I am not perfect. I still have a lot to learn. But during this time when all forms of racism are being brought to the world’s attention, I think it’s safe to say that vegans sometimes miss the mark.

Veganism can be an animal rights movement and social justice movement, too. In fact, it is. It’s both. Food has the power to change the world and the disparities when it comes to something as simple as healthy food for all people are shocking.

I compiled this list of resources because this is a topic I’m passionate in exploring more. In the time I’ve taken to question, what can I do? What sparks a fire in me, something that I want to work on being much better at? This is what I have arrived at. Because this isn’t just a one and done issue, and racism comes in MANY forms.

And to the white vegan community: In the case of food injustice, just being vegan is not enough. We must actively try to fix this broken system.

This means reading up on how eating healthy is not possible/the same for everyone and what we can do about it. This means doing things like making your recipes more accessible to people with lower incomes by providing easy to find ingredients and products––Not everyone can afford fancy vegan steaks or organic cashews. This means donating to not only animal sanctuaries, but organizations that actively work to provide healthy food to people who rarely have access to it.

If I have missed anything on this list, feel free to add anything below in the comments. (In addition, if I have missed the mark on any of this, please let me know. I’m still learning!)

Environmental Racism

• Environmental Racism, by the Food Empowerment Project

  • https://foodispower.org/environmental-and-global/environmental-racism/

• What is Environmental Justice?

  • http://greenaction.org/what-is-environmental-justice/

• “A new report from the Environmental Protection Agency finds that people of color are much more likely to live near polluters and breathe polluted air—even as the agency seeks to roll back regulations on pollution.”

  • https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/02/the-trump-administration-finds-that-environmental-racism-is-real/554315/

• “Hog waste threatens North Carolina’s rural poor” The Duke University Chronicle, 2016

  • https://www.dukechronicle.com/article/2016/03/hog-waste-threatens-north-carolinas-rural-poor

Dietary Disease

• Dietary Diseases, Food Empowerment Project

  • https://foodispower.org/access-health/dietary-diseases/

• “Fast food chains aggressively market to poor black kids.” Salon, 2014.

  • https://www.salon.com/2014/11/13/fast_food_chains_aggressively_market_to_poor_black_kids/

• “‘White People Food’ Is Creating An Unattainable Picture Of Health“ Huffpost, 2018.

  • https://www.huffpost.com/entry/white-people-food_n_5b75c270e4b0df9b093dadbb

• Equitable Development Toolkit: Access to Healthy Food” An overview tool that serves as an introduction to four tools in the Equitable Development Toolkit— Grocery Store Development, Corner Stores, Farmers’ Markets, and Urban Agriculture and Community Gardens—that help low-income and communities of color increase their access to healthy, fresh, affordable food.

  • https://www.policylink.org/sites/default/files/access-to-healthy-food_0.pdf

Food Deserts

• RICHMOND, VA: “In Hillside Court, a 16-year-old vegetarian wants to expand healthy food access” Richmond Times Dispatch, 2019.

  • https://www.richmond.com/news/local/in-hillside-court-a-16-year-old-vegetarian-wants-to-expand-healthy-food-access/article_96b4acbe-a037-52d5-8fda-7ba088eb8428.html

• Food Deserts, Food Empowerment Project

  • https://foodispower.org/access-health/food-deserts/

• A Food Justice Reading List, from UC Press’s Blog

  • https://www.ucpress.edu/blog/24515/a-food-justice-reading-list/

• “Equitable Development Toolkit: Access to Healthy Food” An overview tool that serves as an introduction to four tools in the Equitable Development Toolkit— Grocery Store Development, Corner Stores, Farmers’ Markets, and Urban Agriculture and Community Gardens—that help low-income and communities of color increase their access to healthy, fresh, affordable food.

  • https://www.policylink.org/sites/default/files/access-to-healthy-food_0.pdf

Other resources

Organizations/Websites

• Afro Vegan Society: A national nonprofit organization with a mission to provide resources and support to help people in marginalized communities transition to vegan living.

  • https://www.afrovegansociety.org/

• Civil Eats: An independent media outlet that works to tell meaningful, nuanced, and often overlooked food politics stories in an increasingly challenging media landscape.

  • https://civileats.com/

• Food Empowerment Project: “We encourage healthy food choices that reflect a more compassionate society by spotlighting the abuse of animals on farms, the depletion of natural resources, unfair working conditions for produce workers, and the unavailability of healthy foods in low-income areas.”

  • https://foodispower.org/

Books/Reading

• A Food Justice Reading List, from UC Press’ Blog

  • https://www.ucpress.edu/blog/24515/a-food-justice-reading-list/

• Veganism in an Oppressive World: A Vegans-of-Color Community Project edited by Julia Feliz Brueck

  • https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36626136-veganism-in-an-oppressive-world

• More Than Just Food: Food Justice and Community Change by Garrett M. Broad

  • https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26701957-more-than-just-food?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=GtLpK0mEP8&rank=1

• “Want to See Food and Land Justice for Black Americans? Support These Groups.”

  • https://www.eater.com/2020/6/3/21279147/black-food-justice-food-sovereignty-groups-where-to-donate

Film

• The Invisible Vegan by filmmaker Jasmine Leyva

  • https://www.theinvisiblevegan.com/