1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:04,890 Why are we vegans so sensitive? Why can’t we live and let live and allow others their 2 00:00:04,890 --> 00:00:11,070 dietary choice? Why do we get so upset so easily? Can’t we just relax and let go? 3 00:00:11,070 --> 00:00:12,750 What’s the big deal anyway? 4 00:00:16,810 --> 00:00:22,130 Hi it’s Emily from Bite Size Vegan and welcome to another vegan nugget. This video is for 5 00:00:22,130 --> 00:00:27,900 my non-vegans out there who want to better understand us vegans and why we are the way we are. 6 00:00:28,350 --> 00:00:33,160 First off, I want to let you know that there will be no graphic imagery in this video, 7 00:00:33,160 --> 00:00:39,039 or really any imagery at all. And second, this video is not about making you non-vegans feel 8 00:00:39,040 --> 00:00:44,421 like bad people. I am honestly trying to help you make the connection that we vegans make 9 00:00:44,720 --> 00:00:50,430 and show you the reasons behind our seeming sensitivity and, at times, incomprehensible 10 00:00:50,430 --> 00:00:53,840 and unbridled frustration and anger at the way things are. 11 00:00:54,360 --> 00:00:59,380 Of course, it’s impossible to lump all vegans together- each is their own individual who 12 00:00:59,380 --> 00:01:04,950 reacts in their own way. When I say we’re sensitive, I don’t mean weak or overly emotional- 13 00:01:05,450 --> 00:01:10,520 I’m speaking from the outside perspective looking in, which often portrays us as just that. 14 00:01:10,890 --> 00:01:15,740 So do know that I cannot speak for all vegans, nor would I ever attempt to. But I 15 00:01:15,740 --> 00:01:20,870 can at least tell you what I see and what a great many ethical vegans see. And hopefully 16 00:01:20,870 --> 00:01:26,000 this can shed some light onto why we may have difficulty eating with you or get passionately 17 00:01:26,000 --> 00:01:29,100 upset about something that to you may seems insignificant. 18 00:01:29,610 --> 00:01:35,560 You see, when you go vegan, you take the blinders off and start to get what I think of as x-ray vision. 19 00:01:36,180 --> 00:01:41,850 You start to see what’s really going on underneath the idyllic lies we’ve unquestioningly bought into. 20 00:01:42,250 --> 00:01:46,790 Personally, I find it difficult to be around the consumption of animals and their byproducts. 21 00:01:47,400 --> 00:01:50,860 It’s something I’ve lived with my whole life, as so many of us do, 22 00:01:51,310 --> 00:01:53,310 but it hasn't gotten easier, really. 23 00:01:53,800 --> 00:01:59,300 Now here is where you may assume I’m judging you or that I’m upset by your eating habits. 24 00:01:59,300 --> 00:02:04,360 But the real source of my discomfort has nothing to do with you per-se, but the fact that what 25 00:02:04,360 --> 00:02:10,250 is on your plate was once a life. If you’re non-vegan, please stay with me through this 26 00:02:10,250 --> 00:02:16,530 explanation. Again, this not about me making you feel like a horrible person. I’m simply 27 00:02:16,530 --> 00:02:22,570 attempting to relay what it is we vegans see and why it is we have trouble around animal products. 28 00:02:23,220 --> 00:02:29,500 When I see a piece of cheese, I can tear up- and that sounds crazy to people. But I don’t 29 00:02:29,500 --> 00:02:34,560 just see a piece of cheese. I see a mother whose child has been ripped from her moments 30 00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:40,510 after birth. I see a baby who’d been relegated to the veal industry and sent for slaughter 31 00:02:40,510 --> 00:02:45,760 before he’s 4 months old. I see a mother whose body is going to give out on her 32 00:02:45,760 --> 00:02:51,329 20 years before her natural lifespan because she’s been raped and impregnated so many 33 00:02:51,329 --> 00:02:56,781 times- and because she’s had so many children stolen from her that she’s probably just 34 00:02:56,781 --> 00:03:01,420 given up. THAT is what I see when I look at a piece of cheese. 35 00:03:02,030 --> 00:03:07,400 So from the outside it may appear inconsiderate or rude that we vegans feel discomfort around 36 00:03:07,400 --> 00:03:13,680 non-vegan food. But think about it, if you can, without the trappings of social indoctrination. 37 00:03:13,940 --> 00:03:20,870 Meat is literally a corpse on a plate- a life, an individual, a sentient being who did not 38 00:03:20,870 --> 00:03:27,510 want to die for a meal. Dairy is the product of immense suffering, maternal grief, infant 39 00:03:27,510 --> 00:03:30,020 slaughter, and premature death. 40 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:36,250 Eggs are products of overcrowded, horrific conditions, the live suffocation or grinding 41 00:03:36,250 --> 00:03:40,480 up of male chicks on masse, and the premature death of layer hens. 42 00:03:41,320 --> 00:03:48,010 That is the reality. And that is what we vegans see with every bite. And yes, we can 43 00:03:48,010 --> 00:03:53,850 become angry, frustrated, livid because it’s so horrifically heartbreaking. 