Episode 33: Vasile Stanescu explains how speciesism is connected to other forms of oppression

Welcome to Episode 33 of Always for Animal Rights!

This week, I am pleased to present my second interview with the Critical Animal Studies scholar Vasile Stanescu. Vasile is an Assistant Professor of Communication Studies and the director of the Program in Speech and Debate at Mercer University. He is also a co-Senior editor of the Critical Animal Studies book series and former co-editor of the Journal for Critical Animal Studies. He has written more than twenty peer-reviewed publications about Critical Animal Studies and the environment.

In this interview, Vasile explains what Critical Animal Studies is, and he challenges us to reconsider our use of the term "nonhuman animal". He also speaks about how speciesism is connected to other forms of oppression, why animal rights activists should be opposed to capitalism, how the animal agriculture industry is funding disinformation about the effects of animal agriculture on climate change, and why there is no such thing as humane or sustainable animal agriculture. Additionally, he shares his view that animal rights activists should work with, and not against, other social justice movements.

During the discussion, Vasile spoke about his academic journal article titled "'White Power Milk’: Milk, Dietary Racism, and the ‘Alt-Right'", and his open letter to Peter Singer, both of which you can read for free online. He also mentioned the Animals & Society Institute video in which he explains what Critical Animal Studies is. (You may recall that Vasile was also a guest on Episode 25, which was about why vegans shouldn't promote lab-grown "meat".)

It's a fascinating interview!

How to listen to this episode

There are two ways you can listen to this episode.

1. Listen to the episode on CKCU FM's website at https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/553/48549.html.
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-july-29-2020.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Facebook and Instagram. If you'd like to receive an e-mail every time there is a new post on the AFAR blog, feel free to enter your e-mail address into the appropriate box in the right-hand sidebar of this site. 

Go vegan, stay vegan, and let's remember to stand up and speak up for animal rights today and every day. Thanks for listening to the show!

Episode 32: Gary Francione explains why veganism is a moral imperative

Episode 32 of Always for Animal Rights features my recent interview with the animal rights scholar Gary Francione, professor of philosophy and law at Rutgers University in New Jersey. Gary Francione has been a vegan since the 1980's and is most well-known for his work developing the Abolitionist Approach to animal rights. He is the author of several influential books about animal rights and veganism. His most recent book, called Why Veganism Matters, will be published later this year.

In this interview, Gary Francione speaks about the principles of the Abolitionist Approach, and he explains why welfare reforms cannot lead to the abolition of animal exploitation. He also discusses why veganism is our moral obligation, what the COVID-19 pandemic is telling us about humans’ relationship with other animals, and why lab meat is not a solution to speciesism.

It's an interesting interview, indeed!

How to listen to this episode

There are two ways you can listen to this episode.

1. Listen to the episode on CKCU FM's website at https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/553/48400.html.
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-july-15-2020.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Facebook and Instagram. If you'd like to receive an e-mail every time there is a new post on the AFAR blog, feel free to enter your e-mail address into the appropriate box in the right-hand sidebar of this site. 

Go vegan, stay vegan, and let's remember to stand up and speak up for animal rights today and every day. Thanks for listening to the show!

Episode 31: Interview with scholar, punk singer, and animal liberation activist Lisa Barca

This week on Always for Animal Rights, I am pleased to present my recent interview with Lisa Barca. Lisa is the lead singer of Scarlet Rescue, an all-vegan punk/alternative band with the tagline "Rock for All-Species Liberation!" She is also a scholar and university professor, one of her areas of focus being Critical Animal Studies. A book chapter written by Lisa will be published in the upcoming (2020) volume, Meatsplaining: The Animal Agriculture Industry and the Rhetoric of Denial.

In this interview, Lisa speaks about her research on how the mainstream media promotes anti-vegan rhetoric and the myth of “humane” animal exploitation, and she tells me which Critical Animal Studies scholars have influenced her way of thinking. She also tells me what led her to decide to go vegan. And (of course!) we discuss Scarlet Rescue's music, including the popular song "Barbecue Protest".

At the end of the show, we hear the song "Barbecue Protest".

In this episode, we also briefly discussed an interview that previously appeared on the show, in which John Sanbonmatsu and Vasile Stanescu explain why vegans shouldn't promote lab "meat".

This is a fascinating interview! I hope you'll listen in :)

How to listen to this episode

There are two ways you can listen to this episode.

1. Listen to the episode on CKCU FM's website at https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/553/48339.html.
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-july-8-2020.

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Facebook and Instagram. If you'd like to receive an e-mail every time there is a new post on the AFAR blog, feel free to enter your e-mail address into the appropriate box in the right-hand sidebar of this site. 

Go vegan, stay vegan, and let's remember to stand up and speak up for animal rights today and every day. Thanks for listening to the show!

Episode 30: Daniella and Adam speak about raising a vegan child in the UK

We have reached Episode 30 of Always for Animal Rights!

Yummy food by @uk_veganfamily

Today on the show is my recent interview with Daniella and Adam, who live in the UK and are raising their young son Jack in accordance with vegan principles. In this interview, Daniella and Adam speak about why they went vegan, what their family's favourite vegan meals are, and the status of veganism in the UK today. Find them on Instagram at @uk_veganfamily, and on YouTube.

Thanks to Daniella and Adam for agreeing to be interviewed.

By the way, July 3rd, 2020 will be the 1-year anniversary of this show! I am also excited to say that Always for Animal Rights is now a member of iROAR: The Animals' Podcasting Network. 

How to listen to this episode

There are two ways you can listen to this episode.

1. Listen to the episode on CKCU FM's website at https://cod.ckcufm.com/programs/553/48250.html.
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-july-1-2020.

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Facebook and Instagram. If you'd like to receive an e-mail every time there is a new post on the AFAR blog, feel free to enter your e-mail address into the appropriate box in the right-hand sidebar of this site. 

Go vegan; stay vegan; educate others! Thank you for listening to the show!