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Animal Rights Foundation of Florida promotes veganism in downtown Orlando

There are two things about this article that I find interesting.  The first is the way that the people who work with the ARFF explain why they do what they do.  The second is the objections raised by two of the people who said that they wouldn't become vegan. 


Animal Rights Foundation of Florida promotes veganism in downtown Orlando
  By Andy Ceballos

In advance of the Fourth of July holiday, the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida set up shop in downtown Orlando on Friday to promote veganism by providing free food samples and also to protest the treatment of animals in the meat industry.

Members from the foundation were on the corner of Church Street and Orange Avenue, providing samples of vegan hot doges and vegan Boca burgers. Bryan Wilson, Central Florida coordinator for the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida, said that being vegan is good for many reasons.

“It’s kinder for the environment, and it’s definitely nicer on the animals,” he said. “With more than nine billion animals being killed every year for food production, it’s unnecessary. We live happier diets, we live healthier diets, by adopting a vegan diet. Nothing has to die.”

Wilson said they host events like this one in advance of every major holiday in hopes of providing exposure to vegan alternatives for individuals. The AARF argues that modern factory farming creates cruelty to animals on a range of fronts, such as in Florida’s dairy industry and Florida’s egg industry. One example cited by them is that Florida’s heat makes life difficult for dairy cows, with the hot and wet conditions of the state creating health problems such as mastitis. The AARF said this is a common but serious infection of the mammary gland.

The AARF said cows are confined to buildings with fans in order to fight the heat, but this creates other health problems for the cows, such as having to stand on concrete and a lack of exercise. They argue that this creates common feet and leg injuries for the cows.

For those that find a vegan diet to be too expensive, Wilson argues the opposite.

“It can be done expensive, it can be done cheaper. Just like eating a meat-based diet can be done expensive, it can be done cheaply,” he said. “There have been studies done that show that a vegetarian diet is actually cheaper if you don’t buy all of the pre-processed foods.”

He also argues the plenty of protein can be found in vegan diets, despite the criticism that says otherwise.

“You get plenty of protein from the grains, from beans,” he said. “Many vegetable sources have a certain amount of protein, and because of the amount of protein that your standard American diet has in it, that’s why we have so many kidney problems, that’s why we have so many heart problems, is because we’re putting too much protein in our diet.”

Keila Villageas, a junior psychology major at UCF, was providing vegan samples on Friday as a member of the AARF. She said her love of animals drew her to the organization.

“I’m against animal cruelty and I don’t agree with how factory farms are treating animals,” she said. “Of course, I want to be healthy, but it’s more so for the animals. I just don’t like the way they’re treated.”

Rebecca Liebman, an office manager for a law firm, tried the products provided, and said she might consider eating them more regularly if the texture of the products were more like meat. She cited the example of the vegan Boca burger she tried.

“It doesn’t taste like meat. If you could find a way to get the texture to be more like meat, because beef is chewy and that sort of disintegrates in your mouth,” she said. “For me it’s all about texture. The flavor was good, but the texture wasn’t quite right.”

Jaclyn Mitchell, a sophomore psychology major at Seminole State College of Florida, also tried the products, but said she wouldn’t consider going vegan due to how she was raised.

“I’ve been raised on hunting and fishing and deer meat,” she said. “My life revolves around hunting, so there’s not much I can do about switching to vegan.”

 Please click here to visit the website that originally published the article.

For more information on the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida, visit www.animalrightsflorida.org.

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Shocking that someone who is getting a degree in psychology doesn't see their own filter regarding "how they were raised" and evidently refuses to critically think on the subject. So, now, we must figure out how to unpack that barrier, would simply pointing that out work or just entrench them? My guess is the latter. 

If research into the matter is any guide, then your guess is probably correct and we should generally expect people to become more entrenched in their beliefs when challenged.  

