Carnism is a term that was coined by Dr. Melanie Joy in 2001. It is a belief system that conditions humans to eat meat. Like other ideologies, it is manmade, or socially constructed. We learn it. We receive positive and negative feedback about our behaviour, and it conditions us to behave in a way that we receive optimal positive feedback and minimal negative feedback. Essentially – we learn to follow the rules (basic sociological theory). A great example of this, is the criticism that people receive for following a plant based lifestyle. Vegans are the target of endless harassment for their choice to abstain from animal products, because it deviates from the norm in our society.
People often think that that vegans and vegetarians are the ones who have strong beliefs about eating habits, and are harassed for making decisions that benefit their health and the environment. Eating meat is often viewed as a necessity, but there a millions of people who thrive on plant based diets, which prove (along with science) that meat is in fact, not a necessity. Eating meat is therefore a choice, and choices stem from beliefs. This belief system dictates what animals we eat, and when we eat them (usually subject to geographic location and religion). This is carnism.
Carnism continues to exist by defending itself. The first mechanism of defense, is denial. It denies the truth by making it invisible. It’s the norm, people don’t question it, or really even notice it. It also keeps its victims (animals) invisible, by hiding them away in factory farms and disguising the finished product. The meat you buy at the grocery store, or are presented at a restaurant, in no way resembles the animal itself and is even given a different name (steak, ribs, pork, etc.). Humans are likewise the invisible victims of this system – in our ignorance, we continue to fuel out bodies with foods that cause us to gain weight and develop health problems.
Justification is the second defence mechanism. We are taught to believe that eating animals is normal, natural and necessary – that these myths, are actually facts. These beliefs are institutionalized and imbedded in society, and like other societal norms, we learn them from our families and schools and are expected to conform. We internalize these beliefs and it distorts our perception of the system.
Distortion is the third defence mechanism that prevents us from seeing what is really there. Cows become synonymous with streak. We no longer see the individual animal, but a hunk of meat.
In opposition to justification, denial and cognitive distortion, we have justice, truth and compassion, which ultimately leads to awareness. Awareness threatens carnism because it helps us to understand this system and gives us the freedom to make choices. Awareness has been an aspect of all social movements and has been significantly heightened surrounding this issue.
Ultimately, consuming animal products is a result of capitalism. The industries that thrive on our continued obsessions with meat and cheese play a huge role in maintaining the myth that they are necessary parts of our diet.
The Long Defeat 