NewMexicoVegan November/December 2021 For Vegans, Vegetarians, and the Veg Curious Enjoy your FREE complimentary copy
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The views and opinions, expressed by contributing-authors, in the New Mexico Vegan Magazine; may, or may not, represent the views and opinions, of New Mexico Vegan.
Unknown Animal…
IC
Inside
2
Nancy Arenas
Editor’s Note
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Dan Brook
In This House We Believe…
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Erin Fernandes
New Mexico Facts & Trivia
5
Lauren Mee
19-20
Earth Was Created For All Life
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Milton Mills
25-29
Resources
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Happy ThanksLiving
8
Richard H. Schwartz
25-29
That Vegan Disabled Gal
9-10
Vegan Pulse (Advertisement)
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Sprouting Compassion
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Celebrate November - Vegan Month
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Photo Collage
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The End Of A Year, The Start Of A New Vegan Year
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We Are All The Same…
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Meet Our Extended Family
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Study Suggests Online Course Changes Vegan and Animals Career Plans
19-20
Recipe: Vegan Fall Lasagna
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Recipe: Fall Vegan Pumpkin Soup
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Merry Vegan Christmas
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Black Health Matters
25-29
Advertising With NM Vegan
30
Endorse The Plant Based Treaty
31
Vegan Overview
32
It’s Time For A World Without Slaughterhouses
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To You Is Just A Meal…
BIC
Contributor
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New Mexico Vegan Volume 7 – Issue 6 November/December 2021 Editor: Nancy Arenas NMV Photographer: N. Arenas
a HeartnSole, LLC publication
heartnsole3@yahoo.com
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Happy New Year (two months early)… {getting the positive momentum, fired-up and running}. As I have confessed before, I have mixed feelings about participating in the winter holidays. It is a good time to gather with family and friends… to take a moment and think about the trials and tribulations I have endured… to reflect on the wonderful experiences I found pleasure in… like when I visited recently my grandson, Adrian, after two years. It was heavenly, just to be with him, again... finally. Celebration time, reflection time, and gratitude time. This is what the end of the year means to me. Of course, the terrible feeling I get, this time of year, comes from …knowing that innocent and charming animals are “being murdered” for the sake of ‘cruel traditions’ …that are feeding human-appetites. While carnivores are celebrating with jubilation, they are feasting on the massacred bodies of fellow sentient beings, …breaks my heart and makes my soul sad. At this time of year, yes, I feel impelled to: …encourage vegans… to encourage non-vegans, …to become vegan. It is an overwhelming caregiving\mothering impulse, that I feel on behalf of animals. So, here it comes- I hope that you will …help to inspire, engage, and educate people, so we can end that ‘cruel tradition.’ Show non-vegans, that celebrating with dead bodies on their plate, …it means they have been brainwashed and lured, deceitfully, into unkind and barbaric habits. Our food traditions must change. We must choose real food… food that honors all life, while giving life: …plants… plants are the food that Nature is providing for us, right out of Mother …upward, from Earth, herself. Please share vegan whole-food plant-based recipes with anyone and everyone. Cook it up and share it, with the recipe on the gift card. Share it on social media. Let’s overrun the media pages with- nutritious life-giving vegan plant-based food-inspirations. It takes ‘all of us’ to keep the progression of veganism growing. We must share the vegan message, which is: compassion and love; those virtues might be easier to spread-around… if the food is pure (simple yet enticing; & deliciously nutritious)…… because- people love to eat. And why not? Thank goodness that… Vegan Food is not fake. For goodness' sake… literally… Vegan Food is a sacrifice of, neither: meal-satisfaction; nor bodily-vigor. Vegan food is- all that food should be… perfection. ‘Working together’ …we can create, perfection… a peaceful vegan world. As always, if you want to contact me, I’m here to help. ((heartnsole3@yahoo.com)) Cook with Compassion & Eat Without Violence!
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Livegan, Nancy
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1. The ski lift on the slopes of the Sandia Mountains is 7,500 feet long, making it one of the longest in the world. 2. Home of the Shovel Race Championship, the world shovel race championship is usually held in Angel Fire, N.M. The race is held every year, and thousands of people come from around the US to be part of it. 3. The first atomic bomb was dropped in Jornada del Muerto in New Mexico on July 16, 1945. The same design was dropped in Nagasaki Japan only a few weeks later. 4. Home to Bandera Ice Cave, the Bandera ice cave dates back to the 1100 B.C. This makes it one of the oldest caves in the area. 5. Home to the largest camping facility. Philmont scout ranch is the Boy Scouts of America’s largest National High Adventure Base. 6. Did you know that Microsoft was founded in a small Albuquerque garage? The company’s founders Bill Gates and his friend Paul Allen wrote their first software here. 7. New Mexico is the country’s top producer of perlite, a type of glass used in insulation and gardening. 8. New Mexico is home to one of the closest presidential votes in recent history, when during the Bush v. Gore 2000 election it came down to 366 votes, even less than Florida despite popular belief. 9. Modern day New Mexico wine can be traced back to the early 1600s, making it the oldest known wine production in North America. 10. Claims have been made that the pillow of goodness, the Sopapilla was first devoured in the Albuquerque area 200 years ago.
