Non-Vegan Food: Choose not to or can't?

A Disclaimer

This is a post about how veganism affects vegans. There are some advocates that would probably claim that I am wasting time by writing about a nuance of human interaction rather than advocating for non-humans. However, I think this is a particularly interesting nuance.

Can't eat there

It's a common experience of mine to have food described as food that I can or can't eat. This happens a lot when my friends are discussing restaurants. If that restaurant doesn't offer vegan food, normally someone will say something like, "Oh, but you can't eat there". If you're lucky to be one of my close friends, I may say something like, "I choose not to eat there". (Aren't they so lucky?)

I choose not to

I prefer to point out that I have the ability to eat anywhere, but I choose not to because I am a vegan. However, a vegan friend of mine pointed out that he doesn't feel that he can eat non-vegan food. In fact, he said that as much as he can beat his own mother he can eat non-vegan food. This led me to the realization that there are many things in our power that we say we can't do because of some objection.

Deficit thinking

Given choices, I can say that I can't eat non-vegan food. (That qualifier is for my friend, roommate and fellow vegan, Josh. He likes to remind me that if I was starving in the wilderness, I may feel differently.) My preference for pointing out that it is my choice to not patronize particular restaurants or eat certain foods is to avoid deficit thinking. I think many people see a vegan diet as a heavily restricted lifestyle and listing things that I can't do only adds to that. Claiming the restriction as my choice gives me back the power (or at least makes me feel that way).

Changing the language

Constantly pointing out that I choose not to patronize establishments or eat particular foods would make me sound like a jerk, though (and we certainly don't need another reason for people to think that vegans are stuck up assholes). So, my solution is to discuss food in terms of its veganness (veganhood? Whatever, I made up both words). So, when my friends are discussing a restaurant I might say, "Do they have vegan food?". The answer to that question will imply whether or not I am willing or able to eat there. When talking about a food specifically just saying if it is vegan or not does the trick for me. Problem solved. Now to just convince everyone else that this is the best way to do it...

Thoughts? Vegan or not let me know your take on this.