Is Being Vegan Morally Right?
People become vegan for many reasons such as health or weight loss or the environment. The original and most important reason for becoming vegan, however, is for ethical and animal welfare concerns. Vegans seek to end the cruelty of the meat and dairy industry by boycotting all use of animals for human gain.
The other reasons for veganism are more recent trends but the original proponents of veganism were doing it as an ethical statement to end the unnecessary suffering of animals.
This is not mere speculation as many books were written by the foremost thinkers and vegan activists of the time where they laid out their credo. In doing so they devote a large part of their work to discussing the topics of animal welfare and ethical arguments for veganism. Peter Singer is the main example in his seminal book Animal Liberation.
Humans have a duty to be moral
Vegan opponents argue that because the animal kingdom is "red in tooth and claw", we humans should just "do as the Romans" and revel in the barbarity of dog eat dog nature.
To counter that idea, other animals do not possess the capacity to be moral and so are under no obligation to do so.
Humans, conversely, have a more developed consciousness and are capable of self-reflection and as such should take responsibility for their actions and how those actions affect others.
As the thinking ape we humans should hold ourselves to a higher standard. As the custodians of higher consciousness it is our duty to do what is morally right.
Kant's Categorical Imperative
Kant wrote in Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals (1785):
"Act only according to that maxim whereby you can, at the same time, will that it should become a universal law."
Kant is a famed philosopher who came to prominence during the age of Enlightenment. He covered many topics during his career but one he was very interested in was the matter of duty and acting in an objectively good manner. As the above quote implies you should express actions only if you would happily will them into existence as a universal law.
This is similar to the adage of "do unto others as you would have them do unto you" which is a well known verse from the Bible.
Neither Kant or Jesus' words from the Bible would likely have intended animals when they were formulated however for vegans this is the case.
For vegans harming any living creature is an act of evil so it can be said that they see it as morally right to do no harm and are fierce opponents of any that do.
Speciesism is morally wrong
This has been discussed in greater detail in a previous article, Is Speciesism Wrong? - Origins and Moral Implications. To re-iterate, speciesism is the act of treating one species preferentially, usually only due to societal norms, over another.
Sadly, the majority of the world still act this way. Unless you have taken up veganism as a lifestyle then you probably also are speciesist favoring animals such as common pets like dogs or cats if you are from a Western country.
Vegans do not accept this and so see it as morally wrong to prefer treating some animals well and exploit others for personal gain for either dairy or for food or just as beasts of burden.
The disconnect between farming and animal suffering
Vegans could be said to be some of the most compassionate people there are as there is no "payoff" for being vegan to the individual except a clear conscience that they are doing no harm to another creature.
Unless you are sociopathic though, most people in society would feel distressed about seeing another creature suffering in front of them. Many are are quick to report animal cruelty if they see it happening to a dog or other pet.
The problem with the meat and dairy industry is that it is hidden from view and likewise the suffering that goes on is hidden from the general populace.
There are courageous vegan activists who penetrate into these intensive farming industries with hidden cameras and reveal the horrific conditions to the world. People are shocked at the footage and may turn away or even sometimes be swayed to change but it is still a fleeting thing compared to seeing it happen in real time.
There is still the distance of the screen compared to seeing it first hand happening in front of them.
Conversely there are always adverts such as cartoon dairy cows smiling and gamboling through lush green fields as if their life were a holiday. The ugly scenes shown by hidden footage of intensive dairy farming could not be further from the truth.
These points are to illustrate that if more people were to see the truth of what goes on it would have a much higher likelihood of them making a choice to not want to harm those animals. They may choose to be vegan if it was clear the alternative was to see the animals suffer as a direct consequence of them consuming animal products.
So, many would feel it morally right to not harm animals if they had to see directly the suffering it caused the other creature. In modern society, however, all of this suffering is hidden behind a long chain of production where the end user only sees the neatly packaged products and expensive advertising.
Conclusion
As we can see vegans choose to be so precisely because they feel it their moral duty to do so. Peter Singer, having been one of the modern day advocates, made the movement popular in the 70s, his ideas of which which many vegans follow today. These are the same philosophies which put animal rights and the end of their suffering as central to the vegan way.
The concept of duty and acting morally towards the good is something which has been echoed through history by figures such as Jesus in the Bible and Immanuel Kant. Vegans extend the moral duty from just humans to all sentient beings.
Speciesism is seen as morally wrong and to be condemned and conversely to act morally is to end this tradition and rather treat animals with kindness and love as you would any other favored species.
Many humans who are currently supporting the farming industry could be converted if they were to see the actual harm animals suffered at their hands. This disconnect between production and product means most people never see the damage first hand.