Why do you believe that you have a unique perspective on Veganism?

I first heard of Veganism (or rather Vegetarianism and it’s various degrees) when I was around eight or nine years old. At that point I was already becoming overweight due to undiagnosed Binge Eating Disorder and was desperately searching for a solution. My family, a blend of first generation Chamorro immigrants and midwestern farmers, had little education when it came to healthy food choices, let alone the finances to make them. For me growing up, healthy, nutritious food meant a heaping bowl of rice, a fried chicken breast, and a 16oz glass of concentrated fruit juice. As my 12th birthday rolled around, I was nearing 160 lbs and decided to go vegan for my health. When my mother, who frequently skipped buying herself underwear and socks to afford groceries, saw scare articles online about children dying from lack of protein and growing breasts from soy she quickly put an end to my fad diet attempt.

When I was around 14 my father joined the military efforts in the Middle East as an oil tanker repairman. We relocated to a small island off the coast of Honduras to be closer to him, and that is where I saw my first real glimpse of what Veganism could do for a starving population. In Honduras my low-class, poverty stricken family lived like kings, with a multi-room home right on the beach, while little naked children ran around scavenging coins from the shopping streets under the disapproving eye of armed militia-men. Here, I saw families surviving and thriving off nutrient-rich diets of fruit, wild vegetables, sea greens, and simple grains. They were remarkably healthy, which surprised my overweight, Carnist teenage mind. How could people live on just beans and rice and fruit? Why were they not starving?

When my father was shot in Kuwait we moved back to our home in Washington, and shortly after I ran away from home. Frustrated by the isolation and stagnation of my small town, I moved to the city where I spent the next several years struggling with drug addiction, homelessness, and an ever-present hunger. Here, I met communities of people experiencing homelessness, and to my surprise many of them were Vegetarian and Vegan. I asked why, and they told me everything that I had been conditioned to reject. They told me they were Vegan for health, but wasn’t Veganism unhealthy? They told me they were Vegan for the planet, but wasn’t soy killing the jungle? They told me when you’ve been hurt, and ignored, and abused, the last thing you want is to do the same to another being, and I had nothing to say.

In my early 20s I finally had the stability I needed to make a change. I studied diet and nutrition to better understand how food worked. I saw a therapist, and was finally able to understand why food was such a struggle for me. I went Vegetarian. A few years later, I went Vegan.

Now, I have been Vegan for two years and have come full circle. I now work providing care to young people struggling with addiction and homelessness, just like I was not long ago. By sharing meals, talking with them, and reminding them of their value I have the chance to instill in them the same empathy that others had instilled in me. I can teach them to make better food choices, take the kinder path, and think of the bigger picture with hands-on education and personal experience.

My perspective on Veganism is unique because I had to see, hear, and live through intense suffering to find it. There is not a bone in my body that can ignore the healthy, kind, sustainable choice that is Veganism. I hope that this perspective will help others see the same some day.

What would you say to someone who states on your behalf that someone in your situation (past or present) “cannot be Vegan”?

I always ask them to tell me why. Tell me why a poor person can’t be vegan. Because I am poor and Vegan. Tell me why a homeless person can’t be vegan. Because they were, and they were Vegan. Tell me why someone with an eating disorder can’t be Vegan, or someone in a foreign country, or a Person of Color, or this or that or whatever else. Tell me why, then tell me why you think so little of those people.

What does Veganism mean to you?

Veganism for me, means the realization that no matter who you are or where or what your situation there is always a way to be kind.