All over the world millions of people refuse to condone the killing of animals for food. But when do you hear about it?

And so opens the home page of Veggie Pride, the now-annual parade in Paris.

And more power to the Parisians, I say. Where else would we hear about pride than in Gay Par-ree?

The question remains: Why haven’t vegans and vegetarians in the rest of the world jumped on this trend, that is by organizing parades in our own cities?

People who know me know how I lament to the core how veganism in the collective mind of the public is so invisible, so non-viable, and generally so attacked. Other groups would have long established their own anti-defamation league.

I mean, how could a vegetarian-maligner like Tony Bourdain have become such a darling? Known for Kitchen Confidential (the book) and now No Reservations (the Travel Channel), Bourdain fears no one when he says, "Vegetarians are the enemy of everything good and decent in the human spirit, an affront to all I stand for."

But his is only the most explicit of the anti-veg sentiment out there. Much of it is much more subtle but no less destructive.

So, what to do? I say, start yelling!

Enter Veggie Pride—thank you, you uppity people from France. It’s a new idea that hopes to take vegans and vegetarians out of the little ghetto into which we’ve been placed.

It’s a chance for vegans and vegetarians to make some noise for once. It’s a chance for us to shout out to the world: Our diet is a lot more than just another peculiar dietary lifestyle. There are profound reasons why we eat the way we do, and they actually concern all of us, vegan and meat eater alike.

Veggie Pride day is May 20th this year, in Paris.

Next May, let’s have Veggie Pride in New York City. Or bust. Or shall we continue to walk around with our tails between our legs?

2 Comments

1. 
   Comment by

   Rahkoon

   on February 23, 2008 at 1:26 pm #

   Hi everybody,
   If you wanna see videos of the Parisian Veggie Pride :
   http://video.google.fr/videoplay?docid=7177891039716294798&q=veggie+pride+2006&total=2&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0

   http://video.google.fr/videoplay?docid=1370601456854793481&q=veggie+pride+2006&total=2&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=1

   http://www.dailymotion.com/relevance/search/veggie%2Bpride%2B2006

   Enjoy :)

2. 
   Comment by

   Gina

   on May 20, 2008 at 7:54 am #

   Here are some great photos of the parade, enjoy:
   Click on the picture of the banner veggie pride parade and there are 3 pages of photos there.
   http://www.teamorganicnyc.com/
   http://www.teamorganicnyc.com/gallery_05_18_08.html