Gary L. Francione's Abolitionist Approach to Animal Rights

I've had a couple of vegan friends and readers unfamiliar with Professor Gary L. Francione's work email me over the past few weeks with some questions about its basic arguments for an abolitionist approach to animal rights. I figure that the best place to start is by sharing this video from Professor Francione's website, Animal Rights: The Abolitionist Approach. It's around a half hour long and is an incredibly effective slide-show presentation. For more videos and slide-shows, visit this page of his site. Information on some of the work he's published can be obtained here. I'll try to focus on some introductory types of pieces on the abolitionist approach to various animal issues over the next couple of months, contrasting them (where applicable) to common new welfarist approaches to the same issues.

Theory of Animal Rights from Gary L. Francione on Vimeo.

White Castle Meets Flashdance

Thanks to the folks over at the Suicide Food blog for posting about this commercial. It has to be seen to be believed. As the Suicide Food bloggers suggested, however, once you've seen it you may find yourself wishing you could "unsee" it.

Canada's Governor General Eats Raw Seal Heart

Up until today, I've never had a problem with Michaëlle Jean. In fact, given her life story, I even had a fair amount of respect for her, albeit a fair amount of disinterest in the rubber-stamp position she holds as Governor General. This news story from the BBC that I read late last night, however, has changed my mind about her. I know that the Canadian government is grasping at every single thing it can reach to try to show solidarity with the Canadian seal hunters whose livelihoods and butchering have been affected by the EU's recent vote to ban the importation of Canadian seal products, but c'mon?

Ms Jean used a traditional Inuit knife to help gut the animal then ate a slice of raw heart.

It came weeks after the EU voted to ban Canadian seal products, but Ms Jean did not say if her actions were in response to the EU proposals.

An EU spokeswoman said the story was "too bizarre to acknowledge".

The governor general is the representative of Canada's head of state, Queen Elizabeth II.

Ms Jean was touring northern Canadian communities and was at a festival at Rankin Inlet on Monday attended by hundreds of Inuit when she ate the seal heart.

Asked later if her actions were a message to the EU, she said: "Take from it what you will."

Trying to make a statement is one thing, but did anyone really think that this could possibly drum up any postive PR? I mean, really?

Slaughter in the City

Thanks to Keith Burgess-Jackson at Animal Ethics for posting a link to this New York Times story about the rising popularity of small-scale urban slaughterhouses. The story features an accompanying slideshow of images which leaves me wondering how these animals fare in their final days and how those who tout the supposed humaneness of smaller-scale slaughter operations over larger operations could possibly argue that this current trend is in any way more justifiable.

My favourite quote from the article about surrounding urban residents' "concerns" is particularly telling about societal norms concerning the usage of animals considered "food":

Last year, residents of St. Albans, Queens, blocked a small slaughterhouse from opening on Farmers Boulevard. One resident, Marie Wilkerson, told The New York Times that she feared its stink would ruin backyard barbecues.

Heaven forbid that you really get a good real whiff of what it is that you're eating, Marie. I mean--that would be unappetizing.

Just Different

Brandon over at Abolitionist Education made this short video with his little brother Ayden. The following is the script he included in his YouTube post.

The Script:

I had never thought about it until someone asked me. The question itself wasn't a life changing question, but it was the tip of a life changing iceberg. I never knew that such a causal remark could change me so much.

Now that I think about it, the signs were there all along. Its almost crazy, that I didn't see them sooner.

I loved him, he was my best friend. I would never think of hurting him. And yet, how did I persist so long living like that, hurting others like him?

Its not in me to be full of malice. Im a caring guy, and I know that. No, I wasn't actually part of the process. But when you pay someone to do it, its pretty much the same thing isnt it?

I would never hurt them. Never cause them harm for a reason as small as my pleasure. There is simply no need to, and I knew that. And yet, somehow I did cause them harm. For years I did, and I didn't think twice about it.

Perhaps I didn think about it, because there was nothing to think about. No one had mentioned it to me. I probably would have never entertained the thought of discussing such a topic. The reality is so absent in our world.

But I changed and I realized that I was wrong. Wrong, without even knowing there was a question of right or wrong.

Ive realized now, its not that their better then us. And its not that were better then them. Its not a question of who is better. I don't think that even matters anymore. Were just different. We speak different languages. We live in different worlds.

Its not as if there's a conflict either. I don't know why I thought it was that way at first. Knowing this strengthens my resolve.

