So true.... I bet if President Biden had a sit down with Wayne (or even subscribed to The Simple Heart), his heart and mind would be opened to the egregious tradition associated with Thanksgiving. Your words are always “food” for thought. 💚
I'm confident we will see a president recognize animal rights on Thanksgiving! Wayne's last blog post on why Oprah is unlikely to spearhead change shows me that that change will start with ordinary people like us first more strongly speaking up.
Thanks for your profound insight and deep caring, Wayne. Stay safe and strong... we love you, we’ll follow your lead in rescue, and we need you more than ever now.
It’s a day of mourning when I think about all the lives that are suffering all over, now, this minute in time. To celebrate on a day where so many die for this occasion is beyond sick and hurts my heart
It's so grotesque. Every year, I try to make a social media post showing my pain of this holiday to my family and friends. It's actually gone quite well, with people expressing sympathy from unexpected parts of my past. (I wish I had the spirit to make a post like that this year.)
Nov 19, 2023·edited Nov 19, 2023Liked by Wayne Hsiung
Right on Wayne! It wasn’t until I was in high school that I began to realize how phony history had been. But the idea that we have to have turkey on Thanksgiving is ridiculous. I’m thinking that very slowly I’m seeing a turn, and I celebrate the people that make that choice not to eat animals. Anything we can do in this short life to make a difference in the suffering of these silent , gentle souls.
It's an excellent choice, and one I'm excited to see our society make more and more in the coming years and decades.
I've been the only vegan/vegetarian in my family for 16 years. For the past several, we've had fully vegan Thanksgiving dinners (mostly from vegan Asian restaurants in LA!) -- which happened after I started being honest with my family about how important it was to me to not center violence in our celebrations. Surprisingly, that honesty around animals and veganism has strengthened my family relations, not weakened them. I'm hopeful that's something that can scale and transform this holiday.
Nov 20, 2023·edited Nov 20, 2023Liked by Wayne Hsiung
I’m trying to think of even one holiday that hasn’t been crudely co-opted by corporate interests. I can’t. I guess the task, for me personally, is to counter the loss I feel at having all my traditions reduced to egregious mass cruelty and greed. I can’t even attend a traditional Thanksgiving dinner anymore, can’t smile and pretend it is okay.
Perhaps I need to create a heart-centered, ethical alternative.
It's a sad day for me and millions of those who will suffer and be slaughtered. To celebrate this injustice is wrong. Worst words ever, "because we have always done it this way" . There's no Justifying violence and death upon the most innocent and powerless in the name of tradition, culture, or a religion. That's never something to celebrate. It's something that belongs in the history books of lessons learned and not to repeat. Have mercy everyday.
I completely agree….the whole turkey on the Thanksgiving table is a sickening tradition to a say the least! Thank you for your thoughtful insights Wayne. Hang in there!
Than you Wayne and Wayne's team for all that you continue to do every day for the animals and to keep us all connected. We must transform this holiday. The conditioning runs every so deep. It's hard to find the right words that don't insinuate shame or guilt towards those who still partake, but I'm realizing that if we're going to ask others to be more compassionate we need to be more compassionate towards them first. Shame and guilt have no place in this. We are tasked with teaching, as if teaching 5 year old children. We don't chastise them for not getting it right away. But we keep teaching, reinforcing, from a place of caring, not moral superiority. Sharing what we know in non aggressive or combative ways. Assertiveness is definitely warranted. We have to keep showing people the truth and challenging those who try to conceal that truth. Wayne, I wish you a peaceful heart filled with gratitude on the day of thanks and also that you know how thankful we all are to you. And that the animals would thank you too if they knew what you do for them.
Great points. I find the idea of nonviolence so powerful here -- not just in the direct action against factory farms, but in the spirit we advocate with in our daily lives.
Part of why open rescue is so powerful to me is that it can be seamless with everyone's advocacy, distant and away from the farms. It's all the same energy: actively intervening in violence with compassion, whether it's rescuing an animal from a farm, or responding kindly to an aggressive skeptic on the street. I'd love for the broader movement to more deeply embody these values.
Thank you for everything you do for animals, Sarah!
Yes, non violence in thought, not just deed. There's a learning curve for sure. Thank you too, Dean, for all that you do for the animals, including song.
You write so thoughtful and beautifully Wayne even under the pressures and stress you must be experiencing while awaiting the life altering decision on your fate in just eleven days. How thankful and humane it would be for the judge to finally reveal she does have a heart unlike how we never thought she did during the trial and which we will be praying for until the decision is handed down. I wrote my fourth letter to you today and will continue to do so until you are free and true justice has been declared for you to be released.
we don't do the twisted tradition of thanksgiving. i'm thinking about how many things we did automatically and thoughtlessly. we were manipulated and propagandized from birth. we're in an insane time, but in this time also a paradigm shift is beginning. i remember when people laughed when i referred to america as an empire. turkeys are beautiful. every animal humans eat is beautiful. i will think of biden sitting down with wayne. lars von trier says we have to take the good with the evil, but i don't think i could bear to meet biden.
Reminds me of Peter Singer's opening words to the first Animal Liberation: "This is a book about the tyranny of human over non-human animals." Our nation -- and entire species -- has been a violent empire over our fellow creatures, and it's time for it to stop.
We should also rethink Thanksgiving because white people didn't "discover" America, they invaded it.
Terrible holiday all around. Perhaps we should shift our festivities to October's Indigenous People's Day instead.
So true.... I bet if President Biden had a sit down with Wayne (or even subscribed to The Simple Heart), his heart and mind would be opened to the egregious tradition associated with Thanksgiving. Your words are always “food” for thought. 💚
I wish, though I'm not sure he's capable of shifting his perspective or corporate interests at this point.
