Benjamin Zephaniah quotes

If the young vegan kids of our nation
Are at school and can't get vegan bites,
Then the school staff need food education
Because safe food are one of our rights. (Benjamin Zephaniah)

As the only black kid in my primary school playground, animals had become my friends. By 15 I was vegan, although I didn't give up honey until 16. For a while my mother thought it was just "a rasta phase". ... I can honestly say I've not been tempted to give up veganism in 27 years. I sometimes smell a chip shop and like the smell but then feel guilty because fish might be part of it. But I'll go home and make vegan chips. After all these years, my favourite food is my mother's butter bean stew with whole potatoes, yam and dasheen. I don't think I've ever made a meal for her, to be honest. I think she would consider it a failing of her motherhood and say "Boy, get out the kitchen."

Benjamin Zephaniah

I've got no bodies inside me All of me is me, I will not eat no body else So I am what you see. I do not plan to eat young sheep I will not eat a hen, I'm so proud of what I am I must say once again.

Benjamin Zephaniah

There's no vegan who is the greatest Because all you vegans are great, Just like the peace dove You symbolise love, And there is no death on your plate.

Benjamin Zephaniah

Someone said that Capitalism will eat itself, and I think that's like the meat industry, the meat industry itself will become dead meat and compassion will reign supreme.

Benjamin Zephaniah

When I start, I have a story that tends to have a lesson to be learnt. A lot of the time my novels are called novels for young adults and I think one of the reasons they are popular with young adults is because they read them and understand it...

Benjamin Zephaniah

...Sometimes I'll do these things for a couple of days then suddenly one day the poem comes out, just like that, in a couple of minutes. I might rewrite it later, a kind of fine tuning, or sometimes I'll tell the audience it's a new poem and just perform it to see if it works.

Benjamin Zephaniah

I have always loved playing around with words. I didn't know it was called poetry. I was just an innocent kid messing around with words when an adult said ‘You're a poet, be published or be damned'.

Benjamin Zephaniah

As the only black kid in my primary school playground, animals had become my friends. By 15 I was vegan, although I didn't give up honey until 16. For a while my mother thought it was just "a rasta phase."

Benjamin Zephaniah