Being Vegan Is Not (Just) About Food
Throughout November, you’re likely to see a raft of new plant-based foods appear in supermarkets. Vegan chocolate, bacon, burgers, dairy products, and doughnuts – supermarkets are brimming with cruelty-free upgrades to almost every food you can imagine. Not eating animals is just one way to reduce your contribution to animal suffering, but there are many more besides.
As wonderful as it is to see more people reaching for vegan food, we can expand our compassion by refusing to wear items made from animals or support the ways animals are exploited for entertainment and abused in experiments.
Animals Aren’t Ours to Wear
The fashion industry is slowly moving away from using animals’ skin as fabric. Luxury labels like Vivienne Westwood and Burberry have stopped using the skins of snakes, crocodiles, and lizards, and the iconic Stella McCartney refuses to use leather made from animals. Still, there’s a long way to go before animals are no longer erroneously considered “ours to wear”. This World Vegan Month, consider who was killed for your clothes and accessories. As consumers change their buying habits, brands will change what they offer. The power is in our wallets!
Animals Aren’t Ours to Abuse for Entertainment
It’s heartening that more and more people are refusing to visit facilities that keep whales, dolphins, elephants, and other wild animals in tanks or behind bars. An increasing number of travel providers are ending ticket sales to attractions that exploit sentient beings in these ways. We’re seeing many progressive victories for animals every year – in 2024, Jet2holidays stopped promoting and selling tickets to marine parks like SeaWorld. But there’s still work to be done. Animal suffering in the entertainment industry continues, whether it be the death of horses at the Grand National or the violent slaughter of foxes during hunts. Throughout November, think about the activities you’re participating in – do they involve animals? If so, stay away from these practices, both at home and abroad. Animals are never willing participants in human entertainment.
Animals Aren’t Ours to Experiment On
Animals in laboratories are being killed by the millions for frivolous items like shampoo and lipstick. Although companies can’t sell animal-tested cosmetics in Europe, they can continue to test cosmetics on animals outside Europe and sell them in other markets. This means companies can still sell products within our borders that are cruelly tested on animals. Rats may have been force-fed your shampoo and pregnant rabbits may have been dosed with your face cream to see whether their newborns would be deformed. Because of this, the only way to be completely sure that you aren’t indirectly supporting animal testing is to purchase products only from companies that don’t test on animals anywhere in the world. Check out PETA US’ global Beauty Without Bunnies database here.
Compassion for All Animals
It’s time to challenge speciesism in all its forms and realise that animals aren’t ours. They are sentient individuals, each conscious of their own existence and seeking to enjoy their one precious life in freedom. The dog or cat who’s perhaps curled up beside you as you read this is no different from – or less deserving of respect than – the crocodile or cow languishing on a filthy factory farm whose throat will be slit for a leather jacket.
This World Vegan Month, pledge to have compassion for all animals:
