I recently spent some time chatting with Rip Esselstyn, the Ironman triathlete and former firefighter behind The Engine 2 Diet. Rip filled me in on his partnership with Whole Foods, the real solution to the health care crisis and why Costa Rica is the country to be. (Click here to check out my interview with Gene Stone, Rip’s cowriter on the book.)

Roseann Marulli: Hi, Rip. I know you have a lot going on right now, so thanks for taking the time to speak with us. The book came out about a year ago, right?

Rip: Let’s see—no, officially it came out February 25, 2009.

Roseann: Okay, so it’s almost a year and a half now, and you’re still touring and talking to people. What’s the reception been like? Are people resistant because you’re asking them to take the things out of their diet that they think make life worth living: meat, cheese, the whole nine?

At best, being a minority in the less-than-mainstream vegan/animal rights movement adds another layer to my feeling of otherness (I wear my quirkiness like a badge of honor), but sometimes it makes me feel a little lonely and worried for the state of health and social consciousness in my community. I wonder where all the other Black and Brown people are. Are they all "Lovin' it" at McDonald's or "Eatin' Good in the Neighborhood" Applebee's? Worse than having these questions myself is having White vegan people I barely know ask me, "How can we get more Black people in the movement?" Argh! I am tempted to give them Paul Mooney's phone number.

So when Sistah Vegan: Black Female Vegans Speak on Food, Identity, Health, and Society was finally released this Spring by Lantern Books I was ecstatic to own a copy and, thankfully, reading it was not a buzz kill.

Author and activist Mickey Z. will be the key-note speaker at this Sunday's Veggie Pride Parade. The parade begins at 11am in the West Village; he'll take the stage at 1pm in Union Square, where the parade ends. There will be additional speakers sharing the stage to educate the masses about the benefits of a veg diet but my vote goes to Mickey for being the most bad ass of the lot.

Mickey's books include The Murdering of My Years: Artists and Activists Making Ends Meet, 50 American Revolutions You're Not Supposed to Know: Reclaiming American Patriotism, and Self Defense for Radicals: A to Z Guide for Subversive Struggle--and he's published by some of the edgiest indie publishers around, such as Soft Skull Press, Disinformation Company, and PM Press. Oh, and Newsday called Mickey Z. a "professional iconoclast" and Time Out New York has referred to him as a "political provocateur."

SuperVegan: Well hello there Mr. Fancy Pants. How did you end up being the key-note speaker at this year's parade?

Mickey Z.: Wow, that's funny because I'm the furthest thing from fancy pants. I tend to wear my clothes until they fall off me. Anyway, I've known parade founder Pamela Rice for many years and she invited me to speak at the 2009 event. I ended up going on very late and reaching a much smaller crowd but Pamela said I still "stole the show." This year, well... I guess I got bumped all the way to the front of the line.

Gene Stone is an accomplished editor (Esquire magazine and Simon and Schuster are among his conquests) and writer (he’s authored books under his own name as well as ghostwriting for people like the medical directors of the Canyon Ranch health spa). One of Gene’s more recent projects was The Engine 2 Diet, which he penned with firefighter Rip Esselstyn (click here to read my interview with Rip.) Gene also had a hand in founding Stogo, one of NYC’s vegan ice cream shops.

SuperVegan: Hey, Gene, thanks for speaking with SuperVegan. When did you start transitioning to vegetarianism? And what 
prompted that change?

Gene Stone: I think it was about 20 years now—I just didn’t feel good about eating animals. Also, I was reading more and more about the negative effects of animal protein on the body. But I wasn’t ready to make the full vegan shift yet.



SV: So it was more of a health issue than an ethical one for you?

GS: It was both. I found it hard to look my cats in the eyes when I was eating their mammalian relatives, even if they would have been delighted to do the same.

SV: In winter 2001, you coauthored The Engine 2 Diet with firefighter Rip Esselstyn. How did you end up working together?

Co-author of the vegan household cookbooks Veganomicon and Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World with Isa Moskowitz, Terry Hope Romero has gone solo for her latest cookbook, Viva Vegan!, a foray into Latin flavor. I caught up with her via e-mail to dish about the new cookbook.

Robyn Lazara: Tell us about the new cookbook.

