--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you think that being vegan is…" description: "\"If you think that being vegan is difficult, imagine how difficult it is for animals that you are not vegan.\" — Gary L. Francione" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/gary-l-francione-8902_animal_if-you-think-that-being-vegan-is-difficu_2102784.jpg" --- # If you think that being vegan is difficult, imagine how… ![“If you think that being vegan is difficult, imagine how difficult it is for animals that you are not vegan.” quote by Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/gary-l-francione-8902_animal_if-you-think-that-being-vegan-is-difficu_2102784.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/gary-l-francione-8902_animal_if-you-think-that-being-vegan-is-difficu_2102784.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ae/gary-l-francione-8902_animal_if-you-think-that-being-vegan-is-difficu_2102784.jpg) > “If you think that being vegan is difficult, imagine how difficult it is for animals that you are not vegan.” [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The moral burden of animal suffering is greater when we ignore it, making veganism a compassionate necessity. **In simple terms:** Ignoring animal pain is harder than being vegan. Key Takeaway Choose compassion over convenience. Themes ethics animal rights diet compassion Mood thoughtful determined Type ethical advocacy When to use this quote - grocery shopping - restaurant choices - activism - educational talks Key Concepts moral philosophy speciesism consequentialism Questions to Reflect On - How does personal comfort conflict with ethical responsibility? - What steps can make veganism more accessible? A Different Perspective Changing diet can be socially and culturally challenging. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Animals Vegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals-vegan-3910578/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Difficult Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-animals-2964884/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Imagine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagine/) [Think Vegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-vegan-1706780/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Vegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vegan/) [Vegan Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vegan-difficult-4209493/) ## Related quotes > [I suppose I am one: an activist - for animals and a vegan lifestyle. I hear that word, however, and look around to see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-moran/i-suppose-i-am-one-an-activist-for-animals-and-a-vegan-lifestyle-i/) [Victoria Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-moran/) > [A lot of people think I'm a vegan. I'm not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/a-lot-of-people-think-i-m-a-vegan-i-m-not/) [Tao Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/) > [Obviously, I think being vegan is important. But no one should judge anybody. I'm not a dictator and I don't expect anyone to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-anderson/obviously-i-think-being-vegan-is-important-but-no-one-should-judge/) [Pamela Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-anderson/) > [The gate is perfectly simple," Temeraire said. "There is only a bar across the fence, which one can lift very easily, and then it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-novik/the-gate-is-perfectly-simple-temeraire-said-there-is-only-a-bar/) [Naomi Novik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-novik/) > [I try to only eat animals that are vegan. I'm probably the opposite of a vegan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-gaffigan/i-try-to-only-eat-animals-that-are-vegan-i-m-probably-the-opposite-of/) [Jim Gaffigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-gaffigan/) > [Most people think if you are vegan you eat just green stuff, you just eat salad and lettuce and veggies the whole day... I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrik-baboumian/most-people-think-if-you-are-vegan-you-eat-just-green-stuff-you-just/) [Patrik Baboumian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrik-baboumian/) > [I think 'vegan' is a beautiful word. It is more than just a description for our diet. I see it as a visible template…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-wollen/i-think-vegan-is-a-beautiful-word-it-is-more-than-just-a-description/) [Philip Wollen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-wollen/) > [If you are not vegan, please consider going vegan. It’s a matter of nonviolence. Being vegan is your statement that you reject violence to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/if-you-are-not-vegan-please-consider-going-vegan-it-s-a-matter-of/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [Being vegan provides us with the peace of knowing that we are no longer participants in the hideous violence that is animal exploitation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/being-vegan-provides-us-with-the-peace-of-knowing-that-we-are-no/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [I find it very annoying that so many animal advocates talk about the difficulty of being vegan. Many animal advocates are inclined to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/i-find-it-very-annoying-that-so-many-animal-advocates-talk-about-the/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [Being vegan is easy. Are there social pressures that encourage you to continue to eat, wear, and use animal products? Of course there are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/being-vegan-is-easy-are-there-social-pressures-that-encourage-you-to/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [It costs us so little to go vegan. It costs animals so much if we don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/it-costs-us-so-little-to-go-vegan-it-costs-animals-so-much-if-we-don-t/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [None of that is necessary. It's not as if we're in a situation where it is us or them.There's something peculiar about talking about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/none-of-that-is-necessary-it-s-not-as-if-we-re-in-a-situation-where/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [Most people are sensitized to animals through their cats and dogs, but for me it was a flounder. I used to go fishing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mathews/most-people-are-sensitized-to-animals-through-their-cats-and-dogs-but/) [Dan Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mathews/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) ## More by Gary L. Francione > [Animal rights without veganism is like human rights with slavery. It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [Humans treat animals as things that exist as means to human ends. That's morally wrong. Sexism promotes the idea that women are things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/humans-treat-animals-as-things-that-exist-as-means-to-human-ends-that/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [“The notion that animals are not self-aware is based on nothing more than a stipulation that the only way to be self-aware is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/the-notion-that-animals-are-not-self-aware-is-based-on-nothing-more/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [There is no morally coherent difference between fur and other animal clothing, such as leather, wool, etc., just as there is no morally coherent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/there-is-no-morally-coherent-difference-between-fur-and-other-animal/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [We cannot talk simultaneously about animal rights and the 'humane' slaughter of animals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/we-cannot-talk-simultaneously-about-animal-rights-and-the-humane/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [We can no more justify using nonhumans as human resources than we can justify human slavery. Animal use and slavery have at least one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/we-can-no-more-justify-using-nonhumans-as-human-resources-than-we-can/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [Because animals are property, we consider as "humane treatment" that we would regard as torture if it were inflicted on humans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/because-animals-are-property-we-consider-as-humane-treatment-that-we/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [Not only are the philosophies of animal rights and animal welfare separated by irreconcilable differences... the enactment of animal welfare measures actually impedes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/not-only-are-the-philosophies-of-animal-rights-and-animal-welfare/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [There is increasing social concern about our use of nonhumans for experiments, food, clothing and entertainment. This concern about animals reflects both our own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/there-is-increasing-social-concern-about-our-use-of-nonhumans-for/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [Being vegan is easy. Are there social pressures that encourage you to continue to eat, wear, and use animal products? Of course there are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/being-vegan-is-easy-are-there-social-pressures-that-encourage-you-to/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [“Sentience is a means to the end of continued existence. Sentient beings, by virtue of their being sentient, have an interest in remaining alive;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/sentience-is-a-means-to-the-end-of-continued-existence-sentient/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [It costs us so little to go vegan. It costs animals so much if we don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/it-costs-us-so-little-to-go-vegan-it-costs-animals-so-much-if-we-don-t/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [In order to be a teacher you've got to be a student first](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/in-order-to-be-a-teacher-you-ve-got-to-be-a-student-first/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [We do not need to eat animals, wear animals, or use animals for entertainment purposes, and our only defence of these uses is our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/we-do-not-need-to-eat-animals-wear-animals-or-use-animals-for/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) > [But if there were two dogs left in the universe and it were up to us as to whether they were allowed to breed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/but-if-there-were-two-dogs-left-in-the-universe-and-it-were-up-to-us/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Explore all 77 Gary L. Francione quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) [Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [That dog, I say that dog is lower than a snake full of buckshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foghorn-leghorn/that-dog-i-say-that-dog-is-lower-than-a-snake-full-of-buckshot/) [Foghorn Leghorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foghorn-leghorn/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Animal rights without veganism is like human rights with slavery. It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/) [Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/) [Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you think that being vegan is difficult, imagine how difficult it is for animals that you are not vegan.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gary L. 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