Veggie Pride Parade Rolls Into Chicago

This past Saturday, June 2, I saw a man pulling a horse by bike, children dressed up as broccoli stalks and carrots, and the politest and most well-mannered group of people rallying and parading for a cause they are so prideful about; while it may sound like I was at attending a comic-book convention, in reality, I was in attendance at Chicago’s first annual Veggie Pride Parade.

What originally started in Europe in the early 2000’s, the Veggie Pride movement is one that promotes living a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, but does so without condemnation of the “other side” – the carnivores.  According to the Chicago Veggie Pride Parade’s website, “the goal of the parade is ‘Celebrating the Vegan/Vegetarian Lifestyle’.”

And celebrate we did.

The parade kicked off in Grant Park at 12:00 PM and made one large loop around the grounds of the park before returning for festivities and a rally in Grant Park’s Fifth Grove.  Upon their return, the prideful parade participants were greeted with free fruit drinks provided by Naked Drinks, various vegetarian/vegan organizations aimed at promoting their initiatives, pulsing dubstep music, a costume contest, a vegetarian/vegan goodies raffle, a vegan food truck, and, ultimately, a beautiful summer afternoon in Chicago

On top of all of that, also, was an extremely eclectic and gripping lineup of guest speakers including owner of the “Karyn’s” restaurant chain, Karyn Calabrese, Chief Medical Officer of the Cook County Health and Hospitals System Dr. Terry Mason, and our very own Miss Chicago 2012 Maris Buchheit, that spoke about their stories of converting to a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle and how they are using their lives to promote such a lifestyle.

As the speakers slowly entered and exited the stage one-by-one, it became clear that this community of Vegetarians and Vegans in Chicago is truly a community that is deeply rooted in pride, compassion, and love for both humans and animals alike.  While they certainly pride themselves on their animal-free identity, this Vegetarian/Vegan community in Chicago is one that is not exclusive and is ever-so inviting of every type of individual and animal.

If you’d like to get more involved in the planning or participation of future Veggie Pride Parades in Chicago, I encourage you to visit their website at http://www.veggiepride.com/Chicago!