Eating as
Though the Earth Matters column
ARE WE TRUMPED OR ARE WE MORE
POWERFUL THAN EVER?
As Trump prepares to take on the presidency, people all over the country are
realizing—now, more than ever before—It really is up to us!
How many times must we see our legislative
victories for the earth and for justice lose traction under the shenanigans of
politicians?
Now it is possible that
coal, oil, Keystone XL, and a nightmare of ecological terrors could escalate.
Nil Zacharias writes in the online “One Green Planet,” an article he titled, “Here’s
how you can shape our environmental future with Trump as president.”
Zacharias writes that “With Donald Trump as President, huge
questions loom about the future of the fight to preserve our natural ecosystems…” He notes that the EPA could possibly be
abolished or at least lose significant funds; that there could be increased
subsidies for animal agriculture; and many policies to push for more coal and
oil instead of alternative energy. We all agree with him when he says “The
fight is not over,” but what does that fight look like now. Of course, we cannot ignore what tricks the
new administration will be playing. But,
more than ever, we must turn toward each other and “be the change” as Gandhi
famously advised. And not just “be the
change” but also help others to be that as well. As Zacharias writes, “if we care about our
environment and the future of humanity, we have to start practicing change in
our daily lives.”
Captain Paul Watson, vegan activist and Founder of the Sea
Shepherd Conservation Society, in his November 15 “Huffington Post” article,
“Why fighting Donald trump is a waste of time,” acknowledges the threats posed
by a Trump administration. But he also points out that it is up to us. The keys to our survival include, “Individual
passion. Individual imagination. Individual initiative. Individual courage.”
“Depending on a politician to solve any of these problems is like depending on
an oil executive to promote solar energy. It is simply not in their interest or
as Bill Clinton once put it, ‘It’s the economy stupid.’” Trump, he points out, is no better or worse
than “the
rest of these so-called leaders whose agenda is to serve the corporations and
to enrich themselves.”
Love,
Numbers, and Consumption
Time is short. We have to use our
activist time wisely. There is so much
we can do individually as people who care about our earth. It is time to create the world we want and
heal the human caused damage, whether or not politicians and corporations
cooperate. Our power as people is
enormously greater than that of governments.
That power lies in three primary areas: Love, Numbers, and
Consumption.
Love--for the
earth, for the wilderness, for the trees and animals, for each other and for the
children of the future--that is what motivates us to keep going as we continue
to stand in solidarity. The lust for power that is causing so much destruction
is intimidating, but we must always remember that lust is fueled by fear. It can never match the strength of people
emboldened by compassion, love, empathy, and care for all the living.
Numbers?—well, there are a lot of us, and with this election, there
is evidence that our numbers just grew exponentially. More than ever, the realization is dawning
that we cannot depend on the government to take good care of us if we just
elect the right people. What may well be
the silver lining in all this is that people are becoming ready to take care of
each other and of the earth with or without the will and action of the power
elite. Human rights, peace and justice,
environmental, and animal rights groups may have many different missions and
work to do, but it is clear that we all have one common mission. Often referred to as intersectionality, we
are now seeing that all justice work, whether for the earth, animals, or
people, is focused on ending oppression and violence. Most efforts on the part
of one cause to end oppression can benefit the other causes. The exception to that premise occurs when
activists act compassionately toward one group while unconsciously causing
oppression to another. As Carla Golden states in her “activist’s lunchbox” article,
“As long as those who
gain the most from the current system can keep you oppressing other beings then
you excuse and permit their oppression of you.”
It is a time in our
history when we activists must join together in our common goal to end
oppression and build a world in which all people, animals, and the earth are protected
from human greed. As Golden points out,
“If education, awareness, non-violent speech, and non-violent action are part
of your social justice activist toolbox, then vegan needs to describe your
activist lunchbox. Without non-violent sustenance, you are fueling your
activism with the oppression against which you campaign. Eat peace and campaign
for peace. Awaken the vegan within. Every social justice activist’s lunchbox
must contain non-violence…Intersectionality calls for veganism to protect all
beings, non-humans and humans, and secure justice, freedom, and compassion for
all.”
Consumption—this is mind-boggling in its potential to create the world
we envision. We all know Americans’ consumption levels are off the charts compared to
the rest of the world. Not only do we
need to consume less, but also consume consciously and mindfully. When we shop at thrift stores, second hand
stores, garage sales, Craigslist, and fair trade and ethical companies, we peacefully
and nonviolently protest against big corporations and their child and adult
slavery, unsafe working conditions, waste, pollution, mining for resources, and
a long list of environmental, social justice, and animal atrocities caused by
their reckless pursuit of profit without ethics. But more than that, with enough of us
participating, we peacefully and radically reduce their profits and force them
to either close or get ethical!
