on this issue, we can join the 1 percent.
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Follow Nil Zacharias on Twitter: www.twitter.com/zachariot
That said, I buy humanely raised meat (local, grass-fed, from the farmer's market). My family hunted (they still do). I am quite familiar with how 'barbaric" killing animals is. For my family, it's a fact of life.
In 2010 I typed "why don't vegans eat dairy?" into google. After learning what was happening in factory farms it was no longer possible for me to eat dairy. I'm an animal lover, but you don't need to be an "animal lover" to understand the depth of moral depravity of modern day animal agribusiness.
Now there are many vegan restaurants in LA. I am surrounded by youthful slim vibrantly healthy vegans. I never got that "weak" feeling again, like the first time i went vegan. In retrospect, I think feeling weak was a heavily conditioned response. My whole life, family, teachers and tv was telling me the most essential nutrient was protein and eventhough I never met a "protein deficient" person in my whole life all their warnings got to me.
my palette has totally changed. I actually love kale. i love vegetables. it's weird! but great!
No matter how kind an animal is treated, how can you justify killing that animal if you don't need to? Sure, if you're lost in the woods and it's hunting or death, I'd choose hunting. But we live in a society where we can make choices every day. I'm not gonna choose unnecessary killing.
Also, most Americans would be shocked to learn how little terms like cage-free and free-range mean in the supermarkets and restaurants.
And before you say we need to eat animals to survive: we don't, as is evidenced by some of the world's top athletes who are vegan, the American Dietetic Assocation, and millions upon millions of vegans worldwide who are doing it and staying healthy.
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No, Mr. Zacharias, it is the mentality of industrialized corporate agriculture. It is NOT the mentality of the hard-working, honest small family farmers and ranchers that engage in humane husbandry and sustainable practices. These kind of statements, which are over-generalized and come from an absolutist, black-and-white mentality to the point of being irrational, is precisely why it is difficult to take vegan ideologues seriously. A call for improved animal welfare standards is not a call for veganism, Mr. Zacharias, no matter how much you would like it to be.
So hold to your belief if you must, but don't fool yourself on it, at least be honest.
Had you made that suggestion and attempted to link it to politics the leap would have been tenuous but justifiable.
Look, you want everyone to be vegan. Just say so without trying to tie it up on politics.
Over 10 BILLION animals are unnecessarily slaughtered every year.
The idea that a tiny % are "humanely" raised may salve your conscience, but it does nothing to
diminish the problem.
We cannot raise 10 Billion animals in 'humane' conditions.
You're right, frank, there is no way that animals can be raised in humane conditions when almost 99% of humans are eating animals. People need to wake up and realize that eating animal corpses is devastating human health, it is destroying our environment, it is over using and wasting resources, and it causes unconscionable suffering and violent deaths to billions upon billions of animals.