Haus of FGV

Save owls

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The story of a pop-up owl cafe in London’s Soho has been everywhere this past week.

More than 60 000 people have apparently registered for one of the limited spaces during the temporary venue’s week-long run and a huge number of concerned individuals have voiced their concern for the welfare of the birds involved via social media, newspaper editorials and an online petition with 5000 signatures. Even I got in on the act with a blog post.

One of the more surprising parts of this drama was the statement by the organiser that they had the support of registered charity and bird rehabilitation organisation, The Barn Owl Centre. I was not alone in being shocked that a bird protection group would give their blessing to, and agree to receive proceeds from, an event that is far from being in the best interest of owls.

Here is where the story starts to unravel.

The Twitter account for The Barn Owl Centre was inundated by countless tweets ranging from surprise to condemnation. Their response to this onslaught was at first confusing, muddled and aggressive. It didn’t make sense or clear up if they were involved or not.

Fast forward a few days and you’ll find the founder of The Barn Owl Centre featured in an interview with the Gloucester Citizen, the local paper for the area.

In the article, founder Vincent Jones states he wants nothing to do with the pop-up event and feels persecuted by social media activists. You can read the full article here.

Curiously, the Annie the Owl pop-up cafe website still lists The Barn Owl Centre as a partner and fund recipient. This goes against what Vincent stated in his newspaper interview.

I wanted to set the record straight about where the birds for the event are coming from and if the owl centre was still involved. I just ended a 45-minute phone conversation with The Barn Owl Centre founder Vincent and following is some of the information I discovered.

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I’ve been published!

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I don’t just write nonsense about overeating and drinking gallons of vegan beer. Sometimes I attempt to write meaningful text for other platforms.

One such diversion, and one I feel particularly proud with which to be associated, is T.O.F.U. magazine.

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Owl cafe

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You can dress it up any which way you like, but using animals in a retail or entertainment setting is the equivalent of a zoo. It is the exploitation of animals for human enjoyment, often under the guise of conservation or animal protection.

My critique of the cat cafe in east London drew a huge number of responses, ranging from people who thought it was an unacceptable use of animals for profit through to those who branded me a cat-hating lunatic.

Now, almost a year on from that post, I find myself scratching my head at news of an owl-themed pop-up cocktail bar set to open in Soho.

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Too far

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Have you seen this music video released today by OK Go for their new song You’re a Fucking Nerd And No One Likes You?

I have included the video below, but please be warned it contains adult themes and explicit language. Trigger warning: the lyrics of the song contain the word rape.

I am unsure how the band members, record company, film company or anyone connected to this project considered the content of the song to be an acceptable form of promotion for a movie (Hot Tub Time Machine 2).

Here at FGV, concepts of social justice hold court over everything that happens. This music video blows social justice out of the hot tub water.

The lyrics and visual content manage to display misogyny and homophobia, while repeatedly making a vile reference to animal rape.

I’m all for satire and saying offensive things in a clever way to make fun of people who say those things seriously, but I don’t see that comical device at play in this song and accompanying music video. If that is the intention of the artists, it is incredibly poorly executed.

Am I missing something?

Is making jokes about raping tigers a clever way for the band to make fun of ‘bros’ and macho culture, or have OK Go got this terribly wrong?

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London Vegan Beer Fest 2015

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I am thrilled to announce the return of London Vegan Beer Fest to the capital on July 18, 2015.

lvbf holdingAfter 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.

Subscribe to the Fat Gay Vegan email newsletter to receive exclusive alerts about ticket sales, brewery line up and more.

Email newsletter subscribers will get access to an exclusive early bird ticket offer prior to the general public.

Kylie

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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 Disco on 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.

 

Abuse

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What would you do in this circumstance?

The following message was left on my blog.

UntitledI 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?

What would you do?

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Truly disappointing

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I don’t have a lot to say about this quote from recently-celebrated recipe blogger and cookbook author Ella Woodward:

ella quoteActually, 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.

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Bank on it

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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?

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Vegan startup

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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.

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