Vegan war of words: method or madness?
I’ve been following the Dave Warwak story with interest. He is the art teacher who was recently suspended and then fired for talking about veganism to his students. Since being fired, Warwak has been seeking to get the decision reversed while claiming that he won’t return to the school until the cafeteria goes completely vegan.
Media coverage of Warwak has not been particularly favorable, tending to emphasize the ‘crazy vegan’ angle (at least from what I’ve seen). Is this ‘crazy’ label justified? Is Warwak doing vegans and their cause more harm than good with his actions?
While PETA has jumped in the ring on Warwak’s side, not all vegans agree with him. For one, Laura at SuperVegan thinks Warwak’s ‘obnoxious’ actions are not doing anyone, least of all vegans, any good. Susie is also not impressed with Warwak, and thinks his “extremist” actions are earning him the crazy label. In turn, Elaine picks apart several of Susie’s arguments, while supporting Warwak and defending vegans’ right to be offensive.
What do you think? Are you a supporter of Dave Warwak’s actions?
Tags: Dave-Warwak, school-lunches, vegan, veganism, vegans, vegetarianRelated Stories
POSTED IN: News
15 opinions for Vegan war of words: method or madness?
WishBoNe
Oct 19, 2007 at 11:14 am
I think he’s over-doing it. Personally, I won’t force any of my friends to go vegan or vegetarian just because I believe or am one.
While I feel it’s wrong to fire someone who talks about veganism. I think when he was still the art teacher, he had over-stepped his boundaries in what an art teacher should be doing, teaching art.
His warpath method has earned another score to the list of “Why Being Non-Vegan/Non-Vegetarian is Good”. I wished he hadn’t been so adamant/aggressive. It just spoils the image.
Elaine Vigneault
Oct 19, 2007 at 3:41 pm
Thanks for the link love :) You’ve done a good job at presenting the varied viewpoints.
I think Warwak is eccentric and has gone a bit overboard in his demands. But my view that he’s gone too far is purely from a pragmatic standpoint, not from any other standpoint. He’s demanding more than is possible in this social climate. People simply aren’t ready for that kind of change. People tend to fear change and they’ll do almost anything to prevent major change, regardless of whether it’s good for them or not.
However, I agree with him that a vegan diet is the healthiest for children. They do not need cow’s milk or meat. And they certainly don’t need soda, sugars, or fast food. I applaud his efforts to change the cafeteria food and advertising.
And I don’t think (from what I know of the story) that Warwak should have been fired from his job as a teacher. I haven’t seen any evidence that he wasn’t doing his job. And I don’t think that police should have interfered with his right to free speech at a public parade. He should be allowed to hand out pamphlets or cards just like everyone else is allowed to.
They’re treating him like he’s recruiting children for a cult. And that’s simply not true. He’s trying to teach kids to think for themselves and to seek out truth and justice. And that’s a good thing.
Heidi
Oct 19, 2007 at 6:19 pm
I think he’s doing veganism more harm than good, definitely. Also I’ve seen some of his postings online, like on message boards & blogs, & they tend to come across as extreme attention-seeking, even aside from his extreme actions re: veganism.
Warwak
Oct 20, 2007 at 2:21 am
I have full respect for the man
http://inslide.com/floydveganamerica
susie named herself super vegan
“Naming a rock, a banana, does not make it food” Warwak
Ala
Oct 22, 2007 at 7:41 pm
I’m not sure if he’s doing harm or good, he’s bringing attention to it and sparking curiosity while also allowing it to be portrayed in a bad light. I personally simply don’t agree with his cause. While I fully believe kids should be properly educated about the positives and negatives of EVERYTHING that they are eating it is up to the parents to decide what goes into their mouth till they’re old enough to choose for themselves. A teachers job is to provide information, not to force beliefs.
Warwak
Oct 24, 2007 at 10:12 am
ALA wrote, “EVERYTHING that they are eating it is up to the parents to decide what goes into their mouth till they’re old enough to choose for themselves”
I ask, just because someone pumped out a kid -does that give them the right to make that kid a killng machine at everyone’s expense? NOT!!!
ALA wrote, “A teachers job is to provide information”
I say, you are so wrong. A teacher should spark curiosity and the tools to find truth in the world. What kind of world is ALA from?
