In the brief time I've allowed my mind to be made aware of the bureaucratic atrocities taking place around us, hiding in plain sight under the provisions of commerce, science, religion, tradition or civilization, I was at the same time made aware of how little control we allowed ourselves over it and how much power we actually have within us yet to change things for the better. After all, this is how change has always been made; enough individuals made the right choices.
Veganism, while not obligatory, has helped me adhere to many moral obligations I and many others have conveniently chosen to leave to designated authorities to dictate. It returned to me the power to voice my rights as a human as well as provide a fighting chance for the voiceless. It re-aligned my innate moral cognition with my everyday choices and for that alignment of both prosperity and compassion I am eternally grateful.
That being said, this issue involves far more than the moral welfare of a society. As directly related as it is to the lives of individuals, their health, livelihood and the ecosystem that sustains them, this is also more directly related to the animals themselves, the true victims, the systematic abuse of whom has been the ultimate "inconvenient truth" since slavery.
I am writing this in the wake of Eid Al-Adha, literally translated as the festival of sacrifice. This Islamic holiday is based on charity and the spirit of giving. Children are given money from every employed citizen in a fascinating display of generosity and opulence, whereas the impoverished and those in greater need of monetary sustenance are given slaughtered livestock, a most unsustainable food that last a few days and requires nationwide bloodshed in the name of a religion that, through its own scripture, promotes the relinquishment of all barbaric, archaic traditions that have no place in a humane society. Most Muslims don't even realize that sacrificial slaughter isn't an obligation-- that there are more humane and far more sustainable alternatives like fasting and donating money or more sustainable cruelty-free foods to charities.
There is NEVER a need for ritual slaughter. There is no mirth in the sorrow of other beings. Halal, kosher or otherwise, I will not take part in celebrating our dominion over others.
After 25 "Eid Al-Adha"s of feasting and splurging, this year I have found myself in mourning. My family is extra jubilant since my father was able to perform hajj this year well into his 70's, and I'm sitting here weeping on the side of every other road where entire herds of fat fluffy happy sheep are being sold by the hundreds to their demise, most by overworked, underpaid immigrants desperate for employment without minimal qualifications to properly perform "halal" slaughter, leaving the animal in even more immense pain for a tragically longer period of time.
Nope. I will not involve myself in this tradition any longer and I'm creating this blog in the hopes of reaching others like myself and just maybe manage to save a few more innocent lives from being the victims of obsolete tradition. Here's hoping that by next year, we will learn to extend our charity to other beings as well as our own.
Being sentient of the sentient and extending that awareness to your everyday life is the most profound and rewarding form of worship you could ever hope to achieve.
Be kind.
Veganism, while not obligatory, has helped me adhere to many moral obligations I and many others have conveniently chosen to leave to designated authorities to dictate. It returned to me the power to voice my rights as a human as well as provide a fighting chance for the voiceless. It re-aligned my innate moral cognition with my everyday choices and for that alignment of both prosperity and compassion I am eternally grateful.
That being said, this issue involves far more than the moral welfare of a society. As directly related as it is to the lives of individuals, their health, livelihood and the ecosystem that sustains them, this is also more directly related to the animals themselves, the true victims, the systematic abuse of whom has been the ultimate "inconvenient truth" since slavery.
I am writing this in the wake of Eid Al-Adha, literally translated as the festival of sacrifice. This Islamic holiday is based on charity and the spirit of giving. Children are given money from every employed citizen in a fascinating display of generosity and opulence, whereas the impoverished and those in greater need of monetary sustenance are given slaughtered livestock, a most unsustainable food that last a few days and requires nationwide bloodshed in the name of a religion that, through its own scripture, promotes the relinquishment of all barbaric, archaic traditions that have no place in a humane society. Most Muslims don't even realize that sacrificial slaughter isn't an obligation-- that there are more humane and far more sustainable alternatives like fasting and donating money or more sustainable cruelty-free foods to charities.
There is NEVER a need for ritual slaughter. There is no mirth in the sorrow of other beings. Halal, kosher or otherwise, I will not take part in celebrating our dominion over others.
After 25 "Eid Al-Adha"s of feasting and splurging, this year I have found myself in mourning. My family is extra jubilant since my father was able to perform hajj this year well into his 70's, and I'm sitting here weeping on the side of every other road where entire herds of fat fluffy happy sheep are being sold by the hundreds to their demise, most by overworked, underpaid immigrants desperate for employment without minimal qualifications to properly perform "halal" slaughter, leaving the animal in even more immense pain for a tragically longer period of time.
Nope. I will not involve myself in this tradition any longer and I'm creating this blog in the hopes of reaching others like myself and just maybe manage to save a few more innocent lives from being the victims of obsolete tradition. Here's hoping that by next year, we will learn to extend our charity to other beings as well as our own.
Being sentient of the sentient and extending that awareness to your everyday life is the most profound and rewarding form of worship you could ever hope to achieve.
Be kind.
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