For my research this week, I decided to talk to the boyfriend’s of girls I know who are vegan. By doing so, I gain a new perspective. I get to see the perspective of a romantic partner, who is not vegan himself, but spends a lot of time with someone who is vegan. This not only gave me a little insight on the vegan culture itself, but also how the vegan culture portrays itself.

First, I wanted to know why his girlfriend became vegan. He responded, “I actually don’t even know why. A bunch of them [her friends] just decided to do it and she was the only one who stuck with it, except Sammi… she’s vegan too.”

Next, I asked him if it had any effect on his relationship, or if she pushed him to become vegan in any way. He responded, “No, not really. We still go out to eat all the time, she just doesn’t get meat or cheese. Like we’ll go to Chipotle and stuff and she’ll order the same burrito as me but with veggies instead of beef, and without cheese. And she knows I love meat and she doesn’t really care. I don’t think its about the animals for her… I think its more about being healthy and stuff.”

“How long has she been vegan?” I asked. He responded, “Uh, probably like two or three years.”

“Do you think she will stick with it?” He responded, “Uh, I guess so. I mean, she’s stuck with it this long and it doesn’t seem that hard for her so I don’t know why she’d stop.”

I followed up with my interview from last week, the vegan female from California. This time, it was a Facetime interview instead of a phone interview and she was able to show me artifacts in her home.

We continued to talk about her and her husbands’ efforts to live an environmentally-friendly lifestyle. I told her that my mom purchased metal reusable straws for me because I like to used straws and then asked if she had something similar. She proceeded to tell me: “Well Jordan and I actually both have wooden straws, along with wooden forks and spoons that we take basically everywhere with us. We don’t usually use the straws, though… just because we take our water bottles everywhere and usually have our reusable coffee mugs so we don’t really have a need.” She then showed me her wooden straw and reusable spoon.

I then proceeded to ask her about her lifestyle, and how she might describe it. She responded: “Well, Jordan and I are both really active and really busy. I don’t know if either of those things is because we’re vegan, though. I like to be active by riding my bike or going to Crossfit classes, but I do that because it makes me feel good. I’m also super busy because I’m in school right now and I’m trying to find a job now that my hip is almost healed (had hip surgery).”

This week I decided to interview another vegan individual to find out more about the culture. I chose to interview the wife of whom I interviewed last week. This woman is a 26-year-old white female who was born and raised in Northern California. She joined the Air Force at the age of 18 and was in it for six years. She now continues to reside in California with her husband who is also vegan.

The interview that took place was a phone interview. I asked her a series of questions, in which she claimed to answer fully and honestly. First, I asked her what prompted her to begin her vegan lifestyle. She responded: “Well, my mom has been a vegetarian for as long as I can remember so I grew up pretty much eating as a vegetarian without really having a choice, whenever I was home. Then, once I was old enough to learn more about how the farming industry harmed animals, I became a full-fledged vegetarian and practiced that lifestyle all the time. And then at some point I just learned more about the farming industries and the dairy industry, and just decided on my own to become vegan. I’ve always cared for animals and when I was in the Air Force, I actually worked to rescue animals.”

I then asked her if she made any efforts to help the environment, and if so, how that related to her veganism. She responded: “Of course I do! Jordan (her husband) and I are working to decrease our environmental footprint as much as possible. We buy everything in bulk to produce less waste, we never use plastic – we always use reusable water bottles. A lot of the things we buy from the store are in glass containers, and we either upcycle these things or recycle them properly. But taking care of the environment and veganism kind-of go hand-in-hand. Once you really research all the effects that animal farming has on the environment, you’re kind-of forced to care. I mean – how could you not? If you have all the information I mean.”

I plan to follow up by interviewing her more and asking her more about her vegan routine.

During this week as a fieldworker, I gathered information via an interview of an individual belonging to the vegan culture. I asked a series of questions, to which I recorded the responses. The individual being interviewed is a white male, 26 years if age, who lived the first 18 years of his life in a small town in Pennsylvania, before joining the military and eventually making California his new home. He currently resides with his wife, a white 26-year-old California native, who also practices veganism. They live with two dogs and two cats in a small house that they bought. When asking the individual why he first decided to become vegan, he responded “Well, I had eaten meat and dairy my entire life and enjoyed eating it. I only was introduced to the vegan lifestyle through Johnah (his wife at the time), who was vegan long before we started dating. I had a love for cooking, so I would always cook us dinner. To be honest, I just got tired of having to cook two different meals for the both of us, so I began to just cook the vegan meals. And then I just learned a lot more about vegans, and I’ve always had a love for animals, so I decided to try it. Plus, Johnah wouldn’t kiss me if I had eaten a hamburger.”

