I just found out that February is a wonderful month: in the U.K. is the month celebrating (appreciating?) LGBTQ+ people, while in North America is the month dedicated to commemorate and celebrate Black History.*

What a lovely month is this, right? A month where people celebrate these minorities by reading meaningful books about said minorities, listening to podcasts by LGBTQ+ or Black people, going to events of appreciation of these fringes of society, etc. For a whole month, we pretend that everything is fine and we feel like we’ve done something to promote these cultures and come March 1st we’ll have a good feeling about ourselves. – Actually, no, because March is Women’s History Month. But at least on this U.K. and U.S.A. are agreeing on this month –

Well, it doesn’t work that way. Yes, it is good to have a time when you should think about the issues that afflict these communities, broadening your perspective. But it is not enough. If there is a month to commemorate or celebrate such minorities, it means that they are not well integrated into the community. So we should do something about it. I’ve seen around a lot of posts, promoting Black-Owned businesses or promoting LGBTQ+ rights.

But the problem is much deeper. And we all know it.

The problem is with a system that has allowed this to happen. I don’t want to throw the “rich white patriarchy” here: but I’ll just say that there is a fucked up system operating, and this system has oppressed all those not “fitting in”. And this system goes quite well along with monotheistic religions, as they have very similar core principles: there is only one God, (meaning that the other religions are, basically, wrong); men have superiority over women; the precepts delineated in the respective sacred texts are law; the one religion they profess is the only real one and everybody will have to convert (do you see the problem, that if all those professing a religion start saying to another: “you need to convert” and the other says: “no, you need to convert”. It can’t go forever and then you either have wars or torture.)

This doesn’t want to be a religious post: far from it. What I want to say is that we have to be careful and I wish that people would be less crappy. But clearly, this system is benefitting some, while oppressing (ok, if you don’t like this word, let’s say exploiting) others.

There is a Black History Month, an LGBTQ+ Month, a Women’s History Month: I mean, obviously, there is an issue here. Because okay, you are a terf or you are a racist woman or a racist gay, so maybe in your view of things the first two make sense and you buy into the narrative because those two are just minorities, you maybe don’t see many POCs or LGBTQ+ around, nor you do know what they ask, hence kind of makes sense that February (or October) are set to be a celebration for them. But I am sure that you see women around. So how come that there is a month to celebrate them? Aren’t women equal to men? Wait, when did they suffer? What?! They still do? And they are still fighting for some basic rights?! Women in “first-world countries” that are being raped and abused or slut-shamed? Oh no, I can’t believe it…

This is what a fucked up system. We don’t want to set months to make people feel better about themselves. We just want human rights.

As vegans, we don’t want oppression for any living being. On a deeper level, veganism means being against persecution, abuse, repression etc and we mean it for the animals, all animals: humans and non-humans. So let’s join hands in the fight for a fairer world: united we can change things.

Unity makes strength.

*Also fucked up: in October U.K. and North America do switch, so that it will be Black History Month in Great Britain and LGBTQ+ Month in North America.