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ABQ Vegan: http://www.meetup.com/ABQVEG/ Albuquerque Vegan and Vegetarian Parents: https://www.facebook.com/groups/323534174705753/ Cooking with Compassion https://www.facebook.com/groups/1702731393294024/ Food Not Bombs ABQ https://www.facebook.com/fnbABQ/ HeartnSole Spiritual Community: https://heartnsolerevna.wordpress.com/ Leaf: Taos Vegan Society: http://www.meetup.com/Taos-Vegan/ New Mexico Vegan: https://newmexicovegan.wordpress.com/ Plant-Based Eating New Mexico: https://www.facebook.com/PBENM/?rc=p Plant Powered Events www.facebook.com/plantpoweredeventsnm Positive Links http://www.thelinknm.com/ Red & Green VegFest Albuquerque: https://redandgreenvegfestabq.wordpress.com/ Santa Fe Vegan: http://www.meetup.com/Santa-Fe-Veg/photos/4704212/445478790/ Santuario de Karuna: https://www.santuariodekaruna.org/
Sprouting Compassion https://www.sproutingcompassion.org/ https://www.facebook.com/sproutingcompassion Vegan Pulse www.sproutingcompassion.org www.facebook.com/veganpulse
If you are vegan and offer cruelty-free services and products please let us know for possible inclusion in upcoming NM Vegan Magazines, please email us at welcome22day@gmail.com, on the subject line please write NMV Vegan Products & Services.
VIP (Vegans in the Park): https://www.facebook.com/events/363650444507091/ If you have an article that deals with veganism and would like to submit it for possible inclusion in an upcoming NM Vegan Magazine, please email us at welcome22day@gmail.com, on the subject line please write NMV Article.
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That Vegan Disabled Gal Erin Fernandes My journey started when I was 13, as an attempt to watch my weight. My grandmother had been swept up in the 90s diet craze and started doing Richard Simmons’ Deal-a-Meal. My mother put me on the program, so my grandmother and I started exercising to the tapes each weekend, and I started making healthier choices. After my grandpa passed, I spent weekends at my grandmother’s house to keep her company. We would exercise to the Richard Simmons tapes together, and after our workouts, I would go for runs. I replaced even simple foods like butter with jelly, to cut down on fat consumption. I began losing weight. Truthfully, I went way too far with it. I had always perceived myself as overweight, and that perception held even when I became slim. In trying to appear healthy, I took on deeply unhealthy practices, beginning with skipping meals, and eventually developing into bulimia. I binged, eating large meals all at once, and purged, throwing it all up to avoid gaining weight. This went on for years, starting in high school and continuing well into my adult life. What disgusts me now isn’t the amount of food I ate when I binged, but the kind of food I was eating; McDonalds, Burger King, pizzas, and other animal products. I wonder how many animals I consumed during that time, without even blinking an eye. Of course, I knew it was all junk food that I would never eat under normal circumstances, but I never considered myself to be eating any of it, because I knew I was always going to throw it up.
On February 1st, 2010, my world changed; I had a simultaneous stroke and heart attack. I was in a coma for two weeks, unable to move, see, or speak. I felt like Neo waking up in The Matrix, connected to all kinds of tubes and wires. The first meal on the menu was meatloaf, which I would’ve never eaten without purging; I called myself a vegetarian, if only so I could have a built-in excuse to avoid certain foods. However, I knew that I could be dying, so I happily accepted whatever they were going to serve to me. I couldn’t feed myself, and I wouldn’t be able to, for another year. It would be another year after that before I was finally discharged from the hospital, having gained some of my vision and mobility back to the point I could walk freely. In 2015, however, I suffered a second stroke. It totally destroyed any progress I’d made. With my risk for another stroke increasing, and the consequences of another one being even more dire than the first two, I watched some food documentaries with my boyfriend, out of concern for my own health. What I saw was absolutely shocking. I always knew animal products came from somewhere, but I never let myself make the connection between what I was eating and the cruelty of factory farming. It was cognitive dissonance at its finest. We both decided what we saw was cruel and that we never wanted to support it again. Overnight, we both went vegan.
