FEATURE: Deborah Ajulo

Hi my name is Deborah Ajulo, I'm a 19 year old environmental science student. I first realized what a vegan was three years ago when I stumbled across the actress Maggie Q. who is also a vegan. Being the curious person that I was, I went and did some research and came across a lot of articles and documentaries explaining veganism and why you should turn vegan. I soon realized it was not natural for me to be consuming the flesh of other animals and their wastes. My eyes were open to the meat and dairy industry and I was able to see how animals have been mistreated and abused. It was then that I swore to myself I would never consume animal-based products again and it has been the best decision of my life.

I used to suffer from bad acne and my skin has cleared up drastically. I also have a lot of energy and a glow to my skin. I've taken an interest in the environment and protecting souls whose voices aren't heard, which is why I now study environmental science. The transition was relatively easy but I mostly struggled with sweets since all my favorite ones contained gelatin, but not once did I relapse. I have been a vegan for nearly three years now and I am carrying on strong influencing my family and friends as I continue on this vegan journey. 

Social Media:

Blog; https://rawwithnature.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/raw-vegan-brownies.html?m=1

Instagram; https://www.instagram.com/rawwithnature_/

FEATURE: Dr. Clare Anyiam-Osigwe

Dr. Clare Anyiam-Osigwe has been vegan for 8 years and is the founder of Premae Skincare.
 

I was persistently unwell during my second year at university back in 2004. I was eating a lot of meat and wheat-based products and knew that they were making me bloat and feel tired. The final straw was that my skin looked awful, and I was studying to become an actress and director. I worked as a makeup artist during the weekends and evenings. 

I decided after much reluctance to go vegan. It was the hardest journey back then, as there were no Freefrom or Vegan aisles at my local supermarkets. I made curries, soups from scratch and over 12 months started to feel much better. 

I then saw that my skin improved, but there was still acne scars. I looked at the makeup in my makeup kit and realised that the chemicals and the ingredients such as Wheatgerm, Lanolin (Sheeps wool), Petroleum (derived from Petrol oil) were clogging my pores. I began cooking raw face balms from my kitchen, using raw mango butter, aloe vera, coconut and cocoa butters. These beautiful ingredients are Alkaline, healing and sedatory. My skin blemishes disappeared within six months and I've had beautiful skin ever since. 

To me, being Vegan on the inside and outside means my whole immune system is being nourished. Now, my mission is to share this with the world. 

Follow Premae Skincare on Social Media

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Premaeskincare/

Twitter: @premaeskincare

Instagram: premaeskincare

FEATURE: Marya McQuirter, PhD

On 13 March 2002, I was featured in “The World According to Vegetarians,” The Washington Post's first substantive article on veganism. The article appeared on the front page of the Food section with a photo of me below the fold. The writer, Candy Sagon, convened six vegans for a roundtable discussion at The Washington Post building, when it was still on 15th Street.

When this article was written, I had been a vegan for approximately 14 years. I ate only vegan food, I did not wear wool or leather and I was an animal rights activist. I have exhilarating memories of protesting against the circus at the DC Armory and almost getting arrested outside of the National Building Museum.

At the dawn of 2017, I'm still a vegan and still don't wear animal products. While I haven't been to a protest in years, I'm still fervently committed to animal rights. What's new for me is parenting.  

My 11 year old loves to devise improbable scenarios to test my love for her. Her latest scenario: if the only way she could be saved from death is if I ate a non-vegan sandwich, would I eat it? I hesitated. She was not pleased.

It was easy for me, before I was a parent, to be a committed vegan. It's become more complicated now that I have to make decisions for and with another person.

So what do you do when ethics and love collide? This question haunts me.

It haunts me because I know that a range of isms are able to continue, in part, because they are entangled in our intimate relationships and traditions. When I was pregnant in 2005, three years after the article, I didn’t anticipate that being both a committed vegan and a loving parent could be antagonistic positionalities.

Check out Marya's curated project #dc1968. You can also follow Marya on Twitter @maryamcquirter.