My resolve, that its just not right to abuse someone, simply because we can. Or, simply because it makes us feel good. Or simply because we can talk and think and they cannot - Simply, because we are different.

And even though we are different, we are the same in the areas that matter. We can both cry out in pain, or laugh with joy. We both seek comfort and avoid discomfort. Just because we can talk and they can fly doesn't mean we are better. Just different.

And they are so innocent. They have done no crime. They didn't ask to be brought into this world. And yet here they are, completely innocent and yet so hated.

So helpless they are. But I'm not supporting that anymore.

I realized I wouldn't do it to him, and now Im over my moral confusion. Im over pretending that because I am stronger or smarter that that gives me reason to use or abuse others.

I am not describing our relationships with other worlds, or other existences. I am talking about other inhabitants of our planet earth. Other beings who exist with us, caught together in this web of life. These animals have done nothing wrong, and yet they are so vilified.

Remember that life changing iceberg? While I uncovered the whole thing, and it turned out to be a life changing and life saving iceberg. Each day, I choose to save a life, simply through what I eat.

I would never think of eating him, so why would I eat another of his kind?

We are not better then them, that doesn't even matter anymore. We're just different.

Applauding Token Gestures: HSUS and Wendy's

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) announced yesterday that it's applauding Wendy's for its recent decision to use a minimum of 2 percent cage-free eggs. It's such a token gesture that's so clearly designed to just drum up some positive welfarist PR:

"The Humane Society of the United States applauds Wendy's for responding to customers' concerns about animal welfare and taking this positive step," stated Paul Shapiro, senior director of The HSUS's factory farming campaign. "Wendy's new policy is reducing the number of birds confined in cruel cages, and is sending a clear signal that it's time for the egg industry to move away from inhumane confinement."

If Wendy's customers were indeed so concerned about animal welfare, would changing how a mere 2% of the chickens used by Wendy's are treated really have that much of an impact on whether or not they continue to spend their money at Wendy's? An overwhelming 98% of the chickens they'll continue eating there will still be subjected to the same brutal confinement. How does the change in treatment of 2% of the chickens in any way make it more ethically acceptable for them to continue supporting Wendy's and continuing to eat the other 98% of the sourced birds?

I wonder what the real concerns were in the first place and suspect that it's not really so much about the chickens as it is about people wanting to try to alleviate some of their guilt. If Wendy's customers were indeed so concerned about the well-being of these chickens, then wouldn't it make sense for them to just not eat the chickens in question? Are Wendy's chicken products so bewitching and addictive that Wendy's customers just can't not stuff them into their mouths? I guess that they really aren't that concerned after all.

Veganism in The Media

I write (too?) often about the increase in non-vegans' co-opting (and often distorting) the term "vegan" to cash in on the current mainstream interest in exploring the ethics of eating; it's getting even more annoying to see a rising trend in bits or interviews with vegans engaging in confessional-like admissions to non-vegan indulgences, often shrugging them off as indiscretions. Sometimes it's hard to distinguish between non-vegans pretending to be vegan, and vegans trying to gain the approval of mainstream foodies by offering up titillating bits of information that only seem to perpetuate the current foodie obsession with presenting the eating animals (and their products) as overwhelmingly enticing.

For instance, yesterday there was a quick reference to Lorna Sass' new cookbook Short-Cut Vegan by Boston Globe foodie Sheryl Julian. Tucked away in it was yet another supposed vegan's confession, and its mangling of the meaning of veganism:

Sass was vegan for almost a decade and wrote a bunch of vegetarian books, which she told me are really vegan books. She only broke her very strict vegan regime when she met a guy who liked to eat cheese and sip wine.

Well then, she wasn't vegan for almost a decade if she ate cheese, was she? The full interview with Sass should appear next Wednesday; it'll be interesting to see how she ends up clarifying her statement, if she does so at all.

Salad!

Nothing screams "summer" like the arrival of cheaper produce in grocery stores and the steadily increasing trickle of produce from early crops at the local farmer's market. I become salad-obsessed this time of year. It's funny, since when I've discussed meals with omni friends these past few weeks and have mentioned having lots of salads or raw vegetable wraps, I've gotten more than a couple of well-intentioned comments expressing that it must be really hard to find things to eat when you're a vegan. The truth is that you can incorporate an infinitesimal number of things into a salad -- they're far from being limiting. They're also not just about lettuce.

