Vegan Action
Avery Yale Kamila: Maine Veg History
by Amy Burger
While it's been called a "fad" or a "diet," vegetarianism as an ethical philosophy has been around a lot longer—over 2,500 years, according to Avery Yale Kamila, founder of the Maine Vegetarian History Project. She's been researching and publicizing vegetarian/vegan history, work she believes is important because conventional history mostly leaves out the vegetarian movement.
"The lack of awareness of vegetarian history is not an accident," she said, as it serves to normalize the consumption of animal products. She added that "the more that vegetarians and nonvegetarians know about the long history of vegetarianism, the more normal eating veggie food becomes."
Kamila's research has uncovered findings, like "the long history of making nut milks, nut butters, nut cheeses, nut creams, and corn-nut infant formula among the Wabanaki people who formerly ruled Maine and continue to inhabit the state." In light of current debates about the labeling of milks and butters, she says, "This culinary history (which is omitted from Maine history books) takes on increased importance as it shows milk was already being made in New England long before the first cow was imported into the colony."
Not only did she create the Maine Vegetarian History Project, she also collaborated with The Vegan Museum in Chicago to help create a story map of U.S. vegetarian history.
One tip for prospective researchers: she notes that "the word 'vegetarian' wasn't invented until 1847." Other descriptions, like "vegetable diet, simple diet, abstinence diet, temperance diet, and vegetable system" were used instead, and could be useful keywords when searching for information.
To further support research, Kamila created a guide to U.S. vegan and vegetarian history resources for The Vegan Museum, which can be found at veganmuseum.org/resource-guide. She notes, "Museum Director Kay Stepkin hopes the guide will spur more research into American vegetarian history."
Ultimately, Kamila says, "Knowing the history of vegetarianism bolsters the confidence of modern vegetarians by illuminating the long struggle to change the human relationship with animals. When we know our history, we can be more effective members of the movement in the present. And when nonvegetarians learn this history, it shifts their perspective, too, making eating animals a little less normal."
The Maine Vegetarian History Project's website is scalar.usc.edu/works/maine-vegetarian-history-project You can read Kamila's food column in The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram at pressherald.com/foodanddining/vegan-kitchen
Amy Burger is a former VRG intern who writes for Vegan Journal as a volunteer. Amy lives in Georgia, where she works as a college librarian and part-time teacher. Her hobbies include cooking and traveling.
