Episode 106: Discussing vegan animal rights history, ethics, and activism with vegan sociologist Roger Yates

This week, I am pleased to present my eighth interview with the sociologist and long-time animal rights advocate Roger Yates, PhD, who has been a vegan for four and a half decades. Roger’s 2005 PhD dissertation focused on the social construction of speciesism. In the 1980's, he was a Press Officer for the Animal Liberation Front. He is currently the organizing volunteer for the Vegan Information Project, a group that he co-founded in Ireland in 2013. He also has a blog, social media, and YouTube channel, where he advocates for veganism and animal rights from an abolitionist perspective.

In this discussion, Roger and I explore the history and values of the vegan, animal rights, and anti-vivisection movements. Roger explains what he means when he says that veganism is the Great Refusal, and we discuss tactical and theoretical issues and debates within modern-day animal advocacy. Roger also shares his idea about how vegans could collectively purchase land that could be used to advance the goals of the vegan social movement.

This interview was recorded during November, World Vegan Month.

Many thanks to Roger for being a guest on the show again!

During this interview, we discussed the essay, "Autobiography of a Vegan" (1964), by the early vegan advocate and conscientious objector Rubin Abramowitz. The essay can be found on Archive.org here.

 

You can listen to the episode above or on CKCU 93.1 FM's website. You can also download the MP3 file from Archive.org.

You can find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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

Poster by Vegan Information Project (VIP)

Episode 105: Interview with vegan sociologist Matthew Cole about critical animal and media studies, speciesism and veganism in the media, and an update on the Donald Watson Archive

This week, I am pleased to present my fourth interview with the vegan sociologist Matthew Cole, Senior Lecturer at The Open University. Matthew has been a vegan since 2005 and is the author and co-author of a number of academic articles and book chapters about the sociology of veganism and human-nonhuman animal relations. With his partner, the vegan sociologist Kate Stewart, Matthew co-authored the 2014 book, Our Children and Other Animals: The Cultural Construction of Human-Animal Relations in Childhood. In 2016, an anthology was published that was edited by Matthew Cole, Núria Almiron, and Carrie Freeman, titled, Critical Animal and Media Studies: Communication for Nonhuman Animal Advocacy.

In this interview, we discuss critical animal and media studies, and Matthew tells me about his research with Kate Stewart about human cultural attitudes towards urban-dwelling foxes in the UK. We also explore the place of environmental arguments in vegan advocacy, the use of mainstream and independent media to promote animal rights, how veganism tends to be portrayed by the mainstream media, and Matthew’s more recent writing on the similarities between a Batman storyline and a campaign to rename two species of aquatic animals in the UK. Then Matthew shares an update about the Donald Watson Archive Research Project.

Matthew Cole's Academia.edu page can be found here (please write to him if you'd like to read his writings that are listed there). Matthew's work on OpenLearn, including his short interactive course about veganism and speciesism, can be found here.

Thanks to Matthew for being a guest on the show again!

You can listen to the episode above or on CKCU 93.1 FM's website. You can also download the MP3 file from Archive.org.

You can find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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

Episode 104: Interview with Ronnie Lee, co-founder of the Animal Liberation Front, about consistency and vegan ethics

This week, I am pleased to present my third interview with the long-time animal liberation activist Ronnie Lee. Ronnie has been a vegan for more than five decades and is best known for co-founding the Animal Liberation Front in the 1970’s. Currently he works to educate the public about the importance of becoming vegan. He also encourages vegans to become more involved in vegan education initiatives, in order to work towards the abolition of the exploitation and oppression of our fellow animals.

In this interview, Ronnie describes what it was like trying to obtain vegan-friendly food in the 1970’s. Then we discuss why war, environmental destruction, and human rights violations are not in alignment with the vegan ethic; why it’s important to challenge speciesism and human supremacism, rather than focusing primarily on cruelty; and how we can more effectively interact with the mainstream media. Ronnie also speaks about the role of anti-vivisection campaigning within the animal rights movement over the years, and he shares his views on celebrity culture within the vegan community.

After listening to this episode, you may be interested in tuning in to the two latest episodes of Still Alive!, the online talk show that Ronnie co-hosts with Roger Yates: The Media and the Message and Vegans and War.

You can listen to the episode above or on CKCU 93.1 FM's website. You can also download the MP3 file from Archive.org.

