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<\/a>Farmer Mylene Begin, who co-owns Princy farm in Quebec\u2019s Abitibi-Temiscamingue region, created an Instagram account a few years ago to both document daily life on the farm and combat what she calls \u201cdisinformation and the negative image,\u201d of agriculture. Today, she\u00a0describes herself as the target of bullying from vegan activists.<\/p>\nBegin recently changed the settings on her account after having to get up an hour early to delete more than 100 negative messages a day \u2014\u00a0some of which made her fear for her safety, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was one that took screenshots of my photos, he shared them on his feed after adding knives to my face and writing the word \u2018psychopath\u2019 on my forehead,\u201d the 26-year-old said.\u00a0\u201cIt made me so scared.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said some of the messages compared artificial insemination of cows to\u00a0rape, while others used the words \u201ckidnapping\u201d and \u201cmurder\u201d to describe the\u00a0work of cattle breeders.<\/p>\n
The problem, she said, is that many city people don\u2019t understand agriculture but become severe critics nonetheless.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt affects you psychologically. It\u2019s very heavy even if we try not to read (the comments),\u201d she said. \u201cThe population has become disconnected from agriculture. We all have a grandfather who did it, but today in the eyes of many people we\u2019re rapists and poisoners, and that\u2019s what hurts me the most.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pierrette Desrosiers, a psychologist who works in the agricultural sector, said bullying on the part of hardcore vegan activists on social media is a new source of stress\u00a0for a growing number of farmers.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt school, the children of farmers start to be bullied and treated as the children of polluters, or else the kids repeat what they see on social media and say\u00a0breeders rape the cows (when artificially inseminating),\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s now a significant source of stress for producers, and it didn\u2019t exist a year or two ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
Desrosiers, a farmer\u2019s daughter and wife, is critical of the communications strategy used by certain animals rights groups and vegan associations.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey use words like \u2018rape\u2019 and \u2018murder\u2019 to\u00a0strike the imagination,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s anthropomorphism,\u201d she added, referring to the attribution of human traits and emotions to animals and objects.<\/p>\n
Beginning last year,\u00a0the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food\u00a0spent several months\u00a0studying the mental health challenges facing farmers, ranchers and agricultural producers. The report, completed in May, found that farmers are vulnerable to mental health problems due to \u201cuncertainties that put them under significant pressure,\u201d including weather and environmental challenges, market fluctuations, debt, and paperwork.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe isolation that many farmers experience and the stigmatization they sometimes face, particularly on social media, amplify this stress,\u201d the report stated.<\/p>\n
Their recommendations included an education campaign to combat cyberbullying and threats against farmers, as well as updating the Criminal Code to include cyberbullying against groups of Canadians based on their job or place of residence.<\/p>\n
Frederic Cote-Boudreau, who recently completed a philosophy doctorate\u00a0at Queen\u2019s University and who studies animal ethics, said he\u2019s a vegan who would like to see animals recognized as equal to humans.<\/p>\n
However, he said, the language used by some animal rights defenders on social media is \u201ccounterproductive\u201d to the cause.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve rarely seen someone get convinced by this kind of divisive approach,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen we\u2019re told we\u2019re cruel, we\u2019re less receptive to what the other side is saying.\u201d<\/p>\n
But while he believes a peaceful approach is a more effective way to grow the movement, he said he\u00a0shares the activists\u2019 concerns and their strong emotions when faced with a society that appears to accept exploitation and violence towards animals.<\/p>\n
His doctoral thesis defended the idea that animals should have the right to make choices, including where to live, who to\u00a0develop relationships\u00a0with\u00a0and how to spend their days.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have ample scientific proof about the emotional life and capacity to suffer of animals,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s well-demonstrated that being coldly mutilated, crammed together, not being able to move normally, not being able to develop healthy social relationships, we know that it has enormous psychological and physical impacts on animals.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BY\u00a0STEPHANE BLAIS, THE CANADIAN PRESS MONTREAL \u2014 Cyberbullying by vegan activists is a growing source of\u00a0stress for farmers and agricultural producers who already face significant mental health challenges linked to the job, a farmer and a psychologist working in the agriculture sector say. Farmer Mylene Begin, who co-owns Princy farm in Quebec\u2019s Abitibi-Temiscamingue region, created … <\/p>\n