u/PuzzledPoetry1447

Hello all. I am newly vegan, having been vegetarian since the beginning of this year. I am currently going through the phase of struggling with how pervasive and omnipresent animal products and how so many people seem to not care. I am not having trouble with the food part, going vegan has actually expanded my palate and nutritional intake quite a bit! But I am really struggling with my favorite sport. I think sport as a whole is one of man’s finest creations - it instills good habits, community building skills, and physical health, but the scale of baseball’s use of animal products is staggering. Every ball (and I cannot even begin to quantify how many are used per season across all levels) and basically every mitt are leather. There are some synthetic gloves for kids, and one brand was doing them a while back, but the creator got folded into one of the big companies that only uses leather. I don’t know how to reconcile this. I know investment into alternative leathers could possibly fix this problem, but I also am wary of the petroleum usage that could arise. I can compartmentalize buying secondhand products for my own usage, I would rather it not go to waste, but as far as new products go, I feel I cannot in good conscience proselytize what I consider to be the best sport there is and even watching it on my own is getting hard to do. The only thing I can think of is getting an animal sanctuary to use hides after a cow has lived its’ natural lifespan to reduce the demand for animal ag products. I imagine many vegans would not like that though. I’m at a loss. Please, anyone that has been where I’m at, tell me where you landed. It just sucks. 😔

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I know what it's like to have ZERO support when it comes to being vegetarian/vegan. I truly wish you well on your journey and want to congratulate you on being strong enough to hold your ground and stand by the decision not to eat meat. Take your time and be kind to yourself, you're clearly making an effort.

I posted these three comments, my only interactions on the subreddit entirely:

Edited to add comments here as they've been removed.

One (I doubt this is the reason I was banned but I'll include it) https://www.reddit.com/r/communism/s/oXHZj3NKqF

> I'm vegan and I struggle to understand how self- proclaimed communists fail to see the parallels in how society reduces fellow sentient individuals (non-human animals) to the role of objects and resources for human use and the relationships between the bourgeoisie and the proletarians.

> To any communists that aren't vegan, I highly recommend these pieces of literature:

> 1. Veganarchism: Philosophy, Praxis, Self-criticism by Joseph Parampathu (free)

> 2. Unconditional Anti-Oppression: The Rise of Anti-Speciesism in the Anarchist Movement by A.Blitz Molotov (free)

> 3. Veganism Through the Lens of Decolonization by Venita Januarie (free)

> 4. The Political Left and the Overlooked Power of Veganism: Toward a Marxist-Animal Liberationist Framework for Ecological Revolution by Emilia A Leese (free)

> 5. Dear Leftist Critics of Veganism by John Tallent (free)

Two: https://www.reddit.com/r/communism/s/OYTIHlchl0

> Just because some action is culturally established doesn’t mean that action is morally permissible. In some cultures, human honor killings, female genital mutilation, cannibalism, child marriage and stoning ‘apostates,’ has been culturally established, for example. But we shouldn’t think this type of exploitation and violence is morally acceptable just because it’s been culturally established.

Three: https://www.reddit.com/r/communism/s/L6HjHS3NTm

> Calling vegans bigoted, racist, colonialist, and anti-Indigenous for opposing cultural relativism has effectively become a thought-terminating cliché of sorts. This is done because society usually will rightfully agree that racism is so unequivocally repugnant that racist ideas do not need to be entertained or validated in the slightest. Therefore, when a non-vegan finds a way to paint veganism as a racist stance, they feel justified in dismissing it without the discomfort of critical thought, thereby continuing to enable their oppressive mindset.

> Let me make it abundantly clear: culture is not an excuse for injustice. This should not be something controversial to state. Though it is possible for someone to hide behind a deceptive sense of being "pro-justice" as a cudgel for discriminating against other peoples, acknowledging the flaws of cultural relativism does not inherently entail doing this. In most cases, vegans only have to specifically address Indigenous culture in a defensive manner because, as a subject, the livelihoods of Indigenous peoples are so frequently exploited as a popular deflection for non-vegans.

Mods permabanned me with no explanation, then muted me when I sent a reply, which read:

"Banning someone for rejecting cultural relativism in a communist forum is pretty funny.

Fascism is not a spectrum, it is a single point that snaps into existence the moment it becomes accepted to treat the bodies of sentient individuals as a means to an end.

You either live in accordance with the understanding that exploitation is wrong (veganism), or you don't (non-veganism). Unlearning the societal conditioning that assumes we have a moral right to exploit other animals isn't some sort of feat or the final point of someone's personal growth, it's the minimum ethical standard we can uphold to sentient beings.

May all animals be free from us(e) and may all self proclaimed "anti-capitalists" truly live in alignment with their alleged beliefs. None are free until all are free."

Cowards.

Hey guys so I've been focusing on the transition to being vegan coinciding with a focus on my health. I have been vegetarian since I was 13. I was vegan for a brief period maybe a year or so when I was 17/18. This will be the first time since Im on my own. It's proving to be a challenge already. Recently got my own place and I am super sad due to personal circumstances following me from my past. I know I should be happy though I'm trying my hardest to be grateful. And I am trying so hard to shake the wantings of the comforts of milky products like a Chipotle veggie burrito with sour cream and cheese (the last one I got did not include this) or an impossible burger from Burger King. Or a nice homemade taco salad with lots of sour cream and cheese.

I know I can do this. I just have to find new ways to comfort myself. I know the horrors of the dairy industry. I have seen cows (maybe not dairy but still) on trucks. I have looked closely into the eyes of a gentle cow one time.

The exclusionary holier than thou crap has to stop. We are all on the same team. You included.

People in this sub have said I’m not vegan because my immediate family (partner and child) eat meat and, for example, I buy it from the grocery store for them.

Also I don’t actively try and convert anyone; I believe the best way to create more vegans is with love and not condescension.