I am thrilled to announce the return of London Vegan Beer Fest to the capital on July 18, 2015.
After two incredibly-successful years in Bethnal Green (during which attendance grew by more than 100% year on year) London Vegan Beer Fest is set to stamp its indelible beer stain on King’s Cross.
That’s right. London Vegan Beer Fest is moving to Zone 1.
The 2015 version of London Vegan Beer Fest is set to be an explosion of vegan beer, cider and food. An exciting day-long schedule of events is being planned to give attendees an immersive beer experience like no other.
Full details coming soon.
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Email newsletter subscribers will get access to an exclusive early bird ticket offer prior to the general public.
My other life sees me reviewing music for pop culture website, Louder Than War.
My latest assignment for LTW found me interviewing Pete Waterman of Stock, Aitken and Waterman fame. Pete had a hand in crafting some of the biggest pop music hits the world has ever seen and I was tasked with talking to him about the first four Kylie Minogue albums. Each of the albums has been remastered, expanded and rereleased.
The interview was an experience I won’t soon forget. You can read it online here.
If you are keen to get your hand on these remastered albums, come along to Queer Vegan Discoon Saturday February 14th from 8pm where I will be giving away a set.
You can RSVP to Queer Vegan Disco on the Facebook event to secure cheap entry.
I know who this person is and where they are based.
Do readers have advice or experience relating to a situation like this? On one hand I think it is unacceptable but then I also wonder if it is best to ignore. Should I report this homophobic abuse to the police or seek legal advice?
I don’t have a lot to say about this quote from recently-celebrated recipe blogger and cookbook author Ella Woodward:
Actually, I have a few things to say.
Ella. My veganism is not fired by a desire to make people feel bad or judged. My veganism is a lifelong commitment to improving outcomes for non-human animals. My choice to not eat meat, dairy, eggs or honey has nothing to do with wanting to feel superior and everything to do with a desire to reduce harm.
It is incredibly disappointing to see you use your newly-acquired platform to take a swipe at compassionate people.
You are quoted in your Telegraph interview as saying “I’m not sitting here judging anyone” when the opposite is clearly true.
You are sitting in judgement of tens of thousands of vegan people who have pre-ordered your book, along with many of your non-vegan readers who have been considering transitioning to a full time plant-based diet (and possibly lifestyle) thanks to your inspirational recipes.
My hope is one day soon your world view broadens to include compassion for animals and also the people making everyday decisions to save them. Selling recipes based on your own personal wellbeing success story is not the only positivity your situation could bring to the planet.
Don’t sell your legacy short with out-dated stereotypes of judgemental vegans. It makes you appear close-minded, ill-informed and divisive.
As a vegan living in the modern world, it is near impossible to not contribute in some way to the exploitation of animals. We can lessen our contribution by supporting ethical companies, especially those with a clear statement on animal welfare.
Meet The Co-operative Bank.
The bank just released its updated Ethical Policy and I am thrilled to see animal welfare receive a mention.
One of Co-operative‘s seven goals at the heart of its Ethical Policy is:
– Protecting animal welfare
We will not provide banking services to organisations which are involved in animal testing of cosmetics or household products or whose activities significantly degrade endangered animals’ habitats.
I don’t know about you, but I find this to be incredibly heartening reading in a bank document.
You can read the rest of the Ethical Policy by clicking here.
Who do you bank with? Does veganism inform your banking choices?
OK. This is my favourite post in the history of my blog and I’ve only just started writing the thing.
A few days ago I was contacted by someone asking if I would help promote their vegan cookbook. Nothing strange or special about that as I can receive dozens of similar requests during any given week.
The request I got this week was unique and I had no choice but to write about the book.
One of my favourite cities on the planet (and number 2 on my top ten list of global vegan cities) is the incomparable New York City.
NYC is like no place else.
I am gearing up for a brief return next month and I need your help. Please hit the comments section to let me know your top tips for being a happy vegan in New York.
I will of course be dining out at my favourites Red Bambooand Cinnamon Snail, but I need some new experiences of the plant-based variety during my Big Apple stay.
