VEGANS WORKING A NON-VEGAN JOB
As a vegan, you are avoiding any kind of animal cruelty, although some vegans still rely on their non-vegan jobs or partly-vegan jobs in order to make a living. Nowadays there are more and more vegan jobs, as the movement is growing and society waking up to the horrific ongoing cruelty. But doing what you love most, can get you in touch with non-vegans and non-vegan-friendly jobs in order to follow your passion. Vegans though are needed in all kinds of employment, in order to make a change around them and within their job area.
CHOICES, POSSIBILITIES, AND OPPORTUNITIES
As the vegan movement is growing by the minute, vegan jobs are increasing for sure as of the interest and movement towards a vegan and non-violent world, but it’s not yet easy to find one at every corner and in every business scene.
It’s definitely a grey area and most vegans don’t have a choice in order to truly survive – speaking of being able to pay their bills and risk debts and a social breakdown. We do still live in a non-vegan world and our options are surely limited. Every vegan will look for a vegan job, but it’s not as easy as it sounds.
‘YOU’RE NOT REALLY VEGAN’
‘YOU’RE NOT REALLY VEGAN, BECAUSE YOU TAKE MONEY FROM A NON-VEGAN COMPANY: THIS IS NOT MORAL AND VEGAN’.
This is a statement you can be confronted with, mostly (very ironically) meat eaters, who are the least people who actually have a saying and should be criticizing others on what’s moral or not. They feel attacked in their own doings, that’s why they often try to devalue vegans by pointing out possible inconsistencies a vegan often has no choice because their consciousness of knowing what is right or wrong automatically devalues them. Common devalues often are:
You also have a phone and a computer, it has parts in it, which are derived from animals.
Do you drive a car?
Are these shoes leather shoes?
You sell meat products at that cafe you’re working at. … etc.
♥ Read more about ‘Common Anti-Vegan Appeals and Fallacies’ HERE
The truth though is, that taking money from a non-vegan company is not immoral and causing harm, but actually spending that money on dead animal seen as food is. Of course, when you’re working at a company, which sells animal products, you’re indirectly supporting that industry by your skills and doings. (Sad) Reality is though, that we’re still living in a non-vegan (business) world and often we can’t choose a 100 % ethically vegan jobs in order to pay our bills. Of course, any vegan wouldn’t want to have to deal with it, as it is a burden to be constantly confronted with what you’re standing and fighting against and vegans always will try to switch to a moral vegan job.
VEGAN OR NOT VEGAN
Although no one can either be 100 % vegan (non-vegans love to point that out, as of the animals in crops killed – thank you, we’re totally aware of that) nor the so-called ‘I’m 95 % vegan’ (read HERE) – you can either be vegan or not. You can either live by the definition of vegan or choose to participate in the ongoing cruelty. Being vegan absolutely depends on from where you’re looking at it. From what perspective and what topic, to what extent and practicable possible. Whether you’re depending on something or not. And we, in the western world are surely not depending on animals for food, clothing, entertainment, and makeup. Our life might though depend on the job we’re having because it’s our income and therefore pays our bills.
In my opinion, it’s the kind of job you’re practicing and the extent. For example, working at a slaughterhouse: those people are poor people and they don’t want to cut throats of innocent beings for a living. They often have to deal with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), violence towards others and even self-suicidal thoughts.
Working at a butchery is unethical and of course non-vegan and in my opinion unacceptable and anyone would get out of it immediately – no questioning – and you will immediately when you wake up to the truth. But working as a waiter or cook you often can’t get around serving meat. There are often vegan options for each job, it’s just a matter of time and ethical limit when someone tries to switch jobs because their doings don’t align with their beliefs.
It can be frustrating to feel like we as vegans are not taken seriously by the tasks we often have to do of our respective workplaces. Don’t let others drag you down, only because they try to make you look bad. People criticizing others, often do anything at all to stop the biggest problem of all: the animal food industry.
