by Rindala Alajaji

“If only we can overcome cruelty, to human and animal, with love and compassion we shall stand at the threshold of a new era in human moral and spiritual evolution – and realize, at last, our most unique quality: humanity.” 
~ Jane Goodall 

On November 24th of 2012, I concluded that I probably would never spend another “traditional” Thanksgiving with my family. Like many other animal rights activists and vegans, this time of the year can be difficult. While others are celebrating the holidays with ostentatious displays of animal meat centerpieces, vegans and activists (such as myself) are trying to find ways to use this time of the year to strengthen and unite behind the message of Animal Liberation. Three years ago, I learned in short order that Thanksgiving is often a pretty unpleasant occasion for those of us who don’t eat animals. It has become so unpleasant, in fact, that from mid-October on, I begin to dread it. I learned that even if I don’t say “The v word,” the associations people have with being vegan makes us the obvious elephant in the room and everything about Thanksgiving –from the insensitive jokes and the disrespect to the lack of food options and the horrific centerpiece –can make it a day that we learn to tensely go through.

That was my Thanksgiving experience for the first couple of years until I decided to do something about it. I’ve learned that the best way to educate friends and family of the merits of veganism is by serving them tasty vegan dishes, and this is a great time of year for that. I began baking my own Tofurky roasts and a plethora of yummy vegan dishes. Suddenly, the clouds lifted. I was able to be among my loved ones, I was able to enjoy the food without worry, and best of all, the holiday itself became transformed from a day that I dreaded weeks in advance to one that embraces the true spirit of the occasion, which, of course, is thanks. Throughout the years, we have made it a custom to make Thanksgiving as cruelty-free as possible. It’s okay to start a new tradition within your family that doesn’t involve the death of an animal; an animal selectively bred to the point that after 3 weeks they can’t even support themselves due to the unnatural weight of their breast. It’s okay to say no to that. Forty-two million turkeys are slaughtered every Thanksgiving season just so we can celebrate. Environmentally speaking, that is a staggering 10,360 gallons of water for every turkey on the dinner table, so turkeys slaughtered for Thanksgiving day can take up more than 435 billion gallons of water.

The holidays are meant to be times of celebration and joy and vegans have plenty of reasons to celebrate; since we can do it without harming anyone. So, enjoy! This year, I’m celebrating my vegan Thanksgiving with my friends at the Animal Welfare Collective as well as my family next week (check planned menu below)! Don’t let anyone get in your way. If you can’t bear the site of the dead animal, come for dessert. Bring food if you need to, and make sure it’s yummy. And if your annoying Uncle won’t leave you alone, just smile nicely and say, “This kind of eating really works for me!”

Happy Thanksgiving!

MY PLANNED THANKSGIVING MENU!
Apple walnut lentil loaf
Cranberry wild rice pilaf
Vegan cheddar mashed potatoes
Green bean casserole
Vegan cheddar herb drop biscuits
Pumpkin pie with and pecan praline topping for dessert!

Rindala Alajaji is a student at NYU, majoring in Applied Psychology and Global Public Health, with a minor in Animal Studies. She is the Marketing and Operations Chair for the Animal Welfare Collective @NYU. 

Picture courtesy of thanksgivingdinnermenu.net.