Do Vegans Dislike Non-Vegans?

2047:

Not all vegans dislike non-vegans, but our image precedes us. Our unfair reputation (as people-haters) is part of what we’re known for. We’ve used confrontation in the past but it’s no longer a matter of getting noticed or getting our message ‘out’. Today we just need solid facts at our fingertips so that we can speak outrageously BUT without value-judging the people we’re talking to. And that might mean withholding information as much as delivering it.

Having said that, I have to admit there’s nothing’s better than a good stoush with a meat-eater!! It’s a release from the frustration of being ignored - whatever our motives for educating others, we must have some fun for ourselves, if only to preserve our sanity. To that end there’s nothing like stirring people up for giving us a good feeling.

But in the end, it all comes down to effectiveness - how what we say is taken in. How we, as advocates, are accepted.

Talking up Animal Rights always brings on heat. If anything, it’s a ‘stir-up’. But that’s quite distinct from getting aggressive about his subject. That can be the face of some who represent animal groups. If we do get some press or TV coverage of issues, it might seems like real progress, but it doesn’t get us far in the long run if we still come across as angry people. Some vegans are so consumed with anger we wear it like body odour.

It can look like wanting revenge! We can’t make people see the error of their ways by making them feel uncomfortable, or wake them up? And we won’t stimulate change if we talk down to people, or if we doubt them, or if there’s disapproval in our voice. If we’re always condemnatory it looks as if we expect them never to change.