Voices for the voiceless: animal rights activism in Canada

Veganism and animal rights activism are minority ethical beliefs and practices amply covered by the academy and the media, often in stark contrasts. This outsider coverage influences public perception, often leaving insider perspectives misunderstood and overgeneralized. The work of this dissertation is primarily concerned with the application of a folkloristic lens to vegan and animal rights communities in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador and Toronto, Ontario in an effort to counterbalance outsider opinions of these groups with the nuances of insider voices and lived experiences. This dissertation also makes the case for a folkloristics of ethical belief via the exploration of veganism in the lives of St. John's and Toronto vegans and examines various elements of performativity in Toronto animal rights activism. Central to this work is an argument rooted in the philosophical writing of Antonio Gramsci and the folklore scholarship of David Hufford that veganism is a tradition of counter-hegemonic belief and that its counterpart, carnism, is not simply senso comune but a tradition of hegemonic belief. The philosophical positions of Peter Singer, Tom Regan, Josephine Donovan, and Gary Francione on the rights of animals are situated alongside folkloristic scholarship of belief to produce a framework for the analysis of ethical belief in vegan life narratives belonging to research participants in both cities. These narratives provide insights into the nuanced perspectives of participants about animals and food when they were children and young adults, detail their transitions from carnism to veganism, outline their current ethical beliefs systems, and offer commentary about the challenges they face and supports they receive from others for their beliefs. Following these life narratives, four ethnographic accounts of participant observation at animal rights demonstrations illustrate some of the ways veganism is enacted and performed. The Roaring Silence Against Bill 156 march provides an opportunity to analyze communicative competence in speakouts. The Toronto Cow Save vigil explores the place of pilgrimage, memorial, and persuasion at slaughterhouse demonstrations along with their impacts upon various target audiences. The Toronto Cow Save vigil problematizes hegemonic violence against vegan animal rights activists via the death of Regan Russell. Finally, the GRASS Bar Isabel protest examines the spatial and verbal tensions created by protesters and police at a dynamic, hyperlocal restaurant demonstration against the presence of foie gras on the menu.