The term “vegaphobia” first appeared in 2011 as an umbrella-concept to combine various forms of “derogatory portrayal of vegans and veganism”, particularly those where “vegans are variously stereotyped as ascetics, faddists, sentimentalists, or in some cases, hostile extremists” (Cole-Morgan 2011, p. 134). Despite the clarity of the formulation, or perhaps because of it, the concept has not been discussed by many disciplines.
Through a mostly semiotically-informed interface, plus contributions from other disciplines, the present paper intends to a) discuss the necessity to address vegaphobia as most forms of phobias operating within our societies, and b) offer a systematizations of the various attitudes operating under this umbrella-concept.
Methodologically, the presentation is mostly a “qualitative” type of endeavor, yet some important data emerging from surveys about vegaphobia and veganism will be discussed.

Key-words: Semiotics, Ethics, Communication, Values, Animals, Veganism

For veganism to spread, its institutional acceptance and support are of key importance, as institutions can enable or hinder moving towards more ethical and sustainable human-animal relations and food systems. This presentation focuses on a major manifestation of institutional speciesism—animal-based catering—in early childcare education in Estonia. Drawing on qualitative interviews with vegan parents—mostly mothers—in Estonia, I examine what it means to practice vegan parenting in an institutional context hostile to veganism. I also analyse the possibilities for individual and collective resistance, by studying the strategies that vegan parents use in navigating institutional speciesism.

I suggest that vegan parents and their vegan child(ren) are rendered deviant in the Estonian daycare system, seen as violating the social norm of eating nonhuman animals. At the same time, the responsibility for managing and contesting institutional speciesism is individualised. My findings also highlight the gendered nature of vegan parenting, as the everyday physical, emotional and cognitive labour required to manage and contest institutional speciesism related to food provision, is culturally feminised and undervalued and falls overwhelmingly on women. I suggest that this work can be thought of as a form of (gendered) everyday activism.

Insights from my empirical data could be useful for the animal rights and vegan movements to develop strategies to contest institutional speciesism. In addition, the experiences of the interviewed vegans are useful for developing the concept of intensive motherhood as a contemporary social norm (Hays, 1996; Ennis, 2014).

Disinformation, Infighting, and Elite Capture within Social Movements. In this talk, attendees will learn how right wing extremists, venture capitalists, and corporate collaborators co-opt the language of social movements to isolate and neutralize the efforts of radical activists through coordinated campaigns of disinformation that drive infighting and incite internal division…and then learn what to do about it!

Ruby Ramsden

SESSION II: Deconstructing the Glocal Community || 12:00-12:30

Ruby Ramsden is a third-year doctoral student at the University of Melbourne, focusing on the vegan movement in Japan.

A word often used in discussion about veganism in Japan is okureteiru – “delayed”. Indeed, in Japan, veganism is not as accessible as in countries like the UK, Germany, or Australia. Animal products are harder to avoid, and there is not yet widespread understanding about the practicalities and underlying philosophies of veganism, especially outside Tokyo. Yet this is not to say that there is no vegan movement in Japan. Though comparatively small in scope, Japan is home to a growing vegan community, including several professional and grassroots advocacy groups striving to elevate veganism in the collective cultural consciousness. Though many of these initiatives are spearheaded by Japanese advocates, foreign nationals frequently participate and sometimes lead their own initiatives.

In this paper, I focus particularly on the dynamics between the global and the local in the Japanese vegan movement. On the one hand, international pressure is used to propel social and infrastructural change; for instance, growing numbers of veg*n tourists and immigrants are encouraging governments and corporations to better accommodate “food diversity” (Shugo 2020). At the same time, international pressure on Japan to “modernise” their animal ethics has been fraught with colonialism and racism (Brecher 2022; Kalland 1993). In the case of whaling, this has prompted an “us-versus-them” dichotomy between Japan and “the West” (Ranta and Ichijo 2022). Moreover, veganism’s “foreign” image can alienate Japanese vegans, who find that their ethics are often perceived as socially taboo and against “common sense” (Sumida 2011). Nonetheless, vegans in Japan conceptualise themselves as connected to a universal movement, though they are necessarily sensitive to sociocultural context. In this way, Japan’s vegan movement straddles the global and the local, challenging dominant narratives of hegemonic “Japaneseness” (Sugimoto 1999).