You can find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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

Episode 102: Interview with Wendy McGovern about vegan ethics and language, anti-consumerism, ecofeminism, and anti-vivisection

This week, I am pleased to present my second interview with the long-time animal rights advocate Wendy McGovern. Wendy has been a vegan since about 1997. She has been involved in a variety of vegan and animal advocacy initiatives over the years, including hosting the London Animal Rights March in 2021. She is the host of the Thrive Vegan World podcast and a co-panelist on the Animal Rights Show on YouTube.

In this interview, Wendy and I discuss the importance of viewing veganism as a holistic paradigm shift rather than only a diet, and we explore the issue of consumerism in relation to vegan ethics. Then Wendy speaks about how we can challenge speciesism through our language use, and how ecofeminist perspectives can help us to think critically and holistically about intersecting oppressions. We also discuss why the animal advocacy movement has shifted away from its previous focus on anti-vivisection activism. Finally, Wendy shares her thoughts on advocating for veganism and animal rights in our everyday lives.

Links:

Thrive Vegan World podcast: https://thriveveganworld.libsyn.com/

The Animal Rights Show on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwKCH_ItjqELgL3NE35hj70YazgZBHfZB

 "Mexico's female matadors return to the world's largest bullring", Archived from NPR.org: https://web.archive.org/web/20240324134816/https://www.npr.org/2024/03/09/1236728490/mexico-bullfighting-women-bullfighters 

Wendy McGovern in discussion with Roger Yates and Ronnie Lee about why the movement's focus shifted away from anti-vivisection activism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTniWsitwSo

Unlearning Speciesist Language Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/553752208470902

Roger Yates and Ronnie Lee's Still Alive! show discussing vegan activism ideas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z__CQhXkoUM

You can listen to the episode above or on CKCU 93.1 FM's website. You can also download the MP3 file from Archive.org.

You can find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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

Episode 101: Interview with Roger Yates about the Vegan Information Project, veganism as holistic social justice, and the importance of grassroots activism

Poster from the Vegan Information Project

This week, I am pleased to present my seventh interview with the vegan sociologist and animal rights advocate Roger Yates, who has been a vegan since 1979.

Roger’s 2005 PhD dissertation focused on the social construction of speciesism. In the 1980's, he was a Press Officer for the Animal Liberation Front, and in 2013 he co-founded the Vegan Information Project (also known as VIP) in Ireland. He has a blog, social media accounts, and a YouTube channel, where he advocates for veganism and animal rights from an abolitionist perspective.

In this interview, Roger outlines the history and philosophy of the Vegan Information Project, and he emphasizes the importance of understanding and challenging cultural speciesism as vegan advocates. He also speaks about the ethical and practical issues surrounding money in the animal advocacy movement, and why vegan advocates are sometimes accused of "forcing" our views on non-vegans. We discuss the importance of viewing veganism as a movement for holistic social justice, and we share our views about some of the things we'd like to see the vegan movement do differently in 2024 and beyond.

You can listen to the episode above or on CKCU 93.1 FM's website. You can also download the MP3 file from Archive.org.

You can find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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

Posters from the Vegan Information Project

Episode 100: Reconnecting with the work of Marti Kheel, author of Nature Ethics: An Ecofeminist Perspective and co-founder of Feminists for Animal Rights

Over the past several months, I've been exploring the old newsletters of Feminists for Animal Rights, a group that was active in the United States from the early 1980's to the 2000's. As they stated in their literature, Feminists for Animal Rights sought to "raise the consciousness of the feminist community, the animal rights community, and the general public regarding the connections between the objectification, exploitation, and abuse of both women and animals in patriarchal society." In addition to producing a newsletter, members of Feminists for Animal Rights tabled at events and conferences; gave presentations and workshops; created opportunities for like-minded women to connect, study, and learn from one another; and participated in a variety of other activist initiatives. The group was quite influential within the animal rights movement at the time.

One of the co-founders of Feminists for Animal Rights was the vegan ecofeminist scholar and activist Marti Kheel, who developed the FAR slide show and wrote a number of important essays about ecofeminism. She was the author of the 2008 book, Nature Ethics: An Ecofeminist Perspective. Sadly, Marti passed away in 2011.

On the show this week, we'll be listening to an abridged version of an interview with Marti that was originally broadcast in 2009 on the show Hear Me Raw, based at Joy Radio in Australia. In this episode, the interviewer, Sue, asked Marti to describe the key principles of ecofeminist philosophy. They also discuss the limitations of mainstream environmentalist theory, why feminists should embrace veganism, how vegaphobia is related to homophobia, and what’s wrong with using sexist tactics in animal advocacy.

