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Veganuary 2026: Freedom's Vegan Journey (Originally released 2025)
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This January we are re-releasing all eighteen of our 'Going Vegan' series, to shine a spotlight on the huge variety of everyday normal folk who choose to avoid animal expoitation through choosing a vegan lifestyle.
In today's rerun, we hear from the fabulous, Freedom!
For the original shownotes for this episode, visit Episode 188 directly https://zencastr.com/z/-CiOmpOf
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Enough of the Falafel is a community of people who love keeping on top of the latest news in the world of veganism & animal rights. With our podcasts, we aim to keep listeners (& ourselves) informed & up-to-date with the latest developments that affect vegans & non-human animals; giving insight, whilst staying balanced; remaining true to our vegan ethics, whilst constantly seeking to grow & develop.
Each week we look through news stories from the past 7 days in the world of veganism & animal rights, as well as picking a 'timeless' vegan or animal rights issue, and discussing it in more depth.
If you spot any news stories that might catch our fancy, or have an idea for a discussion topic, get in touch via enoughofthefalafel@gmail.com.
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Thanks everyone for listening; give us a rating and drop us a message to say "hi"; it'll make our day!
Freedom & Ant
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Transcript
Introduction to Anthony and the Collective
00:00:01
Speaker
Hi there, this is Anthony from the Enough of the Falafel Collective. We're
The Podcast's Focus on Vegan News
00:00:05
Speaker
a group of just everyday vegans who for the last two and a half years or so have been releasing two podcasts a week bringing you vegan and animal rights news as well as philosophical discussions.
Vegan Journeys Re-released
00:00:17
Speaker
And many of the contributors on the show have released a special episode in the past where they've talked about their journey of going vegan.
Freedom's Vegan Journey
00:00:26
Speaker
And for Veganuary 2026, we are re-releasing all of those episodes and the episode you're about to listen to now is one of those so it's been recorded at some point in the last three years and it features one of our contributors we really hope you enjoy it and that you continue to join for other episodes that we release over the course of 2026
00:00:50
Speaker
So I'm delighted that we're joined today by Freedom. We don't really know each other at all, really, do we? We've we've chatted a little bit before, but but not much. So I'm going to be learning stuff at the same time as listeners, which I always think is an exciting way to do it. So
Early Experiences with Animal Cruelty
00:01:05
Speaker
we'll start off.
00:01:06
Speaker
the show as we always do with these and if you could tell us freedom like what's the earliest that you can track back in your life to a time where there was a little bit of a hint or a little bit of a clue that later on in your life you would have a concern for animals or veganism could be something that you have an interest in like how far back can you trace it i could trace it back to back when i was a kid i usually hated um because there was a nearby slaughterhouse so ah where we lived.
Inspiration from European Animal Rights
00:01:40
Speaker
So each time passed there, you know I felt really bitter and sad towards the things I saw there. So and as a kid, um I couldn't take actions then. And um I do remember when I pointed to my mom that, hey,
00:01:58
Speaker
from these so crow that i I really feel bad against that. But although back then she tried to shun me as a kid and along the line, i do see where, you know, cattle, you know, they were like being beaten before they were kind of slaughtered.
00:02:17
Speaker
So all those were horrific to me, although to people who considered it normal, I myself, I was ah experiencing it from a different perspective that, hey, this was so horrible and cruel.
00:02:31
Speaker
So um then um before in my early teens, I started um researching more about um how possible is this? Because back then I never considered it to be something that would be possible, a kind of movement against all these um horrible acts. So I...
00:02:49
Speaker
Started researching and I started ah seeing that it was possible, you know, mainly in European countries that animals also have rights to, that um they also consider as living things that need the same love and care as other living things. That was my really, I call it a a revelation moment to me because that was a a moment of liberation to me. So I was really happy the day I made that discovery.
