Recently, Chicago’s National Vegetarian Museum changed its name to The Vegan Museum. The museum was founded by the president of Go Veggie, Kay Stepkin. Kay ran Chicago’s first modern vegetarian business from 1971 to 1996.

The Museum board decided to represent the museum to the community, so it decided to change its name to The Vegan Museum. Founded in 2017, the museum is one of its kind and dedicated to the rich history of the vegetarian movement in the United States. Kay Stepkin said,

“Nothing in our perspective has changed, simply our name. The museum’s mission is to promote the values and benefits of veganism for human health, the environment, and the honoring of all life.”

The museum is famous for several events, film screenings, and book readings. It has also created a story map that details Illinois’ role in vegetarian and vegan history. Besides the name change, the museum also announced a new advisory board and featured popular vegans in several industries. The members included the host of the PlantBased business Hour, Elysabeth Alfano, restaurateur Karyn Calabrese, vice-president of the American Society Anne Dinshah, and more.

Stepkin said,

“Veganism developed from vegetarianism; it’s a part of our history and we embrace it. However, we became concerned that our name did not represent our views — we do not support animal exploitation of any kind. As such, we felt it important to change our name.”

She further added,

“We have always been a vegan organization and wanted to communicate this clearly to our patrons. As our health and environmental situations become more dire, we wish to not only preserve our history but advocate for a happy and healthier planet.”

Why Did She Start a Museum?

She started The Bread Shop in 1971. It was vegetarian and not vegan. Also, it was the first vegetarian business in Chicago. After a few years, she was invited on the Heartland radio show, ‘Live from the Heartland,’ to tell about Chicago’s vegetarian past.

She researched and found that Chicago’s vegetarian past dates back to the 1800s. In 1800, a group named Bible Christians arrived and started a vegetarian church in Philadelphia.

Right now, the museum includes twelve panels, each about three feet wide by seven feet tall. It is a big museum and has several professionals to manage the museum.

Final Words

Veganism and plant-based products are gaining popularity for several reasons. It offers life-transforming benefits, and people are looking for meat alternatives everywhere.