To the editor: The headline, “Vegan computer savants with Bay Area ties linked to deaths across U.S., authorities say,” is highly problematic to say the least. The article itself is fine, but I searched through the whole thing and found no indication that the suspects’ veganism had anything to do with their myriad alleged crimes.
They were also transgender, but I noticed the headline didn’t mention “transgender computer savants.” Why not? Is it OK to smear vegans but not trans people?
Your headline does serious damage to a community that is already far too marginalized and misunderstood. It implies that veganism is some sort of radical and dangerous ideology that leads to violence, when in fact the entire point of veganism is a wholesale rejection of violence. No serious member of the vegan community would claim these people as representatives.
In this age of hyper-vigilance about not offending marginalized groups, it seems that those who care about animals are the last remaining group that’s fair game to ridicule. Please take greater care to be fair about such things in the future.
David Weiner, North Hollywood
