Consumption of Feminized Protein
Veganism and feminism. The two “isms” that would seem to exist in isolated galaxies with no intersection. And that is correct, the two destinies of feminism and veganism never cross. They do not need to as they rest on top one another, wherever one goes the other is.
The systemic oppression of people deals with a hierarchy which places certain humans as inferior to others. Those closer to the bottom of the hierarchy are said to be more barbaric and less human while those toward the top are seen as the most evolved or civilized humans. The process by which we exploit animals for human consumption is directly correlated to the process by which we exploit human animals, specifically female humans.
We first domesticate the non-human female animal. We first domesticate the human female animal.
This domestication is a way to control non-human females for the purpose of meal consumption. We place human females into “domestic” roles for the purpose of labor consumption. In each case there is a mechanism of control applied for the purpose of others. In the most ironic cases the “domestic” human female takes care of the children, cleans the house and cooks another domestic female and plates it by the time the husband is home. The husband then indulges in two types of female every night.
In Sexual Politics of Meat, Carol J. Adams believes female animals are doubly exploited through meat consumption: “both when they are alive and then when they are dead. They are the literal female pieces of meat. Female animals become oppressed by their femaleness, becoming surrogate wetnurses.”
We often forget that both a female cow body and a female human body are female bodies. The relegation of certain female bodies to an inferior status it becomes easy to relegate human animals to an inferior status.
Joe Biden recently spoke at Rutgers University on his It’s On Us platform which aims to encourage males to take responsibility for sexual violence. “Rape is not about sex, it is about power,” announced Biden.
How does this power dynamic operate between what Carol J. Adams considers “feminized protein” and sexual violence? Sexual violence becomes easier when the female human has become domesticated and dehumanized.
The female is the object of consumption in the case of rape and the female body is the object of consumption in the case of food. In both cases, female reproductive organs are used for the utility of the male to fulfill a desire, either to consume sexually or to consume through meal. The consumption of both feminized protein perpetuates a culture of male domination and female inferiority.
We see this power dynamic particularly relevant in the recent sexual assault allegations against the all-powerful movie mogul, Harvey Weinstein. The presence of power and “feminized protein” for male consumption is a central component of all of the women who have come forward accusing Weinstein of sexual assault and harassment. In this feminized protein can take the form of the most sought-after forms of cattle including Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie and Lupita Nyong’o.
But, it is funny how we only talk about feminized protein when the consumption surrounds big Hollywood celebs, but talk about the daily 8am consumption of an egg and cheese, or the 1pm tuna and swiss or the 6pm pot roast dripping in its own feminized liquid with a side of potatoes and butter from the wet nurse.
“In addition, just as the slaughterhouse treats animals and its workers as inert, unthinking, unfeeling objects, so too in rape are women treated as inert objects, with no attention paid to their feelings or needs,” writes Carol.
Cows are often harnessed in what are called “rape racks” to be forced to reproduce for, again, consumption. The parallels between human rape and animal rape are stark.
When will we begin to understand the oppression of all female bodies as oppression to all female human bodies?