Terry Hope Romero: Viva Vegan! is the most personal of cookbooks I’ve done to date. Also my first solo work. All cookbooks are personal in nature and this book feels even more so…it’s all about how I would want popular Latin American dishes and flavors “translated” for the vegan home kitchen. I wanted a vegan mofongo (with “chicharron” bits) so here I go with a recipe for the classic Caribbean fried plantain mash with bits of smoky tofu in for good measure…that’s Viva Vegan! in a nutshell.

In addition to that I wanted to make sure that a little bit of many of the different Latin American cultures was represented in this book. My roots are Venezuelan raised within the Latin-Caribbean influences of the North Eastern US. Mexican cuisine is wildly popular all over most of America so I had to add things like tacos and enchiladas, and I’m currently fascinated by Peruvian food. I go buckwild for tamales and empanadas, so entire chapters are dedicated just to that. This book is very much a dream menu for me of Latin American food done vegan-style.

RL: What's your favorite recipe from the book?

THR: For sheer decadence and relative ease (once you have the basic ingredients prepared) I adore the Cubano Vegano sandwich. It’s extremely rich and rather not “vegan” tasting with the only vegetable represented being a few pickle slices.

But for something lighter and more veggie-ful I recommend the Avocado Palm Heart Ceviche. Whips up together in a few minutes, and while it’s outrageous served with hot tostones (fried green plantain chips), it’s also great with jicama slices or tortilla chips. (Recipe below!)

Vegan kids especially need books that affirm their values and allow them to explore issues around human-animal relations that most cultural artifacts -- and other children in your vegan child's world -- tend to overlook.  Books are one way adults can support the vegan children in their lives while creating opportunities to spend time together.  Here are a few titles to get you started. 

1. Who Is the Beast? by Keith Baker - Ages 0-8* 
Available in board book and paperback, Keith Baker’s Who Is the Beast? is a visual treat that delivers a powerful message to boot.  The rhyming story follows a lone tiger through the jungle and reveals his surprise when other animals recoil at his presence.  In the end, the tiger revisits each of the animals and points out what they have in common.  Not only does this book emphasize that we are all animals, but it offers a nice parable for addressing the feelings that arise from being different. 

2. Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey - Ages 2-5 
When a girl and her mother go out to collect blueberries, the little girl accidentally switches places with a bear cub who is out foraging blueberries with his own mother.  Without anthropomorphizing the bears, this book teaches us that all mommas love their babies and that being careful around wildlife is not the same thing as being fearful. 


3. Horton Hears a Who! by Dr. Seuss - Ages 3-8
You might remember Horton the elephant as the faithful guardian of an egg in Dr. Seuss’s classic Horton Hatches the Egg.  In Horton Hears a Who!, Horton’s giant ears allow him to hear the very, very small people who inhabit a dust speck – even when everyone around him insists no one is there.  The book’s refrain, “A person’s a person, no matter how small,” is a good reminder that all sentient beings deserve our respect – and we would all do well to emulate Horton’s bravery in the face of adversity. 

Moby is a successful musician and DJ. He's an outspoken vegan and animal advocate--and a dedicated New Yorker.

Moby hit my radar over a decade ago when he released his CD Animal Rights. I was struck by the title, of course, and found it an energetic, righteous manifesto full of indignation and surprisingly hummable melodies. A few years later he gained international acclaim with the release of Play.

Moby is now expanding on his long history of animal advocacy with Gristle, a collection of essays by animal advocates and experts, co-edited with Miyun Park. Miyun is a long-time animal advocate and Executive Director of Global Animal Partnership. Written for meat-eaters and animal activists alike, Gristle is a short, readable book that packs in a comprehensive overview of the issues.

Come party with Moby and Miyun on Tuesday April 6 in Brooklyn to celebrate the launch of Gristle.

Moby answered SuperVegan's burning questions via email.

Q: What inspired you and Miyun to come up with the idea for Gristle?
Moby: We realized that most people were unaware of the horrifying consequences and ramifications of factory farming.

What does a world without animal exploitation look like to you?
Simply: better. A world where people and animals and the environment are all happier and healthier and better fed.

What are the first three laws you'll put in place when you become Moby the Benevolent World Dictator?

