My thoughts about Vegetarianism
Sometimes it’s hard to remember why veganism, vegetarianism, and refusing to buy leather and fur is important. Having a blog about fashion, even vegan fashion, can seem so frivolous and shallow.
Sometimes I feel like vegetarianism is a choice I made so long ago that I don’t even know why I do it anymore. When I was younger I read a lot of books about animal rights and the descriptions of the conditions on factory farms, etc… made me very sure I was doing a good thing by not eating meat. I also had seen footage of factory farms, fur farms, lab animals, etc.
Once you see that stuff, you don’t relish seeing it again… Ironically, I think, I purposefully avoided learning anymore about animal rights.
Yet I realize, if you stop looking at the images, then there is the possibility you could forget why you are a vegetarian in the first place.
Today I watched this 45 minute documentary film called The Witness: A Tribe of Heart Documentary
which you can watch online for free here. It was about this unlikely animal rights activist, Eddie Lama, who has such a likable watchable inspiring personality, who is doing so many inspiring things to educate people about fur farms. I was so engrossed in the movie that when the graphic footage of the conditions at fur farms came on I was still watching.
Wow. Horrible and sad. Why does this go on? It really makes you feel that there is evil in the world. Seeing foxes that look just like my old dogs die by anal electrocution is something I will never forget.
The movie is so important, and the guy it profiles has such a soft heart that you know he is showing you this footage because it’s the truth and important. The movie 100% reaffirmed my views that not buying leather, never ever buying fur, and being a vegetarian and even vegan (which I am not right now) is the right thing to do.
I was so inspired by how this guy did whatever he could to spread the word. He owned a construction company and he posted images of what goes on in fur farms on his trucks. He also wired up a truck with tvs that showed footage of animals being trapped and killed on fur farms and drove it around new york, handing out pamphlets, to educate the public about what actually happens. He said something like “remember all fur is necessarily from tortured and abused animals”…
It made me realize that this blog is not totally frivolous, but in a small small way doing something good in the world. Vegan fashion is at it’s heart about trying to do something to make people aware of the horrible things that happen to animals all over the world, and how by refusing to buy any products made with fur or leather, you are taking a stand against these extremely cruel industries.
I found this documentary through a really great vegan blog, girlygirlarmy, written by someone who is truly passionate about veganism. It’s really good.
I’d love to hear from any commenters. What are your thoughts? Have you seen The Witness? How strongly do you feel about your veganism or vegetarianism? Do you ever wish you could do more to make people understand the cruelty of the leather and fur industries? I’d love to know.
[…] Lama, the subject of the documentary The Witness (I wrote about it here) was moved to become a vegetarian and educate people about the fur industry after adopting a stray […]