Involvement in Vegan Organizations
00:03:19
Speaker
Then I started around taking more actions by, I first started sending out emails to some NGOs, you know, but main mainly they were Europeans that were ways through which I could um help and assist them. So,
00:03:34
Speaker
Thus has been my journey. Wow. Goodness me. I mean, if we can go back to this the start of that, like walking past a slaughterhouse, I mean, for many people, like they're they're hidden, they're out of sight. Like that that that must have been a really striking, bold experience. Do do do you know like ah other people in your life, like how did they respond to to walking past that too? Like you were saying you were a child when that happened. Like did did you have friends who also experienced this? One of my childhood friends,
00:04:04
Speaker
She now lives in Finland, you know, she had the same views as I did. So um she also encouraged me because when she now moved to Finland, she was saying, hey, all these are so real. I mean, the actions towards the animal rights, you know, that in Europe is so strong, you know, that um it's so real. That also encouraged me. Although back from Other people consider the slaughterhouses as being um normal, you know, that um animals are meant to be eating, animals are meant to be used as the sub-burden, you know, and all that stuff.
00:04:45
Speaker
So it was really horrible to me as well. Yeah, goodness. And then you you mentioned researching and finding a lot of, let's call it Eurocentric, European-centric information in in in terms of you know animal rights and and progress that that is out there.
Engaging Online Vegan Communities
00:05:03
Speaker
Can you remember like specific organisations or like where you were where you were finding the information out for? It's interesting to know kind of what stood out to you. I first started with um Happy Cow. you know i visited Happy Cow and I was seeing a lot of organizations and also more details and recipes about vegan food because I myself was done with eating anything that has to do with a meat you know and was not plant-based.
00:05:33
Speaker
So um i came across organizations that, um like one, the Scrap disco Factory Farming UK, so i do know some people who who volunteer with the organization as well so i was um involved with them as well so um there are some groups i found on on facebook like one the doll vegan group that um details all about um vegan activism and vegan recipes yeah there's also one um vegan travel group that um
00:06:07
Speaker
These are where i I usually get to experience the community, you know, the vegan community in general. So the Travel Vegan group was a more of a detailing info on to vegan to vegans who wanted to travel, you know, and where they could access ah vegan options in whatever cities they visited. So um
Digital Media in Activism
00:06:30
Speaker
as well, I found I was able to write some vegan brands although I've not yet finalized like there's one I'm working with now but it's a kind of a vegan school but
00:06:46
Speaker
The aims and goals at the moment are to teach people about the vegan lifestyle and also about um vegan recipes. So this has been my journey so far. Wow, that's that's amazing. Can I ask, Freedom, where where were you living in your teens and and and finding all this information out? I've lived in...
00:07:06
Speaker
Namibia but I was assessing all my details remotely because I work remotely so back then I felt the urge that hey you need to research more you need to find more details about all and everything. Yeah absolutely so so when you're finding this information out like having the information is one thing but then how you choose to act on it is another thing. Can you tell us a little bit about how your actions followed that information? Because I mean, some some people will find this information out and it will sit there in their mind, but they might not act on it for months, years even.
00:07:43
Speaker
um how How did that happen for you? The way i reacted to all the information was that it triggered me to, you know, it moved me to take more action by first sending out emails.