44 00:03:54,570 --> 00:03:58,891 And it doesn’t make sense to us that you don’t see it too. 45 00:04:00,500 --> 00:04:05,100 There’s nothing comfortable about seeing people you love consuming the bodies of innocent 46 00:04:05,100 --> 00:04:10,171 beings. To my non-vegans out there, I’m sure that sounds borderline absurd and most 47 00:04:10,171 --> 00:04:13,920 definitely an over-reaction, but bear with me if you will. 48 00:04:14,260 --> 00:04:19,360 Imagine seeing someone you love harming a child or abusing a beloved dog or cat. 49 00:04:19,670 --> 00:04:26,200 Or even, god forbid, eating that beloved family pet. And, if possible, imagine that this violence 50 00:04:26,200 --> 00:04:31,860 was socially acceptable. That you were the only one who seemed to think that something was wrong. 51 00:04:32,340 --> 00:04:36,180 And furthermore, imagine that your loved one who is committing these horrible 52 00:04:36,180 --> 00:04:41,610 acts, became defensive and resentful towards you for having any issue with the matter. 53 00:04:41,870 --> 00:04:46,850 Again this may seem an absurd comparison. But what is the distinction we make between 54 00:04:46,850 --> 00:04:52,480 “pet” animals and “edible” animals if not absurd? It’s certainly arbitrary. 55 00:04:53,270 --> 00:04:58,309 You see vegans feel the same love and compassion and empathy for “food animals” that you 56 00:04:58,309 --> 00:05:03,501 do for your pets. And just how comfortable would you be if your pet took the place of 57 00:05:03,501 --> 00:05:09,160 the cow, pig or chicken on your plate? How is it we are horrified by cultured that consume 58 00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:14,770 dogs while we continue to consume beings just as valuable and even more intelligent? 59 00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:20,720 We vegans no longer see this arbitrary distinction. We value all of these lives equally. 60 00:05:21,420 --> 00:05:27,049 So watching the continued enslavement, abuse, torture and murder of them is often too much 61 00:05:27,049 --> 00:05:32,361 to bear. While all of that is conveniently hidden from view and all you see is cheese, 62 00:05:32,361 --> 00:05:38,961 milk, hamburger, pork- what have you- we cannot un-know what we know or un-see what we’ve seen. 63 00:05:39,630 --> 00:05:47,080 So your food item, while seemingly innocuous, is to us the end product of real-life horror. 64 00:05:47,700 --> 00:05:54,230 We see the bloodshed, the struggle, we hear their cries, we sense their fear and we feel 65 00:05:54,230 --> 00:06:00,450 their terror. Just as you would for your beloved pet if were they put through such horrific treatment. 66 00:06:00,890 --> 00:06:06,080 And even more so as you would for a human child subjected to such atrocities. 67 00:06:06,610 --> 00:06:09,990 The difference is: we don’t close our eyes. 68 00:06:10,460 --> 00:06:15,680 I hope that this explanation has been helpful. If it seemed heavy-handed it’s only because 69 00:06:15,680 --> 00:06:21,360 this is all too real and happening all to often. If you are able for a moment to put 70 00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:26,830 yourself in our place and imagine seeing what we see- even if you yourself don’t believe it- 71 00:06:27,350 --> 00:06:31,570 perhaps that will help you understand why we vegans are so sensitive and passionate. 72 00:06:31,970 --> 00:06:34,030 And why we can’t stand idly by. 73 00:06:34,620 --> 00:06:39,810 If this video reached you at all, please give it a thumbs up and share it around to open 74 00:06:39,810 --> 00:06:45,860 more eyes. To support Bite Size Vegan in continuing the mission to speak for the animals and open 75 00:06:45,860 --> 00:06:51,030 minds and hearts, please see the support links in the video description below or for perks 76 00:06:51,030 --> 00:06:55,860 and rewards for your support, click on the Nugget Army icon there or in the link in the 77 00:06:55,860 --> 00:07:01,550 iCard sidebar. If you’re new here, be sure to hit that big red subscribe button down there for more 78 00:07:01,550 --> 00:07:06,990 awesome vegan content every Monday, Wednesday, and some Fridays. Now go live vegan, 79 00:07:07,260 --> 00:07:09,839 open your eyes, and I’ll see you soon! 80 00:07:10,139 --> 00:07:13,820 And now, to decompress after that...really intense nugget... 81 00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:18,260 This thing. 82 00:07:19,080 --> 00:07:20,530 [Comical honking noise] 83 00:07:21,220 --> 00:07:26,039 If you have trouble connecting with "food animals" or farm animals, just picture them 84 00:07:26,040 --> 00:07:33,040 having this face. How could you ever do anything to this face? 85 00:07:33,720 --> 00:07:37,720 You gotta show them your beautiful face. You gotta show them your beautiful face. 86 00:07:40,880 --> 00:07:42,320 You're a good vegan advocate.