Marti's insights are very much worth listening to and considering. I hope you'll listen in!

At the end of the show is the song, "Vegan World", by the vegan musician Katie Veg.

You can listen to the episode above or on CKCU 93.1 FM's website. You can also download the MP3 file from Archive.org.

You can find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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

Episode 99: Interview with Lee Hall about vegan ethics, the history of the American vegan movement, self-rewilding, and being vegan in a non-vegan world

This week, I am pleased to present my second interview with the author and public speaker Lee Hall, who has been a vegan advocate since 1983. Lee is the author of On Their Own Terms: Animal Liberation for the 21st Century, the creator of the blog Vegan Place, and a writer for CounterPunch. Lee previously taught immigration and animal law at Rutgers University in New Jersey and now holds a Master of Laws in environmental law with a focus on climate change.

In this interview, Lee speaks about the history of the vegan movement in England and the United States. In particular, Lee highlights the significance of the annual Vegan Summerfest to the American vegan movement, as well as the abandonment of integrity by corporate animal advocacy groups such as PETA. We discuss the importance of viewing veganism as an ethic rather than just a diet, why Lee has decided to stop driving a car this year, and what it means to re-wild ourselves. Then Lee outlines how vegan menus are inclusive for everyone, gives advice for vegans who struggle during non-vegan holiday celebrations, and discusses how we can find hope even during difficult times.

This was an excellent discussion!

At the end of the episode, we'll hear the new version of the song "Vegan World" by Katie Veg.

You can listen to the episode above or download the MP3 file from Archive.org. This episode will be broadcast on CKCU 93.1 FM in two parts over the coming weeks, starting on Wednesday 25 October at 4:30 pm Eastern. The entire episode is also now available on CKCU's website.

Additional links:

• Lee Hall's article, "Self-Rewilding: Becoming a Committed Pedestrian"
• "Those Cute Lambs? Here's Who They Are, Without Us" by Lee Hall
  
• "Veganism Defined", written by Leslie Cross in 1951
• "Chapter 3: The Singer Model · Is It Really Animal Liberation?" (audio) by Lee Hall (also includes an image of Peter Singer's 2005 letter to Whole Foods)
• "Chapter 11: From Food to Friends? Troubles With Cuteness and Meme-Sharing" (audio) by Lee Hall

***

You can find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

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

Episode 98: Let's bring about a peaceful vegan revolution (featuring Sherry Colb, Roger Yates, and Bob Linden)

Drawing by the vegan artist, Maria Tiqwah.

It's important to remember that veganism is not a diet. Rather, veganism is a philosophy, way of living, and social justice movement based on non-violence, non-exploitation, respect, and empathy. Living vegan and respecting animal rights means that we refuse to participate in animal use and that we oppose violations of the rights of any sentient being, nonhuman or human.

On today's show, we will be listening to a short speech that was recently presented online by the vegan sociologist Roger Yates. Roger has been a vegan animal rights activist for more than four decades and is the lead organizer of the Vegan Information Project in Ireland. In this talk, Roger speaks about the values of the vegan social movement, past and present.

We'll also hear an excerpt from an interview with the legal scholar and vegan advocate Sherry Colb. In the interview, which was originally aired in 2014 on Go Vegan Radio with Bob Linden, Sherry spoke about her then-new book, titled, Mind if I Order the Cheeseburger? And Other Questions People Ask Vegans. Last year, I had asked Sherry if she would like to be a guest on my show, and I was pleased when she agreed. Tragically, however, Sherry passed away shortly thereafter. Since we were unable to conduct the interview, I've decided to share Bob Linden's interview with Sherry from 2014 in the hope that it will inspire listeners to read and think about her work.

At the end of the show, we'll hear the song "Revolucion Vegana" by the vegan musician, Chucho Merchan.

“Veganism is about nonviolence: nonviolence to other sentient beings; nonviolence to yourself; nonviolence to the earth.”
Gary Francione, animal rights philosopher

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/553/61990.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-september-13-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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 97: Interview with animal rights author Joan Dunayer about speciesism and language

This week, I am pleased to present my interview with the writer and animal rights advocate Joan Dunayer, who has been a vegan since 1989. Joan is the author of two books: Animal Equality: Language and Liberation, published in 2001, and Speciesism, published in 2004. Additionally, a number of her essays about speciesism and language have appeared in anthologies and other publications, including the books Critical Animal and Media Studies (edited by Núria Almiron, Matthew Cole, Carrie P. Freeman) and Animals and Women: Feminist Theoretical Explorations (edited by Carol J. Adams and Josephine Donovan), among others.

