Tuesday, July 05, 2005

Donald Watson - Vegan Society Founder

donald Watson- Founder of The Vegan Society

Donald Watson formed the word vegan from the begining and end of "vegetarian" and founded The Vegan Society in November 1944.



Donald Watson - Vegan Society Founder:

Interview with Donald Watson founder and patron of The Vegan Society by Vegan Society Trustee and Author of The Vegan Passport George D. Rodger on 15 December 2002. First published in The Vegan Summer 2003 Edition. This extract from www.worldveganday.org

"Q: What do you think of the way the Vegan Society has developed since you were running it?
A: Better than expected, certainly. The genie is now out of the bottle and no one can ever put it back to the ignorant days before 1944, when this seed was planted by people full of hope. Now wherever Man lives he can have a vegan diet. All the early work was done by volunteers. In a way, everyone the Society has ever paid to do the office work have all been volunteers. Even our Chief Executive is on a wage at the very bottom of anything that is paid in the commercial sector. Because we can afford nothing more. So the Vegan Society has always, in that sense, been supported by voluntary labour. And we're enormously grateful to these people because heaven knows what would happen if they all packed in. "

More - 24 Carrot Award * www.worldveganday.org * Joanne Stepaniak
* The Vegan Society * Vegan Birthday - World Vegan Day

1 comment:

Vegan Chef said...

Ode to Donald Watson – Founder of Veganism

There was a star geezer called Donald
Who had some ideas that he’d cobbled
Into a movement called vegan
To make all life more even
with torture and killing to be knobbled

It was during the war that he started
And off from the veggies he parted
Now 60 years later
He’s an illuminator
for the ethical, cool and kind hearted

Now vegan is kinder to people
(especially the plumper meat eater)
and it’s good for the planet
so shout it and spam it
and life could be so much more neater

Join with us on world vegan day
November 1st not 1st of May
With drinking and eating
And much celebrating
For success of a new vegan way

Don Quinoa