WHAT VEGANS WANT VEGANS TO KNOW

Daniel Thomas Williams - I love you all, and I am proud to be on this journey with you.

Katie Ann Rad - I want all vegans to know that I am so inspired by your commitment to the truth, and that every time I meet another vegan, I feel an instant connection with them, even if we have nothing else in common. What an amazing thing to be able to connect with strangers over such an important topic.

Rita Wing - that veganism is an ETHICAL position, not a health fad, or a diet, or a temporizing of exploitation!

Luis Tovar - Spread veganism.

William Paul - We must reject speciesism. That is the core part of our veganism. Let's abolish animal use together.

Valorie Collante - That a clear conscious is priceless!

Gregory Gaynor - There are only two types of people; Vegans and pre-vegans. Some vegans can be like Gandhi, peaceful and nonviolent. Some are like the freedom fighter who ended the Holocaust. We all have our place.

Amanda Benham - Every day, talk to people (politely) about veganism and take your B12. (Amanda is a nutritionist.)

Gary Lowenthal – That their outreach efforts have an impact.

John Braumann – The Vegan “lifestyle” is an advanced existence. It is much more than a diet. It is - The Vegan Evolution.

Quincy Kirsh – Not to pre-judge. I have the most unlikely people ‘get it’, people I never thought would care and others “enlightened, educated, environmentalist, animal (companion) lovers” that will not see the forest for the trees. Some people just need to be shown the truth to unleash their compassion, don’t pass them by.

Robert D. Shepherd – That we share the world with trillions of other sentient beings, that sentience is sufficient to confer moral standing, and that with moral standing comes the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness (of well-being and one’s own potential, according to one’s own natural inclinations).

Melissa Viau - "Every non-vegan is a potential vegan! Reach out to everyone! Don't give up!"

Susan Gallagher Cassidy-Ray – What I’d like to say to other vegans? First of all I wish I could meet, in person, each and every one of my Facebook friends! I’m inspired every day by the commitment and dedication each one has to all animals. Second, I think teaching without judgment is more effective than preaching with anger.

Will Schmidt – I have three messages I’d like to share with vegans:  Firstly, simply being vegan is a powerful form of activism and you are reaching out and planting seeds. Congratulations!  Secondly, it is so important to give yourself a break, and to prioritise your own health and well-being for many reasons – and not just because it improves the image of veganism for others. Positive change cannot come from a place of anger, sickness, or burn-out – plus, being cruel to yourself is positively unvegan, given that you are an animal too. Thirdly, DON’T give in to misanthropy or reverse-speciesism! Humans are the only solution we’ve got, and there is potential for good in everyone. Lack of compassion for human animals often precludes genuine compassion for nonhuman animals. As I’ve said a few times, there is no such thing as a misanthropic animal-lover!

Grace Lorraine - I want all vegans to know... there is MUCH gratitude for your veganism! Please don't give up. Find your voice; you have some gift or talent to contribute to help other people be vegans. It is vital you use it--you know veganism is important because you have been so kind, disciplined, honest, loving and brave to personally adopt it! So please love a little more and help others go vegan, also. And Thank-you.

Erica Smith – That we really can change the world…and we are with everything we do and don’t do, everything we do and don’t say. And that I feel obligated to keep educated and well versed on the information so that I can relay intelligent answers to common questions from inquiring non-vegan minds so that they may feel unafraid to try to make changes in their lives for their own good and for the good of the planet.

Ann Hawks – I want all vegans to know how much I love them, whether I now them or not. They are kindred spirits and together we can make the world a better, more peaceful place to live and love and learn to grow.
  
Susan Davis – I would say be a good example because a good example goes further than harsh words. My good friend Sandra Cummings is one of the best examples I can think of, yes she happens to be very attractive but besides that, her approach is one of gentle but firm conviction, she stays calm and delivers the message in a believable way. Above all else, she walks the walk. Yes, I would say be a good example.

Elaine Replogle – admit your mistakes.

Nonhuman Emancipation – To all other vegans – if you haven’t already, then please make it a priority to read Joan Dunayer’s books. She has more of the answers than anyone else. Thank-you. Vegantispeciesist Greetings. (Vegan-Anti-Speciesist Greetings).

Sue Henderson – I want to say ‘You’re not alone.”

Alexa Reed – “I want Vegans to know that no matter what obstacle they face, another Vegan has faced it and possibly overcome it. There are networks (online and in person) to help them through whatever the problem may be. And that Veganism is worth overcoming those obstacles.” Also - I wish that Vegans (actually, everyone) would understand that Veganism is its own reward. It may help you lose weight, get healthier, or more spiritual. It may not do any of those things. It does not matter. The reward comes from knowing that animals, Earth, and other humans are better off because of something you choose to do.

