Mission:
LAVA is a grass roots social justice group and community dedicated to educating the public about veganism and providing resources, information, and community, to support individuals in adopting a vegan ethic. We have a strict focus on abolishing (rather than regulating) all animal use.
We welcome everyone no matter where there are on their life path, but hold a recognition that veganism is an issue of fundemental justice, and that all exploitation of animals is always wrong and never morally justified.
We host events, do vegan activism, provide vegan support, and highlight all things vegan in Lawrence!
Core Values:
1. We strictly adhere to a vegan ethic as devloped by those who coined the term vegan and founded the first vegan society in 1944. Veganism is a principle of non-exploitation that extends to all parts of our life, including what we eat, where, use, and participate in.
“The vegan principle: that humanity has no right to exploit others for our own ends. The vegan diet is therefore derived entirely from “fruits, nuts, vegetables, grains and other wholesome non-animal products,” and excludes “flesh, fish, fowl, eggs, honey and animal milk and its derivatives.” — (Leslie Cross, 1951)
(Please visit our learn page for more information on on the origins of veganism and those who coined the term)
2. LAVA holds that all sentient beings both human and non-human have one fundmental right; the right no to be exploited and used as the property of others. In following, we advocate for the total abolishment of all animal use and the property status of non-human animals. We reject all forms of advocacy that seek to regulate, reform, or make animal use more humane, as well as all forms of advocacy that support continued exploitation such as meatless mondays and reducitarianism.
3. We reject violence of all forms; in our everyday actions, and our vegan advocacy, and embrace peaceful and non-violent activism and communication. In addition to justice, we believe that love and compassion are also central to a vegan ethic, and that we should all strive to be as kind, loving, and compassionate in our interactions with others as possible.
4. Because all forms of social injustice stem from “othering” a group of individuals based on irrelevant criteria, we recognize the similarities in systems of oppresion, and thus reject all forms of exploitation and discrimination including but not limited to speciesism, sexism, racism, ageism, and ableism.
5. We embrace living by the platinum rule “treat others as they wish to be treated”, however we recognize that we all live in a system in which our actions and decisions directly effect one another. Thus, we must do our part to stop injustice and speak out against the actions of those not living by the platinum rule.
6. LAVA embraces the idea that many different approaches and types of vegan outreach are needed to reach many different people. We value a variety of different tactics and forms of activism (ie. tabling, documentary showings, protests, etc.), as long as they promote nothing less than a clear vegan ethic. LAVA largely focuses specifically on vegan education to help individuals adopt a vegan ethic and thus create a sweeping paradigm shift in society where animals are no longer viewed as property and all exploitation becomes unacceptable.
For more information about veganism please visit our Learn page
Lawrence Area Vegan Association 