Eriyah Flynn said:

Shocking that someone who is getting a degree in psychology doesn't see their own filter regarding "how they were raised" and evidently refuses to critically think on the subject. So, now, we must figure out how to unpack that barrier, would simply pointing that out work or just entrench them? My guess is the latter. 

Once we expect that, then we must ourselves, not get emotional about it, when it happens, as our defensiveness and emotion is often the catalyst for their entrenched response.

I wanted to share an exchange I just had with a friend who just disclosed they are on the vegan path:

Eriyah Flynn

59 minutes ago

Eriyah Flynn

    • Just a quick question if you don't mind- did anything I post lead you in the direction of this idea, or did your primary influence to consider vegan living come from somewhere else?
      If any of your decision to go vegan was because of information I shared, what would you say is the most effective information?

      Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts on this with me as it helps me become more effective to have this feedback. You are also welcome to share your thoughts on anything I may do that you feel is ineffective.

      Thanks again!

      Their response:

  • 53 minutes ago
    • I never ate a lot of meat in general, and when I did it was mostly fish. IT was a decision made for my health more than anything and once I read a few of your posts and saw the different way in which I could still be perfectly healthy while being vegan, alternative food choices, vegan food that still did taste like meat (I tried a few things out).. I realized I could do this. I also posted a video a few months ago about a childhood cartoon I used to watch, Lambchop. I never even thought of how disgusting the name of this cartoon was until you pointed it out. I then began noticing other things that were similar. (Hyde PArk Steakhouse)-just the name itself... or the the bbq restaurant I went to in which had pigs cartoons (smiling) plastered all over the walls. I did research regarding the oceans being fished out, and realized I was contributing to that being mostly pescatarian. IT's a slow process.. but I am getting there. Knowing vegan recipes really helps out. I think people are more scared of a boring and bland diet than anything.

  • 40 minutes ago
    Eriyah Flynn
    • Thank you for your time in sharing I loved your story and what you thought about. It sounds like you do care about animals too, and I really think society needs permission to actually care about animals, unapologetically. I'm so glad that asking people to critically think about the euphemisms that our exploiters have developed to create the giant disconnect we have to what is really happening to support our present society begins to sink in. Reversing a lifetime of misinformation programming is not as easy as it seems....a lot of people fight that. There is no judgement and condemnation from where I'm sitting, my only desire is to strip away the deception and move forward. Where I usually find myself struggling, due to the severity and the gravity of what is happening, is when people find out, and don't care enough to change. It's one thing if they don't care about themselves, but we are a world, and not on an island, and what 7 Billion people do collectively, really matters. Thank you for caring enough to change, and I'm happy to help you any way I can.

  • 39 minutes ago
    • Thank you, Eriyah!

  • Eriyah Flynn
    32 minutes ago
    Eriyah Flynn
    • May I share your story, if you prefer, I will not disclose your name (if I can share your story, tell me if you want me to use your name)? I'm also tracking my efficacy numbers, may I consider you someone I've influenced?

  • 29 minutes ago
    • Yep, you can share my story.. though I prefer my name not to be listed right now (I've actually received a lot of criticism from my friends and am learning how to deal with my intro do the vegan diet (having to explain to others WHY I eat FOOD), and you can absolutely count me as someone you've influenced.

  • Eriyah Flynn
    21 minutes ago
    Eriyah Flynn
    • I feel you. I can also help you cope with the backlash you are experiencing. Stay strong sister. they will come around...

  • 17 minutes ago
    • Thanks so much. I am sure I'll be in touch with plenty of future questions

Good stuff!! Thanks for sharing. :)

Eriyah Flynn said:

I wanted to share an exchange I just had with a friend who just disclosed they are on the vegan path

“I’ve been raised on hunting and fishing and deer meat,” she said. “My life revolves around hunting, so there’s not much I can do about switching to vegan.”

I see this as an excuse, not a reason.  "There's not much I can do"  I heard these words often and often when I lived in South Africa during the years of apartheid.

"There's not much I can do" - yes, there is!

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