But, it might be important for everyone to know that they are welcome in the world of “Veganism” if they wish to participate and support it. That is why it is important to cross any boundaries between people to deliver the vegan message and for all to know that they will be embraced in this movement.

It’s VO’s organizational choice to pursue this, but at least strategically, I think it’s a big mistake and radical turn from it’s original strategy. Any group can print up fliers and distribute them. Maybe it’s time for another “upstart” to do that.

I’m white and I’ve leafleted as a volunteer for Vegan Outreach in the past at HBCU schools, events, and festivals where I’m handing booklets to mostly black people here in NC. Rarely did I talk about racism or other human social problems when I got into conversations, and only when someone brought the topic up. I stayed on message by talking about how animals suffer and die for flesh, milk, and eggs and how everyone can make a difference by choosing plant-based foods instead. HBCU schools were often my favorite places to leaflet because the students were more friendly and welcoming than other schools with a more diverse population. It is patronizing to think that black people won’t listen to white people or care about animals if we aren’t talking about racism and other human social problems at the same time.

And lastly, I used to be a leftist who would sometimes talk about intersectionality when I ran a local animal rights group years ago. I learned from experience that it was ineffective, distracting, and exhausting. Effective advocacy is focused advocacy as that’s why the animal rights movement should focus on animals. Besides, there are exponentially more activists working to solve human social problems whereas other animals have the least amount of activists and the largest amount of victims who can benefit from animal rights activism.

Many people supported Vegan Outreach over the years because of the singular focus on promoting veganism to stop animal exploitation. What incentive does someone have to give if the think their donation will be wasted on talking about human social problems instead of working to end the mass enslavement, torture, and murder of nonhuman animals?

You want to listen to “people of color’s” voices? Here’s just one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4S2TZOdXAtQ

There’re A LOT of others saying very much the same thing.

In addition, the answer is clear when it comes to animal exploitation – go vegan. When talking about human social problems, there are many answers offered from across the political spectrum and choosing one way to answer these problems will only alienate those who have other answers.

Before anyone comments, let me just say I know all about racism and other human social problems. I have a sociology degree and have read many books, so my position has nothing to do with ignorance of the problem.