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That Vegan Disabled Gal – Cont’d Erin Fernandes Going vegan has truly transformed my life. I no longer worry about what I eat, so long as it’s vegan and cruelty-free. Being disabled after my strokes, I often felt helpless or hopeless, but I know now that I’m making a positive difference with my food choices and what products I choose to support. Adopting a vegan diet is the right thing to do; it saves countless animals from the senseless violence and deplorable conditions of factory farms. Supporting companies that lock animals in tiny cages that completely restrict their movement, mutilate living beings, and ultimately end their lives for our consumption is unconscionable. At the beginning of the pandemic, I started a Facebook group, “That Vegan Disabled Gal”, as a way to reach out and interact with people. The group has grown beyond anything I expected, to over 1,200 members, and it continues to grow. Members of the group share their stories, recipes, and advocate for a vegan lifestyle. Recently, I began co-hosting a podcast, The Vegan Possibility, which is currently on hiatus but will return. I plan to interview vegan guests, from activists to academics, and educate about the benefits of a vegan lifestyle. I also began publishing a weekly newsletter to the group, to spread a vegan message and bring awareness to vegan activists, products, and recipes, among other things. My goals are to promote a vegan lifestyle and to share education, awareness, and compassion for animals, disabilities, and eating disorders. I truly believe my stroke saved my life; it was the impetus for me to stop abusing my own body and stop supporting products and companies that abuse animals. You can connect at: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100026236033259 www.facebook.com/That-Vegan-Disabled-Gal-102145888710728
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Vegan Pulse
Like us on FB www.facebook.com/veganpulse Subscribe to our YouTube Channel NM Vegan | 11
Introducing Sprouting Compassion, a 501C3 Non-Profit organization, dedicated to raising awareness about the connection of veganism and its link to social justice issues. Sprouting Compassion offers the following programs: cooking demos (Eat Without Violence); vegan mentorship; school humane education for kids (EducateDuCare); Vegan Swap Meet; Red and Green VegFest Albuquerque; weekly mini podcast, Vegan Pulse. Of course, we also do live and virtual presentations, tabling, and so forth. Please visit our website to find out more or to schedule an event, www.sproutingcompassion.org. TOGETHER LET’S MAKE A BRIGHTER FUTURE.
Sprouting Compassion is very appreciative of one of our own board members, Tammy Fiebelkorn, for her fundraising campaign, Sweets for your Sweet! Which was a wonderful success. We are so happy to have her in this organization. We also want to thank the community which made this campaign, Sold Out! This was our initial fundraiser for Sprouting Compassion, which funds the Red & Green VegFest Albuquerque and other programs to help with our goal to greatly expand education on veganism as a social justice movement. Thank You Tammy for all the work you do for the animals and your wonderful support! NM Vegan | 12
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Celebrate
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The title to this article was intended as an “attention getter” …not prophecy. I am not making a prediction, yet (that 2022 will be Earth’s first year of a Vegan-world, lived out, by a human majority); but I feel it coming. December 31 will bring us to the end of this year, 2021. All the joy and grief of the past year, are over. So, I am in-contemplation, reminiscing, and getting set for 2022. What are you-all doing…?... I wonder. Me… I live by the motto: “Be better than yesterday” (and with each new day, better than the day before, …right?). When joyous occasions come into my life, I appreciate them, savor them and then move-on-from them, just as I moved-to them… in the moment… not expecting to drag everything with me, from fear of “losing something” …I advocate ‘letting go of the past.’ When strife strikes, I feel the emotions of the moment: fear, anger, stress, …and then I do my best to move beyond those moments and situations. Life is always in flux. It is constantly changing, just like our: tastes, likes and dislikes. It is just …a part of life. In my personal & mental Buddhist Box Of Philosopher Stones, there is one that reads, “Suffer what there is to suffer, enjoy what there is to enjoy. Regard both suffering and joy as facts of life.” I live by this one, too. It is a constant reminder that, while eternity is permanent, objects have a ‘fleeting’ aspect, to their nature. Life experience, ebbs and flows. When the year comes to an end, I set my intentions on letting go of those things that do not serve me, such as the attitude that there is anything of value to hold on to, except of course, the most sterling of human virtues. By dedicating-the-time to review my life, I have assisted myself, to navigate the rough terrains, my destiny has put in my path. I learned to do better. People and situations that I would have avoided (after first labeling them toxic) I now meet, gladly… bringing with me… something good for them… if it’s just a smile, on a non-judgmental glance. I am getting myself ready for a …revamped new year. In this revamped New Year, I am aligning myself with the first “Vegan-World Centennial” …whenever it comes. Positive, positive, positive. If you are already vegan, …congratulations and appreciations …to you! If you are contemplating veganism …likewise, to you, and best wishes. If you are looking for suggested advocacy-opportunities, here are some ideas. View a movie that promotes veganism; share vegan information on social media\in person\with your family, co-workers, and friends; you might talk about the sentience of animals and how animals deserve to be happy, same as people; boycott non-vegan products (ceasing to buy products, that hurt animals, reduces the demand for the product, until the product goes out of commercial circulation); fight Climate Change (Climate change leads to food insecurity, poverty, and displacement. The UN states that- “Rearing animals for food production is one of the most significant contributors, to the most serious environmental problems: at every scale; from local to global.”). Be aware: there are systems that use, abuse, torture, and kill billions of innocent lives each year. Consumption and use of animals, involves unnecessary tortures, and will prevent Earth’s purity; thereby, Earth will be too dirty to sustain life. Eating animal flesh and ingesting all the animals’ sorrow, fear, and anguish into your body is toxic. Their stress hormones, will give you stress. Instead, …let Peace be on your plate.
