Why People Hate Vegans So Much
By: Christopher Laine
Tags: Diet, Discrimination, Vegan, Veganism

I just got through reading Mason Sabre’s well-written article on Medium which posed a simple and totally fair question Why Do People Hate Vegans So Much?

It’s a good read, and he makes some very valid points about Vegan Hatred. Mason (and all well-meaning Vegans out there), on behalf of the omnivore community, I apologise for such ignorant and hickish responses to something which is clearly none of anyone else’s damned business, and which is your personal choice 100% percent. I, for one, fully support and honour your dedication to your beliefs and your dietary choices.

People who bash or hate vegans wholesale are ignorant, and petty, and wrapped up in some bizarre neurotic herd behaviour that everyone has to be the same or be ostracised. Nuts to that stupidity.

Let’s Start With A Caveat (or three)

Let me start this piece with a caveat or three.

First of all, I don’t care what anyone does. I mean ANYONE. If you have a dietary thing, cool. If you have a sexual preference and its with another consenting adult, awesome. If you self-identify in this or that way, cool. I just do NOT care. It’s none of my business, and I base my life on the ‘live and let live’ philosophy. I have my own self-identifications and choices, and if you leave me to mine, I will leave you to yours.

Everybody is different, and that’s amazing.

Secondly, I for one have seen exactly the kind of behaviour Mason describes in his piece. I used to be a vegetarian and saw it in one context or another myself. I’ve seen meatheads (pun intended) making a stink about vegan this or tofu that, like it was some macho trip about not eating meat makes you a commie or a sissy or not quite right. I’ve heard the snide and rather passive-aggressive jokes chucked at vegans. Again, not my scene, and not cool. If you’re someone doing so, get over it. Some people don’t eat meat. Eat your chicken wing and keep your yap shut.

Finally, everything I am about to say is based on real experiences which I have had. None of this is hypothetical, none of it is hyperbole. These things either happened directly to me, or I witnessed them first-hand. I promise you, if you ask around among your omnivorous friends, they will tell you similar tales.

So, let’s get started, shall we?

You Aren’t the Vegan People Hate

As I said, I know there are tools out there who treat vegans poorly. Let’s put them aside. I know plenty of omnivores like me who could care less that you are happy with your veganism. That’s your business, and you do you.

No, you’re not the vegans people hate. You’re the right kind of vegan. The kind which stick blowflies up my nose are not you, but instead a very different kind of vegan, which I call the Proselytizer Vegan.

This is the vegan who, unlike you, DO feel superior, DO feel they need to make it public notice regularly, and DO feel it is their right to make people feel badly about their dietary choices.

What does this look like? Let me count the ways

Why Are You Telling Me If I Didn’t Ask?!

There’s a great joke that goes like this

A Cross-Trainer, a Libertarian, and a Vegan walk into a bar. We know this, because they’ve told everyone in the bar within five minutes of walking in the door.

I have been introduced to people who haven’t finished telling me their name and have announced their vegan-ness. “I’m a vegan,” a young woman told me, still shaking my hand, as if I was supposed to file this away in some Rolodex of food choices. Um, good for you?

I don’t tell people I’m an omnivore, and certainly I’d never tell strangers I’ve just met. Why would I? What possible reason does an introduction need to begin with such an immediate separation of identity? Yet I have met a number of vegans who feel this is part of their dietary choice, this proclamation that should set them apart from others. This kind of pointed self-identification comes off as creepy, weird and yeah, a little judgey.

If I don’t ask someone for such information, why is it being proffered? Why, because of my next point

Spare Me The Conversion

“Did you know you can get twice as much protein eating mushrooms and lentils as you can from that steak?” Yes. Someone said this to someone else over a dinner out. My eyebrow went up. Oh no he didn’t.

Yes he did. And this wasn’t the first time I’ve witnessed this one. Vegans trying to explain to non-vegans how their diet is inferior, nutritionally and ethically, even as the person is enjoying their diet.

Don’t preach at me about what I eat. Don’t tell me how I can get all this or that nutrition from kale and beetroots as I could from eggs. Sure, maybe I can, just like my mom used to say ‘There’s as much sugar in an apple as there is in candy’. No shit, mom. That didn’t make the candy and the apple equal in my little kid brain.

I am a grown adult. I don’t want people preaching or proselytizing at me, no matter what they’re selling. I don’t care if it’s Christianity, Hare Krishna, Scientology, or veganism. You do you, and stop trying to look for converts.