Tony Bishop-Weston – Let them eat vegan chocolate cake!

Mack Freeman - I didn't become vegetarian {and later vegan} until my son was 18 and on his own. But 16 years later he became a fish-only near veggie, so don't give up on family members eventually seeing the light all the way to veganism.

M. Butterflies Katz – to get some sunshine every day…vegans get their vitamin D from the sun. If you can’t get in the sun, supplement with D2 (plant-source, but the sun is better and it brightens our thoughts).

Anna Sityar - I want vegans to know that you won't even know sometimes that there are people in each of our lives that DO get the message even if they seem to resist it. You'll just be surprised that more and more of them get to realize that what we've been spreading all makes sense. So be grateful to everyone for being in their lives while yours is changing and maybe they'd want to become a stronger part of it and join our journeys too!

Malang Por - I would like for my fellow Vegans to know that our choices and our actions bring healing and peace for us all: For the animals, for the human specie and for planet earth. We are facing up against the greediest and careless group which hide all truths from society and overload us all with incorrect information to feed their thirst of "more". We must continue to fight for this most important cause of our time and our voices are being heard - our message is getting louder and stronger! Keep in mind - at one point most of us were just as misinformed and try to remember what opened you and use it to open others.  We are by FAR not alone! And I wish I can meet you all in person.

Laura Moran - I want vegans to know and remember that all fights against slavery and ignorance were hard and long and yet they were still won. So don't lose hope or give in, every non-vegan that you expose to the truth is a difference made, even if the difference isn't apparent immediately.

Stormy Pagan - I want vegans to know that they rock xxx

Valorie Collante - I want all vegans to know how much I respect and appreciate their journey, their enlightenment, their kindness to the animals, but most of all their patience with the rest of the world while we wait for them to wake up.

David Starsoul - There are many reasons for being vegan, but in my mind the most important is LOVE! We are LOVE! LOVE--is the 'way, truth, and life'....

Don Robertson - Veganism is a powerful, powerful way to love this planet and all those who share it. A way of loving ourselves enough to really care about our health and our time left on earth; way of loving and respecting animals enough to allow them their own place in nature, regardless of what they can do for me; and a way of loving this planet enough to allow it's beauty, its resources, and it's magical healing properties to be here for generations yet to come...

Jarek VeganSpirit - I'm sending my Love to all of You...there is no races, no species, no real separation...We Are All One…together we are strong and fearless...thanks for being here...hope to meet all of you in real, not only virtually.

David Richardson - Then I want all Vegans to know that they do make a difference to people who aren't Vegans...Look at me, 51 years old and becoming Vegan because of what I have found on facebook...What you say and how you visualize to others makes a big difference...Thank you all very much. I have become what I was meant to become.

Anthony Antich - I wish I could say something positive and uplifting here, but unless there's a worldwide massive explosion of higher consciousness soon, the earth and its inhabitants, including the human race, which has caused this mess, are in for a very bad time….

Tim Gier - Unshackling yourself from the long chains of exploitation by living as a vegan has liberated you and that is a good thing. Try, as well, to find ways in your daily life to ease the conditions that other living beings find themselves in. Volunteer at a shelter, rescue or sanctuary, or adopt an at-risk individual if you can. Deliver some measure of liberation to others.

Elizabeth DeCoux - I would say to all vegans: Some people try to be compassionate but stop short of veganism because they do not have all the information. I hope that when we encounter such people we can encourage their compassionate instincts while also explaining to them that nothing short of veganism will help end the suffering and death.

Christine Scalfo-Glover - Others are watching you and paying attention to whether or not you are true to your values. They will watch for you to "slip up", to show that you're not "perfect" and that a vegan diet is unattainable. Don't let them do this to you. You know better. Walk your talk!

Foti Zorbas - We will need to organize a massive FB World Meet-Up at a centralized location. Maybe DC?? We can break up into organized units and schedule some protests and march through the streets in military style. We will be a fricken Demo Army!!! We should demo individual targets with mass intensity and make a great final combined march onto the White House!! We will make history...LETS DO IT!!!!!!

Kim Frost - Veganism is love. Love for all beings. It is the ultimate way of being - the result of evolving on all levels. Fellow vegans are a constant source of inspiration and provide comfort to me on a daily basis. Thank you all for being you. We have to make sure that we make the most of each opportunity we have to positively influence non-vegans and open their eyes to the answer to most, if not all, of the problems facing humankind, all other beings and our beautiful home; Mother Earth.

Mary Beth H - I knew at age six to be a vegan. I wonder how many others knew this young? I have been asked so many times how I knew. I simply knew in my heart. I wonder if more children had the choice if they too would feel this way.

