Transnational Latinx Veganism: From Southern California to Mexico City

Out of the 332,403,650 people that live in the United States, approximately 9.7 million practice vegetarianism, including one million vegans. Although these numbers show that only about .3% of Americans are vegan, studying food matters, “conveying critical messages about capitalism, the environment, and social inequality” (Pilcher, The Oxford Handbook of Food History, xvii). The various threads in veganism, animal liberation, health, and the environment are all topics that have been of concern for Latinx folks for centuries. While issues such as climate change have invigorated people to make certain choices about what they consume, especially since we know it affects communities of color disproportionately, ideas and relationships with our surroundings have a much longer history throughout the Americas. This talk examines the increasing rise of veganism in Southern California and Mexico City. Based on interviews conducted between 2020-2021, I discuss how food is connected to the ideologies and practices of labor, community, and identity.