Chapter 6: You’ll be judged by what you do
It’s easy to feel upset about wars in distant countries or call disasters tragic, to argue that governments, corporations, or ‘someone else’ should do more.
In most situations, there’s little you can do - but this is different. This is one area in your life where your actions directly matter - at least three times a day, every day, with each meal.
In practical terms, this is simple supply and demand: what you choose to support - or refuse to support - shapes the world around you.
Otherwise, isn’t it all just lip service?
It’s easy to feel despair in the face of injustice, to think, What can one person really do?
But the truth is, your choices are the only thing you can control.
Every choice you make casts a vote for the kind of world you want to live in.
The same principle has played out throughout history.
Brave individuals - radicals in their time - have repeatedly changed the course of society by refusing to accept injustice, even when their actions were ridiculed or opposed.
It’s easy to say you would do the right thing from the safe vantage point of history, when the injustice is already universally recognised.
As Arthur Schopenhauer observed:
“All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as self-evident.”
The real test is acting when society ridicules you, when you’re labeled radical - or even crazy - and doing the right thing anyway.
Every act of courage, every choice to stand against exploitation, brings us closer to a fully vegan world - a future that is inevitable and only a matter of time - because no injustice can last forever.
Today, you have the opportunity to stand on the right side of history and be one of the people who helped bring about that change.
And the good news is, you don’t even have to worry about convincing the whole world. Research suggests that when roughly 3.5% of a population are active in a movement, it creates a tipping point that leads to widespread social change.
Think about it.
What would a person of strong moral character do when faced with injustice? Would they wait for someone else to act? Would they throw their hands in the air and say, ‘But what can one person do?’
Or would they step up, take responsibility, and in doing so, set a standard for others to follow?
You can be that version of yourself.
There is no better feeling than living with that kind of integrity. Your actions are your responsibility. Your choices are your power.
Stop waiting for everything else to change around you.
Be the change you want to see in the world.
It is up to you.
From this moment forward, how many animals should be exploited for you - zero, or more than zero?