In this interview, Joan tells me about what led her to become a vegan and write her first book. She describes what speciesism is, how it manifests in everyday language use, how we can challenge speciesism through language, and how speciesism and sexism are connected through derogatory language. She also speaks about the moral status of insects; speciesist attitudes within the animal advocacy movement; and the legal rights that she advocates nonhuman animals ought to have.

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/553/61427.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-july-26-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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 96: Interview with Laura Schleifer about total liberation, post-scarcity veganarchism, and why human rights are relevant to veganism

"Embracing the Future"
by the vegan artist Jo Frederiks.

This week, I am pleased to present my interview with the writer, theatre artist, educator, and activist Laura Schleifer. Laura is the Total Liberation Campaign Director with the Institute for Critical Animal Studies and a co-founder of Plant The Land Team, a vegan food justice group based in Gaza, Palestine. She is also a veganarchist and communalist who writes and gives presentations about the interconnections between human, other animal, and earth liberation. A number of her essays will be published as book chapters in forthcoming anthologies. She is currently writing her own book, titled Liberating Veganism.

In this interview, Laura describes what led her to become vegan and get involved in Critical Animal Studies, and she tells me about a concept that she has been developing called post-scarcity veganarchism. Laura explains how the oppression of other animals enables and reinforces the oppression of marginalized human groups. She also outlines the concept of total liberation and examines whether or not it’s appropriate to make comparisons between animal exploitation and the Nazi Holocaust. Then Laura speaks about the histories of and entanglements between animal liberation and human liberation struggles in Israel and Palestine; she gives her response to those who would prefer to ignore the atrocities and crises taking place around the world; and she describes some of the best things about being vegan.

Here are some additional links, based on what we discussed in the episode:

• Laura's "Post-Scarcity Veganarchism" talk on The Animal Rights Show
• Laura's article, "Beyond Vegan-Washing: A Brief History of Animal and Human Liberation Struggles in Israel and Palestine", published in the June 2021 edition of Força Vegan magazine
• Laura discussing "vegan-washing" on what is now called the Total Liberation Podcast (previously called the Vegan Vanguard Podcast)
• David Naguib Pellow's 2014 book, Total Liberation
  

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/553/60993.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-june-21-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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 95: Interview with Roger Yates about the need to reclaim the radical vision of veganism and end cultural speciesism

This week, I am pleased to present my sixth interview with the vegan sociologist Roger Yates, PhD, who has been a vegan for more than four decades. Roger’s 2005 PhD dissertation focused on the social construction of speciesism. In the 1980's, he was a Press Officer for the Animal Liberation Front, and he is currently the organizing volunteer for the Vegan Information Project, a group which he co-founded in Ireland in 2013. He also has a blog, social media, and YouTube channel, where he advocates for veganism and animal rights from an abolitionist perspective. I previously interviewed Roger for Episode 19, Episode 21, Episode 29, Episode 50, Episode 79, and Episode 88 of my show.

In this interview, Roger and I discuss how we can use anti-speciesist language in our advocacy and everyday lives. Roger also speaks about the challenges confronting the modern-day vegan movement, including welfarism, reducetarianism, the cooptation of the movement by right-wing activists, and the de-radicalization of advocacy groups, and he provides a sociological perspective on why some people become “ex-vegans”. He speaks about the revolutionary potential of the vegan ethic, the incompatibility of capitalism and veganism, and the insights we might glean from the McLibel trial of the 1990’s. Finally, Roger gives his advice for people who are interested in getting involved in vegan animal rights activism, emphasizing the need to challenge cultural speciesism as we work towards a vegan world.

Thanks very much to Roger for being a guest on the show again!