FEATURE: Kyobe Ashiraf Kyeyago

Kyobe Ashiraf Kyeyago is the Founder of Vegan Society Uganda. Kyobe Ashiraf Kyeyago works tirelessly to fight animal cruelty. Vegan Society Uganda is recognized as a community-based organization. It is non-profitable, non-political, non-sectarian and non-discriminatory. The secretariat of the organization is located in the republic of Uganda in Iganga Municipality, Iganga district. The goals of the project are to stop animal cruelty, increase animal welfare and open sanctuaries in Uganda and all over Africa, reduce the consumption of animal products in Uganda and all over Africa, improve the availability of vegan products, restaurants, catered events and markets in Uganda and all over Africa, and raise awareness about climate change, environmental issues and the importance of veganism.

He is trying to promote veganism in Uganda and he has a very detailed proposal requesting your financial support. If you are interested in looking at Kyobe Ashiraf Kyeyago's financial proposal, please email him at: vegansocietyuganda@gmail.com.

FEATURE: Ciara Fitts

My name is Ciara Fitts. January 5, 2017 will make a year since I went vegan. Last year I almost died from gall stones. I ignored the pain for three weeks thinking it was just acid reflux. I decided after my surgery enough was enough. I was tired of being sick and tired. Since I was a child I suffered from abscesses, acid reflux, bronchitis, and horrible acne. I went vegan head on. I love every moment of it. Being in the military sometimes makes it difficult because there aren't vegan MRE's (meals, ready to eat) and also when I'm in the field I'm a lot hungrier because I'm not only moving a lot I'm going through all of my food, but being vegan in the military is possible.

When I first went vegan, I had no one in my corner to support me in choosing to live a meatless lifestyle. People in my unit would pick on me because I chose not to eat meat. My Sergeant would constantly pick on me about eating rabbit food. I'm glad that I was able to find people on social media who wanted to live the same lifestyle as me. 

I went vegan because  I couldn't call myself an animal lover if I was continuing to eat them. The deeper I got into not eating meat, I started realizing that animals are conscious beings - they feel the same things we feel. I can't fathom the idea of me taking a child away from its mom. 

I became a vegan last January. I was getting closer to my fifth year in the Army. I knew the questions about being vegan while in the military would come up. Yes, being a vegan means that you won't cause harm to others, especially animals. I rose my right hand to swear and protect others.

The black community often frames veganism as a "white thing" because of what we've been told our diet consisted of back from when we was living in Africa until we were slaves. Every family dinner or holiday my mother would cook chitterlings. I would constantly ask her "why did we have to eat it"? She would simply reply, "it's a part of our culture". I later researched that when slaves got meat it was the left over parts that the slave owners didn't want. For so long we always wanted to blame what our family members ate on why there are health problems in our communities. But if we let go of the things that once bound us as slaves, this might set us free. 

FEATURE: Daud (David) K. Scott

My name is Daud (David) K. Scott, a Certified Holistic Nutrition Practitioner in Los Angeles, California and longtime vegan. I’ve incorporated veganism as a way of life starting out at my days as a student at Hampton University in Virginia in the late 1990’s. I was initially introduced to the vegan path through association with the hardcore-punk rock movement and representatives from various animal rights associations. Veganism has allowed me to unfold the steps to a clear mind, deeper spirituality and a greater connected presence to the Earth.  I am presently running a Holistic Nutrition practice called: Natures First Path. My practice first and foremost assists clients through plant-based (Vegan) eating, then mindfulness, herbology, reflexology and iridology.

Working with clients over a number of years, it became clear to me that people have more of a say so in the direction of their own health than they realize. For me the most obvious and clear thing to do is to just simply begin to eat more fresh, organic vegetables and fruits to allow the detoxification process to begin. I know that plant-based vegan eating and ethical practice holds a major key in correcting the many imbalances that so many people are dealing with today.

I am of the belief that it is never too late to correct any imbalances we feel in our bodies as so long as we have breath in us and have strong will and determination. I believe that most; if not all of the things to help us with nutrition and vitality can be found in our foods, and within the human body itself: The Natural Order. I became a nutritionist as a path of healing; and healing in our communities is greatly needed; may we be available in whatever capacity we can for those who are seeking.

