Oakland Veg Fest

I can’t wait for the next one. I am someone who is transitioning from being a vegetarian to a vegan. I was able to attend the Hip Hop Green Dinner and the Veg Fest.
The Hip Hop Green Dinner is a free dinner aimed for youth and families through invitation. The dinner was located in an old theatre. There were long tables in rows with table cloths. I saw about 8 – 10 booths with pamphlets, leaflets, pins, stickers and email sign up sheets on the tables. The people at the booth were friendly and approachable.
There was a smoothie bike between the food table and a booth. A lady was giving small samples of strawberry and orange smoothies. The food table was long with silver serving trays in a row. At the start of the line, there are chilled drinks (coconut water, different flavors of kombucha, and water). We had a full vegan West African meal catered by A Taste of Africa. I already wrote a Unilocal review about the meal on their page. Near the other end of the food table, there is a small tea station. Three flavors, one of them is herbal. I had a couple cups of the herbal tea and it was refreshing.
Before dinner was served, we were given a small snack and sat for some entertainment. Entertainment included a rapper, a couple of speakers, performance with some local kids (around the ages of 11 – 13), short films with raps about the food industry and dangers of eating excessive sugar and junk food. The Hip Hop Green Dinner has been hosted all around the country. I appreciate their mission of spreading the message to youth about eating healthier, being aware of where our food comes from and how it is made, and the shady businesses and corporations in the food industry.
Towards the end of the event, a man was juicing fresh oranges and giving the juice away. On stage, another smoothie was being offered but instead of being fruity, it had herbs and veggies like ginseng. It was great to see how everyone got along and enjoyed each others’ company. I hope this happens again next year.

It’s great to see such an event and the growing awareness of the three tenets of veganism — health, environment and animal rights. To some extent this event was wasted on me, since I became a vegan long ago and my knowledge of the subject is pretty extensive (not that I think for a moment that I know everything!), but we turned up early and got our goody bags.
And the contents were pretty good! Much better than stuff I’ve had from other unrelated events, some food items, coupons and cosmetics.
We didn’t stick around for any of the talks, since we had somewhere else to be, and didn’t try any of the food, since we’d just eaten, but I hope there were people there learning and trying new things.
My one complaint is that perhaps there were too many animal rights groups there. Yes, their role is very important, but I do feel it overshadows a little the general message — that any reduction at all in animal consumption is a huge deal.
Anyway, the amphitheater is a great venue. I hope it happens again.

What an amazing event hosted by such lovely people. It’s great to be surrounded by so many compassionate people on what turned into a bright and sunny day by Lake Merritt.
Oakland Veg Fest is the culmination of Oakland Veg Week, seven whole days of vegan education (veg-​ucation, if you will). No matter what your dietary preferences, this festival was dedicated to a more eco-​friendly, healthy lifestyle.
Food was provided by vendors like Timeless Coffee, Citizen Fox, The Flying Falafel, Sanctuary Bistro, No Worries, and so on.
Animal welfare groups were also present to help teach the public about animal rescue: Vegan Outreach, The Humane League, Cat Town, and more.
There were vegan chefs and activists that spoke in the amphitheater, including Colleen Patrick-​Goudreau and Bryant Terry.
I look forward to next year’s event!