Episode 134 - Political Animals

This week Roqayah and Kumars are joined by Joshua Badge, writer and lecturer in philosophy at Deakin University in Victoria, Australia. Joshua joins us for an in-depth discussion of the philosophy and practices of animal rights and veganism. Joshua explains the sociological framework of what we consume and the significance of food on our communities and our identities. Joshua leans into his philosophy background and explains the metaphysical traditions that are often overlooked when discussing animal rights—from the way in which we empathize with animals to the often highly charged language that vegans employ to characterize the abuses that animals face. We discuss how poverty impacts our relationship with food and Joshua, who is an avid cook, underlines the importance of increasing the affordability and accessibility of vegan food by pushing for broad systemic changes to our food supply. Joshua also gives readers the background on recent publicity for the animal rights movement in Australia, and how tactics that are often employed in an attempt to undermine the meat industry can backfire in certain contexts, inflaming race and class tensions. Follow Joshua on Twitter @JoshuaBadge. If you want to support the show and receive access to tons of bonus content, subscribe on our Patreon page for as little as $5 a month. Also, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the show on iTunes. We can't do this show without your support!!!