"This is the book I wish I had had to give the meat-eaters in my life so they would understand me, and how they and I could have such a different perspective on the same issue." This statement from Melanie Joy about her new book, Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows: An Introduction to Carnism, might seem a little forward, but she's right.

Before you roll your eyes and shrug carnism off as another "ism," let Melanie explain it to you, which she does so eloquently in the interview below.

I will tell you that almost ten years ago, while I was editor of Satya Magazine, Melanie Joy submitted an article introducing the concept of carnism. She was working on her Ph.D. in psychology at the time and it was a little earnest and ambitious. Still, the editorial staff was intrigued and persuaded by her argument and we published it. I really wasn't sure where the idea would go from there. Back then, she was arguing to restructure language. Now she's talking about transforming our culture. And, again, she's right.

Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows is an elegantly-written description of why people eat meat. The argument is subtle but her writing is very approachable, with a friendly tone and low on the use of academic jargon. For me, it's the most thought-provoking book about how animals are perceived culturally since The Sexual Politics of Meat by Carol Adams (which had a big influence on me). I will leave it at that and let Melanie take it from here...

SV: Have you had any really surprising responses to your book so far?
MJ: Yes. I've been on a couple of radio shows in the Southwest--"cattle country"--and the reception has been surprisingly positive. Carnists and hunters have called in saying they agree with the precedent of the book. They care about animals too and are against factory farms. A lot of mainstream meat-eating readers have responded positively.

Why DO we love dogs, eat pigs, and wear cows?
Because the invisible system that I call "carnism" conditions us to love certain animals and eat others. Carnism teaches us not to feel when it comes to the animals we consume. Our natural way of responding to other animals appears to be based on empathy. One way we can see that: meat-eating societies around the world eat only a handful of species and find the idea of eating others disgusting. This is because carnism blocks our awareness and empathy when it comes to the species we have deemed edible.

When Andy Stepanian and Dara Lovitz gave a talk on SHAC7 and the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act (AETA) at NYU Law School on Tuesday, most of the audience came half-expecting to hear a legal seminar (Lovitz is the author of Muzzling a Movement). Almost no one expected to laugh or cry with inspiration before the talk ended, although almost everyone did. (We interviewed Andy before this event.)

This was not a speech or a classroom teaching. Dara spoke so candidly about the absurdities of animal enterprise terrorism laws that even the law students had to start laughing with her. Andy spoke so painfully earnestly to everyone that few had dry eyes by the end of the talk. No one walked away depressed, though, as the duo were determined to show everyone exactly how much potential we all have to effect positive change, despite how much money and effort the animal enterprises dump into making us feel powerless and small.

Dara, the lawyer, spoke first. And the takeaway of her talk wasn't "the history and overview of AETA," but rather just how impressively unconstitutional the AETA is, and how it managed to be drafted anyway. She explained very frankly how a series of unconscionably illegal laws culminating in AETA were pulled over everyone's eyes through passionately written passages. Passages about how animal activists victimize dying people who can only get a cure through animal testing. Passages that literally say that we owe so much of our lives to the selfless people in charge of the factory farm industry. And she put us face to face with how so many of our senators and policymakers are CEO's and beneficiaries of devastating animal enterprises.

PETA's Vegan College Cookbook: 275 Easy, Cheap, and Delicious Recipes to Keep You Vegan at School is aimed at students living in dorms, an experience I am a decade removed from. Still, I remain a fan of tasty food made cheaply and easily so this book excites me. Yes, nearly all the recipes are carb heavy, many are of questionable nutritional value, and most involve very few fresh vegetables beyond onions, but that's how college is. Shit is real! You don't have time to be sprouting mung beans and basting turducken. You've got books to read and beer to drink!

Frankly, I'm amazed at all the things you can make in a microwave (including cake!). So far I've only made spaghetti and meat sauce. While the sauce—thick with Gimme Lean—was deliciously seasoned, the pasta was a mushy nightmare I am loath to revisit. Though preparing a meal in a microwave is more like a science experiment than cooking, there is fun to be had, and possibly even a tasty cake or two to be eaten. I can't wait to start nuking more things! I think every microwave should come with a copy of this animal-friendly book.

Try some of the recipes now on PETA2.com!