References

Brecher, W. Puck. 2022. Animal Care in Japanese Tradition: A Short History. Columbia: Columbia University Press.

Kalland, Arne. 1993. “Whale Politics and Green Legitimacy: A Critique of the Anti- Whaling Campaign.” Anthropology Today 9 (6): 3-7. https://doi.org/10.2307/2783216.

Ranta, Ronald, and Atsuko Ichijo. 2022. “Chapter Seven: Norms, Ethics, Food and Nationalism.” In Food, National Identity and Nationalism, 177-205. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Shugo, Akihiro. 2020. “Ippo kara hajimaru fūdo daibāshiti.” [First step to food diversity]. Journal of Cookery Science of Japan 53 (4): 285-291. https://doi.org/10.11402/cookeryscience.53.285.

Sugimoto, Yoshio. 1999. “Making Sense of Nihonjinron.” Thesis Eleven 57 (1): 81-96. https://doi.org/10.1177/0725513699057000007.

Sumida, Naoko. 2011. “Bejitarian wo Torimaku Nihonteki Jōkyō: Shokuiku Shisō to Kinshinsha kara no Kanshō.” [The Situation Around Vegetarians in Japan: Food Education Ideology and Interference from Loved Ones]. The Bukkyo University Graduate School review, compiled by the Graduate School of Social Welfare 39: 19-36. https://archives.bukkyo-u.ac.jp/repository/baker/rid_DS003900002991.

A word often used in discussion about veganism in Japan is okureteiru – “delayed”. Indeed, in Japan, veganism is not as accessible as in countries like the UK, Germany, or Australia. Animal products are harder to avoid, and there is not yet widespread understanding about the practicalities and underlying philosophies of veganism, especially outside Tokyo. Yet this is not to say that there is no vegan movement in Japan. Though comparatively small in scope, Japan is home to a growing vegan community, including several professional and grassroots advocacy groups striving to elevate veganism in the collective cultural consciousness. Though many of these initiatives are spearheaded by Japanese advocates, foreign nationals frequently participate and sometimes lead their own initiatives.

In this paper, I focus particularly on the dynamics between the global and the local in the Japanese vegan movement. On the one hand, international pressure is used to propel social and infrastructural change; for instance, growing numbers of veg*n tourists and immigrants are encouraging governments and corporations to better accommodate “food diversity” (Shugo 2020). At the same time, international pressure on Japan to “modernise” their animal ethics has been fraught with colonialism and racism (Brecher 2022; Kalland 1993). In the case of whaling, this has prompted an “us-versus-them” dichotomy between Japan and “the West” (Ranta and Ichijo 2022). Moreover, veganism’s “foreign” image can alienate Japanese vegans, who find that their ethics are often perceived as socially taboo and against “common sense” (Sumida 2011). Nonetheless, vegans in Japan conceptualise themselves as connected to a universal movement, though they are necessarily sensitive to sociocultural context. In this way, Japan’s vegan movement straddles the global and the local, challenging dominant narratives of hegemonic “Japaneseness” (Sugimoto 1999).

References

Brecher, W. Puck. 2022. Animal Care in Japanese Tradition: A Short History. Columbia: Columbia University Press.

Kalland, Arne. 1993. “Whale Politics and Green Legitimacy: A Critique of the Anti- Whaling Campaign.” Anthropology Today 9 (6): 3-7. https://doi.org/10.2307/2783216.

Ranta, Ronald, and Atsuko Ichijo. 2022. “Chapter Seven: Norms, Ethics, Food and Nationalism.” In Food, National Identity and Nationalism, 177-205. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Shugo, Akihiro. 2020. “Ippo kara hajimaru fūdo daibāshiti.” [First step to food diversity]. Journal of Cookery Science of Japan 53 (4): 285-291. https://doi.org/10.11402/cookeryscience.53.285.

Sugimoto, Yoshio. 1999. “Making Sense of Nihonjinron.” Thesis Eleven 57 (1): 81-96. https://doi.org/10.1177/0725513699057000007.

