How impactful is vegan activism?

 “Another article about veganism?” “Who cares?” “Why do vegans and vegetarians force us to stop eating meat?” Why is there so much negativity around becoming vegan or vegetarian, and how can we put this negativity to rest? Because it’s Veganuary, I thought I’d investigate this a little more.

A lot of the bad light around vegans comes from some of them seemingly ‘forcing’ the lifestyle onto other people. Protesting in public places by holding signs and shouting, showing graphic images of the slaughtering of animals in towns and TikTok accounts dedicated to talking about vegan activism are just some examples of what some people would call ‘forceful.’

As a vegetarian, it’s a difficult situation because not eating meat in my eyes can be such a great decision for many reasons. It’s good for the environment, it’s kind to animals and it’s healthy and much more. However, people want to live their lives how they want to, which I also think is fine. So, to what extent is the vegan lifestyle really being forced upon people and what are the most affective forms of activism?

For a while now, The Vegan Teacher on TikTok has gained popularity. She posts videos about veganism to ‘educate people.’ In my opinion, some of her videos seemingly create a mockery of veganism. Recently, she posted a video where she stood outside McDonald’s and sang about how McDonald’s should be vegan. One line she sang was “change your entire menu to be vegan from now on.”

Now let’s be honest, this really isn’t going to encourage anyone to become vegan, and won’t encourage McDonald’s to make their whole menu vegan. Several young people on TikTok laugh at her videos, which creates questions about whether her content is really impressionable.

I don’t think her aim is to necessarily bring a bad name to veganism. Her comments are turned off for her videos and some of her content is striking, such as her showing graphic images depicting the behind the scenes of the meat industry. But I do believe that some of her less serious content needs to be reconsidered.

There’s many news stories and videos online of butchers eating meat in front of activists who protest outside of their shops, as well as throwing meat at them and mocking them. Often the comments side with the meat eaters, seemingly having the opposite effect to what the activists wanted. This type of activism could be viewed as threatening and can be detrimental to businesses, turning people away from wanting to be associated with veganism.  Is this type of vegan activism really going to encourage butchers to close their shops or quit their jobs? Is it going to encourage people to stop eating meat?

In some ways, it could. These types of stories get people’s attention, and they may want to hear more about the vegan lifestyle. On the contrary, people don’t always want to hear what they’re being told, and this type of activism doesn’t always receive the outcome wanted.

Some forms of vegan activism such as protesting in the streets could be viewed as powerful. Anyone protesting in such a strong manner showing passion and importance of a situation, could encourage people to investigate the vegan lifestyle further. Again though, on the flip side, people tend to get frustrated by vegan activism, and don’t like being told what to do. Everyone has opinions, and changing people’s opinions isn’t always easy.

At the end of the day, people make their own decisions, and nobody is going to become vegan if they don’t want to. Yet, vegan activism frustrates some people.

Can we lightly suggest the benefits of a meat free lifestyle in a less ‘forceful’ way?

I like to see posts about how easy vegan and vegetarian meals can be made. Posts like this can show people an easy way to carry out a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle.

Social media posts stating facts about the vegan lifestyle can be less ‘forceful’ than protests that take place outside of places selling meat, because if people don’t want to see it, they can simply scroll past.

Some people are suggesting going partly meat free. Flexitarian is a new recent term describing someone who is part vegetarian or vegan. Some people also take part in meat-free Monday which is becoming increasingly more popular.

Vegan activism can sometimes be great as it encourages people to find out more and become vegan if they want to, as well as spreading the word about veganism. Without vegan activism, there may be a lot less vegans than there are today. Despite this, some vegan activism is driving people away from becoming vegan and perhaps there are lighter ways of encouraging some people. Nonetheless, more and more people are becoming vegan every day, which is a small step closer to creating a greener world.