In the aftermath of the horrendous murders at the Charlie Hebdo offices in Paris, the UK arm of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) published a statement that in part said:
Violence is a social issue, and violence to animals and human beings are interlinked. Yesterday’s losses are being felt by all compassionate people, including those who stand for animal rights. We at PETA stand with Charlie Hebdo in rejecting oppression and violence in all its forms.
I applaud PETA for making this statement but also challenge them to stand by these words in relation to their own campaigns. Reject oppression and violence in all its forms.
PETA, do you understand how your representations of unrealistic body shapes can contribute to unhappiness, depression and feelings of alienation for individuals and whole sections of society?
The projection of a slim body type as the ideal is insulting, unrealistic, hurtful and alienating for tens of millions of vegan activists who do not look like this.
Your campaign images designed to ridicule and shame millions of humans are a form of oppression and violence.
Proposed bus advert from PETA UKDesign used for PETA billboard
PETA, do you see a correlation between hyper sexualisation of women in your campaigns and wider media and the normalisation of the commodification of women in the real world, as well as the staggering amount of physical and sexual violence perpetuated against women?
Your campaigns utilising images of women in sexually compromising situations are perpetuating oppression and violence.
Recent PETA billboard in UK
PETA, are you aware that countless vegan activists want you to stop using sexist, exploitative, body shaming and divisive tactics in your campaigns?
Here are some words from just two of those activists:
“Overall I agree with PETA’s mission wholeheartedly, but I think their often sexist and fat-shaming campaigns cross the line of decency and detract from the AR message that they’re trying to promote.” – Quarrygirl.com
“PETA’s sexist, racist, and body-shaming campaigns do the opposite of spread compassion. Knock it off, nerds.” – Laura Beck, Vegansaurus.com
PETA, did you know that potentially millions of people want to join you in your fight for animals but not at the expense of other social justice issues?
Here are some thoughts on our fight for social justice.
Yes, we know you are desperately racing to stop cruelty to non-human animals.
We are too.
But we are also in a desperate race to stop violence against women. We are in a desperate race to stop debilitating and crippling self-esteem issues. We are in a desperate race to stop body shaming. We are in a desperate race to stop the normalisation of alienating humans based on their appearance. We are millions of people strong and we want to stand beside PETA but are currently unable. We want to stop all kinds of violence, subjugation and perpetuation of negativity.
We know there are individuals within PETA that agree with this sentiment. Please stand shoulder to shoulder with us in our request. You are not losing anything by rejecting outdated campaigns that perpetuate harm to people. You will be gaining millions of supporters who are more than willing to fight alongside you in your quest to end animal exploitation and suffering.
We are committed to improving outcomes for animals and humans alike.
Veganism is an extension of the fight for social justice, not a reason to suspend it.
To repeat the quote from the PETA statement: reject oppression and violence in all its forms.
If you are reading this and would like to see PETA put a stop to sexist and body-shaming campaigns, please voice your feelings in the comments below and share this story with PETA USA and PETA UK via Twitter.
Extra note: this is not an attack to diminish the crucial work PETA has carried out for decades in the name of compassion. You can support the important work they do without supporting some of their tactics. In fact, it is the voices of PETA supporters and campaigners that are most needed when it comes to this issue.
Growing up in Australia, I never was faced with the opportunity to eat a Yorkshire pudding. I only heard about Yorkshire puddings when I first came to the UK in 1998. I was so confused. They are called puddings but you smother them with gravy?
Since transitioning to vegan-only eating in 1999, Yorkshire puddings haven’t even been an option for me as all the brands I see in supermarkets contain animal products. A few days ago, I asked Josh if he knew how to make a vegan version. He said no but he was willing to give it an attempt.
Below is the photographic proof of Josh’s attempt, plus the recipe he made up on the spot in case you want to try and recreate in your own kitchen. Warning: this recipe has only been used once so it could deliver different results depending on your equipment.
After two incredibly-successful years in Bethnal Green (during which attendance grew by more than 100% year on year) London Vegan Beer Fest is set to stamp its indelible beer stain on King’s Cross.