Social Media:

Website: Natures First Path: Holistic Nutrition

Email: naturesfirstpath@gmail.com

Facebook: Natures First Path Facebook page  

Twitter: @daudscott

#BHM: Donate to Black Vegan Projects

By: Aph Ko

For Black History Month 2017, I decided to compile a list of a few Black vegan organizations, projects, and campaigns that you might want to consider donating to. Too often, we assume that the only currency we should offer to black folks is visibility and exposure. While that definitely helps, we also need real capital to develop our imaginations and ideas. On this list, I include a mix of organizations and campaigns that center on food justice, farming, art, book-writing, and even social projects.

Below are just a few projects that you might want to consider donating to this Black History Month. They are in no particular order. If you know of other organizations or campaigns that are seeking funding, please post their organization name and link in the comment section. You can also email blackvegansrock [at] gmail.com if you want your project to be featured on the website at a later date.

1. Maitu Foods and Grow Where You Are

Maitu Foods is a project created by JoVonna Johnson Cooke. Maitu Foods is a vegan meal delivery service and vegan nutrition education hub. Through MaituFoods, she is working to develop culturally appropriate and accessible educational materials that highlight the benefits of healthy nutrition through a vegan diet. Since 2008, MaituFoods has served more than 1,920 vegan school lunches to children and more than 1,000 vegan meals to families. The overall mission of MaituFoods is to honor the art of food rituals, and to serve humanity in a way that promotes the least harm and the most good for people, animals, and the environment. 

With her husband Eugene Cook, JoVonna co-founded Grow Where You Are, an organization committed to increasing local food sovereignty by assisting individuals and communities in creating sustainable, plant-based local food systems. Grow Where You Are has transformed numerous urban spaces in disadvantaged neighborhoods in Atlanta by establishing community food gardens and vegetable farms. 

MaituFoods and Grow Where You Are collectively invite folks to subscribe and donate. You will receive exclusive news, etc. from both organizations. 

DONATE HERE. 

2. Olympia Auset's SÜPRMARKT

We were honored to feature Olympia on Black Vegans Rock, and we know that her project could use some financial support. SÜPRMARKT operates weekly, providing 100% organic produce and aims to make great health and healing available to the communities that need it the most. SÜPRMARKT is seeking support with getting the word out, building partnerships, and gaining the exposure needed to keep this great thing going. They know expense is a huge barrier in convincing people to eat healthy and they want to burst through that barrier. If you know of foundations or grants that would like to fund this project, send an email to: share@suprmarkt.la. 

DONATE HERE

3. Supriim Vegan

She is featured in the middle.

Nosisa Ndabandaba is a 19 year old vegan from South Africa. She is in the process of starting a vegan foods private company called Supriim Vegan that will be selling to retail stores across the country and eventually to other countries too. Her goal is to show that veganism is a lifestyle that should be adopted by anyone regardless of their skin color or financial means. She does not have an official company website as of yet because she is still in the early stages of the project.

The money will be used to lease a production facility, purchase capital and raw materials as well as for start-up costs e.g website etc. 

She already won a competition that helped her kickstart her project. You can also email her if you want to discuss funding: lindanosisa@gmail.com

DONATE TO SUPRIIM VEGAN HERE (If you don't live in South Africa, you can donate with your Visa or Mastercard).

4. Health Koncious

Chef Nicole Asali is a vegan chef in Oklahoma City and she owns a startup business called Health Koncious! Health Koncious is more of a movement that encourages the community to learn about plant based diets. They do free food demos at schools, grocery stores, Vo techs, they go to festivals all over Oklahoma as well as grocery store tours for families. Health Koncious was founded in May of 2016 and instantly grew. She is currently working towards a book that will be going through the editing process in 2017. It is a run down on the whole food plant based diet.

She is in need  of  $15,000 to support the startup funds for Health Koncious to publish The Millenials Guide to Plant-Based Diets. She also needs to manufacture her many specialty items: protein powders, dairy free cheese sauce, and seitan (faux chicken). She is currently in need of a commercialized kitchen with plenty of walk-in space to hold all of her meal prep orders as well as kitchen equipment. 

Health Koncious is currently going through branding changes with plans to get into meal prep and manufacturing by 2018, and complete their mission of creating a plant based product that is affordable, accessible, and functional to hard working low-income families, because everyone deserves to be Health Koncious!  Chef Asali is a single parent with an income of $15,000 annually. She knows that in order to get into the food industry legitimately you have to have a lot of capital, and that is currently her only hurdle. Her market is completely untapped in Oklahoma and she just needs a small financial push. 

