Bad experience after the AGM

[Guest guest]

Sometimes I wonder why I continue to bother with the Vegan Society,

or the vegan movement generally, I must be some sort of crazy

masochist, because although the VS appear very supportive of vegan

families on paper, we have found that in real life personal contact,

some of the members who attend the AGM are actually quite mean-

spirited and family-unfriendly, and even those who are not so bad are

pretty indifferent and don't speak out when a family is treated

badly. I was really upset on Saturday just after the AGM by one woman

there

 

As an ordinary vegan family, it is not hard at all for us to see why

most vegans with young children fail to get involved in the Vegan

Society, as not only was it necessary for my husband to offer to pay

for the creche for the AGM (we haven't had a bill yet but will pay

when we know exactly how much), to keep it happening, so as to ensure

equal opportunities for parents (especially single parents with no

money to spare), but the social after the AGM was completely dead for

us, as everyone was in either the cookery demonstration or the

council meeting, and there was nothing for us and we just hung about

for a while looking and feeling like a bunch of lost souls, waiting

for the cookery demo to end and the general social to begin. The one

other couple with a child who had attended had left early.

 

The worst bit that upset me and almost had me in tears, was that at

one point we just looked in at the back door of the cookery

demonstration, to see if there was anyone in particular we knew there

who we wanted to see, and maybe say goodbye to as we had decided by

nearly 6 o'clock that it was not worth our while staying, and the

woman running the cookery demonstration snapped at us for the kids

being noisy, and we were only looking in briefly to check if she had

finished, we also thought she had finished the formal bit where a

quiet audience was required because she had just asked if we wanted

to come in for food tasting. I thought she was very rude indeed to

tell us off straight after asking us in. She was giving mixed

messages. It was not our intention to disturb and we had

intentionally stayed out of the room for ages already while she was

addressing the group. I honestly thought she was inviting us in

because she had finished talking and it was time for the informal

general chit-chat and socialising. Her rudeness totally put me off

sticking around and I think someone ought to have had words with this

woman for making a young family feel so hurt and left out! But no-one

to my knowledge said anything to her in support of us and our right

to be welcomed. The general social aspect afterwards should have been

a family-friendly occasion as it was only late afternoon/early

evening, and if the Vegan Society want to attract " ordinary people "

to veganism and encourage their involvement in the Society they need

to have something for people like us, an ordinary family who happen

to be vegans and raising our kids that way. We felt completely

alienated and unwelcome, it was awful, it was my birthday and what a

miserable one. Some people need to try putting themselves in other

people's shoes for a change. If we as a vegan family get treated in

such an unfriendly rude way by our fellow vegans, what hope is there

of the vegan movement converting non-vegan families, with such

attitudes? We have to be a family-friendly movement to start with or

most ordinary people won't listen to us!

Most people have children at some point in their lives so it makes

sense that the VS should not alienate families!

 

I just want vegan parents and the children they are raising in the

vegan way of life to be heard and welcomed within the Society, and at

the social after the AGM, now that is not a lot to ask is it?

 

I think that the Vegan Society should be working on beating Ronald

McDonald at his own game, by presenting veganism as fun and

attractive to children and families. The fast food animal eating

industry markets to mainstream ordinary families so very

successfully, and only by vegans doing the same will veganism become

seen as a mainstream normal way of life. And this is what we want is

it not, to convert those raising the next generation, because it will

be very effective in saving animals?

 

I'm so fearful that my kids will grow up bored and alienated with the

whole vegan scene, when we go to the AGM, look forward to mingling

afterwards and end up sticking out like a sore thumb because no-one

seems to want a young family around. I worry not just for myself but

about what will stick in my kids' minds about vegans and veganism, I

want to build up positive vegan-related memories for them, and the

Vegan Society is not making this an easy task. I did expect a few

more families we knew from the picnics and gatherings to attend and

was disappointed that none of them did. It needs the input of more

families before the Vegan Society will make the effort to become more

family-friendly, they won't care if we are the only ones there!

 

I'm getting my faith in the Vegan Society seriously tested right now,

as the CEO, in response to my complaint about that horrid snappy

cookery demo woman, suggested that I should volunteer to organise an

event following next year's AGM that will meet the criteria of being

both family-friendly and all-inclusive.

 

I don't mind giving it a try but I know I can't do it all on my own,

is anyone in this group willing to help me?

Actually on principle I think the VS should do it anyway but

obviously from what the CEO has said it probably will not happen

unless myself and other vegan families do it. As mostly non-parents,

most of the council lack the motivation to make it a priority.

But I know I'm not the only VS local contact person who is a parent,

so we really should be able to come up with something for next years

AGM social.

 

Lesley