This time of year, the salad recipes appearing in food articles and magazines serve as yet another heads up that the long dreary winter is indeed far behind us (or far behind me anyway -- I don't even want to think about snow anymore). Some, like this simple Sesame Cucumber Salad featured in the Sun Sentinel yesterday (along with this Spicy Jicama Salad) make great sides. So does this Asian Slaw. On the other hand, others like this Southwestern Quinoa Salad w/ Roasted Vegetables, Black Beans and Pumpkin Seeds posted yesterday on The Examiner website, or this Southwest Pasta Salad make great hearty dishes.

A few of my own favourite salads to make include Joanne Stephaniak's variation on Tang Tsel (which is a gorgeous and tangy side dish and is always a pleaser at potlucks), this Marinated Lentil Salad and an Egyptian Orange and Olive Salad (I could eat this almost every single day -- it's that good). The salad I like throwing together the most---often after a walk through my garden to pick the ingredients fresh--is tabbouleh (or tabouli). I think that every second eclectic vegan cookbook has a variation on this. Here's mine, which is loosely adapted from Mollie Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook and which is incredibly tweakable:

Tabbouleh

What you need:
1 cup whole wheat bulgur
1-1/2 cups boiling water
1-1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3 cloves of garlic, crushed
1/2 cup chopped scallions (including green part)
1/2 tsp dried mint flakes
1/4 cup virgin olive oil
freshly-ground black pepper
2 medium plum tomatoes, diced
1 cup fresh parsley, chopped and packed tightly
1/2 cup chickpeas, cooked or canned

1 cucumber, chopped

Optional:

1 small zucchini, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped

What you do:
Combine the bulgur, boiling water, and salt in a bowl. Cover and let stand 20 minutes or until bulgur is chewy. Add lemon juice, garlic, oil, and mint, and mix thoroughly. Refrigerate 2-3 hours. Just before serving add the vegetables and mix gently. Adjust seasonings and serve. Makes lots!

It seems that I'm not the only one who gets excited about tabbouleh:

Corn, Soybeans and Monsanto, Oh My!

Ever really wonder what the heck it is that you're putting into your mouth when you're eating plant-based food? Whether it's food from the grocery store when we're at home, from restaurants and cafeterias when we're at work or school, from baskets in boardrooms, and bowls in front of the telly at friend's homes on movie nights, we're constantly munching on one thing or another. For vegans, the first and main concern is obviously whether the food in question contains animal products. Once that's been covered, though, the only questions that generally concern us are whether the substance in question tastes good, smells good and looks good. Occasionally, we'll wonder what potential it has to additionally pad our arses.

But what about how it was grown?

The USDA has documented the increase in planting of genetically modified (or transgenic / genetically engineered) crops in the US over the past several years. It's somewhat shocking just how large a percentage of the corn, soybeans (and cotton) grown today is actually derived from genetically modified seed. The Ethicurean featured a short article last year about the USDA data. More and more people are becoming aware that the use of genetically modified plants in the North American food supply has been widespread and status quo for many years now, but I wonder if many have any idea that it's reached this magnitude.

Looking at the USDA's charts really drills it home, and makes me even more resolved to continue integrating more and more organic foods into my own diet where it counts. and to educate myself about what's happening. The Organic Consumers Association's website is a fabulous resource for anyone interested in learning the benefits (health, environmental, et al.) of consuming organic products, as well as the potential and proven dangers of perpetuating and consuming genetically modified organisms. The OCA's site also features all the latest news on the biotech industry.

As well, Jeffrey Smith, founder of The Institute for Responsible Technology and author of the bestselling book on GM foods Seeds of Deception has put together a DVD/CD set called The GMO Trilogy that's selling for less than $20 and that he's encouraging people to buy to show at house screenings -- the goal being to expose as many people as possible to the truth behind the biotech industry and how it's endangering the food supply and the very soil from which these genetically modified crops are grown. You can also view and/or listen to them here on Google Video.

Reading all of this also makes me eager to kickstart (albeit somewhat late) my backyard garden again this summer, after. But delving into that's probably left to another post...

Dan Piraro is Bizarro

Vegan cartoonist Dan Piraro in action on a Montreal stage!

Paying Attention to Detail

I was nosing around earlier this morning and came across a marketing website with a blurb on Quorn, and how its makers have apparently redesigned its packaging to appeal to more "mainstream" consumers while "retaining its core vegetarian and vegan customers".

I don't know which vegan customers the company is supposedly retaining, since Quorn's not vegan. According to the company's website, all of its products contain eggs, and most of its products contain milk ingredients.