PLEASE DONATE TO HER INDIEGOGO PAGE HERE. 

5. Vegan Society Uganda

Kyobe Ashiraf Kyeyago is the Founder of Vegan Society Uganda. He is trying to promote veganism in Uganda and he has a very detailed proposal requesting your financial support.

Kyobe Ashiraf Kyeyago works tirelessly to fight animal cruelty. Vegan Society Uganda is recognized as a community-based organization. It is non-profitable, non-political, non-sectarian and non-discriminatory. The secretariat of the organization is located in the republic of Uganda in Iganga Municipality, Iganga district. The goals of the project are to stop animal cruelty, increase animal welfare and open sanctuaries in Uganda and all over Africa, to reduce the consumption of animal products in Uganda and all over Africa, etc. If you are interested in looking at Kyobe Ashiraf Kyeyago's financial proposal, please email him at: vegansocietyuganda@gmail.com.

6. Three Twisted Vegans

Rhone't Jacobs owns a vegan business with her sisters Rhoni and Rhoneika. They are triplets in the Washington, D.C. area who plan to open up one of the first African American Fast Food Retro restaurants, While transitioning to the vegan lifestyle, they saw the HUGE deficit in vegan fast food and wanted to change that. After playing with some recipes they finally got it right and straight to the point which birthed 3 Twisted Vegans.  

DONATE TO THREE TWISTED VEGANS HERE.

7. Delisile Godeffroy-Taylor

Delisile Godeffroy-Taylor is in the final stages of editing and design for their vegan, gluten free cookbook, Love Letter to My Son in 40 Recipes: Vegan, Gluten-free, Whole-food Cooking, with a Southern African Flair.

DONATE TO THE BOOK PROJECT HERE.

8. Seba Johnson

Seba Johnson is an African American Olympic athlete, actor, and vegan animal rights activist. She was the first black woman to ski at the Olympics, and the youngest alpine ski racer in Olympic history (she competed at age 14). She has also been vegan since birth. 

Johnson retired from athletic competition in 1992 to pursue an education in fine arts at Howard University, and to educate youth about health and animal welfare. Johnson's skis are on display in the first exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Johnson is currently crowdfunding to complete her memoir. With your help, Seba can continue to tell her story.

DONATE TO SEBA JOHNSON'S BOOK FUNDING HERE. 

9.  Stop Stuff Institute

Seanne is the Founder of STOP STUFF, a social enterprise and the first clothing line developed to attack gun violence by supporting non-profits successfully fighting the fight on our behalf. She has partnered with non-profits with a local, national and global impact and is working closely with the Chicago City Treasurer's office. A 9/11 survivor, she is committed to saving lives, to recognizing the plight of the survivors of gun violence, an underserved and underrepresented group of living victims, and calling the passive participants to task a la Facebook and Twitter, who provide the modern day mechanics for gang rivalry and murder.

Seanne is also building STOP STUFF DAILY, a non-profit organization that will serve as an incubator for social entrepreneurs. She developed the organization to channel the energy of millennials, who she defines, not by age, but by a mindset that compels movement and represents the unwavering belief that we can, and will, change the world. The organization seeks innovators for social change, will provide guidance and support for development, launch and partnership with pioneering corporations and financiers.

DONATE TO STOP STUFF HERE.

10. pHirstBite Food Truck

Meagan Simone needs your assistance to reach as many young people as she can (On the "Bite-Mobile"Food Truck), to spread the good news about healthy eating and living habits. She hopes to inspire young people to grow their own gardens, prepare their own foods, and eat what nature has created, without any artificial preservatives, gmos, dyes, hormones, or additives. The money will be used to purchase a food truck, and to support the purchase of a foreclosed property for commercial kitchen use. She will need somewhere to store things and distribute food. Licensed kitchens require: Liability insurance, a business license, certified commercial equipment, and they must pass inspections for permits, etc. She also wants to rebuild her small garden and replace tools and equipment that were lost during the 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana Flood. Meagan will support youth entrepreneurship and purpose (culinary art) through the meaningful work of cultivating food, from the garden to the table. Youth will be able to do so much more in the community to help others, as a result of the stewardship. She plans on growing extremely passionate young people, who can be proud of creating something that so many others can enjoy...FOOD!!!!!