Sumida, Naoko. 2011. “Bejitarian wo Torimaku Nihonteki Jōkyō: Shokuiku Shisō to Kinshinsha kara no Kanshō.” [The Situation Around Vegetarians in Japan: Food Education Ideology and Interference from Loved Ones]. The Bukkyo University Graduate School review, compiled by the Graduate School of Social Welfare 39: 19-36. https://archives.bukkyo-u.ac.jp/repository/baker/rid_DS003900002991.

The African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem are a transnational community of approximately 3,500 people living in Israel, Africa, and the United States. Their central location is called “The Village of Peace” where around 350 people live in the Negev desert of Israel.

In 1967, 300 members fled Chicago, fleeing racism, violence and discrimination to pursue their ancestral ties to Israel. After a two-year stay in Liberia, in 1969 they settled in the Negev desert, founding the Village of Peace. The community does not define itself as a Jewish religious village, as it follows a reinterpretation of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Scriptures, considering it rather a spirituality. For this reason, decades of conflict with the Israeli government persist, leading to ongoing residency challenges and legal uncertainty for many community members.

Since their arrival in Israel, the community transitioned to a 100% vegan lifestyle, emphasizing organic eating and cruelty-free products. Rooted in Genesis, their vegan choices aim to echo Edenic life, aligning with their interpretation of God’s will. The community adhere to a whole food plant-based regimen, selecting the term “live-it” in place of “diet”. The term “diet”, encapsulating the term “die”, serves as a reflection on the deleterious impact of the American food system, leading to the deterioration of the body. In deliberate contrast, the village embrace the term “live-it” for their vegan organic nutrition, signifying not only its healthful attributes but also its contribution to longevity. Moreover, the term emphasizes their conscientious avoidance of animal-based foods or derivatives linked to death and exploitation.

Within the confines of the Village of Peace resides a robust plant-based ecosystem comprising a restaurant, artisanal ice cream shop, smoothie kiosk, fresh fruit juice stand, supermarket, Saturday home-restaurant, herbalist store, tofu and seitan kiosk, handmade clothing atelier, and plant-based factory. Weekly dietary routines incorporate raw food days, two margarine-free days, three salt-free days, and a Shabbat fasting day. Annually, the community observes four weeks of raw foods synchronized with seasonal changes, along with four weeks abstaining from sugar.

Sue Donaldson and Will Kymlicka wrote a remarkable book of political philosophy called “Zoopolis: A Political Theory of Animal Rights.” In their work, they argue for a future where other animals are not only protected, but enabled to shape society as well. A future where nonhuman animals are recognized as political actors instead of moral patients for which humans decide. We’ll explore some of these exciting ideas, along with some of the critiques the book has raised.

Can we think and act beyond speciesism? Maybe, but to do so, we must first look back at what brought us here. This animated essay tells us about a story: the story of the Human who saw himself as different from all other animals, separate from all nature. Inspired by posthumanist, feminist, queer, antiracist, and antiableist theory, this video essay tries to conceive of multiple visions for the future of antispeciesism.

Ronnie Lee will talk about the current situation in the UK, which may well be mirrored elsewhere in the word, where there has been a considerable decline in the number of people prepared to become actively involved, in various ways, in the struggle for animal liberation.

He will share his ideas on why this situation has come about and on how we can still campaign effectively when the number of activists is so few.

All harms done to animals by people are done by humans in social and environmental circumstances that have shaped their thoughts, emotions, and behavior. All animal advocates also are humans in circumstances that have shaped their thoughts, feelings, and actions. Unless they have worked very hard to unlearn speciesist assumptions, animal advocates are just as likely as other people to unthinkingly perpetuate human supremacy. Hubris, heroism, narrow focus, lack of respect for diversity, and other features of human supremacy have hampered animal advocacy and inadvertently harmed the very animals who vegans hope to help. But, it is possible to become different! Animals themselves — who should be recognized as the only true leaders of the animal liberation movement — can show us the way. Drawing on 20+ years of sanctuary work and animal advocacy, a cofounder of VINE Sanctuary will share lessons learned from animals along with practical tips for countering internalized human supremacy, thinking ecologically, and improving one’s own relationships within the larger-than-human world.