00:07:55
Speaker
I started looking for vegan organizations, you know, I started looking for them, you know, I tried to started looking for how to involve myself with vegan communities and I started researching a whole lot of vegan brands, you know, everything that has to do with veganism. Vegan activities, I started sending out meals to some vegan activists to connect with them and them understand their goals and see how I could ah for instance you know use um graphics design to share the word and share the message you know because for example the squad factory organization they held healthy the the healthy kind of procession last I think in March so the
00:08:45
Speaker
kind of use the theme of, you know, factory farming this weekend, you know, that was the theme of the event. So graphic design, you could use graphic design to share the word about it. Like, for instance, now, ah another vegan activist I had worked with, i helped her design a t-shirt, you know, i helped her design a t-shirt to mirror her message, you know,
00:09:09
Speaker
the message about ah what was on the t-shirt was a vegan what matter you know vegan what's matter so and and we're still working on more concepts t-shirts concepts that she's gonna use in because last week yeah she had a kind of food to eat and then and I retreat she was with students because she also teaches you know so they had a visited a southern region in Germany so where they got involved in testing different v yeah vegan recipes. So right at the moment, we are working on the concept whereby, you know, in each of those um retreats, you know, those t-shirts will be worn, you know, to share the message. And I think she should ah be attending a kind of podcast like this, but that one is going to be featured in a magazine. So that's where she's going to show
00:10:07
Speaker
the one, the T-shirt, you know, so it can be seen and the message also
Reactions and Defending Vegan Views
00:10:12
Speaker
shared. what I'm saying is that although I'm not physically present in the zones where I should, you know, be involved in the campaigns, but I could use ah technology by way of graphic design, helping vegan organizations, volunteering, and also writing, designing um all concepts that um would um help the vegan organizations that I find design yeah magazines because through the digital magazines, people get to read more about because had it been, there were no digital forms of knowledge i um written by other vegan activists, you know, I wouldn't have been able to see more details on how non-vegan lifestyle is even affecting the world negatively, you know, climate change and all that. That's fantastic. And like you say, like the the power of technology to, to bring people together and to share important messages it's is great and and and that that can join people together from very far, far away. What I'm wondering is if you have experienced any ah reactions from people in your life or people that you you know come across with regards to work in that no matter where we are in the world, whether it's you know, Namibia or the UK or the USA or um even, I don't know, like a lot of people will think of India, for example, as a very um animal friendly country. There's lots of people who are vegetarian, but but nowhere in the world is ah is a vegan country, is a completely... vegan community and so sometimes the responses of the majority of people who aren't vegan the responses of people um when someone else is saying oh actually i am interested in this i do want to do some work towards helping this cause i want to be vegan myself or whatever it is the response can be quite strong in the negative um but not always and i just wondered if is that anything you've experienced I think, you know, when you begin, when I began posting things that has to do with veganism, you know, friends from the neighborhood, although some who had um visited um countries, for instance, UK, you know, they kind of share the same view that I have because the first thing that hits you when you get to UK is that there are animal rights. Animal rights is, you know, organizations like PETA, you know, PETA, yeah, Although some would now try to share negative view of expression that why you posting things that has to do with them protection of animals, you know, like after all they deserve to be eaten, you know, as meat. So, and I will maintain my stance that
00:13:03
Speaker
This is not how it's supposed to be, you know, that they also deserve love and care. that um And at that and and and the dark moment in time, I am already armed with my information and data on how even eating meat-based um foods are going to impact their health, you know, how meat-based lifestyle is also destroying the environment, you know. Then the overall view of how horrible it is.
00:13:33
Speaker
So I am usually I'm to the teeth in defending my own views at that moment in time. Yeah, and it's a useful thing to be able to do for sure, isn't it? You you mentioned there eating meat and not eating meat. I'm wondering, have you experienced any any differences through through choosing not to eat meat? I
Health Improvements and Maintenance
00:13:54
Speaker
mean, it personally, if I'm completely honest, I mean, the first thing to say is I can't really remember what it what it was like to to eat meat or or eat dairy or eggs anymore because it's been a ah little while. for me but I can't actually remember feeling a physical difference I can I can remember feeling better about myself mentally and being pleased that my actions are aligning up with something that I believe in but physically I didn't notice a difference but I know a lot of people did fit for you personally like have have you found any difference through through not eating meat for it just to take that as an example yeah um because I do work out sometimes so
00:14:33
Speaker
I noticed the difference, you know, the rate at which my metabolism changes. And then again, I wasn't feeling sick as usual, you know, because back then meat based before I became vegan, I was kind of um feeling sick at times, you know, you know, that kind of not said that I do feel in the mornings, you know, but um as my progression into vegan, you know, meals go deeper and deeper.