Here are some additional links, based on what we discussed in this episode:

• Roger's Vegan Time Tunnel series
• Steve Best's "Total Liberation" speech
  
• Article by Joan Dunayer about anti-speciesist language
  
• Unlearning Speciesist Language Facebook Group
• Roger Yates's and Ronnie Lee's top ten activism ideas (video)
• David Nibert's books (Animal Rights/Human Rights, Animal Oppression and Human Violence, and Animal Oppression and Capitalism)
• The Vegan Society's blog post about the "vegan coronation quiche", which we critiqued in this episode

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/553/60723.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-may-28-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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 94: Discussion with Jeremy Hess about anti-speciesist language, speciesism in the mainstream media, and providing sanctuary for nonhuman refugees

This week, the vegan animal rights advocate Jeremy Hess returns to the show for a third interesting discussion! I previously interviewed Jeremy for Episodes 62 and 78 of my show.

Jeremy Hess has been a vegan since 2014 and has been involved in a variety of forms of animal rights advocacy over the years, including working at sanctuaries and doing street outreach to speak to the public about veganism. He was also a co-founder and co-panellist on The Animal Rights Show on YouTube. On his website, VeganInteractions.com, and his YouTube Channel, Jeremy the Ape, he provides resources to help advocates use accurate and non-speciesist language and learn about animal rights theory. He is currently in the process of co-creating a vegan microsanctuary called Respect Animal Sanctuary to provide a safe home for survivors of speciesism in Georgia in the United States.

In this interview, Jeremy and I discuss how we can challenge speciesism in our language use, and we examine a particular speciesist mainstream media article about animal rescuers. We also discuss how we can respond when people ask us about the "breeds" of our dog friends, why Effective Altruism is problematic from an abolitionist vegan perspective, how we can stay motivated to continue advocating for our fellow animals, and what Jeremy and his partner Nisha Taylor-Hess are planning for Respect Animal Sanctuary.

Here are a few more links, based on what we discussed in the interview:

• Andy Atkinson's new documentary, Animal Rights: We're Getting It Wrong
• The recently-published book, The Good it Promises, The Harm it Does, edited by Carol J. Adams, Alice Crary, and Lori Gruen
  
• Speciesist article from the Daily Mail (2019) (Archive.org link): "Animal Rebellion: They're the militant vegan wing of eco-warriors who shut down British cities and now plan to stop us eating meat, fish and dairy. As this undercover report reveals, HATRED is on the menu" (Correction: When speaking about this article in this episode, I said that there wasn't any mention of the victims of animal exploitation, but I was only referring to the title and summary. In fact, later on in the article, the authors did briefly mention that the activists were holding a moment of silence for a cow. However, the authors referred to the cow as a "beef cow", did not suggest that there was any need to show moral concern for the cow, and were mocking and villifying the activists throughout the article.)
  
• Speciesist article from Fox News (2023) (Archive.org link): "Animal 'rescuers' wreaking havoc by stealing farm animals: 'These are criminals, not activists'"
  

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/553/60577.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-may-17-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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 93: Interview with the philosopher Silvia Caprioglio Panizza about moral impossibility and the vegan paradigm shift

Benjamin and Estelita at Sanctuario Igualdad.
Photo credit: Gabriela Penela/We Animals.

This week, I am pleased to present my interview with the academic philosopher Silvia Caprioglio Panizza, leader of the Vegan Studies Network. Silvia is a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellow at the Centre for Ethics, located at the University of Pardubice in the Czech Republic. She is the author of The Ethics of Attention: Engaging the Real with Iris Murdoch and Simone Weil, and a co-editor of three other philosophy books. She is also a vegan feminist who has been bringing philosophical concepts such as moral impossibility into conversation with veganism and animal ethics. In 2021, she co-organized the academic virtual conference, Veganism: A Paradigm Shift.

In this interview, Silvia describes how the concept of moral impossibility can inform our approaches to veganism and animal advocacy, and she tells me about her work on attention and reification as these ideas relate to animal ethics. Then Silvia speaks about the need for a radical paradigm shift with regards to how humans relate to other animals; how studying philosophy can help us as grassroots activists; her thoughts on being a vegan academic working in non-vegan universities; and the connections between veganism and feminism.

Thanks to Silvia for being a guest on the show!

At the end of the episode, we'll hear the song "Barbecue Protest" by the vegan band Scarlet Rescue.

