What My Vegan Bestfriend Knows About Vegans @ Your Dinner

So, a little introduction, you are my bestfriend of almost 13 years. We pretty much know everything

about each other. We know each other’s coming out stories. [L: Laughs, yeah] I was there for your college basketball signing day. And we’ve stayed friends since graduating in 2011. [L: Yeah.] Okay, now to the interview.

E: How long have you been vegan?

L: I’ve been vegan for about a year and a half now.

What is Veganism?

To me, Veganism has a threefold effect: your nutrition, the decrease of animal cruelty and then the environment. So you’re more conscious about those 3 things just based on what you’re putting into mouth. What kind of foods you have in your home, just the everyday decision you make about what you eat. Because It’s a daily decision that we all make. So just being more conscious about that decision we make so often. It’s just caring more about the health benefits of food instead of the taste.

What do Vegans really feel when they see meat at a dinner?

Well I can’t speak for all vegans but I have eaten meat for 25 years. So it doesn’t disgust me. It’s something I know I would never want to go back to eating. Because when you first start making the transition into Veganism, it’s hard because you’ve been eating meat and dairy all your life. But after a while the cravings stop. It may gross some people out but it doesn’t gross me out. But it’s just like, why would you wanna eat that? [E: Yeah] It’s literally animal flesh. I’m not at all interested in eating it ever again. But I try not to judge people who do because as I said I ate meat for 25 years.

E: I’ve actually cut back on my meat intake a lot over the past few years too. I barely eat hot dogs and bologna and stuff like that. I’m really only trying to buy stuff that is more on the healthy side. Or something that I feel is not as cruel as the other companies but I don’t have the willpower to completely cut it out.

And I think that’s good too. Just cutting back on the more processed meats and eating more local farm-raised.

E: And there is a lot of local meat in the stores.

Is it uncomfortable for you when people ask if you’re uncomfortable around meat?

No, because I respect people’s curiosity. I do get a lot of questions. I guess people aren’t used to knowing a black Vegan. Or just a Vegan in general, some people. So I get a lot of questions out of curiosity so when people ask if I’m uncomfortable I just say no. Somebody asked me that the other day and I just said no, you’re good. What I eat shouldn’t bother you and what you eat shouldn’t bother me.

Do you mind when there are little Vegan options at a dinner?

If I’m going to dinner at someone’s house I don’t always expect them to accommodate me. I usually go with the idea that they won’t have many options for me. I went to a cookout at one of my coworker’s house and they had normal BBQ food. And I had some rice and vegetables. [laughs] Which was fine. [E: And they already had that?] Yeah, it was just something he pulled out of his cabinet. It wasn’t, you know… it was like a microwaved bag of Spanish Rice and microwaveable vegetables. [laughs] But I kind of expect that you don’t have to go out of your way. I can eat before I go. It’s more about the outing.

E: Yeah, if they know beforehand they should have something. Like some f*cking Hummus or

something. Well that leads us to my next question. How do you want people to feel about the vegan option that you bring to a non-vegan dinner?

I’ve seen people come to restaurants with their own food just to host a dinner before.

If I brought a Vegan dish I would hope that they would be open-minded. Because people have their thing that vegans only eat salads and our food is really bland. And that’s not the case at all. So I would want them to be open to trying something new. If it’s something they’ve never tried before. You know, it’s just food!

I know we’ve kind of already answered this one but, Is it okay morally for someone to eat

non-vegan in front of you?

Yeah, I can definitely share a meal with someone that eats meat. I do it often. It doesn’t bother me.

Now for our final question. What is one sentence you would say to others about a Vegan at their dinner? [L: One sentence… about a vegan at their dinner…] Yes, one sentence to the non-vegan host for the Vegan guest.

I would say we’re making a good decision for our health and we’re not harming animals. It’s a lifestyle choice and there’s no reason to feel uncomfortable with a Vegan eating with you.

E: Okay well I’m gonna get this edited up. Thank you for your time. Now let’s turn this off and catch up!

Consider The People Who Make A Choice To Eat Cleaner.

-Erran C

Bold: Interviewer Regular: Interviewee Brackets: Interjection