Two turkeys who escaped the table, and an invitation to rethink yours
Holidays built around food are especially hard on vegan advocates. The real victims are the animals, of course, but those of us who consider their suffering every day of the year feel an added sting.
Thanksgiving is the worst of them, which makes it a good time to speak up and say Thanks, but no thanks.
I’ve always disliked cliché. Partly it makes me feel uncreative, but mostly it’s that ideas repeated over time grow familiar without changing anyone’s behavior.
I don’t have a new idea here, but I have two turkeys.
My friend Kerry runs a farmed animal sanctuary. She commits to lifelong care for her family of residents, and she works to educate people about them.
I went there recently to visit Jimmy and Morrison.
Jimmy came to the sanctuary first. He escaped his breeder, and neighbors found him and brought him to Kerry. Morrison arrived soon after, with the same story. Now they are best buds, and nobody is ever going to eat them.
They have an enclosure, but when Kerry is home, they follow her everywhere – like puppies. The actual dogs follow along, too, sometimes with ducks, pigs and Henrita the chicken.
At the sanctuary, Jimmy and Morrison are respected as individuals. They have rights and as much autonomy as is safe.
Turkeys served for Thanksgiving are babies. Turkeys can live a decade or more, but they are killed for meat when they reach a certain weight – and that’s usually when they are less than 5 months old. Jimmy and Morrison are about a year old now.
While I sat with them in the grass, I tried to imagine myself as someone planning to serve turkey at Thanksgiving this year, as every year before.
I wanted to see if being with these two magnificent bird-beings could open someone’s eyes. If they were close enough to see Jimmy’s sparkly feathers and the many colors decorating Morrison’s face. If that sparked curiosity. If they looked into the birds’ eyes and saw them looking back with interest. If they fed them some treats. If they heard them speak. If they felt the animals’ sentience.
Would they think twice about buying one in plucked, packaged, frozen form?
I’m not sure, but I think it’s worth a try, and Kerry has made the invitation. If you’re local, email Kerry to visit Jimmy and Morrison.
If you want to contribute to their care, sponsor them for Thanksgiving.
Another thing you can do is advocate for a plant-based Thanksgiving in your community. I wrote a letter to the editor, and you can use mine to build on or write your own.
We have to speak up, even if we can’t find groundbreaking news. We have to speak from the heart and keep speaking until people hear the message.
Here’s a sample letter:
Are you ready for a change? This Thanksgiving, choose your menu instead of inheriting it.
Most people serve turkey on Thanksgiving because it was served to them. Why mark one day by ending a life and making it the centerpiece of a celebration? It’s a tradition that goes unexamined.
Be a leader. Someone has to be the first one in the family or the circle of friends to serve something different.
Decide your legacy. Give your children a kind recipe for life.
Worried your guests will complain there’s no turkey? Tell them early. Tell them you are trying something new. If they are bringing a dish, ask them to make it plant-based.
Worried you don’t know what to cook? Start searching for plant-based centerpieces now. Worried how it will taste? Do a trial run!
Worried it will cost more? It often costs less. Worried your store doesn’t have what you need? A regular grocery store absolutely does.
Worried that one meal won’t change anything? It changes what people at your table see and remember. It could change you.
Worried that this year’s turkeys are already dead and frozen? Me, too. But a drop in demand influences future supply. Your choice influences next year’s order.
Not in charge of dinner? Simply bring a plant-based dish to share, and maybe share this letter.
Don’t worry, be thankful!
