Veganism as a… Religion?

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.
— Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 18

Almost every religion has dietary regulations of some kind. Islam has foods that are considered halal and haram: permissible and forbidden, respectively. Judaism has kosher guidelines, which restrict everything from what is consumed to how it is prepared. Christians have Lent, a roughly six-week period of prayer, fasting, and self-denial.

In countries that establish freedom of religion or belief, allowances and accommodations are usually made to ensure everyone can practice their religion no matter the circumstances. In short, you are protected from discrimination. This is why there are halal and kosher certifications and labels on food, why schools and hospitals offer several meal options, why hiring managers can’t choose not to hire you based on your religion. But veganism, which is certainly a belief, and matches several, if not most, of the qualifications of a religion, is not treated the same.

In the Workplace

Take Pip’s Original Doughnuts in Portland, Oregon: the shop posted a help-wanted ad that specified, “no non-medical, non-religious dietary restrictions.” The reason is that employees must taste all the doughnut flavors for quality control and in order to recommend them to customers. Many restaurants and bakeries do this, but for people with religious dietary restrictions, they simply allow them to skip sampling the foods they can’t have. Unfortunately, dietary preference is not protected in anti-discrimination laws in the United States.

Look at the following job advertisement posted for an occupational therapist for patients with eating disorders.

It says plainly, “Unfortunately OTs with vegan diets cannot be considered.” Theoretically this is because watching someone eat a diet with such heavy restrictions would not encourage the recovery of someone with an eating disorder. But there are vegan-friendly versions of just about every food in existence: meat alternatives, dairy-free cheeses, nut milks, plant-based ice cream. You can even buy vegan pizza and cheesecake straight off the shelves nowadays. Vegans restrict categorically, not calorically, and they can still get all of their vitamins, minerals, and macronutrients.

In Schools

This discrimination extends beyond hiring practices. A zoology student studying at a college in Ontario, Canada, experienced this firsthand when they asked to be exempt from dissections in a zoology course. They were informed that, unless they had a medical or religious reason for not participating, they would not be allowed to perform the alternative to dissection. If they were allergic to the preservatives used or a follower of Jainism, a religion which believes in nonviolence toward all living beings, they would have been permitted to do the alternative activities and still successfully complete the course. This begs the question: if there were already alternatives in place, why not permit someone with a nonreligious but still deeply-held belief to take part in them? Religion is as much a choice as veganism is, after all.

Then there’s this mother who shared her tale of trying to find an appropriate daycare center for her vegan child. One woman did not want vegetarian or vegan children in her care at all and another told her, “feeding children a vegan diet is still discouraged.” Not only did she meet flat out refusal, but she was also judged and given unnecessary instruction in parenting.

Consider also the French Government’s decision to, essentially, ban vegetarian and vegan meals in schools, hospitals, prisons, and retirement homes. Their strict guidelines necessitate feeding people dairy products and protein, some of which must include meat, fish, and eggs. Bringing a packed lunch is also banned, so for students, there is no alternative.

In Healthcare

Discrimination against vegans in healthcare isn’t always as clear cut for a few reasons. In the United States, medications are required to be tested on animals before they are cleared for public use. But according to The Vegan Society, veganism, “seeks to exclude, as far as is possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose.” Since it is neither practical nor practicable to avoid medications entirely, this does not preclude people from being vegans.

The other issue is that many of the more high profile cases of discrimination in healthcare have to do with vaccinations. Vaccine viruses are often grown inside chicken eggs or animal cells and some contain gelatin or bovine serum. In almost every U.S. state, vaccinations for diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio, measles, mumps, and rubella are required for schoolchildren. They are also necessary for positions in healthcare and, in the case of zoonotic diseases, working with animals.

Exceptions are usually reserved for those with weakened or compromised immune systems or anyone allergic to vaccine ingredients; however, some vegans have attempted to opt out due to their lifestyle. It is my position that herd immunity is more important than any one individual’s ethics. Luckily though, otherwise healthy vegans who try to exempt themselves from vaccines are in the minority.

On the other hand, there have been cases similar to that of the zoology student above. In order to obtain a teaching job in California, Mona Parmar had to take a tuberculosis (TB) test. The standard TB test involves injecting someone with TB antibodies, but the stabilizer used in the serum contains a sugar derived from cow or pig’s blood. But there is an alternative: a simple chest X-ray. When Mona refused the injection on the basis of being an ethical vegan, her doctor berated her. But when she insisted she was a Hindu with similar values to ethical veganism, he agreed to the alternative procedure.

What’s to Be Done?

Vegans don’t need to look far to find reasons to stay vegan. Animal Clock records the number of animals slaughtered for food in the U.S. on a year-by-year basis. Annually, it amounts to over 56 billion, a number far too big for most people to conceive of. According to their other statistics aggregated from various sources, many chickens are also accidentally drowned during slaughter and over 25% of the meat from all animals is discarded anyway. This doesn’t even consider animal testing or animal products and byproducts used in household cleaners, medicines, and cosmetics.

What vegans do need though is acceptance in a society that values religion far more than other deeply felt ethics and ideals. Religion is as much a choice and lifestyle as veganism or vegetarianism. I’m not suggesting anyone should be able to make use of alternatives or opt out of anything they want (especially where it concerns public safety, as do vaccines), but vegetarianism has gained enough ground and followers in the public sphere to be considered a creed in its own right. A study performed in 2010 estimated there are 75 million vegetarians in the world by choice. This means there are more vegetarians in the world than Jews, though the two groups obviously aren’t mutually exclusive.

If there are already meat- and dairy-free substitutes in place, why not let vegetarians and vegans take advantage of them? If religion can be accommodated, why not other widely accepted values and beliefs? If it’s illegal to discriminate against others for choices including religion and pregnancy, why is it okay to refuse and look down on vegetarians and vegans?

Like I said, we don’t need reasons to stay vegetarian or vegan, we just need institutions to support that choice.