Lateefah: Founder of the Veggie Connection

Lateefah is the Founder of the Veggie Connection Event, which originated out of Atlanta, GA. The first event occurred on October 11, 2015 in Atlanta, and the next event is July 2, 2016 in Rancho Cucamonga, CA. 

We asked Lateefah some questions about her event:

BVR: Could you tell our audience about the inspiration for this particular Veggie Connection event? 

L: The Veggie Connection Event was created to fill the space where these sorts of events are not occurring. We don't want people who are living this lifestyle to have to travel far just to experience an event. We also want to connect the attendees to businesses they may have never known existed.

BVR: What sets apart the Veggie Connection event from other health/food/vegan events?

L: Our events are based on a more intimate type setting. We like for our attendees to be able to take their time to talk and interact with each vendor and not be overcrowded. People can also network with other attendees as well.

BVR: Will there be any special guests/speakers?

L: For our Southern California Edition we will have special guest speaker Laureen Adams-Lateef, Ph.D. and Sahsha Campbell-Garbutt (Author, Life Coach, and Wellness Advocate of Life and Light Wellness). Other speakers will be announced shortly.

BVR: Could you provide us with details on the event date, time, and location?

L: The Southern California Edition of The Veggie Connection Event, will take place on Saturday, July 2nd 2016 at The Goldy S. Lewis Community Center (Mesa Courtyard) in Rancho Cucamonga from 10am-4pm. 

The 3rd Edition of The Veggie Connection Event will take place once again in Smyrna, Georgia in October. To be in the know interested individuals can check out our website at:  www.theveggieconnection.com or join our email list at info@theveggieconnection.com 

BVR: It seems like the first 300 people will get a free gift bag. Can you tell us some more details about what might be in that bag?

L: We have a host of goodies being added to the Veggie Bags! Just to name a few: Beanfields, Field Roast, Zevia, and more! For a sneak preview please go to our facebook page at:  www.facebook.com/therealveggieconnection

BVR: What do you want the BVR audience to know about this event?

L: It's easier than you think to achieve a vegan/vegetarian life style. It's very important to go at your own pace. You want to decide on a method that works best for you. By attending our events you will see that the progression to a vegan/vegetarian lifestyle is quite easy.

Addition: If you are a vegan/vegetarian, organic, natural, or eco-friendly business and you would like to have your product in our Veggie Wow Bags email us at info@theveggieconnection.com

Looking to get involved?

Lateefah is always looking for companies and organizations to be a part of her event. If you are interested email her for details at: info@theveggieconnection.com

Social Media Information:

www.theveggieconnection.com

www.theveggieconnectionca.eventbrite.com

www.facebook.com/therealveggieconnection

www.twitter.com/theveggieconnec

www.instagram.com/theveggieconnection

info@theveggieconnection.com

 

FEATURE: Demetrius Bagley

Demetrius Bagley is an award-winning movie producer (Vegucated), and nationally recognized events producer. He’s godfathered projects like Vegan Street Fair, SoCal VegFest, Veggie Conquest, and many others. Since 2004, he’s led NYC Vegan EatUP, one of the world’s largest vegan Meetups. Recently, he wrote about being a 20+ year vegan in Letters to a New Vegan.

Demetrius Bagley is also an internationally published astrologer who wrote Vibe Magazine's celebrity horoscope column from 2010 to 2011. He published and sold customized annual Personalized AstroDatebooks from 2007 to 2013. In 2012, he project coordinated the anthology book titled, Astrology: The New Generation. He is the marketing and design dude for the annual State of the Art (SOTA) astrology conference.

FEATURE: Tamara Evans

My name is Tamara (rhymes with camera) and I have been vegan since August 2009. Being born and raised in the Huntsville, Alabama, I grew up on a diet of fried chicken, hamburgers and other unhealthy animal based foods. When I started dating my boyfriend in 1998, although he was vegetarian his entire life, I still ate chicken because I felt it would help me lose weight. At the time, I was at my heaviest weight of 298lbs. In early 2007, I transitioned to a healthier lifestyle which included changing my hair from permed to Sisterlocks and looking for a way to eat healthier and lose weight.

On August 28, 2009, I read Diet for a New America, and after this, I immediately became vegan. As I read the book, I thought about how my food choices impact animals and realized that by eating animals, I was ingesting their pain and suffering and I didn’t want that in my body so I cut it out completely. Although my boyfriend was against it...over time my (now) husband has embraced the vegan lifestyle as well. He enjoys experimenting with tofu & seitan to create yummy foods that I post on my Instagram account. I love being vegan and breaking the stereotypes that vegans only eat salads and berries. 

An unconventional way I do vegan outreach is through my job as a librarian. As a librarian, one of my jobs is to purchase library materials for seven library locations and I make sure to purchase books and DVDs promoting vegan and plant based lifestyles. By putting this material in the library, I can plant seeds which can help people become the healthiest best versions of themselves.

