My struggles with veganism.

hey everyone I hope you're all doing really really well I am currently in Italy because I've been on a book tour because there was an Italian translation of my first book this is vegan propaganda that was recently published here and so the Torah has been amazing it's just finished but it's been really really wonderful and I've met so many incredible people so thank you to everyone who came to one of the events in the cities where I've been uh it's just been just such a wonderful thing and I've met so many amazing people so kind so generous but I've also had lots of conversations with people people throughout this book tour and have spoken to a lot of people who have Tau me very moving um and profound and inspiring stories and these stories and the questions I've been asked they really got me thinking and they got me thinking about the vegan experience and what it's like to be a vegan and what it's like to exist as a vegan in a non-vegan world and some of the challenges and trials and hardships that we face and I suppose it's kind of funny really because when people aren't vegan or maybe when they they're hearing about a vegan or their son or daughter or friend has gone vegan they have this idea that the difficulties around veganism will center around things like getting enough vitamin B12 or or getting enough protein or finding vegan food in a supermarket or a restaurant and that's really not the case that's not the hardship that we that we find most overwhelming far far from it of course it's easy to get the nutrition we need and there's so many great products everywhere now and it's easy to find fruits and vegetables and whole grains and legumes everywhere you go so those aren't the difficulties that we face I I saw this video quite recently I shared it on my Instagram and uh it's of this GB news presenter in the UK GB news is like a news organization in the UK um and it's of this Member of Parliament this elected official called Lee Anderson and uh it's this really unusual video it's um equal parts hilarious and frightening at the same time and basically he discusses how his son went to University he comes back from University a changed person you know he he he doesn't quite look the same he's acting slightly differently and he uh his son tells him that he's gone vegetarian and I thought that's so funny um frightening because this man is so so outdated in his views but so funny because we view these shifts as being like so life altering and of course they are but what I think is interesting about that video and I suppose maybe what I want to talk about today is that relationship between sort of parents and and children when we make the change obviously to this father his son just going vegetarian is this uh this huge ordeal and this this big thing that he's actually kind of concerned about and so going from kind of that relationship I suppose it's got me thinking a little bit about the relationship with with my parents and probably what they thought a vegan was you know 9 years ago or so when I when I first told them that I'd gone vegan and I think back then the idea of a vegan was someone who you know struggled to find food and and actually probably uh struggle to find good kind of toiletries healthc care products and deodorant and actually just on the point of vegan deodorant before we dive into the more complex conversation here around these relationships and how they change and evolve and and how the difficulties around a plant-based lifestyle and veganism are not really necessarily what people who aren't vegan presume they will be I just want to talk a little bit more about vegan deodorant because for those of you who have seen previous videos of mine then you may well already know that I'm a huge fan of wild deodorant and also wild body washers and I'm very happy to say that wild have ped up with me for this video now the reason that I love wild is because wild products are vegan cruelty-free and they also use compostable bamboo refills which means that using wild products is actually a really easy way to reduce single-use plastic as well now I've actually been using wild products for years now and I really really like them I use them every single day and importantly wild deodorant actually works the scents smell great and it lasts all day too and as well as being effective good for animals and better for the planet wild uses safe ingredients that are gentle on our skin and speaking of the scents well wild have three new energizing scents which are perfect for that transition into warmer weather and those scents are rainforest Oasis which I think is just wonderful pink grapefruit and lime and elderflower and watermelon Spritz excitingly wild are also offering 20% off all of their products when you guys use the code Ed April you can also click the link in my description or scan the QR code now too and you'll also get that 20% off and wild also offer worldwide shipping which means that you can use this code wherever you are so a huge thank you to Wild for partnering with me on this video and also a huge thank you for creating vegan deodorant that smells great and actually works so we've established that you can get vegan toiletries and smell great is a vegan that you can eat delicious food as a vegan and you can get the nutrition that you need as a vegan as well and so if we take all of these boxes even though these are really the things that most non-vegans think that vegans are actually going to struggle with the most the question then becomes what do we struggle with the most what is the hardest challenge or challenges that we face as vegans now as I just mentioned at the beginning of this video I've been on this book tour and I've had the opportunity and the privilege to be able to speak to lots and lots of vegans and one of the things that I find most interesting and potentially also most upsetting is whether I'm in the UK the US Italy wherever it might be when I speak to vegans it's the same kind of concerns or challenges or questions that are presented to me and it's never how do I get enough B12 it's it's never that question it's never how do I get enough plant protein it it's never that question the question and I suppose the challenges that are communicated to me the most at these events are ones around friends family relationships how do we navigate the complexity of being vegan in a non-vegan world how do we navigate the the hardship that can be placed on us when we have made a a decision to try and reduce violence and exploitation through