Once you become vegan, the following conversation seems to become a daily occurrence:
"Do you want any [insert meat/dairy product here]?"
"No thanks, I'm vegan."
"Wait, you're vegan?!? You poor thing! I could NEVER be vegan. I'd rather DIE than give up my cheese! What do you even eat? How do you get by without protein? You must be B12 deficient or at least have some sort of deficiency? You must have weak bones by not drinking [cow's]milk!"
And this is just a sampling of the unintentional insults and remarks that pop up in conversation.
While it may get annoying after a while to listen to these questions, it's eye-opening to hear that so many people are stuck in such beliefs like protein only comes from animals, calcium only comes from milk, it's okay to eat animals because that's what our parents fed us, or that people are not open to giving up meats because they taste too good.
The sad truth is that plant-based living is not 'the norm', since it's not what we grew up with.
So how is one to engage in conversation with non-vegans? Rather than criticizing or stating a list of facts, Ed (from Earthling Ed) shows us below that asking questions is key. It allows non-vegans to be able to come up with their own answers and to really think about their reasoning for living the life they're currently living. If you have some time, I strongly encourage you to watch Ed's videos below (as well as his 30 Days, 30 Excuses project).
The sad truth is that plant-based living is not 'the norm', since it's not what we grew up with.
So how is one to engage in conversation with non-vegans? Rather than criticizing or stating a list of facts, Ed (from Earthling Ed) shows us below that asking questions is key. It allows non-vegans to be able to come up with their own answers and to really think about their reasoning for living the life they're currently living. If you have some time, I strongly encourage you to watch Ed's videos below (as well as his 30 Days, 30 Excuses project).
After taking some time to watch the previous videos, you'll see that some pretty good points are made. If you had to categorize the top reasons for why someone would continue to eat animal products, the top four are:
- the taste. Vegan food just doesn't taste as good as meat from an animal.
- habit. If it's just normal to order a burger when eating out, or packing a ham and cheese sandwich for your kids' school lunches, why change now?
- convenience. Grocery stores are packed with ready-to-go meat and dairy options, and the majority of restaurants offer nothing more than non-vegan options. If it's cheap and easy, why not buy animal products?
- and tradition. Our grandparents grew up on diets packed with animal products. Our parents carried over that tradition. It only feels right that we grill burgers and brats on the 4th of July and a giant roasted turkey on Thanksgiving, right?
While these are all understandable reasons for why someone has eaten animal products up until now, they don't validate why it's okay to continue life the same way. It's never too late to make the switch to a plant-based life.
Some key questions that Ed suggests asking include:
- what's the difference between eating a dog and eating a pig?
- is there a humane way to kill an animal?
- do you value your own taste over life?
- do you value your own convenience over life?
- do you think that animal cruelty is wrong?
- do you think that we need to eat animals to survive?
- If we don't need to eat animals to survive, then to do so is an act of cruelty because it's unnecessary.
The key in questioning someone is not to make them turn vegan on the spot, but rather, make them want to do research on their own. Give them that spark that gets them questioning their daily eating habits. Encourage them to try going vegan for three weeks, watch documentaries, or pro-vegan YouTube videos.
Veganism is better for our health, better for the environment, and obviously better for the animals. There's no downside to going vegan, so let's open the conversation!
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