But our greatest influence as consumers
lies in what we eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Nowhere else do we have such power to
eliminate oppression of people, animals, and the earth as we do with our food
purchases. The government-subsidized
animal agriculture industry causes animal suffering and death to billions of
animals; causes misery among slaughterhouse and other workers; uses most of our
fresh water and land; destroys rainforests and indigenous peoples’ homes; grows
enough grain for animals that could be used to end world hunger; pollutes our
air, waterways and seas; degrades the land; denudes forests; and destroys wildlife
and their habitats. That covers many of
the justice movements directly. And the good news is that it is this one
industry upon which we can have the most profound impact. We can transform that industry by ourselves,
without legislation, without appealing to those in power. Most of us would have a hard time eliminating
all petroleum products from our purchases right now, but overnight we can tell
BigAg that we will not buy their products because they wreak havoc on the
planet and all who live upon it.
There are signs that this globally
destructive industry is already paying attention to our ethics in action since
the number of people going plant-based is rising dramatically. An October 10
article in the New York Times by Stephanie Strom is entitled “Tyson foods, A Meat Leader, Invests in ProteinAlternatives.” The largest meat processor in the country, Tyson Foods, has
actually invested in the plant-based “meat alternative” company, Beyond
Meat. This new company is one of several
that aims to do their part to heal the earth and create social justice by
giving people an alternative to the destructive practice of eating animal
products. One of Beyond’s products is the Beyond Burger that some Whole Foods
Markets are selling next to their meat cases. The article quotes Tyson senior
Vice President of New Ventures, Monica McGurk. ‘The quality of the Beyond
Burger is amazing…We think it’s a game-changing product that gives us exposure
to this fast-growing part of the food business.’
This is happening, not because of legislation which
continues to subsidize animal agriculture or lobbyists getting soft hearted
about the environment, but because of our power to choose what we buy. Americans are simply eating more plant-based,
vegan meals, and Big Ag is noticing. If
they have to switch to plant-based products to continue their profitability,
then that is exactly what they will do and are beginning to do. According to the Plant Based Foods
Association, these new companies which include Beyond Meat, Heidi Ho, Califia
Farms, and others showed $4.9 billion in sales from June of 2015 to June of
2016, outpacing in growth regular food businesses. General Mills has moved quickly on the basis
of such news and has invested in Beyond Meat and another plant-based company
Kite Hill.
Michele Simon, who is the executive director of the Plant
Based Foods Association, said ‘The question in my mind with these acquisitions is
always why they’re being done…The most positive view is that this means the
meat industry is shifting away from animal meat to plant-based meat, but I
don’t think we know that’s the case yet — it could also be a way of distracting
attention from their industrial meat business.’
Also, if enough meat industry investors got too much control of the
companies, they could destroy them. At this point, there is no doubt these
animal agriculture companies have no plans to give up what has made them so
rich and powerful. And that puts the responsibility back onto each one of
us. If we buy plant-based and never
again buy animal-based, then they will have no choice but to transform into the
non-violent, non-destroyer of the earth that we know they must. According to Strom’s article, one survey
found that 22 percent of consumers said they were eating more plant-based meat
substitutes than they did the previous year.
By “being the change,” by living without oppression, by
acknowledging our power and our ethics, we can re-wild the earth; we can bring
the forests and prairies back; we can help wild animals on the brink of
extinction thrive once more; we can end world hunger. By eating plant-based meals we tell BigAg we
are through with them. By not supporting
them, we prevent them from continuing to pollute the air and waters of
earth. I’m not saying legislation,
demonstrations, and other forms of protest aren’t important. They are critical. But recognizing the simple
fact that we can make an enormous difference from this moment on by living
non-violently is more important than ever before. This is something we can each do as
individuals right now and from now on that will bring us exponentially closer
to the healed world we hold in our hearts. It’s up to us. The power elite is not going to do it for
us. And that’s ok, because we can do
this ourselves. I know we can. We have
the passion, imagination, initiative, and courage that Paul Watson says we
need. We have all those things. We can do this.
© 2016, Judy Carman, M.A., is
author of Peace to All Beings: Veggie
Soup for the Chicken’s Soul and co-author of The Missing Peace: The Hidden Power of our Kinship with Animal; 2014 winner of the Henry Spira Grassroots
Animal Activist award; and owner of a truck and a car powered by used veggie
oil and house and a Chevy Volt electric car powered by solar. Her primary
websites are circleofcompassion.org and peacetoallbeings.com.