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If you value your health, and I hope you do, begin your vegan diet (…vegan, already?). Many diseases can be either controlled or eliminated, just by eating the food we are meant to eat …whole plant-based vegan food. There is plenty of evidence that shows: a vegan diet supports healthy living. As a vegan, you will avoid saturated fat (from meat, milk and eggs), and you'll be avoiding processed meat, which the World Health Organization has classified as a ‘cause of cancer.’ When you “go vegan” and feed your family the same, you are loving and caring for them, in the biggest way of all, …health. Health is essential to a happy, energetic, long, and productive life. As we come to the end of this year, and begin anew, I see vegans… doing and being …awesome …making this a Vegan Living Year …and all years to come. If you need assistance in staying the vegan course or becoming vegan, I am here to help and can be reach through my email, heartnsole3@yahoo.com
Other resources: www.sproutingcompassion.org https://heartnsolerevna.wordpress.com/ www.youtube.com/channel/UCvpCdG8W7_fm_JzwU_MBlSA www.linkedin.com/in/nancy-arenasⓥ-20467115/
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Animals can feel empathy just like humans do. Empathy for each other, for us, and even for other species.
Donkeys 1. Donkeys are very strong and intelligent. 2. Donkeys have an incredible memory – they can recognize areas and other donkeys they were with up to 25 years ago. 3. Donkeys have a reputation for stubbornness, but this is due to their highly developed sense of self preservation. It is difficult to force or frighten a donkey into doing something it sees as contrary to its own best interest or safety. 4. Donkeys are more independent in their thinking than horses and will reason, then make decisions based on their safety. 5. Donkeys don’t like the rain and being out in it for long periods can damage their health as their fur is not waterproof. 6. Donkeys in a herd will groom each other in the same way as monkeys and chimps do. 7. Donkeys are not easily startled (unlike horses) and have a keen sense of curiosity. 8. Donkeys have incredibly efficient digestive systems, utilizing 95% of what they eat. 9. Donkeys are very sociable and form strong bonds - you will often see pairs of best friends within a herd. 10. Wild donkeys travel in herds. The herds are usually comprised of one male with an assortment of females and foals, and they’ll work together to find food and shelter as they explore new territories. 11. A donkey can hear another donkey from a distance of 60 miles in proper desert conditions. This is possible because of their large ears. 12. Donkeys enjoy rolling on ground. This is in fact their best pastime. 13. A male donkey is often referred to as Jack while a female goes by the name Jenny or Jennet. 14. Donkeys get depressed very easily when left alone. That is the reason why they live in herds. 15. The leading donkey will sacrifice itself. If we were talking about the wild, a lead donkey will stay to ward off an attack by a wolf or other predators so that the rest of the herd can escape to safety.
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STUDY SUGGESTS ONLINE COURSE CHANGES VEGAN AND ANIMAL CAREER PLANS A new study suggests that Animal Advocacy Careers’ free online course leads to changes in which job roles people take and in their long-term career plans. A new charity, Animal Advocacy Careers, ran a study comparing participants in their free online course to a control group. Being offered a place on the course increased the number of people who changed their long-term career plans in the six months after applying, and nearly tripled the number of people who actually landed new roles that seem promising for helping animals. Additionally, 78% of participants changed the job that they were planning to apply for next, compared to only 45% of the control group.
“The course opened my eyes up to how you can view animal advocacy as a career and not just volunteering or something you care about,” remarked Charlie Wilson, a previous participant in the course. “I didn't realise that a career in animal advocacy could be so well thought out and that this could increase your impact so much!” Animal Advocacy Careers have responded to the promising findings by offering another cohort of the course. The deadline for applications is the 10th November, with the course itself beginning shortly afterwards.
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“We’re thrilled about the results of the study,” said Lauren Mee, Animal Advocacy Careers co-founder and CEO. “We feel confident that participating in the course helps people to find the career opportunities that are best for them and best for animals. All that’s left now is for more vegans, animal advocates, and aspiring effective altruists to sign up and participate in the next cohort!”
The course itself walks you through some of the key considerations involved in working to help animals. It condenses key findings from research by groups like Animal Charity Evaluators, Sentience Institute, and 80,000 Hours into an accessible format, with each of the nine weekly sessions taking one or two hours to complete. As well as sharing valuable knowledge and introducing you to a cohort of like-minded animal advocates, the course provides structuring for you to create a personalized career plan. You can find out more about the course here.
