The notion that animals are not self-aware is based on nothing more than a stipulation that the only way to be self-aware is to have the self-awareness of a normal adult human. That is certainly one way to be self-aware. It’s not the only way.
Sentience is a means to the end of continued existence. Sentient beings, by virtue of their being sentient, have an interest in remaining alive; that is, they prefer, want, or desire to remain alive.
Veganism is not about giving anything up or losing anything; it is about gaining the peace within yourself that comes from embracing nonviolence and refusing to participate in the exploitation of the vulnerable.
Veganism is an act of nonviolent defiance. It is our statement that we reject the notion that animals are things and that we regard sentient nonhumans as moral persons with the fundamental moral right not to be treated as the property or resources of humans.
The idea that we have the right to inflict suffering and death on other sentient beings for the trivial reasons of palate pleasure and fashion is, without doubt, one of the most arrogant and morally repugnant notions in the history of human thought.
Veganism is not a “sacrifice.” It is a joy.
You cannot live a nonviolent life as long as you are consuming violence. Please consider going vegan.
All sentient beings should have at least one right – the right not to be treated as property.
Veganism is not a limitation in any way; it’s an expansion of your love, your commitment to nonviolence, and your belief in justice for all.
If you love animals but think that veganism is extreme, then you are confused about the meaning of love.
If you think that being vegan is difficult, imagine how difficult it is for animals that you are not vegan.
If we can live and prosper without killing, why would we not do so? I do not see veganism as ‘extreme’ in any way. I see killing for no reason as extreme in every way.
You don’t have to love animals to recognize that it is immoral and unjust to exploit them. But if you do love animals, but you continue to participate in their exploitation, you need to rethink your idea of what love means.
Being vegan provides us with the peace of knowing that we are no longer participants in the hideous violence that is animal exploitation.
Every time you drink a glass of milk or eat a piece of cheese, you harm a mother. Please go vegan.
Humans treat animals as things that exist as means to human ends. That’s morally wrong. Sexism promotes the idea that women are things that exist as means to the ends of men. That’s morally wrong. We need to stop treating all persons – whether human or nonhuman – as things.
People need to be educated so that they can make intelligent moral choices.
Speciesism is morally objectionable because, like racism, sexism, and heterosexism, it links personhood with an irrelevant criterion. Those who reject speciesism are committed to rejecting racism, sexism, heterosexism, and other forms of discrimination as well.