our lifestyle choices and this decision isn't because of a personal thing this isn't because you know for us as individuals we think it would be good if animals weren't been harmed no no the decision we made isn't based on like a personal preference it's based on ethics and morals and and values it it's not about us it's about the lives of others trillions of others and so when we are around people who are not living in the way that we are it's not that we're upset that people aren't doing what we're doing it's not that we're upset that people aren't respecting us necessarily it's the wider consequence of what their actions are perpetuating that's that's what's hard that's what's challenging that's what's upsetting of course it hurts us and it hurts our emotions and it hurts our feelings or affects our emotions and feelings but the reason that we're upset about having non-vegan friends and family is because these are our loved ones these are the people we care about whose um actions are are most important to us and by them not being vegan they are contributing to assist system that is so violent so cruel so exploitative is is inherently an immoral industry because of the things that happen within it every single day and then as vegans what we have to do is we have to navigate this very complex tight robe of having loved ones people we care about people we love who are also engaging in things which are absolutely unspeakably bad so terrible so violent so cruel not just to animals but you know destroying our planet um creating antibiotic resistant bacteria um creating bird flu and Swine Flu viruses that could cause the next pandemic and bird flu is in the news all the time at the moment and on top of that we worry about their long-term Health maybe we have a parent a father or mother who has heart problems who has diabetes who has issues related to chronic disease and we know that the consumption of animal products May well be a contributing factor or the reason why we have to kind of juggle with all of this complexity all of these these problems and then also accept the flaws and people accept that these aren't bad people our parents aren't bad our friends aren't bad the people around us aren't necessarily bad just because they engage Within These Industries because it's not necessarily their fault so then as vegans we have to go right how do I navigate this this challenge how do I reconcile the fact that the people I love the most are doing the thing that I'm opposing every day through my choices through my advocacy through the conversations I'm having through the work that I'm doing through my everyday interactions how do we go home and celebrate Christmas or birthdays or anniversaries or weddings how do we how do we think about these cele ations and think about them positively when we're at them watching people eat and gorge on the Flesh and secretions of tortured mutilated exploited animals and sentient beings how do we do that and it is hard because on the one hand we feel guilty we say to ourselves hey if I don't speak up if I don't say something if I don't make this problem a problem that these people are aware of then I'm betraying the animals I'm betraying the victims so silence feels like a betrayal it feels like we are a traitor that we are not doing what we're supposed to be doing because look we're not the victims Silence Is Easy for us but they're the ones the animals are still suffering the violence is still being inflicted upon them so we feel like a betrayal of of of the values a betrayal of the victims if we don't say something but then saying something causes problems it causes an argument maybe it causes friction it causes tension it can create separations and barriers in these relationships and we don't want that we don't want our parents to to think of us negatively because when they see us we talk about veganism we don't want our husbands wives Partners children to be worried about being around us because they think we're going to talk about this issue and cause a problem so then we have to think about how to communicate effectively it becomes a mindfield doesn't it and that's the hardship in veganism that's the thing that we don't necessarily consider when we become vegan it's the one thing that I'd not really thought about it's the one thing that I'd not read about that no one had spoken to me about it's the one thing about going vegan that I'd not necessarily considered because I made the change became confident in that change I was obviously aware that the people around me weren't necessarily going to agree with me or change just because I changed but then thinking about it and reflecting on it and the more passionate I became and the more involved I became in this issue the more those thoughts crept over me the more I had to to challenge myself to find some sense of Tranquility if possible in this very complex situation that we find ourselves in now one of the questions that was that was asked to me during one of the book signings it was in bolognia this this very sweet lady came up to me and um she said to me when you see videos of animals do you cry and it really upset me that she asked that question I said yes you know sometimes I do but what upset me about that was that it felt like she was asking for validation in a way she was looking for me to to kind of tell her that crying and being upset was okay that it wasn't an overreaction that it wasn't abnormal that actually this was a perfectly valid response to the things that we do and it really upset me because it it made me think about how in society what we do to animals is so normal is perpetuated is is legalized and being vegan is something that's mocked laughed at frowned upon whatever the word may be and and it's become so ingrained the the use and exploitation of animals that sometimes as vegans we we have to question ourselves for feeling sad and crying about this the fact that this this lovely lady would come up to me and would ask me if I cried I think firstly to to gauge whether or not not you know the sadness that caused me but also to find a sense of camaraderie of community of validation in my response really upset me because how have we got to a point where something so objectively terrible and so objectively upsetting is something that we would doubt ourselves over or you know doubt our emotional responses over when we cry over it or get upset over it I find that really disturbing because crying and being upset and being distraught by what we do to animals should be the most normal response