Changemakers: Bellamy Young on the Power of Love

Bellamy Young shared these words in a recent interview with us—and they’re a perfect summation of her own life’s journey and career. Ever since she first went vegan in 1988, the acclaimed actress and producer (who celebrates her birthday today!) has been a dedicated animal advocate for decades. Along with creating a better world for farmed animals—including taking actions on our very own Fast Action Network!—Bellamy has been a loving parent to numerous companion animals she’s rescued and fostered over the years. She joined us to talk about the animal friends in her life, her dreams for the future of our food system, and the driving force behind all the ways she shows up as a compassionate light in the world.

You’ve accomplished so much as an actress, producer, and activist—but you always make time to speak up for animals. What’s your “why” that inspires your animal activism?

The big “why” is love. I want us to each show kindness and compassion to each other as humans—but it doesn’t stop there. The whole world, the whole universe, is connected energetically. Why wouldn’t we take the time to be as thoughtful as we can about how we care for the environment, for our animal friends, for each other? I just try to walk through the world mindful of my impact and encourage others to live that way too. And it makes life all the more rich! When you try to walk through life with love, love comes back to you.

I also have to say, I love the (Fast Action Network) you can put on your screen and take actions for animals! You've found a way to make it easy. It makes such a difference.

Did your upbringing in North Carolina—a state known for its high concentrations of factory farms—shape your love of animals at all? How did it inform your understanding of our food system?

I don’t think I was aware of it yet. When you’re a kid, you don’t put it together that a hamburger is a cow, or that your fried chicken used to be a chicken—even though the word is still there, especially with chickens! Growing up in North Carolina, my grandparents had vegetable farms, not animal farms.

But when I got to college, I was going through the line at the dining hall, and I ordered the baked breast of chicken. They plated it oddly, and it looked just like my mom’s little dog, when that sweet dog would roll over and want you to pet his stomach. In that instant, everything fell into place, and I was suddenly on the outside. If I wouldn't eat that dog, why would I eat that chicken? It was an absolutely instantaneous moment when the penny dropped.

The domino effect of listening to my heart in that moment really played out to have a lot of great health repercussions in my day-to-day—which were utterly unanticipated! My skin cleared up, my energy got better. I couldn't have imagined that it would have a positive impact on me. I wasn’t thinking about me in that moment. But everything is connected and goes both ways. What you give out also has repercussions for yourself. It was beneficial in both directions!

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“I want to spend my time in a way that aligns with my heart.”

In thinking about all the health benefits of a plant-based diet, do you see a connection between physical health and spiritual wellness?

I live a very lucky life. I have the privilege of making the decision that nothing should have to suffer, so that I should continue to exist. I know that's not everybody’s reality, so I'm grateful for that layer to begin with. But I think there are a lot of little connections. Just being aware of where things come from, how the chain of life—much less the chain of production—has happened. That can go for your food, your clothes, your car. There’s always more to it than meets the eye.

What are your hopes for the future of our food system—and our earth?

It’s a big question, but it’s also the right time to ask it! I went vegan in 1988, and at that time, it meant I could have an apple. (Laughs) I think about the great strides now for people who just want to experiment with being meatless—maybe it’s just every once in a while, or maybe it’s just reducing their meat intake during their week, just starting there. There are so many easy ways to wade into the water and still have a delicious burger, or still have some kind of pizza that looks like the kind of pizza you used to eat! That kind of thing.

I also watch science advance, with things like lab-grown meat. People know what their bodies need, and I would never proselytize or tell people how to run their own bodies. But there are increasing ways to know that no one had to suffer or die so that you could be healthy. So I know it’s a big question, but—now more than ever—it’s so possible. And for so many reasons, it’s so important. What we know about climate change alone should turn peoples’ heads to at least a meat-modified diet, if not meat-free.

The idea of animals having to suffer so that humans can have food is an antiquated, archaic paradigm. There are so many ways to replace that mindset and that enterprise. I feel hope in my heart that we’re almost at the end of it. I couldn't have had that thought in 1990. I was like, “It’ll always be this way.” Now, I see the end, and I hold it dear. We just have to get through legislation. Our democracy is powerful, but also glacially slow. We have to keep making people aware of what's possible and how easy change can be.

I know we’re about to build on the Farm Bill, and there are a couple things [the industry is] trying to slide in to take back some of the animal protection progress we've made in the last few years. So it takes being vigilant. But science and tech is right there with us, ready to meet us when our laws are open.

You've been such an incredible supporter of animal welfare organizations throughout your life. Why is that so important to you?

It’s something I can do. I’m not a scientist. I'm not a lobbyist. But I want to spend my time in a way that aligns with my heart. And so fostering and volunteering and those sorts of things have always been a way to make a difference.

I think we all undervalue the fact that if we each did one thing, the aggregate would be overwhelming. My “one thing” has been in this arena. Again, it’s also had a feedback loop of great joy, purpose, and happiness in my own life. To foster, to feed baby kittens, to help anything. I have gone to Washington and lobbied, with the ASPCA in particular, and it’s been its own reward. You see little changes that happen incrementally, but you also know that when an animal you foster finds their forever home, you feel so lucky to have been the link in that chain that got those two souls together. You provided the Band-Aid that then let the flow happen. It’s almost overwhelming how rewarding it is.

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“I think we all undervalue the fact that if we each did one thing, the aggregate would be overwhelming.”

You’re also passionate about rescuing companion animals. Who are some of the animals who have been important in your life?

I could speak about all of them all day! The two that are with me now are my sweet dog Razor, who was a rescue from up in Connecticut, and my cat Button, who came to me feral up in South Pasadena. I look at him, and we’ve been through so much together. I’ve learned so many great lessons from him about trust and mutual respect and freedom and love.

Someone who also meant a lot to me was a dog I fostered years ago. I found him one day when I lived in South Pasadena. I was getting on the highway, it was 110 degrees out, and this poor dog was walking onto the freeway, looking like he had heatstroke. He was a huge, beautiful dog, and I just got out of my car. I couldn’t pick him up—he was too big—but I finally got him in my car and tried to find his owners. He was my first foster, and I had him for a pretty long time. It took a minute to get him well.

A writer friend, who I’d just worked with on “Cold Case” back in the day, wound up adopting the baby who became Charlie. This was probably 2004, and sweet Charlie just passed in the fall. My friend always kept me up to date on him, so I got to say goodbye.

Animals stay in your heart. They help keep your life very full of love. Charlie lived to a ripe old age and got to travel all over the world. He had a wonderful life.

If you’re as inspired as we were by this interview, you can keep up with Bellamy on her Instagram! And join her—along with thousands of advocates around the globe—in taking action for animals on the Fast Action Network. Ready to create the compassionate future we imagine?