Defending Veganism, Defending Animal Rights

by Gerfried Ambrosch

Veganism has come under attack from all sorts of groups. The one that baffles me the most is the anti-vegan left. Why on earth would leftists and anarchists be opposed to veganism given that it relates to one of the most pressing social justice issues of our time: animal rights? Well, they have their arguments, of course: they talk about the green-washing of capitalism and about classism; they associate veganism with middle-class consumerism and bourgeois reformism; they call it unnatural; they deny its societal and environmental impact; they dismiss the concept of rights altogether. This is a relatively new phenomenon. Veganism used to be closely linked to the political struggle against oppression. But now that it has reached the mainstream, it has lost much of its radical appeal; it is no longer considered sexy among young radicals. However, this attitude towards veganism is based on a fallacy. The arguments for veganism easily withstand all of the criticism coming from the anti-vegan left, as this essay demonstrates."

Genres: Nonfiction

39 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2016

Reviews

[Jerre · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the whole a nice rebuttal of Gelderloos' points, though the dismissal of some elements with a simple "whatever that means" is rather disappointing and obviously unconvincing.
I would've also liked to see an answer to the "but without the meat industry these animals wouldn't live to begin with and who are humans to decide what is a worthy life for animals?" angle. Not a good argument for defending the more egregious kind of farms but it becomes more interesting to address in case of the more 'ethical' farms (insofar as animal farms can be ethical).

[Tanel · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is literally zero arguments against veganism.

[Jim Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this!

I honestly expected this to be not-so-great, some generic vegan arguments, possibly poorly written. I figured it wouldn't be terrific but that I'd read it anyway. It's short, it was cheap, I like the book store I bought it from and look for excuses to give them my money, etc.

It's a rebuttal to "Veganism: Why Not" by Peter Gelderloos. Gelderloos's booklet, which I haven't read, is apparently a pro-anarchist/anti-vegan screed accusing the vegan movement of all sorts of anti-revolutionary awfulness. Ambrosch's rebuttal is well-done, detailed, almost funny at times, just solid all around. And while it is a rebuttal to a specific tract, it makes points and touches on topics that are more universal. Gelderloos's positions (again, I haven't read his piece) sound ridiculous and trivial and ugly, but sadly it's the kind of thinking that shows up all over the place in Leftist circles (even within the vegan community itself to one degree or another). The response here is applicable to so many others.

Anyway, nice, short read. Definitely worth the time. Far happier with this than I had any right to expect to be.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Totally destroys all the nonsense put forward by Peter Gelderloos in Veganism: Why Not. I'm glad someone wrote this amazing counter piece. The case for veganism remains undefeated.

[Red Johnston · Rating 3 out of 5]

It cited Wikipedia???

[Sorkunde · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliantly-written counterargument against Gelderloo's booklet 'Veganism, why not - an Anarchist perspective'. Ambrosch defies all nonsensical arguments against ethical veganism, one by one.