I'm not at all good at collecting my thoughts and putting them together in a cohesive way that truly expresses how I feel, but if I've learned anything in the past few months, it's that I have to at least try. So here it goes.
I know the world has always been corrupt and ugly under the surface, but for the sake of my mental health, I decided to live in a bubble. I didn't watch the news. I muted the words "President" and "Trump" on Twitter. Then when that didn't keep away the negative vibes completely, I stopped going on most social media all together. I did everything I could to filter out the bad in the world. And the fact that putting the outside world on mute was even an option for me is a clear representation of white privilege. I've realized through all the protests over the past month that I can't live in this bubble anymore. This privilege that I was born with wasn't earned and it isn't mine to keep. I can't live in my safe and happy bubble when other people are dying because they were born in a country that, since it's foundation, has ingrained in our minds that their lives just don't matter, solely based off of their skin color. Which is not at all ok.
Over the past few years here on Keeny Peach, I tried really hard to stay away from political or controversial topics because, like what I mentioned earlier, I'm bad at putting my deep thoughts into cohesive sentences, especially when it comes to topics that make me angry. And I'm not a confrontational person. But not anymore. I want to highlight the good in the world, but in order for there to be any good in the first place, we have to acknowledge and fix the bad. Once we acknowledge the bad, then we can come up with lasting solutions.
So how do we come up with solutions? This is the question that's been on my mind for the past few months. And I think I found a way I can personally make a change... by incorporating the narrative of lives that have been oppressed in my everyday life.
From this point on, I'm going to make an effort to shine a light on vegan and cruelty-free black owned businesses (or any other businesses that are taking strides to support Black Lives Matter, LGBTQ Rights, and/or any other important causes/movements) here on Keeny Peach through a new series called Brand Focus. I've realized recently that it's not enough anymore for a brand to only be ethical towards animals. They should align with everything good that I want to see in the world. My whole vegetarian/vegan journey has been defined by one single quote.
"Every time you spend money, you're casting a vote for the kind of world you want"- Anna Lappe.
Let's cast our votes to an ethical and equal world.
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