Vandana Shiva, a global environmental icon and champion of peasant traditions, has been the guest of honor numerous times in glittering events held at ABC Carpet & Home in New York City, which for the uninitiated is a sumptuous home furnishings mecca with a chic interior and socially conscious ethic.
Shiva, for those unfamiliar with the Indian enviromentalist, is best known for her anti-GMO activism, including claims she has popularized that myself and other journalists have inspected closely in recent years. The most thorough examination of Shiva’s activism was done several months ago by Michael Specter in The New Yorker. Shiva is not accustomed to being challenged by journalists. She has grown used to the “rock star” treatment accorded to her by Bill Moyers, Amy Goodman, and her many other admirers in the media. Perhaps that’s why Shiva was especially perturbed at Specter’s feature article (which science journalism professionals lauded), registering numerous objections that New Yorker editor-in-chief David Remnick soundly rebutted.
Shiva did not disappoint her audience, who as I had observed in another talk of hers I attended several years ago at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens, were enrapt. She spoke at length about the sacredness of nature and explained why she had devoted her life to defending seeds. This was her mission, her calling. “Seed is the first link in life,” she said. It represents a sacred compact with nature. GMOs, she went on to say, perverted that relationship. What does it mean “when I say what is a GMO?” She then answered her own question: “It is, creation and God move over.” This was a “violation” of the natural order.
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I don’t know what to make of the people who view Shiva as a saintly eco-warrior and uncritically accept everything she says. But I am certain that she gives them what they want to hear.
Read full, original blog: The Rich Allure of a Peasant Champion