00:15:01
Speaker
all those vanish. And again, my metabolism. Yeah. It's been positive for me, most especially with my ah metabolism and then my fitness. Yeah. That's interesting, isn't it? I mean, obviously we're all individuals, so these things will affect us in different ways. I'm i'm i'm really enjoying hearing some of the the differences in in your journey, but also considering, you know, culturally there will be lots of differences between what you're experiencing, freedom, and what Many of our listeners, a lot of whom are based in Europe or the USA, for example, um actually there's still so many similarities there. i'm I'm wondering in terms of managing being vegan day to day, what what things help you do that? Do you have any practical tips or is it all about...
00:15:52
Speaker
retaining and and remembering why you're doing it like what what helps you to be vegan every day because it's you know it can be tricky yeah because mine was not because i was told you know mine was um automatic and interior feeling that hey this is horrible i was feeling in you know from the very moment as a kid you know i was was There was that in inner urge to, you know, stop eating meat because I considered all that horrible. Now imagine a scene from walking past the slaughterhouses and then feeling deep in-depth, um you know, a kind of um angst, you know, against such acts. So and then all that um moved me to actually looking for more information on how you know, the imagination on that, how to stop this, you know, and back then I felt a kind of horrible taste towards meat based products, you know, so I think for me, it's very automatic, not no one told me, you know, that's why it's
00:16:58
Speaker
very, mine is very solid. Can I ask, ah that are there other people in your life that you're in contact with regularly, either virtually or or person to person who are who are also vegan? And if if so, like, what what does their lifestyle look like? Is it is it similar to your own? Majority of the friends are the ones I i made through vegan groups, you know. so they're the other ones i talk to more often from the vegan groups you know and looking at it in different countries
00:17:31
Speaker
around the world. So I do communicate with them more often. So that's been my experience. I mean, it's it's wonderful, isn't it, to to have the ability to to connect with folk around the world that are are ah sharing a similar vision to you? Because it it it can, I mean, i can't imagine what it was like being vegan 30 years ago. you know, you could live in ah a village or a town and you could you could be the only person there.
00:17:56
Speaker
who is vegan and then who who are you connecting with? that That must have been really difficult, I think. You feel isolated, you know, and it feels like maybe you're crazy, maybe you don't know what you're talking about.
00:18:07
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. Until the burning moment. Yeah, absolutely. do Do you have times where you you, I mean, you're coming across as very assertive and very determined, but like, do you have moments of doubt or um moments where it it can feel quite low or or like what problems do you encounter?
Challenges and Growth in Confidence
00:18:24
Speaker
You're coming across as very, very confident and capable at the moment, but I am thinking there's There's got to be things that were difficult.
00:18:30
Speaker
Everyone does. Yeah. The moment is very, is very confident at the moment. So I would have said that, um, the years back that, that was, um, when it was, it felt difficult, but as time went by with each communication, with each discovery of each community and which each, which each knowledge, and then with each, um, community, you know, real time conversations that where you, you get to share your own views and do they also, believe what you're saying and they also do what you're saying, you know, don't feel so real, so real.
00:19:04
Speaker
So at the moment, um the confidence is unwavering. It's not low. It's not low. That's good. That's good. That's what we want to hear. That's what we want to hear. Is there um is there anything that you would have gone about differently in your in your vegan journey? So, I mean, i've I've heard some people say, oh, they they wish they'd become vegan sooner, or maybe they wish they had have been kinder to themselves. Have they slipped up or they, you know, they went back on it for a few weeks or whatever, and they were really hard on themselves. so Is there anything that you would have done differently if you could go through that journey again? First, it would have to do with my approach towards towards ah you know finding detail because the the speed at which I found um information back then was really slow. The only thing I would have wanted to be different would be that um I had access all the information faster and that the communities had access them faster, you know, maybe I would have done more by now, you know, because it's really took a lot of time to actually get in contact with the communities, you know, you send them emails and, you know, it may take time to them to reply. And again, um the contacts that you get a beautiful. So I think um if that's one thing, because
00:20:20
Speaker
I'm more focused on how I could have made more impact, you know. And if that would have been reversed, should have been, I wish it would have been, you know, like faster, you know, the access to information and the access to the communities.