Debra Buria - I want Vegans to keep true to what they represent when non-vegan friends make fun of what you are and get defensive. I personally am experiencing their acceptance and curiosity now that I am talking more and more on the benefits. This is the way the seed is planted and it will stick in their heads and they discover how awesome vegans really are.

James Idol - Veganism is not just the destination, but the journey as well. If you stumble, just get back up again and keep on going!

Katie Saxby - that bringing your children up vegan is a wonderful gift for children. Don't feel that they would 'miss out', if my son is offered a non-vegan sweet he gets two vegan sweets in return (or another gift!), there are vegan versions of non-vegan food so they can feel more comfortable to bring to parties etc.....Saying that they would miss out on something i.e. non-vegan kids have that they would miss out: 25 %- 50% more chance of getting various cancers if non-vegan massively higher risk of having high cholesterol, heart disease, dying from high disease, diabetes, gallstones, and numerous other diseases..... they would 'miss out' on having a conscience knowing that they've been part of killing and torturing animals, taking babies away from their parents and vice versa etc.....well, you get the idea So more likely to be healthier, plus they can be happier that they've saved thousands of animals over their lifetime, that they're diet is so much better for the environment etc etc etc...Like an above comment says, kids are wise, yes they may have to deal with non-vegan propaganda (unless living in a vegan community etc), but kids are strong, especially equipped with the correct info. Like I said, a great gift.

Feelgoodagain Bath Bristol London - There is absolutely no nutritional requirement for humans to consume animal products in their diet. There has NEVER been a single recorded case of 'protein deficiency' in the world, by anyone consuming a suitably calorific diet.

Susan Willard - Veganism is freedom and justice for all.

Danny Nichols - If I ever have trouble sleeping, I just close my eyes, think of all the animals that are still alive simply because of the life I now lead. I think of all the animals I will save the next day and day after that and...And I sleep like a baby in knowing that the next day I can continue to save the world one life at a time alongside all my vegan family members. I want everyone to picture in their minds whenever they get discouraged, some of the many animals they have saved. You have saved them from a living hell. Imagine them speaking in human language and think of how they might thank you.

Joseph T. Espinosa - Even mild activism, like leafleting, tabling with video footage or doing a feed-in for a few hours just once a month will likely spare more animals from suffering and death than our decision to avoid animal products for the rest of our lives. So take a few hours each month to do this.

Richard Kahn - If in the advanced capitalist nations or wealthy global cities, veganism is a baseline, we should avoid the desire to universalize it as an endline metaphysic beyond our own situation. But this is not to say that veganism is or should be a local movement and not global, because its primary target is a global industrial capitalist complex. Still, it is enough at this time to begin to critically reflect and oppose how this complex manifests and structures our own individual and community lives. In saying this, I would remind people that if veganism is about evolving moral response in the world, it is not a metaphysical morality absent of a demonstrated political nature. That is, veganism is a politics-and like all politics it reflects the needs of the historical moment-so, again, veganism is not an end point, and the proof of its very success in realizing its truth will be the realization on the part of vegan activists of the need to move beyond veganism, such beyond veganism is not a-veganism, but sur-veganism. This is already happening in the advanced capitalist countries where the limitations of a co-opted commercial consumer veganism are being revealed as harmful to both self and others.

Moses Seenarine - Go vegan, for life!

Bridget Holland Dale – If it wasn’t for my two children I don’t think I would have made the move from vegetarian to vegan. It’s because of my experience raising them that I have become more committed and involved. On the most practical level, raising a vegetarian child, I encountered quite a bit of opposition, and so became increasingly involved in the vegetarian community, which led to greater awareness of reasons for veganism. Without the opposition to vegetarianism by child carers so immersed in the meat-eating philosophy, which led to my seeking greater support from the vegetarian community, I would not have progressed to veganism.

Srilata Thirunagari - I would like to say to Vegans: You are true heroes for the planet and the animals!

Terry Harvey - Stay in love, proud of what we are.

Krista Williams - I want all vegans to know that I wish I had been surrounded by people like you my entire life. I am so thankful to know you and share information from around the planet. Together, we will bring a positive and necessary change to our world.

Leigh Christina Bunro - Be kind to each other. We are not many in number, so can we try to all get along so we can join together to promote veganism.

Flavia Bellu - "I want all vegans to know that we all find our way to veganism differently, and that every non-vegan we approach has their own way of hearing us, and their own way of considering a change, and making a change to veganism. I want all vegans to know that I know, feel, and share your frustration, your sorrow, your rage, your bewilderment; and I also share your tenacity, commitment, strength, and love, and that I feel connected to all of you as my brothers and sisters, no matter the physical miles between us."

(All responses came in from Facebook; where the question was posed.)