Animal Advocacy Careers (AAC) is an organization that seeks to address the career and talent bottlenecks in the animal advocacy movement, especially the farmed animal movement. We are providing free careers services for individuals at all levels of experience with animal advocacy: those new to animal advocacy, those looking for career planning and support, and those employed at animal advocacy organizations. For further information: Lauren Mee, Co-founder and CEO lauren@animaladvocacycareers.org
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Prep Time: 60 minutes - Cook Time: 80 minutes - Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes - Yield: 12-15 servings
Ingredients RICOTTA 2 batches of my Vegan Cashew Ricotta (without the basil) 4 oz. spinach ONIONS 1 Tbsp. olive oil 1 and 1/2 sweet onions, sliced thin salt + pepper SAUCE 1 Tbsp. olive oil 1/2 sweet onion, chopped 4 cloves garlic, minced 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth 2 15-oz. cans pumpkin puree 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes pinch freshly ground nutmeg salt + pepper 1 cup green lentils, cooked MUSHROOMS 2 Tbsp. olive oil 24 oz. baby bellas, sliced 8 sprigs fresh thyme 3 cloves garlic, minced salt + pepper
PEPPERS 1 jar DeLallo Roasted Red Peppers with Garlic NOODLES 1 box DeLallo No-Boil Organic Whole Wheat Lasagna Noodles TOPPING 2 Tbsp. olive oil 1 container (.75oz) sage, leaves removed 3/4 cup roasted, salted pumpkin seeds salt
Instructions • RICOTTA: Make your vegan ricotta first, once it’s made, bring a small pot of water to a boil. Have a bowl of ice water standing by. Add your spinach and boil for 20 seconds, then remove the spinach with a slotted spoon and place it straight into your ice water. • Once the blanched spinach is cool, remove it from the ice water and squeeze out any excess moisture. Add it to your vegan ricotta and set aside.
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• ONIONS: Heat olive oil in a medium pot over medium heat. Once hot, add your onions. Cook, stirring often, until caramelized, about 25 minutes. You may need to add some water during the cook-time to make sure the onions aren’t burning or sticking to the bottom of the pan. Once caramelized, season with salt and pepper and set aside. • SAUCE: Add oil to a large pot over medium heat. Once hot, add your onion and garlic, and saute for 3 minutes, or until fragrant. Add your broth, pumpkin puree, red pepper flakes, and nutmeg, and bring to a boil, about 5 minutes. • Once boiling, carefully transfer your mixture to a blender and blend until smooth (cover the lid of your blender with a towel to protect your hand; alternatively, you can use an immersion blender). Season generously with salt and pepper, add your cooked lentils, and mix to combine. Set aside. • MUSHROOMS: Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add your sliced mushrooms and thyme sprigs (you’ll remove them later) and cook until all of the water is evaporated, and the mushrooms start to caramelize, about 15 minutes. Add your garlic when the mushrooms are almost done and mix to combine. When all of the water has evaporated, then you can season with salt and pepper. Turn off the heat and set aside. • PEPPERS: Remove the peppers from the jar and squeeze out all excess water/liquid. Chop the peppers and set aside. • ASSEMBLE & BAKE: Now you’re ready to assemble! Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Grab a 13×9inch baking pan and spread 2 cups of your sauce on the bottom. Now add a few dry noodles, breaking the noodles to make them fit if necessary. Add half of your onions, mushrooms, and peppers across the top. Dollop a third of your ricotta mixture on top of that. • Then add another 2 cups of sauce evenly across the top. Layer on more noodles. Add the rest of your onions, mushrooms, and pepper, and then dollop on another third of your ricotta. • Finally, top the mixture with the rest of your sauce, and then dollops of the ricotta. You won’t use all the lasagna noodles–that’s okay! • Bake for 45 minutes, or until bubbly. I covered mine for half the time with aluminum foil to make sure the top didn’t get too crispy. • TOPPING: While the lasagna is baking, make the topping. Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add your sage leaves, and fry until dark green and crispy. About 30 seconds before you’re ready to remove your sage leaves, add your pumpkin seeds, and mix to combine. •
Remove the mixture from the skillet and allow to cool slightly. Chop fine and season with salt. Set aside.
•
When the lasagna is done, sprinkle the topping evenly across the top. Cut and serve!