00:20:35
Speaker
Yeah, but we keep working on that. Yeah, it's really inspiring. You know, it's coming across how how driven you are to to make a difference here. It's is fantastic to hear.
Encouragement and Benefits of Veganism
00:20:45
Speaker
I'm wondering that part of the reason we have episodes like this is because we know that most of our listeners are vegan, but we make the assumption that not everybody will be. And we know that a lot of our listeners will share episodes with friends, family, co-workers who are maybe interested in vegan from time to time. And I'm wondering...
00:21:04
Speaker
what message you would give to somebody listening who is not yet vegan what what would you say to them particularly if they were wondering about trying out the lifestyle themselves and they were thinking oh i'm not sure whether i should or not what what would you say to them first i would say that they shouldn't be discouraged because when they are about to take that first step, you know, in my view that um to those who are around them, that they are crazy, you know. So my message is that they shouldn't already relent, you know, because what we are against is so horrible.
00:21:38
Speaker
The acts that are done to animals, that's one of the central messages, that they should um not be scared of what people might say, you know. And again, that um it's very beneficial. It's very helpful to their health as well.
00:21:53
Speaker
And it's very helpful to the environment in general. No, that's that's a really clear, strong message. I enjoyed that. I'm wondering, do you have, like you've you've mentioned the atrocities that are happening from animals' points of view. You've you've obviously mentioned the environment and health too, which are a big motivators for lots of people. But just from an animal-centric point of view, do you have a ah particular thing in mind that you that you think about that that that really motivates you with regards to animals point of view. I
Animal Cruelty and Activism Motivation
00:22:24
Speaker
ask this because when when I first went vegan, the the thought of what happens to male chickens when they're like a day old and they're they're just killed because they're boys and that's it. You know, they they were born the wrong sex, born the wrong gender and that's it. That really stuck in my mind as like, my goodness, this is this is horrible like is there a one particular element of of animal farming or animal use that stays in your mind and and motivates you more more than any other the way they are slaughtered daily you know and then the statistics is in millions in billions even in millions are so so that's where what's always hinged on my mind you know and again the experiments you know that's more on a
00:23:09
Speaker
deeper level all scientific fields they are all using animals in know order in all their experiments you know so it's something that also sticks to my mind and it's so horrible yeah and again the horrible conditions in which most of the animals are read. And then again, the abuse of animals, you know, people who abuse them a lot. So lots of really striking images there. I want us to finish on a positive note because it's been really, it's been really great talking to you, Freedom, and and hearing your insight to things. And I know I know listeners will have really enjoyed this. If we can finish by focusing on what your hopes are and your your signs for optimism for the vegan movement. Like we we know it's growing, we know that it's reaching corners of the world that it perhaps wasn't in initially, but what what gives you hope and what gives you optimism for that for the animal rights movement and the vegan movement? There's been a whole
Optimism in Plant-Based Advancements
00:24:05
Speaker
lot of, and because I've been doing a whole lot of research, you know, so that which gives me hope includes
00:24:11
Speaker
At the moment, a whole lot of plant-based, because some people were saying, um what would they eat when they stop eating plants, you know? So at the moment, there's a whole lot of innovation going on with regards the development of plant-based foods, you know, a whole lot of research, because um there's been a whole lot of ah research going on towards um the non-use of animals in experiment, you know, bio and most are biotechs that are coming up now.
00:24:39
Speaker
are now focusing towards sustainability. And again, a whole lot of um movements around the world that um is trying to conserve the ecosystem, you know, the natural environment, you know, because all non-vegan lifestyle lead to the destruction of the ecosystem.
00:24:59
Speaker
Yeah, we can see that around the down here, you know, for example, animal poaching, you hear about that often. animal coaching, which people are now, organizations are now involved massively to stop it. Else, if left with the non-vegan lifestyle, they would um drive all these animals to extinction. So those are three hinge and points where I consider the hope to lie on, you know.