there is it should be just the most obvious response there is we see what's happening to animals and we get upset about it now that upset might manifest into crying or frustration or anger or maybe just moments of solitude and silence and and quiet that we take you know as an individual on our own just to to think through these issues and deal with them internally whatever way we process these emotions these emotions are the most valid emotions that we should feel should experience when we consider what we do to animals and we see what we do to animals and it never fails to touch me when people come up to me and and express this to me as if as if as if we as a community are still trying to figure out if if we are normal for feeling this way because the world around us tells us that we're not the world is almost gaslighting us into convincing you know trying to convince us that how we feel is abnormal but how could it be how could how could it how could it be abnormal to see Injustice and be angry and frustrated and sad and distraught about that how could that be abnormal that should be the normal State the problem is this Injustice is so normal is so ingra is so ubiquitous that we start to question ourselves now I I I love meeting vegans and and having these these these vegan events because it reinforces the power of community because I think another issue that we Face often is is this isolation we go and we see friends and family we go for a meal we have an event we we just talk to them we're just around them and we can feel alone I know I'm the only vegan in my family we might think and I go home for Christmas or a birthday and I'm the only vegan there and I feel awkward and I feel like I'm causing a problem I feel like an inconvenience or I I go out to my friends or I go with my friends and we have to find a restaurant with a vegan option or a good vegan option and I just feel like I'm causing problems and it's creating tension and animosity and then we go oh I'm the problem I'm the problem I'm doing this I'm doing that and then we internalize that and we shift the blame onto ourselves and we shoulder this this huge level of responsibility and what we sometimes lose sight of is that we're not the problem it's not us we're not the issue here being awkward isn't the problem what we do to animals is the problem the negligence the violence the the willful ignorance that's the problem and then you know something we do have to to face as well is is is that challenge of going look these people around us our friends family The Strangers are not necessarily the problem either the problem is the is these industries the problem is the marketing the advertisement the propaganda that is perpetuated day in day out that sells us a lie a lie that has been sold to us consistently every single day that has been forced down our throats and knives been forced across the throats of animals perpetuating this lie over and over and over again telling us that the consumption of animals is healthy sustainable and most nefariously of all ethical Humane compassionate justifiable morally when it is not so we are especially not the problem but then what becomes hard often is to not view those around us as being the problem as well but to go back to the point I was making in these moments where we feel alone where we feel isolated where feel like we are just an individual it's so important to recognize that that's not the case even if we don't have vegan friends let's say that we don't have a vegan bubble that we can fall back on maybe we do feel very alone in our veganism it's so important to impower ourselves and to recognize that that's not the case it may be in that moment but what we represent transcends that moment it's far greater than just that that experience right there in front of us because what we represent is an evergrowing movement of millions of people who are also beginning to shift if they have not already their view towards animals and they're also beginning through their choices and through their advocacy and communication to inspire others to do the same now change especially societal change feels slow it feels like we're we're slogging it through thick viscous muds we're trying to get through it and we just can't feel like we're getting anywhere we're just being dragged under this this thick sludge that's what progress can feel like but actually I don't I don't think that's reflective of how things are changing and do change because progress can feel slow at the time it's one foot in front of the other and it feels like it's taking us forever to get anywhere but when we look back we can see that a huge amount of distance has been travailed we have actually walked a long way think about what things were like 10 years ago 20 years ago 30 years ago Things Are far better now things aren't perfect we Face challenges we Face hardships we Face difficulties but things are better now and remember that 5 10 15 20 years is a short amount of time relatively speaking of course we want this issue to be resolved as quickly as possible but within the context of time itself change does happen quickly social change happens quickly and I think vegan change is happening quickly and will continue to happen quickly as technology as awareness as social adoption continues to progress as it currently is and so even in those moments where we feel isolated alone where we feel the the weight of this issue is is a weight that we are solely responsible for it's important to recognize that that's not the case and we are supported by millions of people are also making these changes around us and who have for decades been the the trend setters the Trailblazers in pushing in pioneering this movement that we are a part of and we should feel proud of ourselves and pride in our accomplishments and proud proud of our courage in those moments that are difficult I've been thinking a lot about this as maybe as you can as you can tell just because of these conversations and interactions that I've had and I feel very moved by the people I've met and I wanted to discuss some of this with you guys as well to give you an insight into some of the things I've been thinking and some of the things I've been discussing recently and so just to bring it back to my first book this is vegan propaganda at the end of that book uh I talk uh about family I talk about these these uh these pressures these these challenges uh talk about these interactions and the complexity of them in fact the whole last section of the first book Is All About sort of the