My family in Alabama has embraced my vegan lifestyle and I was surprised a few Thanksgivings ago when my mom surprised me with a vegan field roast and other vegan foods. Since I live in California, there is a wide variety of places to find vegan food from vegan soul food, to upscale vegan food. Although I live in rural Central California, I am still able to find vegan options.

Since becoming vegan, I feel like I have more energy and don’t get sick as often as others around me do. The biggest misconception I’ve seen is that veganism is expensive and not for black people but what I’ve found is that you can be a 99 cent store vegan, a Whole Foods vegan, or somewhere in between. I am so happy that I live in a time that social media provides a way to contact and meet other black vegans and spread the word about getting healthy through food. Veganism to me is about making healthier plant based choices to honor your body, mind and spirit!

BVR Sunday News Roundup

Black Vegans Rock Featured in VegNews

BVR Founder, Aph Ko, was recently interviewed for VegNews Magazine. She states:

I don't want to 'rectify' the representation problem in veganism because that implies that the problematic Eurocentric framework stays intact and black and brown faces are added superficially. That's cosmetic diversity, which can only serve the oppressor. We need our own movements where the oppressed are the authors of the change.

Read the full interview HERE. 

Keith Tucker's Hip Hop Green Dinner Tour Spotlighted in New Article

Jadakiss, Keith Tucker, Styles P, and Easy AD (from left) receive the Hip Hop Is Green Community Health & Wellness Award. (Photo: Maureen Cohen Harrington)

Jadakiss, Keith Tucker, Styles P, and Easy AD (from left) receive the Hip Hop Is Green Community Health & Wellness Award. (Photo: Maureen Cohen Harrington)

Liz Dwyer of Takepart wrote an article spotlighting Keith Tucker and his ground-breaking tour, The 10th Element of Hip Hop and Wellness. She writes:

The inclusion of health and wellness in the elements is the direct result of 50-year-old Tucker's work through Hip Hop is Green, an organization he started in 2009. Since it's launch, Hip Hop is Green has served free vegan meals to roughly 4,000 people, mostly low-income youths of color on the West Coast, in the hopes of reducing rates of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and stroke. 

Congratulations Keith. Read the full article HERE. 

Check out MaituFoods Vegan Meal Delivery Service

Do you live in Atlanta or do you know someone who does? JoVonna Johnson-Cooke of MaituFoods has a weekly vegan meal delivery service that offers beautiful, flavorful plant-based meals prepared fresh from produce grown on her farm and delivered to your door within the metro Atlanta area. Visit maitufoods.com to learn more! 

Mark Your Calendars for The Veggie Connection Event!

The Veggie Connection presents the 2nd installment of a “Vegetarian/Vegan Network Event” This event kicks off on Saturday, July 2nd 2016 and you're invited to take part in the festivities. The event takes place at The Goldy S. Lewis Community Center (Mesa Courtyard) in Rancho Cucamonga, CA.

The event will include healthy living, vegetarian/vegan-minded exhibitors; non-profits; local food enthusiasts, entertainment, and fun for everyone.

 RSVP for early-bird entry. Find out more information about the event HERE. 

Prominent Activists to Speak at Pro-Intersectional Vegan Conference

VegfestUK are thrilled to announce the first Pro-Intersectional Vegan Conference, to be held in the UK, at London in October, with a number of leading global pro-intersectional speakers already confirmed.

  • BVR founder Aph Ko,
  • Vegan Publishers staff writer Christopher-Sebastian McJetters,
  • Sistah Vegan's Dr. A. Breeze Harper,
  • Dr. Kim Socha, of Progress for Science and Minnesota Animal Liberation
  • Dr. Casey Taft of Vegan Publishers, author of the recently released book “Motivational Methods for Vegan Advocacy”,
  • lauren Ornelas, of the Food Empowerment Project
  • Sarah K. Woodcock, founder of the Advocacy of Veganism Society
  • Omowale Adewale, Boxing & Kickboxing Champion and author of "An Introduction to Veganism and Agricultural Globalism"
  • Katrina Fox, author, business and media coach from Vegan Business Media
  • Joe Brydon, of the Animal Alliance
  • Dr. Roger Yates, of the Vegan Information Project

Mark your calendars! You can find more information HERE. 

Meet NFL Defensive Lineman David Carter TODAY

Famous vegan activist, David Carter, also known as The 300lb vegan is going to be in Baltimore, MD today from 2:30-5:30pm. Stop by to say hello! 

FEATURE: Christopher D. Sims

I am poet, spoken word performer, and human rights activist Christopher D. Sims aka UniverSouLove. I have been vegan for eight years now. My journey started at Rust College in Holly Springs, MS in 1993 when two friends and I decided to stop eating red meat-we had already stopped eating pork. It was a gradual process.

