The 'Me First' Human

1792: 

Edited by CJ Tointon

If you're an animal activist, a vegan, a liberationist or an advocate for the 'voiceless', you might often feel alone, surprised that so few people agree with you. But maybe you DO know? You probably realise what a soggy bunch of people we live amongst and how dependent most people are on such things as milk, eggs and wool.

Imagine no ice-cream or dairy products in the fridge, no warm woollen blankets on the bed and no eggs! The thought of doing without these items prevents most people from ever becoming proper vegetarians (e.g. vegans). They just can't imagine a life not using animal products.

The reality of knowing exactly what these 'familiar products' are, presents us with a conundrum - we might hate the thought of animals being tortured, but we just can't face a life without using them and using them always involves animal torture, cruelty, exploitation and sometimes execution.

Vegans embrace a life devoid of animal-based products, thus disassociating themselves from the violent  'acceptables' that their fellow humans support by proxy. We live in a world dominated by people who have become so used to a dependency on animals that they're unable to stand by any preferred principles of nonviolence. They just can't resist the convenience of using animals.

For that reason alone, I'd suggest that humans can't be trusted around animals (any more than child molesters can be trusted around children). Whenever we use animals, we betray their easy, uncomplicated trust in us. We're conditioned to turn a blind eye to animal abuse whenever it spells food, leather shoes, silk shirts or woolly jumpers! That's putting it bluntly - but it can't be written any other way. That's how it is! However, for those of us who don't comply with an animal abusing society, it's up to us to let others know that 'animal dependency' is curable simply by using some initial willpower, deciding to do without or swapping over to products that are 'Cruelty Free'.

Generally, the human is a 'Me First' creature, always taking what is freely available or what can be taken without risking personal safety. Few of us are prepared to consider the feelings of animals if it causes us any discomfort or inconvenience. All non-vegans are in some way involved in the exploitation of animals, yet most will deny it or refuse to discuss it. This represents denial on a grand scale. Vegans eat a plant-based diet. Their clothing and footwear have no connection with animal byproducts. By way of these boycotts, we show that life is possible without using animals - for anything!

If people feel guilty about animal cruelty, it's up to those of us who don't suffer those pangs of guilt to explain what is actually happening to animals on farms and abattoirs. But we don't need to make non-vegans feel even more guilty about what they eat or wear. Guilt won't achieve results if it's ramped up by those who will inevitably be perceived as self-righteous. Even though our job is tricky, we simply have to explain how things are without voicing disapproval. This will only slow down change. Assuming the facts are known, it comes down to deciding to make a fundamental alteration in the most primal feature of human nature - moving away from 'Me First' to 'Me Second'. It isn't a matter of idealised selflessness, just a consideration of 'the other' by developing our innate empathy. And this comes down to seeing animals more as equals than as inferiors.

If animals are to be freed, there will have to be large numbers of people feeling as horrified as vegans are by animal slavery. We don't need to alienate people unnecessarily or make them feel judged by us. But at the same time, they need to be completely clear about where we're coming from - to know that our aim is to not use animals for ANYTHING.

To achieve this, to get past the normality of using animals, we need to educate, not alienate. For our own morale, we might feel the need for support from others, but it's counter-productive to use force. Agreement needs to be voluntary and arise from empathy for the animals. The best support comes when the doors of agreement are opened without the assistance of any value judgement on our part. Vegans need to understand how difficult it is for those who've never known anything but an omnivorous diet, to consider changing to a plant-based eating regime. It's likely most people will see great difficulty ahead in making this sort of change. It's unlikely they'll expect it to be as easy as it actually is. But easy or hard, there should be no confusion about what we are saying - that it's not about how hard it might be for us; but how hard it is for them - living under the perpetual sentence of abuse and execution.

'Lacto-ovo-vegetarians' say they love animals and don't eat meat, but they tell only half the story. Vegans respond with the whole truth - the ugliness and betrayal involved in every aspect of animal farming including the dairy industry and egg production. We make boycotting of the entire animal-cruelty industries our number one priority. We emphasise that it's not about our own personal comforts, but about the wrongness of animal abuse. Of course, health considerations must be taken seriously. This means taking note of the advice of vegan nutritionists and vegan medical practitioners and then going on to enjoy all the great benefits of plant-based foods. But primarily, it's all about ethical principles. It's about developing empathy for animals whilst at the same time, achieving a clear conscience for ourselves.