NON-VEGAN CO-WORKERS
When you’re not working a vegan job, or even if you’re working a vegan job it means you run the high possibility of having non-vegan coworkers. I know this comes with a 99.9 % chance, that you have to undergo stupid, harsh and unnecessary comments over the dead bodies of innocent beings, jokes on cruelty and the downgrading of your consciously chosen diet. I’ve been there, and I’m also telling you that lots of them go beyond the pale and you do not have to be quiet and just cope with those comments. You can actually tell your coworkers or even your boss, that it was an unnecessary, useless and cruel comment, but say it factual and strict. Don’t swear.
Let people know your personal borders and when you believe it crossed a line, hurt you and is heading straight down the workplace harassment road – if meant as a joke or not, it doesn’t matter. You don’t have to take anything from anyone if it makes you feel uncomfortable. Always speak up! If not for you, do it for the animals, because most jokes are about their dead mutilated bodies.
EATING WITH NON-VEGANS AT A WORKPLACE
This is actually something which a lot of vegans find hard and almost impossible to do. This, of course, depends on personal choices, if you as the vegan even want to eat with non-vegans. I didn’t mind a long time, because I was focusing on my own food. The longer I was vegan – especially when I became a street activist and got overall educated more and because I was dealing with much more emotions – the more I realized how disgusting I think it is, to sit at a table with others and they’re consuming what I as a vegan stand up for and on the streets each week.
This can easily make you a misfit (only because of cruel human norms), but I/we see it this way: at least I am true to myself. Everyone sees this differently and has to set his/her own rules. I personally do avoid eating with non-vegans. In the past I’ve been eating with non-vegans at events, when I thought I didn’t have a different choice, but I do. Kevin and I took The Liberation Pledge to set another sign and speak out a different way for the animals.
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AND BELIEFS ON NON-VEGAN ELEMENTS OF A JOB
I for myself worked as an employed graphic designer, freelance illustration and lettering artists and as a model. These businesses can be quite unethical when having certain clients and I never wanted to do anything that wouldn’t meet my ethical beliefs.
I’m a freelance content creator, graphic designer and illustratin artist now and I would never do any design for non-vegan companies like the milk and dairy industry, the fur and leather industry – even though I would depend on the money. As an animal activist I could not justify it in any way supporting this dirty industry that’s exploiting and murderng innocent beings and manipulates humans into funding it.
This doesn’t meet my ethical and moral interests at all and doesn’t go together with my personal moral beliefs. I would be truly dishonest towards myself and that is something I couldn’t live with.
When modeling for tfp projects (‘free of charge’, photos are the payment of all participants), I switched from ‘it needs to be at least cruelty-free makeup’ to ‘it has to be a 100 % vegan makeup’ to be absolutely consistent in my views and beliefs.
Some may say “the damage has already been done” by the makeup artists and it’s not You buying and therefore demanding a product. By not choosing a vegan makeup when the choice is in your hands I personally would say it’s convenience and it’s diffidence – and I know what I’m talking about because I’ve been there. And I had to learn out of those experiences. I realized for myself I don’t want, when my choice, any cruelty on my face.
By demanding vegan makeup, you give the makeup artist the opportunity to face up to a very important ethical issue of their job, which they have to think about what they’re supporting: animal exploitation and animal testing and the killing of animals. Makeup artists can only grow from this. Of course, there will be some who wouldn’t want to work under these ‘restrictions’, but then we won’t find a way to work together on something that could be truly wonderful and kind.
BRIGHT FUTURE
The world is changing. The businesses are and if they aren’t they will be forced to by numbers in the future. Veganism is the fastest growing movement in history and therefore we can definitely predict a bright future concerning ethical jobs and in general vegan jobs. Vegan jobs will increase as the vegan community increases day by day. There’s a bright light at the end of the tunnel. Hang in there!
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Please note: All definitions of words and/or stated facts are based on the correct terminology and are carefully research and the sources taken are linked here or directly in the blog post. This blog post is also stating a personal opinion and views on certain topics.
All shown illustrations and graphics are our own and are highly restricted to be copied and used freely, without any permission.
Sources
Research and Opinion / Ecorazzi – You’re still a vegan if your job isn’t