I then asked the subject if he had ever altered from the “rules” of veganism, to which he responded: “Well, when I was first starting out, I actually didn’t go full-on and become a vegan. I started cutting out like red meat, and then white meat, fish, and all that. Eventually I cut out cheese, and then cut out dairy products altogether. It was pretty hard at first, but once I got the hang of all the different foods I could eat and how to cook them so they’d taste good, it was easy. But there was one point when I was stationed overseas where I decided to bring back eggs into my diet because I thought it would be easier to get some nutrition, but it totally backfired and I was on the toilet for hours. My body definitely did not agree with it.”

I then asked him about a distinguishing artifact of vegan culture, tofu. I asked him if he ate it and how he used it if he did. He responded, “I ate a lot of tofu when I first became vegan, but I don’t eat it as much anymore for some reason. I guess I just know how to cook better so I can really just make whatever I want. I definitely still eat it though. I use it most often to make “vegan eggs” which is really just tofu and some seasonings like turmeric, garlic powder, Dijon mustard, pepper, and some other things to make it look and taste more like eggs. Vegans just call it “tofu scramble,” though. I just figured you wouldn’t know what I was talking about if I called it that. I usually throw in some salsa, too. But yeah, it’s basically just mushed up soybeans. It’s really high in protein.”

So, veganism is essentially a lifestyle or subculture that avoids consuming any products produced by animals. People have various reasons for becoming vegans. One may be vegan because they want to save they environment, as large quantities of meat farms are harmful to our environment, and many state it is the leading contributor to climate change. Others may become vegan because they want to live a healthier lifestyle. The more common and obvious reason people become vegan is because they wish not to harm animals in any fashion. For whatever reason someone may practice veganism, it is an applaudable lifestyle.

A lot of times, vegans who start their vegan journey for one reason, end up believing in these other reasons as well once they become a “seasoned” vegan. One who becomes a vegan for his or her health, might start to appreciate how veganism also has a positive impact on the environment. In many situations, it has a positive domino effect. That being said, a lot of people in the vegan culture not only have a love for protecting animals, but also have a passion for keeping the environment clean, and keeping their bodies free from toxins.

The basic premise around veganism, though, is avoidance of any animal products. Some vegans just rely solely on avoiding consuming animal products, but many also avoid supporting harm to animals in any way. This includes any consumerism of animal products, including selling or buying leather or fur. They don’t eat meat, fish, eggs, or dairy products. Some vegans don’t even eat breads because of the use of yeast to produce the food. Obviously, as in any culture, there are some people who take their rules and roles more seriously than others, so the practices vary among the group. This being said, all vegans agree on one thing: they don’t eat meat or dairy!

Now if you’re someone who does eat meat and dairy, this might be hard for you to imagine. Think about never eating cheese, eggs, juicy steak, buttery shrimp, etc. This sounds extremely difficult to imagine, especially if you’re a food lover like myself. Vegans have many substitutes for the foods that many of us love, though, such as cheese made from cashews. This may sound gross, but I’ve had it and it’s not so bad. Veganism is really about weighing the options – is an individual willing to give up steak to save animals, protect the environment, and become a healthier individual?

So, veganism is essentially a lifestyle or subculture that avoids consuming any products produced by animals. People have various reasons for becoming vegans. One may be vegan because they want to save they environment, as large quantities of meat farms are harmful to our environment, and many state it is the leading contributor to climate change. Others may become vegan because they want to live a healthier lifestyle. The more common and obvious reason people become vegan is because they wish not to harm animals in any fashion. For whatever reason someone may practice veganism, it is an applaudable lifestyle.

A lot of times, vegans who start their vegan journey for one reason, end up believing in these other reasons as well once they become a “seasoned” vegan. One who becomes a vegan for his or her health, might start to appreciate how veganism also has a positive impact on the environment. In many situations, it has a positive domino effect. That being said, a lot of people in the vegan culture not only have a love for protecting animals, but also have a passion for keeping the environment clean, and keeping their bodies free from toxins.

The basic premise around veganism, though, is avoidance of any animal products. Some vegans just rely solely on avoiding consuming animal products, but many also avoid supporting harm to animals in any way. This includes any consumerism of animal products, including selling or buying leather or fur. They don’t eat meat, fish, eggs, or dairy products. Some vegans don’t even eat breads because of the use of yeast to produce the food. Obviously, as in any culture, there are some people who take their rules and roles more seriously than others, so the practices vary among the group. This being said, all vegans agree on one thing: they don’t eat meat or dairy!

Now if you’re someone who does eat meat and dairy, this might be hard for you to imagine. Think about never eating cheese, eggs, juicy steak, buttery shrimp, etc. This sounds extremely difficult to imagine, especially if you’re a food lover like myself. Vegans have many substitutes for the foods that many of us love, though, such as cheese made from cashews. This may sound gross, but I’ve had it and it’s not so bad. Veganism is really about weighing the options – is an individual willing to give up steak to save animals, protect the environment, and become a healthier individual?

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton