Judge Postle: Ethical Veganism clearly meets all the criteria of a philosophical belief, not just an opinion. It is cogent, serious and important, and worthy of respect in democratic society.
AMY WOODYATT: ‘A judge has ruled that Ethical Veganism qualifies as a philosophical belief protected under UK law. Jordi Casamitjana, an “ethical vegan,” claims he was dismissed by his employer, animal welfare charity the League Against Cruel Sports, in April 2018 because he informed colleagues that their employer’s pension fund was “being invested in companies that experiment on animals” and non-ethical funds — a claim the charity has rejected. Ethical vegans not only follow a vegan diet, but also oppose the use of animals for any purpose, such as animal testing.
At an employment tribunal on Friday, judge Robin Postle said he was “satisfied overwhelmingly” that ethical veganism meets the criteria of the Equality Act to qualify as a philosophical belief. In a short summary judgment, Postle declared that veganism “clearly in my view meets all the criteria; It is a philosophical belief, not just an opinion.” “It is cogent, serious and important, and worthy of respect in democratic society,” he added. Casamitjana brought the landmark legal case to court on Thursday, hoping to force a change to Britain’s Equality Act that would see veganism included as a philosophical belief protected from discrimination…
Casamitjana expressed his satisfaction with the judgment. “I’m extremely happy with the outcome of this hearing and for the words of the judge who clearly understood what ethical veganism is. I didn’t expect to have a judgement today but the overwhelming weight of the evidence we have provided seems to have been sufficient for the judge to conclude that I’m the ethical vegan I say I am, and that ethical veganism is a protected ‘non-religious philosophical belief,'” he said in a statement. “I am not alone. Many people have supported me because they, or their friends, have experienced discrimination for being ethical vegans. Hopefully, from my dismissal, something positive will come by ensuring other ethical vegans are better protected in the future”.’ SOURCE…
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