Talk about vegan going mainstream! How much more American mainstream does it get than Saturday Night Live? This past weekend we were DELIGHTED to see Justin Timberlake don a block of tofu and send out a far-reaching plug for veganism as part of his “ville” series – this one being Veganville. And in the past several days this video has been posted ALL OVER THE PLACE. Not just on blogs you would expect, like Ecorazzi and MindBodyGreen, but also on non-veg ones like Shape, Mediaite, Daily Picks and Flicks, and more! In case you haven’t seen it yet, take a watch:
Justin Timberlake – Bring It On Down 2… by IdolxMuzic
Almost as awesome as the skit itself, and how viral it has gone, is the fact that I haven’t come across a single negative comment about this skit yet. Despite it being posted far and wide OUTSIDE the vegan community, I am seeing only positive comments – not only about the skit itself (which IS hilarious), but acknowledgements that there is a lot of truth to the message of the skit. And that brings me to my next point. I know this is a comedy skit, and I don’t want to over-analyze it, or take it too seriously – BUT. It is SO refreshing to see a skit that pointed out the health benefits of a vegan diet AND made mention of the animal rights aspect too. As the health benefits of a healthy plant-based diet are becoming better known in the mainstream, the compassionate reasons for going vegan too often get left out of the discussion. So although this was a light-hearted piece, it touched on the cruelty that is necessitated by the consumption of meat, and my inner vegan did a happy dance. This is a huge boost in the mainstream for veganism. I’ve never paid much attention to J. Timberlake before, but as of Saturday night, I am a huge fan!
Emma Levez Larocque is an author and photographer living on the west coast of Canada. She has been veg for 18 years, vegan for 3. Her passion is working to make veganism mainstream to promote a better, kinder world for all beings. 
