Vegan Social Club heralds meat-less Beijing eating
Whoever said being a vegan in Beijing is nuts, watch out: Chris Barden, Co-Founder of the Vegan Social Club of Beijing (VSC), might have a bone to pick with you. "The myths and misconceptions of non-vegans who sometimes dismiss us flippantly as 'extreme' or 'crazy' are frankly one of the most difficult things about being vegan [here]," Mr. Barden told me in a recent chat. And for a city about to host the feel-good global event of the century, it's ironic that a world view that espouses "basic compassion for thinking, feeling beings is seen [as] extreme or crazy," as Barden puts it.

The purpose of the VSC is to create a social space for vegans and vegetarians in Beijing, thus making it easier for people to live "a cruelty-free lifestyle." Together, members cook, compare ideas and tips, and track innovative ways to make it easier to "go vegan." Although it began just Thanksgiving past, the Club has grown to boast 80 subscribed email-list members, and demand for their weekly Thursday dinner at Jingsi Vegetarian Restaurant in Dongcheng District has grown to the extent that it is expanding to a second weekly Wudaokou-based gathering with plans for a Sunday brunch as well.

VSC is also extending its hand to support like-minded events. On March 8th, Beijing's Vegetarian Initiative, Don't Eat Your Friends, brings together bands such as Tian Tang, Buyi, Sigui Shangren and The Giant Beanstalk (whose lead singer, Xie Zheng, helped found the event) to play a veganism awareness-raising concert Saturday, March 8 (International Woman's Day) at the 13 Club in Wudaokou.

All these activities are part of an unstoppable global trend towards conscientious eating, and Beijing is not to be outdone. Don't just take mine or Chris’s word for it, though. Baihe Vegetarian Restaurant, Xu Xiang Zhai and Pure Lotus are all delicious dining meatless options. But with the big ole' goodwill party called "One World, One Dream" about to descend on our fair city, might it not be time we all consider a more humane existence for every day of the year—and not just on 08.08.08?

Manuela Zoninsein