It’s a lifestyle.
A formidable, but personal choice.
Being vegan can solve some medical issues, or even settle some moral disturbances for some people.
Realigning your life to not need animal products or by-products is a “no brainer” for some & a “no way” for others.
Veganism doesn’t outline rules for how vegans should interact with non-vegans. It’s not a religion or a code of law. Veganism doesn’t give you douche-immunity, just as eating meat doesn’t give me one.
If you choose to put more emphasis on veganism than it being a diet, that’s a personal choice, but realize when you boil it down it’s a dietary decision. While there are plenty of vegans out there willing to preach like pastors or condemn like judges, that’s not what veganism is for. That’s not what any personal lifestyle choice is for.
Humans are not born vegan the way we are born gay or straight or bi or otherwise.
Humans as a whole & historically are omnivorous. Superior intelligence grants us a higher place on the food chain than we should probably have, but what’s wrong is the way we handle such power. Veganism is some people’s “answer” to the horrible human-animal relations in the world today.
Vegans have every right to:
- live how they want
- speak their minds
- defend their positions, especially if attacked first
- hold personal opinions
- educate others on dietary options
- challenge human animal relation policy & litigation
- whistle-blow on inhumane treatment of animals
- propose methods to support / protect vegan options
- disassociate from non-vegan people & places
Vegans have absolutely no right to:
- harass non-vegans
- force their opinions on others
- condemn others for their lifestyle choices
- make false assertions for the sake of their argument
- display disturbing images to non-vegan diners
- make rude comments to non-vegans when in public
I understand and appreciate the animal loving fervor that vegans tend to have. As an animal lover, an amateur biologist & a credentialed sociologist, I have come to my own understanding that humans were granted (some) superiority over animals, but that doesn’t mean we have to execute such superiority inhumanely.
You can read all about my feelings on human animals relations here.
Neat & Messy 
I confused myself there! I did in fact label veganism as a lifestyle, but one that boils down to a basically dietary decision, as in the largest factor in veganism is complete abstinence from consumption of animal products & by products. I still completely understand your side of it & stand by the rest of my original response, but wanted to keep my own thoughts in line. 😊
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Veganism is most certainly not a dietary decision, the word for that is “plant-based”, not vegan.
Veganism, by definition, is a lifestyle which avoids causing and contributing to unnecessary harm and suffering of sentient beings where possible and plausible.
Also, humans are anatomically herbivores, not omnivores. Omnivores can be saturated with dietary cholesterol and animal fat and face no repercussions.
There isn’t a single thing that humans need that can’t be easily and affordably gotten on a plant-based diet. Omnivorous species differ from humans in that way, since they do require meat (not dairy or eggs though, which people who push the “humans are an omnivorous species” argument conveniently forget about).
Really the question we should all be left with at this point in history is, if there is no good reason to contribute to what we know is needless slaughter and exploitation, then why are we still choosing to do it?
Thanks for allowing me to share, I’m by no means having a go at you personally, just responding to a few points in your piece.
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I appreciate your contribution & I apologize for not taking the time to clearly lay out my understanding of veganism. My intention in saying “veganism isn’t a lifestyle” is that it isn’t like sexuality, but I realize neither is technically a lifestyle by my own definition & by yours both are. Veganism defines some people’s lives, but for some not as strictly as in your definition, which I find sad, but another conversation all together.
Based on my research, evolutionary scientists have deemed humans (in general) omnivorous anotomically & historically, meaning the majority of the species eats both plant & animal products & have for basically all of recorded history. The argument in this statement isn’t in whether we need to, but in the sense that majority of us do & can (as many species cannot process other animal products). This is where I got much of my base knowledge: https://www.vrg.org/nutshell/omni.htm
Though our stances on this part of biological history are different I don’t believe that’s a bad thing as no one can really say for certain.
I don’t honestly believe human consumption of animals will ever stop completely. I believe in trying to force that, we lose many of the battles that we could be trying to fight.
Small farmers have enormous respect for their livestock (their livelihood), even if they raise them for meat. It’s a strange area to talk about & I alone be the one to speak here, as I’ve never had this relationship with animals, but I have had a few students tell me that as kids they raised & slaughtered their own chickens/pigs with their families on their farms, going as far as prepping them for meal & all. They said doing so gave them tremendous respect for animals & that by their standards none of the animal went to waste – an idea very reminiscent of the philosophies many Native American tribes hold.
The split over direct animal products that always require sacrifice on the animals behalf: Milk, honey & egg can be harvested humanely. Without displacing babies. Without gassing hives. Without disabling hens. I understand that many people will still not consider these items vegan even if certified cruelty free, but at least animals in cruelty free set ups aren’t getting harmed. Why those leaps haven’t been made is beyond me. I wish I knew the answers.
I thank you for your contribution in my understanding of veganism & in my search for these answers. 😊
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