Notes You can make the ricotta, onions, sauce (without the lentils), and mushrooms ahead of time. Just stick them in separate air-tight containers and store them in the fridge. No need to heat them before assembling the lasagna. More recipes at: www.fooduzzi.com/2019/11/vegan-fall-lasagna/#tasty-recipes-12071-jump-target
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Ingredients •3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil •1 large onion, minced •4 cloves garlic, pressed •2 cans pumpkin puree •1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon •1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg •1 pinch cayenne pepper •1 pinch granulated sugar •1 large pinch salt •3 cups hot vegetable stock •1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk •salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste •1/4 cup chopped toasted almonds, or to taste
Directions 1.Heat oil in a large pot over medium; cook and stir onion and garlic, stirring often, until lightly golden, 10 to 12 minutes. 2.Stir pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne pepper, sugar, and salt into onion mixture; cook until browned and fragrant, 5 to 8 minutes. 3.Pour vegetable stock into pumpkin mixture, stir, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook soup at a simmer for 15 minutes. 4.Transfer soup to a blender, add coconut milk, and blend until smooth, thinning the soup with water if needed; season with salt and black pepper. Return soup to the pot and simmer for 5 minutes more. Alternately, put the ingredients into a deep bowl or pot and blend with an immersion blender until smooth. 5.Garnish soup with toasted almonds and freshly ground black pepper.
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Black lives do indeed matter and we stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. It is essential to end police brutality and all other forms of white supremacy, institutionalized racism, and systemic injustice against Blacks and other people of color, who have been disproportionately victimized, including in terms of disease, health, and healthcare. Because Black lives matter, Black health matters. Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, who described racism as “maximum hate for minimum reason” with the “maximum of cruelty for a minimum of thinking”, was a friend of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. and they marched together for civil rights. Inspired by Rev. King and Rabbi Heschel, we oppose all forms of racial discrimination and seek to reverse racism. We are aware that in the four centuries of Blacks in America, the forms of racism have changed, but the reality of racism has remained constant. Within the universe of institutionalized racism and violence, there is another, often-neglected issue that also causes disproportionate harm to Black people. Mahatma Gandhi once said, “The most violent weapon on Earth is the table fork.” Charles Patterson, PhD, author of Eternal Treblinka: Our Treatment of Animals and the Holocaust, provides some historical context: “The domestication/enslavement of animals was the model and inspiration for human slavery… the breeding of domesticated animals led to eugenic measures as compulsory sterilization, euthanasia killings, and genocide, and… the industrialized slaughter of cattle, pigs, sheep, and other animals paved the way, at least indirectly, for the Final Solution.” Indeed, Coretta Scott King stated that veganism was “the next logical extension of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s philosophy of non-violence”. African Americans suffer far more from diet-related diseases than non-Black Americans and Black Africans. African Americans are far more likely to suffer and die from heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and other diet-related diseases than Whites. Diabetes is one of the most problematic and devastating of the common chronic diseases in western countries and in Black communities. Type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes are many times more prevalent in Blacks living in western nations relative to those living in west African countries eating a more traditional low-fat, non-dairy, plant-based diet. Research shows that once an African American develops diabetes, they are over 240 times more likely to suffer a limb amputation and over 100 times more likely to go blind from retinal damage or end up on hemodialysis from renal failure. The African American community has the highest rates of renal insufficiency in the United States. Research has consistently shown that both the risk for, and severity of, type 2 diabetes can be markedly lessened, or even reversed, by adopting a plant-based diet. According to Dr. Greger’s strictly non-commercial, non-profit, science-based, public service NutritionFacts.org, colon cancer is over 50 times lower among native African populations than among African Americans. For African Americans in their 50s, over half have diverticulosis, compared to less than 1% among Africans eating traditional plant-based diets. African Americans have a five times greater risk of dementia than Africans in Nigeria.
“I want to try to live my own values as consciously and purposefully as I can. … Being vegan for me is a cleaner way of not participating in practices that don’t align with my values.” NM Vegan | 25 ~Cory Booker
John Lewis, the filmmaker behind They’re Trying To Kill Us, realized that “We think that a lot of ailments and diseases are in our genes, but in reality, a lot of the problems that we have are related directly to food.” Lewis went vegan after his mother was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2006. He says “Talking to the doctors and understanding that her colon cancer was related directly to too much animal protein, coupled with fried fatty foods, et cetera, I thought to myself, not only can I help my mother and my family, but I believe we all deserve a right to live a better way.” Heart disease, stroke, various cancers, diabetes, obesity, and Alzheimer disease rates among Africans increase substantially when they move to the United States and adopt an animal-based American diet. Further, “In a study of 50,000 African American women, women who ate more vegetables had significantly lower risk of the type of breast cancer hardest to treat.” The Standard American Diet is SAD, but it doesn’t have to be. Historically, oppressors have intentionally and consistently used limited access to healthy foods as a means of creating ill-health in communities of color to keep their members sick, docile, preoccupied with their diseases, and thus, more easily controlled. Any meaningful discussion of the value and worth of “Black Lives” has to include improving “Black Health.” Although it is often experienced by African Americans, it is not widely known that about 75 percent of African Americans are lactose intolerant, according to The National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse. In view of this, it is shameful that the government recommends dairy consumption for all people and that the dairy industry used African Americans in their “milk mustache” campaign ads to promote its inappropriate product. The promotion of dairy to Blacks and other people of color, who are mostly lactose intolerant, and the requirement that milk be given to all children participating in the School Lunch Program (which is utilized by many students of color) is another form of institutional racism leading to and creating discomfort and disease. In addition, the provision of low-quality processed commodity foods and agribusiness warehouse products like surplus cheese to people of color through food support programs, such as WIC and others, also promotes and fosters the development of chronic disease. Studies indicate that much of the reason for the very high disease rates for Black Americans is their “Southern” diet, what came to be known as soul food, with its deep-fried foods, lard, rich desserts, and other tasty but nutritionally-unhealthy foods, including processed meats, eggs, cheesy casseroles, and other high-fat dairy, sugary treats, as well as fasts foods and other processed junk foods. Of course, unhealthy diets are unfortunately widespread and not unique to African Americans. It is worth noting that the “Southern” diet for Blacks was a consequence of slavery. As slaves, African Americans were given the refuse from their White owners, including ham hocks, chitterlings, lard, chicken necks, and other less desirable, less healthy scraps. And to kill or disguise what was in the food, it was typically deep fried. As with much else in a white supremacist society, these things were imposed on Blacks and then passed down generationally.