PLEASE DONATE HERE. 

11. Malcolm Barnes - Vegan Social App

Malcolm is a vegan entrepreneur with a background in programming. He has been vegan for a full year now. He is interested in making an app that will help the vegan community find actual matches instead of the typical "one-night stand" mentality that tends to be associated with dating sites. He'll be able to make sure that this app will allow you find a lot of other vegans nearest to you.

App creation is expensive. Companies will charge $50k to $100k to make a simple app with a few simple features with a 2-3 person team, but it also costs $500k to $1,000,000 to make a more complicated and heavy features app like Tinder or Uber, etc.

So funding a project like this requires so much and it would be used for 12 straight weeks of building the most epic app ever. With the donations, Malcolm can hire other developers to help with the heavy workload of more complex features, a  UI/UX designer, legal fees, and everything else that he'll need to make this app a reality.

Any donation over $100 is eligible for any business advertisement both on the app and site.

DONATE HERE. 

12. The Veggie Connection

Lateefah is the Founder of The Veggie Connection, which originated out of Atlanta, GA.

The Veggie Connection is a network event where attendees are exposed to a host of vegetarian/vegan vendors, speakers, entertainment, and more. The Veggie Connection aims to not only create awareness regarding the plant based lifestyle, but to ensure that it is accessible, enjoyable and sustainable for all who are on this journey towards wellness and abundance. 

The Veggie Connection Event was created to fill the space where these sorts of events are not occurring. They feel that people shouldn't have to travel far just to experience an event of this nature that usually occurs in a major city.

Their events are based on a more intimate type setting. They like for their attendees to be able to take their time to talk and interact with each vendor, speaker, entertainer, and not be overcrowded. Attendees can relax and enjoy themselves in an air conditioned facility or in a park setting with blankets and tents.

he Veggie Connection Event provides people with helpful information through plant based, wellness options. They strive to make their events fun and inclusive, with all the diverse reasons in which people choose a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle.  

DONATE TO THE VEGGIE CONNECTION HERE.

13. Sea Sharp

SEA SHARP is a Pushcart Prize winner (2017), a Hammer and Tongue poetry slam finalist (Brighton, 2015/16), and a Prairie Seed Poetry Prize winner (2015/16). They are a Kansas State University graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Creative Writing and Literature and minor degrees in Theatre and also Women’s Studies. Sharp was the first poet featured on the Black Vegans Rock website (launched in 2016). They are passionate about intersectional veganism, black feminism, and other social movements that actively work towards empowering marginalised people, whilst dismantling oppression.
 
Sharp is Afro-Native American, LGBTQ+, a self-proclaimed “refugee of Kansas,” and also a naturalised British citizen who lives in East Sussex with their husband.

DONATE TO SEA SHARP HERE.

14. Pax Ahimsa Gethen 

Pax Ahimsa Gethen is a queer black vegan activist, blogger, and photographer. Assigned female at birth, Pax legally and medically transitioned to male, but identifies as agender and uses gender-neutral pronouns (they/them/their).

In 2008, Pax launched an event photography business: Funcrunch Photo. Their specialty is performing arts, with a particular skill in low-light concert photography. In 2015 they shifted to a patron-based funding model, making all their new work freely available under Creative Commons licensing. 

Pax blogs at The Funcrunch Files about gender and social justice issues, with a particular focus on cissexism (oppression of transgender and non-binary people) and speciesism (oppression of non-human animals). 

DONATE TO PAX HERE.

15. Amie Breeze Harper, PhD

Amie Breeze Harper, PhD, the creator of The Sistah Vegan Project and the editor of the ground-breaking anthology, Sistah Vegan: Black Female Vegans Speak on Food, Identity, Health, and Society, is a sought-after speaker, writer, researcher and consultant at Critical Diversity Solutions. Her most recently published book Scars: A Lesbian Experience in Rural White New England (Sense Publishers 2014) interrogates how systems of oppression and power impact the life of protagonist 18 year old Savannah Sales, the only Black teenager living in an all white and working class rural New England town. She is currently working on another book titled Recipes for Racial Tension Headaches: A Critical Race Feminist's Journey Through 'Post-Racial' USA's Ethical Foodscape.