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This next ramble's much more significant in terms of the need to pay attention to detail. A poster on the wonderful Vegan Freak Forums gave everyone a heads up today about the need to be careful when purchasing Red Star Nutritional Yeast from bulk bins. This person noticed a taste difference after buying some, which prompted her to check the fine print on the bulk bin's label and to discover that it was listed as an "NBC600" formula (now called LYNSIDE® FORTE Bmore). The Red Star Nutritional Yeast ordinarily used by vegans for its B12 content is the Vegetarian Support Formula™ (which used to be called T6635+).

When she contacted the company for clarification, she was told that the NBC600 / LYNSIDE® FORTE Bmore formula is only fortified with B1, B2, B3 and B6. So if you're relying on Red Star Nutritional Yeast as a B12 supplement and buying it from a store that keeps it in bulk, make sure that it's the correct formula. For more information on the vitamin content of the nutritional yeasts the company sells, visit this page on its website.

If It Comes From a Cow, It Ain't Vegan

I got a little excited over my lunch break after finding a Dallas Observer writer's blog post announcing a vegan 'cheese' taste-testing. Alexa Schirtzinger wrote yesterday that she gathered some coworkers and had them sample different purportedly vegan cheeses to see which one(s) came out ahead. They tried out:

• Rice Vegan in Pepper Jack, Cheddar and American Flavors (Galaxy Nutritional Foods)
• "The Original" Almond® in Cheddar Style (Lisanatti)
• Soya Kaas in American Cheddar

So, in her first comments about the results, Schirtzinger ends up writing of Lisanatti's almond cheese that "it tastes just fine--although it contains both casein (milk protein) and lactic acid, so I kind of think it should have been a better product". (Better?) Then in her final paragraph, she ends up writing that one of the Rice Vegan cheeses "won" the taste testing, since "Soya Kaas contains casein and lactic acid".

So in which Twilight Zone episode was this a vegan cheese taste-testing?

The Fiddleheads Are Comin'!

The Bangor Daily News has a neat little story today about vegan blogger-turned-food-writer Mary Lake. Her blog, Mitten Machen, is mostly focused on vegan living in Maine. Her recent post on her favourite nearby farmers' market resuming its summer schedule featured a yummy sounding simple recipe for Fiddlehead Pasta w/ Lemon & White Wine, which leaves me excited about the arrival of fiddlehead season in my neighbouring province. This spring's flooding left water levels higher than usual, which means that many of the fiddleheads are still underwater right now. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that relatives who forage for them every year will share their bounty with me, once again.

The VeganYumYum blog has a great information piece on them, for those who've never heard of them and who are curious. Most people living in the very northeastern United States and the Maritime provinces should find them in stores soon, if they aren't already.

Vegan Nominess Tidbit

The National Post's food and drink section "The Appetizer" featured a simple plant-based recipe for a scrumptious-looking Vegetable Veggie Burger today. I should never scan the interwebs for veganism-related news stories right before lunch -- I always get so easily sidetracked by descriptions of food.

The Atlantic's Foodie Max Fisher's Misguided Rant at Veganism

In an opinion piece entitled "The Fervour of the Vegan" a few days ago, The Atlantic's Food Channel producer, Max Fisher, ends up ranting at what he describes as a sort of ascetic righteousness he sees vegans as possessing. Fisher pretty much inadvertently lifts his shirt up to readers to display all of the welts borne of his own obvious self-flagellation, though, when he writes

I know all too well about the cruelties of egg and dairy factory farms, cruelties to which, as I pat myself on the back for not eating meat, I continue to contribute every day.

Facing this basic contradiction of vegetarianism made me recognize a weight I'd been carrying ever since I gave up meat: I resent vegans. I resent that their mere, if rare, existence calls attention to the hypocrisy underlying the vegetarianism so central to my daily life.

This very quote pretty much says it all. Fisher is acknowledging that he is a hypocrite, but has neither the balls nor the sense of accountability that would entail his having to address this hypocrisy by changing his own life. Instead, he shirks off his self-loathing by directing hostility at vegans for holding the mirror in front of him so that he can see himself.

That makes about as much sense as a serial rapist continuing to rape occasionally, while ranting about the existence of self-help groups consisting of reformed rapists for making him feel guilty for continuing to rape.

He continues, in an accusatory tone, stating "vegans are a blow to any confidence I feel in my chosen lifestyle" and asks what should, in fact, be a rhetorical question: "If I really cared about animal welfare, wouldn't I be vegan?"

Indeed, Max Fisher. Indeed.