“If you’re violent to yourself by putting things into your body that violate its spirit, it will be difficult not to perpetuate that [violence] onto someone else.” ~Dexter Scott King
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Correspondingly, there is too often a lack of sufficient fruits and vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats, and other foods that are high in fiber, complex carbohydrates, and phytonutrients for optimum health. The fat, sugar, and salt that make Southern food so tempting raises blood pressure to killer levels, making it deadly for African Americans. Some good news is that certain traditional southern foods, such as black-eyed peas, corn, yams, okra, and collard greens, are already very healthy. Limited and unhealthy food choices are compounded by rampant poverty in the African American community, largely due to the ongoing history of racism, racial segregation, and economic inequality, resulting in food deserts and the inaccessibility of healthier foods at reasonable prices. Dr. Terry Mason, former Commissioner of Health for Chicago, is featured in the powerful documentary Forks Over Knives. As an African American himself, he is keenly aware of the issues and knows how race intersects with class in America. Dr. Mason outlines that, in poor neighborhoods of color, “the diets are calorie-rich and nutrient-poor. This is the real problem. And, unfortunately, poor people are poor in everything. They’re poor in health, they’re poor in food choices, they’re poor in almost every aspect that you could think of.” That “poverty” includes a lack of potentially life-saving health education and information on how to modify traditional diets to promote better health. It is another unfortunate aspect of the systemic, society-wide classism and racism in American culture that fast food outlets are deliberately targeted to poor communities of color. Moreover, these unhealthy products are subsidized by taxpayer dollars to make these disease-promoting items artificially cheap and easily accessible, especially for those in a lower socio-economic status. Speaking of fast foods and junk foods, Dr. Mason says it plain: “These things are drugs. They have other deleterious side effects, not the least of which is adding a lot of empty calories,” which leads to ill-health. Dr. Mason’s recommendation? “If it walked, hopped, swam, crawled, slithered, had eyes, a mom and a dad, don’t eat it!” The fact that it is poor diets behind the high disease rates of African Americans actually illuminates an avenue of hope, because diets can be changed, and health can improve fairly quickly. Shifting toward nutritious, delicious, colorful, plant-based meals would sharply reduce the disproportionate levels of disease and death rates among Blacks. In fact, Dr. Milton Mills, an African American physician, who is featured in What the Health?, another powerful documentary, has argued that Blacks and others should actually return to our early diets, when all humans were in Africa, concluding that we as humans are not designed to eat meat, even if we are capable of doing so. Dr. Mills shows through “comparative anatomy” that we as humans are very similar to plant-eating animals and quite different from meat-eating animals in a variety of physiological ways from our jaws and claws to our stomachs and intestines. Fortunately, healthier, plant-based versions of soul food favorites are possible. Various herbs and spices can be used instead of salt for seasoning. People can reduce the amount of meat in dishes and add more vegetables. Plant-based meats can replace high-fat, high-cholesterol meat dishes. If the changes fit into a person’s lifestyle, they can be fun, satisfying, healthy, and sustainable. As an example, Chef Tamearra Dyson opened Souley Vegan in Oakland, serving plant-based Louisiana Creole delicacies since 2009.