Quit Making Dinner Out About You

This one happened to me for a while. I endured it, because my vegan buddy is a stand-up guy, and I wanted to honour his commitment. The thing was, whenever we were going to dine out together, we had to go to HIS vegan restaurants. He had two or three, and that was all. If it wasn’t one of those three vegan places, it was not on the table (more puns).

Look, I get you love your vegan food. That’s awesome, but don’t limit me to your dietary choices. Do some homework. Find restaurants which serve vegan and omnivore dishes. You may be super into that braised tempeh with brown rice you always order, but it’s not for everybody.

Stop Hijacking My BBQs

Even vegans know this one. Here’s the scenario: Someone decides to throw a summer BBQ. Everybody shows up, and the grill is sizzling away. Then enter the vegan with her mushroom / asparagus kebabs, and asks: “Is there a place on the BBQ that hasn’t had meat on it? I won’t cook my food on anything which has touched meat.”

Sound familiar?

Now come on! You come to my BBQ party, and then start laying down demands of the use of my grill? You want a place on the grill that has no meat on it? Bring your own BBQ. Don’t expect special treatment or to be catered to because of your dietary concerns. If you are that inflexible about such a thing, why by the gods are you at a BBQ?!

I will do my best to accommodate who I can. I have Muslim friends, and I’ll shop Halal. I have friends who can’t / won’t eat dairy. I’ll go out of my way to make a few dishes which are dairy-free. Hell, I’ll even try to go the nine yards and let the vegans take first crack at the BBQ if that satisfies them.

Expecting special treatment, expecting people to create a special space for you isn’t really about veganism. That type of behaviour is about control. If you don’t want to have your food touch any surface which touched meat, you probably want to stay out of my kitchen and refrigerator while you’re at it. If you want flexibility from others around your dietary choices, recall that htis is a two-way street. Try being less of a fundamentalist, and be flexible to others as you want them to be flexible to you.

Meat happens: Get over it.

Don’t Put Your Icky Finger On Me: Spare Me the Guilt and Shaming

When someone was shaming or guilting in a passive-aggressive way, my friend used to say “Don’t put your icky finger on me!” The perfect imagery for the kind of guilt tactics I’ve seen vegans employ to make people feel shitty about their dietary choices.

I have a friend named Josh who’s vegan. When I asked him why he chose to be vegan, his response was perfect. “Ah, you know. It’s just a choice, bro.” No fuss, no taking me through the ringer as to the ethics and the animal cruelty, or the impact on the environment. I know Josh has strong feelings on all those subjects, but he doesn’t foist them on anyone. That deserves respect.

I understand fully how passionately some people feel about animal welfare, and about ending animal cruelty, even about the impact the meat industry has on the environment. I am in full support of your right to feel passionately about these topics.

What I don’t support is showing up, in person or in advertisements, to club me and my fellow omnivores over the head with it. If I want to be made to feel guilty, I’ll just examine my life choices over the years. I have enough guilt of my own. I don’t need you looking down on me from on high, a holier-than-thou halo over your head, and a superior expression of ethical conceit smeared all over your kisser.

Guilt is a terrible form of coercion, and one that makes the distributor of said guilt seem like a sanctimonious ass hat.

Here’s one of my favourite responses ever to such guilt-laden judgementalisms:

Vegan or no, you must admit that’s funny

Trying to make people feel bad about eating meat (something, btw, which has been going on since before we climbed down out of the trees) is a sure way to get some ire chucked in your direction, if not you chucked out of a house.

Nobody enjoys being judged, and the more you do so, the less you will find your message is reaching anyone.

This kind of value-judgement has gotten out of hand many times. The most recent of which was a vegan bride who uninvited any meat-eating guests because “murderers” would not be welcome. Seriously?

Wrap Up

I’ve got nothing against you, Mason, or any vegan who is willing to live and let live. What I don’t want is judgement, conversion, entitled behaviour or to have to cater my life around someone else’s life choice.

You invite me to your place for tofu burgers? I’m your guy. You explain to me you need a vegan meal at my next dinner party? I make this insanely good deep-fried spicy tofu and spring onions that will charm you nine ways from Sunday. It’s great with a light Italian red.

You want me to bend my life or eating habits to accommodate you in some way which feels very much like control, you can count this brother out.

My mom never got me to trade in my candy for those apples. What chance do you think you have?