00:25:25
Speaker
So there's hope and um I keep getting more confident. And again, um more options are now considered towards the use of non-vegan product for example letter is no more like consider them as the ultimate option that has been the the hope at the moment the non-use of animals for experiment is gaining more momentum you know you know it's getting more momentum and again they imagine self a whole lot of plant-based meal options you know because some people will be giving you excuses that um what would they be eating if There's no meat.
00:26:05
Speaker
So the health-based facts that point towards the effects of meat, you know, meat-based nutrition on the human body. So the movement, I experienced a kind of powerful movement, most especially in the European countries, you know. People are now taking their health more seriously. It's not just about eating anything that you see. So it's all more positive. gets more and more positive as the day goes by. That's fantastic. That's fantastic. Before
Veganism in Namibia: Current State and Awareness
00:26:34
Speaker
we go, Freedom, I'm really intrigued to ask. You're going to know tons more about what...
00:26:41
Speaker
a vegan movement looks like in Namibia, for example, than, than I, like I have no insight into that all. And I don't, I don't want to put all, all my um projections onto you here, but I'm, I'm just wondering if, if you would be happy to give, so any insight you have as to what that looks like in in a country like Namibia? Because i I know myself and I imagine a lot of our listeners wouldn't have much knowledge or insight of that at all. Would you be happy to share what what it looks like at the moment from your perspective anyway? It's not as it is in
00:27:15
Speaker
the European country so unless more action is being taken and I speak for ah the African nations in general you know think um for people like me they just need to put in more effort to spread the message you know because um I think um with the ability of people to travel and see the cultures in other countries, you know, you get to see that um this is not how these things should be, you know, this is not how things are meant to be.
00:27:47
Speaker
i mean, the horrible maltreatment of animals, you know, and all that. They kind of learn a whole lot of things on how their lifestyle em impacts the environment, you know. So think more and more people like me should um try to share the word and let the message be known.
00:28:06
Speaker
around um our environment, you know, because at the moment people are still seen living the non-vegan lifestyle, you know, they are not um kind of aware of what's happening and then on how even their lifestyle is affecting the environment. So these are things that need to be, you know, looked at. And it's fantastic that despite the fact it's a non-vegan vegan environment that there are people out there still who like doing what you're doing and and spreading that message and and getting it to places that it might not get to otherwise. And that's that's inspiring. That's trailblazing. And like all of these movements start in a very, very small scale before they can get bigger. And yeah, all all power to you and and and everybody who is who is spreading that message into places that it wouldn't ordinarily get. That's fantastic. Yeah, happy to be on this podcast that I, you know, get a mirror of my own views, you know, and that I hope to do more and I hope to also assist this podcast in whatever ways I can. Thank you. Yeah, that's great. That's great. Well, it's it's been great to learn more about you and them I know our listeners will will have enjoyed it too. Yeah, that was fabulous, yeah.
00:29:25
Speaker
This has been an Enough of the Falafel production. We're just a normal bunch of everyday vegans putting our voices out there. The show is hosted by Zencaster.
00:29:35
Speaker
We use music and special effects by zapsplatt.com. And sometimes, if you're lucky, at the end of an episode, you'll hear a poem by Mr Dominic Berry. Thanks all for listening, and see you next time.
00:30:06
Speaker
This episode may have come to an end, but did you know we've got a whole archive containing all our shows dating back to September 2023? twenty twenty three That is right, Dominic. There's over 100 episodes on there featuring our brilliant range of different guests, people's stories of going vegan, philosophical debates, moral quandaries, and of course, around a dozen news items from around the world each week.
00:30:31
Speaker
So check back on your podcast player, to hear previous episodes. And remember, to get an alert for each new episode, simply click like or follow and also subscribe to the show.
00:30:41
Speaker
Thanks for your ongoing support wherever you listen to us from.