Oscar award winning actor and vegan veteran, Joaquin Phoenix revealed during an interview with The Sunday Times that he will not ‘force’ his son to be vegan.
Joaquin Phoenix and his partner Rooney Mara have been vegan for the majority of their lives, but in the recent interview, the 46-year-old actor said that their lifestyle choices don’t dictate how their son River eats. Mara and Joaquin welcomed their first child in September 2020.
Phoenix told The Sunday Times, “Certainly, I would hope that [he is vegan], but I’m not going to impose my belief on my child. I don’t think that’s right.”
Phoenix further explained that River, who is now nine months old and is named after the actor’s eldest brother who died in 1993 at age 23 from a drug overdose, won’t be hearing any rosy bedtime stories about animals from either of his parents.
The plant-based couple plan on educating their son about the reality of animal agriculture.
“I’m not going to indoctrinate him with the idea that McDonald’s have a Happy Meal because there’s nothing f***ing happy about that meal. And I’m not going to tell him that it’s OK to read books about all the wonderful little farm animals, and they say ‘oink oink oink’ and ‘moo moo moo,’ and not tell him that that’s what a hamburger is.”
Phoenix continued: “I’m not going to perpetuate the lie, but I’m also not going to force him to be vegan. I’ll support him. That’s my plan”
Phoenix has been an outspoken animal rights advocate for many years and dedicated his Academy Award Speech to spread awareness on the cruel dairy industry. He has been a part of many activist campaigns and tied himself to London’s Tower Bridge attached to a 390 square foot banner urging people to “go vegan”.
Last month, on the occasion of Mother’s Day, Rooney Mara opened up in a letter for Farm Sanctuary’s Mother’s Day campaign describing her feelings about becoming a new mom. Mara stated that motherhood has made her “more determined than ever” to help create a “kinder and more sustainable world”. She celebrated her very first Mother’s Day addressing all mothers of the animal kingdom.