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/553/60122.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-april-12-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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 92: Interview with Richard White about vegan anarchist geographies, veganism as prefigurative praxis, and Critical Animal Studies

This week, I am pleased to present my interview with the vegan anarchist geographer Richard White, PhD, Reader in Human Geography at Sheffield Hallam University in the UK. Richard has co-edited several books, including Vegan Geographies: Spaces Beyond Violence, Ethics Beyond Speciesism (published in 2022) and Anarchism and Animal Liberation: Essays on Complementary Elements of Total Liberation (published in 2015). He was the editor of the Journal for Critical Animal Studies from 2009 to 2012, and he has written many book chapters and academic journal articles on topics related to geography, anarchism, and veganism. Richard is also a veganic gardener and has been a vegan for about two decades.

In this interview, Richard shares his story of becoming vegan and getting involved in Critical Animal Studies, and he speaks about the significance of understanding the connections between spatial and social justice. We discuss the concept of prefigurative praxis as it applies to veganism, anti-capitalist and anarchist approaches to veganism, and the limitations of approaching veganism as a diet or consumer lifestyle. Richard also tells me about his experiences with veganic gardening and teaching about veganism and animal rights issues.

Thanks to Richard for being a guest on the show!

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/553/59815.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-march-15-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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 91: Interview with Nella Giatrakou about vegan feminism, veganism as opposition to speciesism, and the vegan movement in Greece

Artwork by the vegan artist, Maria Tiqwah

This week, I am pleased to present my interview with Nella Giatrakou, a vegan feminist and translator living in Greece. Since becoming vegan in 2013, Nella has been involved in a variety of forms of animal advocacy. She is one of the contributors who volunteered her translation skills to help create an ecofeminist anthology in Greek, which was published last year. She is also a co-panellist on the Animal Rights Show on YouTube.

In this interview, Nella speaks about what led her to become vegan, how her understanding of veganism has evolved over time, and what her experience has been like as a co-panellist on the Animal Rights Show. We discuss the importance of viewing veganism as a social justice movement that opposes speciesism, rather than just a diet; connections between veganism and feminism; the problems with reducetarian advocacy; celebrity culture within the animal rights movement; and why some people claim to be ex-vegans. Nella also describes the state of the vegan movement in Greece, and she recommends books and other resources for people who are interested in learning more about veganism, animal rights, and animal liberation.

At the end of this episode, we'll listen to the first movement of Marianna Martines' Sonata in G Major, performed by the vegan piano player Judith Valerie Engel.

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/553/59701.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-march-8-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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 90: Interview with Lee Hall about the connections between veganism, animal liberation, and environmentalism

This week, I am pleased to present my interview with the author and public speaker Lee Hall, who has been a vegan advocate since 1983. Lee is the author of On Their Own Terms: Animal Liberation for the 21st Century, the creator of the blog Vegan Place, and a writer for CounterPunch. Lee previously taught immigration and animal law at Rutgers University in New Jersey and now holds a Master of Laws in environmental law with a focus on climate change.

In this interview, Lee speaks about vegan ethics, the history of the Vegan Society in the UK, the connections between animal liberation and environmentalism, ethical concerns with using violent imagery in our advocacy, and why domestication is inherently unfair. We also discuss the importance of integrity in our activism and the issue of whether chocolate is truly vegan-friendly. (You can learn more about cocoa production here.)

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/553/59365.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-february-8-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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 89: Interview with sociologist Corey Lee Wrenn about vegan feminism, sexism in the animal movement, and the intersections of social justice issues

This week, I am pleased to present my third interview with Corey Lee Wrenn, PhD, Lecturer of Sociology and co-director of the Centre for the Study of Social and Political Movements at the University of Kent. Corey is the author of A Rational Approach to Animal Rights: Extensions in Abolitionist Theory (published in 2016), Piecemeal Protest: Animal Rights in the Age of Nonprofits (published in 2019), and Animals in Irish Society: Interspecies Oppression and Vegan Liberation in Britain’s First Colony (published in 2021). She is the founder of the Vegan Feminist Network and co-founder of the International Association of Vegan Sociologists.

In this interview, Corey speaks about how she started making connections between veganism and feminism in her work, and we discuss why it’s harmful and ineffective to use sexist tactics in animal advocacy campaigns. Corey also gives other examples of how sexism, racism, and ableism show up in the animal movement; she describes the history of the vegan feminist group, Feminists for Animal Rights; and she gives her reading recommendations for those who wish to learn more about vegan feminism and the interconnectedness of speciesism with other forms of oppression in society.

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/553/59205.html.
   
2. Listen to or download the podcast from Archive.org at https://archive.org/details/afar-january-24-2023.
   

You can also find Always for Animal Rights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. 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!