We stopped eating beef, then turkey, and then chicken. We were all becoming very conscious about the food we were eating. It was educational rap music that helped us make these decisions. I finally became vegetarian in 1998 with the help of information provided in the books Eat to Live and African Holistic Health. It has been one of the best decisions I've made in my life thus far. Reading about how unhealthy pork was in high school has kept me on this journey. Also, viewing documentaries and the like about factory farms and animal cruelty has encouraged me to not only live a vegan lifestyle, but to write about it and become an advocate and educator for healthy living.

I've written poems and recorded songs about healthy eating, sustainable living, and environmental justice. I can't see turning back now. Especially with the knowledge I've gained and because of the many health benefits I'm experiencing being vegan. 

Social Media links:

http:/about.me/ChristopherDSims

http://www.facebook.com/christopher.d.sims/

http://www.twitter.com/UniverSouLove

http://www.soundcloud.com/UniverSouLove 

"If Black Lives Mattered" by Christopher D. Sims is available at http://bit.ly/1Kbwn8U. 

FEATURE: Danielle Pyle

My name is Danielle Pyle of The World is a Girl's Runway Inc. and a lifestyle blogger. My organization empowers young girls and women to become entrepreneurs. 

I was a vegetarian for years off and on but I wasn't consistent. At the beginning of this year, I decided to go vegan after a 10 day cleanse. I started my vegan journey for a healthier lifestyle and I wanted to make a change in the world. I knew my health was at risk. In 2015, I read a lot of articles about the meat industry. I spent one weekend watching Netflix documentaries such as Cowspiracy, Food Matters, Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead, Vegucated, Forks Over Knives, and Food Inc.

I was changed forever. I was determined to change my health and the world. Within 3 months, I lost 30 pounds. I feel amazing! This was the best decision I have made in a long time. I thank God for making it possible. As I continue to grow and educate myself about this horrible meat industry, it pushes me to be vegan for life.

I also started a vegan blog that will be launching soon. My blog will feature daily experiences, recipes, grocery hauls, videos and christian devotionals. The blog is called Freckled Vegan.

BVR Interview with Torre Washington

BVR:  As a black vegan bodybuilder, how do you think you're changing the narrative surrounding veganism?

TW: Although I truly do not like to distinguish my ethnicity based on a physical characteristic such as one’s outward appearance and in such case “black”, I will continue to answer the question in the appropriate manner. I think that by sharing my lifestyle of being a black vegan bodybuilder is helping the world as we know it to see that vegan is not just a white “tree hugger” lifestyle. With black being either hip or frightening (threatening), vegan was, and to a certain extent, is considered cultish, crazy, and not hip at all. Bodybuilding is considered narcissistic, disciplined, and idolized to a certain extent due to most people not having the discipline to get into their best shape physically. So, you put the two of them together and you have a major shift in the minds of those narrating this vegan movement.

BVR:  How did you family and friends react when you decided to become vegan?

TW: Well to be completely honest my mother’s way of raising me gave me the advantage as my family knew my path prior to my understanding of it. Friends on the other hand, saw it coming with my choosing to accept my Jamaican culture of Rastafari which promotes living “ital” or natural. Many friends throughout the years were just astounded as to how I was able to build muscle and not consume any meat. I typically became the topic of conversation or the butt end of jokes. “Torre will be ok, there is grass and tree bark available” were some of the comments.

BVR: What are your positions on animal oppression?

TW: My position on animal oppression is one of disgust, as it can relate to the brutal and harsh oppression that Afrikans went through during slavery and the slave trade: not given rights and only to be used as a commodity. Knowing that our bodies have been designed to consume vegetation for nourishment further strengthens the case that we don’t need meat for nutrition to survive.

BVR: What advice would you give to other black folks who are considering veganism, but feel like veganism is a "white person's" thing?

TW: Going vegan is not white or black, I believe that in our culture we were once living off of the land...it’s not a white person thing but a smart thing to do. Your internal organs will thank you for the cellular harmony.

Follow Washington Here:

Website: www.torrewashington.com

Instagram: torre.washington

Facebook: Torre Washington 

Twitter: @torrewofficial

YouTube: Torre Washington

 

Videos from the Intersectional Justice Conference

An image of Brenda Sanders. Photo Credit: Pax Ahimsa Gethen

An image of Brenda Sanders. Photo Credit: Pax Ahimsa Gethen

The Intersectional Justice Conference at Whidbey Institute was full of informative, passionate presentations from vegans who each had something important to share. We have access to some presentations. Thanks to the Photon Factory for recording these talks. 

1. Dr. Amie Breeze Harper. Title: Uprooting White Fragility: Intersectional Anti-Racism in the 'Post-Racial' Ethical Foodscape.

2. Aph Ko. Title: Afrofuturism and Black Veganism: Towards a New Citizenship.

3. Brenda Sanders. Title: Intersectionality in Community-Based Movements.

4. Pax Ahimsa Gethen. Title: Welcoming Gender Diversity.

5. Zarna Joshi. Title: Colonization and Animals.

6. pattrice jones. Title: What Can Mad Cows and Queer Ducks Teach Us About Intersectionality?

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