Lola Méndez shares her list of top LGBTQIA+ vegan influencers to support during Pride month – and all year round.
The underlying connection between being LGBTQIA+ and vegan is undeniable. Both socio-political issues share many pillars, the most important being collective liberation. While veganism is a choice, sexuality and gender are not.
Veganism at its core value is about reducing harm for all living beings and this must encompass LGBTQIA+ people. Queer people (a multifaceted term for those who identify their sexuality in any way other than heterosexual) in most corners of the globe still face injustice, violence and even murder simply for existing. Meanwhile, billions of non-human animals endure commodification and captivity. Non-human animals are brutalized by humans whether the animals are raised as livestock for human consumption in factory farms, used for testing in labs or for human entertainment in circuses and zoos. So, it’s no surprise that many queer people are also vegan and centre liberation.
While members of neither community can be described through monolithic language, many LGBTQIA+ and vegans long to remove violence and suffering from the world for all living creatures. Both communities are fighting oppression. This parallel is apparent at vegan cafes I’ve visited around the world. More often than not, they’re usually the only place with a rainbow pride flag on display.
I’ve been plant-based for half my life. I stopped eating meat when I was 17 and although I knew at the time that I was also queer, I didn’t have the courage to come out until I was 30. While coming out and going vegan aren’t the same, both require deviation from societal norms. Going vegan doesn’t have the same potentially life-threatening repercussions as coming out. To come out as LGBTQIA+ you must self-reflect deeply on who you are. While building greater self-awareness many folks feel greater empathy for other suppressed beings, including captive animals.
My veganism and my queerness go hand-in-hand and are key aspects of who I am and what I stand for. Anecdotally I’ve experienced the homosexual herbivore correlation tenfold. My first girlfriend was vegan and the majority of the LGBTQIA+ community I’ve built around the world has mostly been with vegans. Don’t just rely on my experience — many beloved vegan celebrities are queer including Billie Ellish, Laverne Cox, Sia, Alan Cummings, Ellen DeGeneres, Elliot Page, Ruby Rose and Jane Lynch.
Here are some LGBTQIA+ vegan influencers to support during Pride month – and all year round.
Gal Shomron
Gal Shomron is a social media influencer and writer. They’re a vegan non-binary lesbian with “just another queer vegan” as their bio on their Instagram page, @_fuxkingfalafel. They’ve been vegan for nearly a decade and use their Instagram page to share delicious vegan eats they’ve tried worldwide from Amsterdam to London, and from their kitchen. You can recreate their vegan plates at home, such as these comfort food burgers, and vegan cheese-stuffed flatbreads.
Paul and Jason
Paul and Jason are the married influencer duo behind @thoseveganguys on Instagram. The gay couple have been together since 1997 and have been vegan for over a decade. They are vegan and animal rights activists. On their Instagram you’ll find their home-cooked vegan meals, vegan grocery store guides and more.
You may recognise Paul by his drag persona — Gemini Andro, who is part of the vegan drag mother-and-daughter duo, The Vegan Queens. On their YouTube channel they share ‘news, reviews and views’ about veganism and the LGBTQIA+ community. Their content advocates for equality, acceptance, and justice for marginalised communities and non-human animals, with a humorous edge.
Jasmin Singer
Jasmin Singer is a vegan lesbian and the author of Always Too Much and Never Enough, a poignant reflection of her journey to finding herself through veganism and queer love. She also wrote Fabulous Vegan for VegNews, a 30-day guide to going vegan. Singer is also the host of the award-winning Our Hen House weekly podcast, which is about changing the world for animals, and hosts the “Environmental Connections” show on PBS. On her Instagram, @jasminesingerauthor, she shares snippets from her life including her spouse More, who is also vegan, their four dogs and a cat.
Calen Otto
Calen Otto is a non-binary pansexual vegan writer and content creator sharing their budget travels around the globe on their Instagram, @unruly_traveller. On Instagram and their blog, Otto shares insights into what it’s like to traverse the world while adhering to a vegan diet, tips on where to eat everywhere from Mexico to Costa Rica and a pinned post detailing why travellers should consider going vegan. For more in-depth travel guides they’ve written eBooks covering UK road trips and budget travel.
Kelsey
Kelsey is a queer vegan content creator who goes by @lilveganpickle on Instagram. They use their platform to share their “fakeaway” meals recreating delicious meals at home. They're earnest about the vegan home-cook process — such as trying foods for the first time that they never ate pre-vegan, such as blue cheese and their deeply relatable truffle obsession. Kelsey is transparent about her eating disorder recovery and is flourishing after a year in recovery.
Destiny DeJesus
Destiny DeJesus is the queer vegan content creator behind @eatyodestiny. She shares her tried-and-true tips for making affordable vegan dishes with budget-friendly ingredients. Her “The grass I be eating as a vegan” series highlights how varied and flavorful vegan cuisine can be from spring rolls, milkshakes, lasagna, mac ‘n’ cheese, and more. DeJesus launched the Texas Eats Green initiative aimed to reduce animal suffering by encouraging restaurants across The Lone Star State to add more vegan dishes to their menus, especially in predominantly BIPOC communities.
Billie Lee
Billie Lee is a trans* vegan comedian, author and content creator. You may recognise her from her appearance on the reality TV show, Vanderpump Rules, where she was the first transgender person in the long-running series. She went plant-based for health reasons and never looked back. On her Instagram, @itsmebillielee, you’ll find posts highlighting her comedy which intersects veganism and her trans* identity. Her vegan empire continues to expand and now includes She’s So Vegan vegan-friendly gear including hoodies and tote bags.
Zacchary Bird
Zacchary Bird is the bisexual vegan author of “The Vegan Butcher” which highlights drool-worthy vegan meat alternatives. He’s also published two other cookbooks — “Vegan Junk Food: A Down & Dirty Cookbook” and “The Vegan Baker”. Bird is also an Instagram influencer, sharing a look at his queer vegan life on his namesake profile @zaccharybird.
He’s known for his hilarious content, such as the “day in the life of an average vegan“ where he mocks vegan stereotypes including surviving off of nooch, that centres his queer identity and veganism. The content is super relatable — like the reality that vegans are likely to look at a restaurant’s menu in advance to determine if there’s anything they can eat.
Nati Casanova
As a Latinx non-binary vegan activist, Nati Casanova uses their Instagram, @thezombiunicorn, to raise awareness about collective liberation for all sentient beings including animals, queer people, and beyond. Their activism has led them to speak at the Los Angeles City Council to support the motion to ban rodeos, and they attend demonstrations outside designer shops that use animal fur in their clothing collections. They rose to fame as a gamer. Casanova streams on Twitch and posts on YouTube where they describe themselves as "literaltrash" and encourage their "trashsquad" community to have fun while making a positive impact on the world.
By Lola Méndez
Lola Méndez is a Uruguayan-American freelance pansexual journalist. She writes about veganism, sustainability, travel, culture, and wellness for many print and digital publications such as CNN, USA Today, InStyle, and Refinery29. In addition to her responsible travel blog, you can follow her on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter @LolaAnnaMendez.
The views expressed by our bloggers are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.