Overall, Dr. Harper's work focuses on how systems of oppression-namely racist and normative whiteness-operate within the USA. She uses food culture within North America to explore these systems, using critical whiteness studies, decolonial theory, critical race feminism, critical animal studies, and critical food studies.

DONATE TO DR. HARPER HERE.

16. J. Bradley Project

In the summer of 2007, Jarvis Bradley was engaged in a casual conversation with a local school teacher in his community of Prince George's County, Maryland.  He was totally amazed to learn that many of the children in his surrounding communities were homeless and didn't have back packs and school supplies at the beginning of the school year.
Compelled to help these students, Jarvis launched his very first back pack drive, "Operation Bac-Pac".  Knowing absolutely nothing about fundraising, he simply asked family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers for donations and was blessed to collect enough money to purchase 30 back packs complete with all the supplies needed for deserving students.

Later the same year, Jarvis learned that these same students didn't have coats for the winter.  Again, he leaned on the shoulders of those who helped him earlier that year and was successfully able to collect and donate more than 50 coats to deserving students.

Five years later, Jarvis decided to move forward with his philanthropy and start a non-profit to help not only the students in his current community but also the students in his hometown of Forrest City, Arkansas and eventually students all over America.

The J. Bradley Project is a nonprofit organization created to help children of less fortunate families prepared for the upcoming school year. They conduct three projects/fundraisers throughout the year to ensure students have the necessary supplies and equipment to succeed.
H.O.O.K.S (Helping Out Our Kids to Succeed) is our Back-Pack and School supply drive. N-T-N (No Thanks Necessary) is our coat drive. Live the DREAM Scholarships (LTD-S) is our scholarship program.

In an effort to create more funds for the N-T-N Coat Drive, last year Jarvis rode his bicycle 500 miles in the month of October and successfully collected $2300 in donation and over 100 coats. They believe their projects will increase the academic achievements and self-esteem of elementary school children of less fortunate families.  They also believe that these projects will help clear the path to success for these students!

In addition to his own programs, Jarvis is also a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. where he is constantly supporting the community doing Adopt-A-Road, Teen Domestic Violence Conferences, Cancer Awareness, Purple Boot Initiative Mentor Programs, Voter's Registration Drive, and just being a good friend to whomever.

He is also a vegan and a huge advocate for fitness!  For the past two years, he has posted every workout his has completed on Facebook (which is over 500 different workouts). When asked why, he says, "You lead by example.  People are motivated when they see that you practice what you preach!"

DONATE HERE

FEATURE: Vanessa Rayford

Vanessa Rayford is the author of the book The Vegan Fast Foodie: 10 Simple and Fast Vegan Meals which you can purchase HERE.

I decided to go vegan in 2012 after I took a 40 day no meat challenge with my fiancé and his mom. Once I did the challenge, I did more research. I read books and watched documentaries and learned how the factory farms are operated. I also learned how meat causes more harm than good to our bodies. I was disgusted and came to the conclusion that meat is not needed in a human's diet. 

Initially, I thought I would be the "vegan revolutionary" in my family and turn every one of my family members vegan. Unfortunately, the best I could do was help a few consider a vegetarian diet for a few weeks. Sadly, my father past away from pancreatic cancer in 2015. He decided to do chemotherapy and it made him lose a lot of weight and energy. I want to use the loss of my father as motivation to spread the word about what being vegan really means. 

I want people to consider going vegan, not only for themselves, but also to help save the planet. These factory farms are causing pollution that's  affecting our environment in such devastating ways. Our planet is suffering and it's mainly because of what we decide to consume on a daily basis.

My fiancé and I started a brand called The Flyy Lyfe. The ultimate goal is to raise enough money to build youth centers around the world that teaches the youth about the things they don't learn in school such as nutrition, how to grow your own food, finances, starting your own business and much more. Therefore, a percentage of each book sold will go towards that fund.

Social Media

Instagram: @TheFlyy_Lyfe

Facebook: @TheFlyyLyfe