Ala
Oct 24, 2007 at 3:45 pm
Just becuase you are an extrimist radical doesn’t mean that everyone else should be. Yes I am vegan, yes I do believe in all the benefits of it (health, moral, environmental), but I do also believe that it a personal choice that people make. It would be nice if everyone made it but that will never happen. And providing information does spark curiosity, but you are not allowed in any way shape or form to press your own beliefs onto these kids. As a teacher your job is to provide them with the Pros and Cons of every situation. And don’t give me the “there are no cons to being vegan” we all know it, but no one else will understand it unless they try it. Most importantly Mr. Warwak get over yourself. You’re not some amazing super hero activist and you will be 100% forgetten about within the next year.
Mark’s Daily Apple » Blog Archive » Wednesday Link Love
Oct 24, 2007 at 7:03 pm
[…] ‘Crazy Vegan’ Teacher Pushes Diet on Kids: the Scoop - Veggie Chick […]
Warwak
Oct 25, 2007 at 5:33 am
Santa Claus is coming to town
http://inslide.com/respect/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=109
Modern Forager » Blog Archive » Veganism
Oct 25, 2007 at 8:11 pm
[…] is an interesting article that I found on Veggie Chic via some other site: Vegan War of Words. Basically, an art teacher was fired for trying to teach kids about the health benefits of a vegan […]
Pamela R.
Nov 18, 2007 at 7:01 am
Warwak is an extremist, yes. But have vegans forgotten that everything around us is extremely horrible: animal cruelty in unfathomable numbers, a planet imploding because of animal agriculture, and a human health crisis?
Why can’t vegans get uppity like every other constituency that is or ever was.
Do people think that the meat world is going to just kick over and die one day?
We vegans know the score. It’s up to us and no others to take a stand on these issues. We cannot count on meat eaters to see things the way we do…
Warwak made a strong one stand. We vegans don’t know how to process it.
Unfortunately, the kids are the ones most to suffer from today’s agriculture policies.
Warwak gets it. As a teacher, he has to look into their eyes.
Warwak
Dec 13, 2007 at 8:28 am
I expose the Board of Ed. false press release that most Vegans believed. The question is not, “Is Warwak doing vegans and their cause more harm than good with his actions?” The real questions should be - Does the meat-eating media put spin and slant on stories to shape public opinion against Vegans and their cause?Who is doing more harm than good with their actions? We need to wake up and be more supportive of each other. The media didn’t like Martin Luther King Jr. either. They didn’t print his side of the story for many years. Only the smart people saw through the media.
Warwak
Dec 13, 2007 at 8:28 am
The press release is at http://inslide.com
Warwak
Feb 25, 2008 at 8:35 am
384 lbs of meat from Westland was made into taco meat and fed to the children at Fox River Grove Middle School in April and May of 2007. You can confirm this with Jim Copp, Principal Consultant Division of Nutrition Programs and Support Services Illinois State Board of Education. Of course he will down play the risk - don’t believe it! Although meat has been recalled, the children may have already been infected with a prion particle from an infected animal. Scientists have suggested that the incubation for this encephalitis-like brain disease can be many years. Mad cow is like a ticking time bomb.
http://inslide.com/foxrivergroveserveddowners.mp3
and people call me crazy - all I ever did was speak the truth
Warwak
Jun 22, 2008 at 10:09 am
Fox River Grove parents, your school system is actively keeping gravely serious information from you and your children. People deserve all the information so they can choose wisely about things such as living an extra 10 to 12 years or never having to worry about many cancers, heart attacks or strokes.
I am simply offering information and have not forced food or beliefs down people’s throats. Imagine if just saying or writing something could force people to change.
It is not a “personal choice” when you are eating my friends and you are ruining my world. My tax money subsidizes your “personal choice.” When you made your “personal choice,” did you ask the animal if you could confine, torture, and murder him or her? When you made your “personal choice,” did you ask me if I mind all your pollution and devastation? Just because we personally make selfish choices does not make them “personal choices.”
Humane education reinforced with a vegan school lunch will end school shootings and create a generation that cares. When children see that adults care enough to change, they will care in turn. This is too serious of an issue to leave alone just because some wish to eat unimpeded.
http://www.nwherald.com/articles/2008/06/21/opinion/letters/doc485dbfa4c0f0f465862684.txt
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