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Partly due to Dr. Alvenia Fulton’s and Dick Gregory’s early efforts promoting vegetarianism in the Black community in the 1960s, as well as advocates like Dr. Mason, Dr. Mills, Dr. Ruby Thomas, Chef Babette, Tracye McQuirter, Tabitha Brown, Rachel Ama, A. Breeze Harper, Angela Davis, Sen. Cory Booker, and many others, “African Americans are more likely to go vegan, reduce meat consumption, and follow a flexitarian diet for health and the environment than white people,” according to Liam Pritchett for LiveKindly. African Americans have great role models for shifting toward vegan diets and it is essential that more Black people join them because African Americans have the most to gain from the health benefits of plant-based foods, since they experience the highest rates of chronic yet preventable, diet-related, life-threatening diseases in the country. And for Joe “Monk” Coleman of Plant Powered Brothaz, veganism “is an expression of love for yourself.” Studies show that eating a healthy, plant-based diet, along with moderate exercise, not smoking, and not being obese can cut one’s risk of disability and death from chronic diseases by up to 90%! And of these, the most beneficial behavior is eating a plant-based diet. Medicare for All would also be an important component of good health and would be a huge benefit for the disproportionately-uninsured Black community, as well as the rest of the country. In addition to health, plant-based diets are also better for animals, better for public health and preventing future pandemics, better for spiritual health, and better for the environment and fighting climate change. The founder of Vegans for Black Lives Matter, Gwenna Hunter, reminds us that “Every animal comes to this planet conscious and ready to receive and give love. Every animal is a gift to humanity not as food but as loving souls who are deserving of dwelling here equally with us and not for us.” Alice Walker put it well many years ago: “The animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans any more than black people were made for whites, or women created for men.” At the 2012 Empowering Women of Color Conference, Angela Davis stated that we all must challenge “the whole capitalist industrial form of food production.” Dr. Davis mentioned that “Most people don’t think about the horrendous suffering that those animals must endure simply to become food products to be consumed by human beings.” Vegan food is truly good for the soul.
Ultimately, we must all realize that in addition to Black “lives” that Black “health” matters! Because without health, the quality, substance, and effectiveness of Black lives will be severely diminished, shortened, and of limited potential.
“As I always say, the only connection between Black oppression and animal oppression is that both groups were smuggled onto a racial hierarchy that the dominant class created to naturalize their own superiority and the inferiority of everyone else.” ~Aph Ko NM Vegan | 28
Our fervent hope is for our Black brothers and sisters — and everyone else — to have long, healthy, peaceful lives. Black lives matter, therefore Black health matters. For further information, get the free, online African American Vegan Starter Guide. It features 40 pages of inspiration and information from African American vegan experts on how to transition to a plant-based diet, along with many delicious vegan recipes from renowned Black vegan chefs. Also, visit Black Vegans Today, Black Vegans Rock, and follow amazing human beings such as Gabrielle Reyes and Genesis Butler. And see the film They’re Trying To Kill Us.
This article was reprinted from the Visible Magazine with permission from Dan Brook. Dan Brook, PhD teaches in the Department of Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences at San Jose State University and is a board member of San Francisco Veg Society and Advisory Board member of Jewish Veg. Dr. Brook is the author of Eating the Earth (in various translations).
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As a companion to the UNFCCC/Paris Agreement, the Plant Based Treaty is a landmark international treaty and first of its kind to put food systems at the heart of combating the climate crisis. The Treaty aims to halt the widespread degradation of critical ecosystems caused by animal agriculture, to promote a shift to more healthy, sustainable plant-based diets and to actively reverse damage done to planetary functions, ecosystem services and biodiversity.
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Advocates around the world are speaking up for veganism in the hopes of creating a balanced world. A world that is livable with no cruelty, no famine, and healthier human populations... a world that benefits the animals, planet, and humans. Here is a brief overview of veganism with informative links to a variety of vegan resources.
Lifestyle - Vegan choices in clothing, travel, cruelty-free products for oneself and home, and highlighting the ways that vegans spread their message through activism, art, and community. Health and Nutrition - Exploring the positive benefits of a vegan diet and educating on what is involved in going vegan. Animal Welfare - How eating plants can break the chain of suffering that is widespread in factory farming and the role of animal activists. Environmental Protection - How meat production harms the planet and how plant-based eating can help to save it. Youth – Their future is in our hands now, but our hands will not be here forever. The next generation is the future of new hands, the hands of today’s youth. Social Justice - Understanding the core issue of every oppression, whether it is women’s rights, black rights, LGBTQIA rights, animal rights, or environmental rights, will lead one to see that all oppressions are linked, one to another, and are not separate issues. Spiritual – Eating the flesh of another lowers and even destroys our spiritual consciousness. When we eat animal flesh, we are ingesting the violence, stress, and horror which that animal had to endure. Carnism does not align with the principle of non-violence. Carnism is violence, veganism is love. As you see, above, veganism is much more than a diet. It is a way of life. Veganism is your true self, …compassionate-hearted, gentle-minded, and lovingly-helpful. Living as a vegan is not a sacrifice at all. Sometimes transitions, like the transition from carnism to veganism can feel like a difficult hurdle. But ‘going vegan’ will truly improve your life through health and peace. It will take you on a journey to expansion of universal proportions where the essential value is, simply, a kindhearted existence. We are at a very critical moment for the planet, animals, and humans. Join vegans around the world in ushering in a new era. An era that will ease the suffering of all sentient beings and the earth we live on.
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Happy Vegan Holidays!