social cultural and sort of psychological barriers that that push people away from veganism or that make uh vegan interactions tricky for us as well and um one of the things that I mention in the book is how you know faced with um a situation where I had to debate you know numerous Dairy Farmers or or have a conversation about veganism with with my mother you know I would uh I would choose debating Dairy Farmers and um you know it's not an exaggeration it's not a hyperbole to say that that's the case because you know sometimes it's easier is I find it easier to talk to a Dairy Farmer even though Dairy Farmers represent you know literally they are doing the very thing I'm I'm trying to stop but I find it easier in a way to to debate these people because there is that natural sort of distance from someone that you don't know there is this kind of I I find it an easier ability to to have these complex discussions to be more challenging to be more forthright with someone you don't know especially sort of the the physical manifestation of the problem you know the farmer themselves but with parents and with friends there's all this emotional I don't want to use the word baggage necessarily that sounds negative you know baggage may work as a word but I don't mean it necessarily just in a negative way there is just more emotion involved there's more tension involved there's more at stake really because you know we see these people more consistently we have these more intimate relationships with them obvious ly they know more about us we know more about them and so there is obviously going to be a little bit more um heightened emotion or more at stake in these conversations at least that's my personal experience not wanting to generalize but that's how I feel about it so I do talk a little bit about that in in my first book um and and discuss you know sort of friends and family in my second book as well um but yeah I'll bring this video to an end now because I've been rambling for a little while and what I would love is for you guys to tell me down in the comments what your experiences have been like you know positive and negative because I know there are are lots of negative experiences I've heard horror stories of of parents putting meat in in in a vegan's uh dinner I've heard of of friends been so awful and and just mocking and tormenting a vegan I I've heard all these these very negative stories and please do share them down below if you're looking for sort of um people to validate those experiences and because it's important to share these things within our community as well but I also want to hear positive experiences maybe you went vegan and you you spoke to your mother and she went vegan on the spot maybe you have a sibling and you went vegan together or a wife or a husband or a partner and you made this this transition together I would love to hear those positive inspiring stories as well because they are so important and they keep us grounded and show us that even though these conversations can be the most difficult actually with patience perseverance and sometimes with just a little bit of time even those who may seem most staunchly against veganism can soften and even become vegan themselves and those stories are ones that fill us with hope and optimism and um you know a sense of of determination for the future because here's an important thing to recognize I said before that this shift is is happening and it is but it's also important for us to recognize that this shift isn't going to happen overnight it's going to be many many years especially before we see you know the complete eradication of everything that we would like to see eradicated and look let's be honest it probably is not going to happen in the the way that we want within our lifetimes I think there will be huge changes in terms of the elimination of animal farming of animal testing of things like circuses and and Aquariums and such we will see huge positive strides within our lifetimes for these issues but I don't think we will eliminate the entire problem within our lifetimes and what that means is that we have to remain positive we have to remain determined probably for the rest of our lives what we don't want to do is become so pessimistic and hopeless that we find ourselves becoming apathetic or filled with despair we have to find that balance that that that sense of urgency to keep us going to keep us talking to keep us advocating for this movement but also a sense of positivity and optimism so that when we do get up we don't feel consumed by negativity and consumed by the hardships of this issue and we can find balance in our everyday lives and also balance I suppose through that long-termism that future thinking as well and that's something that I I try do as much as possible some days it's easier than others some days it feels like everything's going great and some days it feels quite the opposite doesn't it but balance is important and I think a sense of optimism for the future which we should all have because there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic for the future well I think that that mindset is a very important one for us to carry through every single day even in those moments where we may feel alone and where the hardships of veganism may feel most prevalent all right right guys thank you so much for listening I really do appreciate it um let me know if you liked this style of video informal a little bit more rambly a little bit more chatty but I'd love to know if you enjoyed it and if you did I'll be sure to make more of them in the future all right guys let me know Down Below in the comments what your experiences are uh thank you so much for watching this video and a huge thank you to Wild as well for partnering with me in this video all right speak to you all soon and thanks again for all of your support throughout the years I appreciate it so much [Music]

Channel: Earthling Ed

Views: 95,145

Keywords: earthlinged, earthling ed, vegan, veganism, why, be, go, earthlings full movie, activism, ted talk on veganism, why vegans fail, commentary, response, reaction, podcast, debate, vegan fail, vegan recipes, vegan meals, heated, angry, triggered, emotional, protest, funny, fail, reasons to not go vegan, why is veganism bad, I'm no longer vegan, meal planning, family, friends, effective communication, how to, public event, owned, destroyed, facts, logic, destroy, reasons to go vegan, why vegan, health, Wild

Id: _ZM3WCQuTe4

Length: 26min 13sec (1573 seconds)

Published: Tue Apr 30 2024