I'm confident we will see a president recognize animal rights on Thanksgiving! Wayne's last blog post on why Oprah is unlikely to spearhead change shows me that that change will start with ordinary people like us first more strongly speaking up.
Thanks for your profound insight and deep caring, Wayne. Stay safe and strong... we love you, we’ll follow your lead in rescue, and we need you more than ever now.
Wayne is awesome, and I'm excited to see this conviction inspire more leaders to rise up in the movement!
It’s a day of mourning when I think about all the lives that are suffering all over, now, this minute in time. To celebrate on a day where so many die for this occasion is beyond sick and hurts my heart
It's so grotesque. Every year, I try to make a social media post showing my pain of this holiday to my family and friends. It's actually gone quite well, with people expressing sympathy from unexpected parts of my past. (I wish I had the spirit to make a post like that this year.)
Well written. Thanks, Wayne.
Right on Wayne! It wasn’t until I was in high school that I began to realize how phony history had been. But the idea that we have to have turkey on Thanksgiving is ridiculous. I’m thinking that very slowly I’m seeing a turn, and I celebrate the people that make that choice not to eat animals. Anything we can do in this short life to make a difference in the suffering of these silent , gentle souls.
It's an excellent choice, and one I'm excited to see our society make more and more in the coming years and decades.
I've been the only vegan/vegetarian in my family for 16 years. For the past several, we've had fully vegan Thanksgiving dinners (mostly from vegan Asian restaurants in LA!) -- which happened after I started being honest with my family about how important it was to me to not center violence in our celebrations. Surprisingly, that honesty around animals and veganism has strengthened my family relations, not weakened them. I'm hopeful that's something that can scale and transform this holiday.
You are one amazing person. Always on my mind ❤️
I’m trying to think of even one holiday that hasn’t been crudely co-opted by corporate interests. I can’t. I guess the task, for me personally, is to counter the loss I feel at having all my traditions reduced to egregious mass cruelty and greed. I can’t even attend a traditional Thanksgiving dinner anymore, can’t smile and pretend it is okay.
Perhaps I need to create a heart-centered, ethical alternative.
Thanksgiving is consistently the hardest holiday for me. The whole dead creature as a "centerpiece" is just too much.
Beautifully written Wayne. You are a force of nature. Nobody can silence you or your mission. The word is out. You are changing the world.
It's a sad day for me and millions of those who will suffer and be slaughtered. To celebrate this injustice is wrong. Worst words ever, "because we have always done it this way" . There's no Justifying violence and death upon the most innocent and powerless in the name of tradition, culture, or a religion. That's never something to celebrate. It's something that belongs in the history books of lessons learned and not to repeat. Have mercy everyday.
May we see a significant change to this awful tradition in our lifetimes 😢
If we speak up, we will!
I completely agree….the whole turkey on the Thanksgiving table is a sickening tradition to a say the least! Thank you for your thoughtful insights Wayne. Hang in there!
Than you Wayne and Wayne's team for all that you continue to do every day for the animals and to keep us all connected. We must transform this holiday. The conditioning runs every so deep. It's hard to find the right words that don't insinuate shame or guilt towards those who still partake, but I'm realizing that if we're going to ask others to be more compassionate we need to be more compassionate towards them first. Shame and guilt have no place in this. We are tasked with teaching, as if teaching 5 year old children. We don't chastise them for not getting it right away. But we keep teaching, reinforcing, from a place of caring, not moral superiority. Sharing what we know in non aggressive or combative ways. Assertiveness is definitely warranted. We have to keep showing people the truth and challenging those who try to conceal that truth. Wayne, I wish you a peaceful heart filled with gratitude on the day of thanks and also that you know how thankful we all are to you. And that the animals would thank you too if they knew what you do for them.
Great points. I find the idea of nonviolence so powerful here -- not just in the direct action against factory farms, but in the spirit we advocate with in our daily lives.
Part of why open rescue is so powerful to me is that it can be seamless with everyone's advocacy, distant and away from the farms. It's all the same energy: actively intervening in violence with compassion, whether it's rescuing an animal from a farm, or responding kindly to an aggressive skeptic on the street. I'd love for the broader movement to more deeply embody these values.
Thank you for everything you do for animals, Sarah!
Yes, non violence in thought, not just deed. There's a learning curve for sure. Thank you too, Dean, for all that you do for the animals, including song.
You write so thoughtful and beautifully Wayne even under the pressures and stress you must be experiencing while awaiting the life altering decision on your fate in just eleven days. How thankful and humane it would be for the judge to finally reveal she does have a heart unlike how we never thought she did during the trial and which we will be praying for until the decision is handed down. I wrote my fourth letter to you today and will continue to do so until you are free and true justice has been declared for you to be released.
Thank you for writing to him! I know he appreciates it!
I got two invitations to consume a meal. "You should come, you can eat the potatoes and corn !"
Thanks, I don't want to be your token Vegan. Thanks for sticking to your principles !
we don't do the twisted tradition of thanksgiving. i'm thinking about how many things we did automatically and thoughtlessly. we were manipulated and propagandized from birth. we're in an insane time, but in this time also a paradigm shift is beginning. i remember when people laughed when i referred to america as an empire. turkeys are beautiful. every animal humans eat is beautiful. i will think of biden sitting down with wayne. lars von trier says we have to take the good with the evil, but i don't think i could bear to meet biden.
Reminds me of Peter Singer's opening words to the first Animal Liberation: "This is a book about the tyranny of human over non-human animals." Our nation -- and entire species -- has been a violent empire over our fellow creatures, and it's time for it to stop.