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Unless you’ve been living under a rock: you’ve probably heard of That Vegan Teacher. But who is she? And why does she keep going viral on TikTok?
Otherwise known as Kadie Karen Diekmeyer, That Vegan Teacher is an elementary school teacher, former registered nurse and vegan advocate.
She posts educational videos on activism and veganism on social media, garnering millions of likes. Moreover, she regularly promotes veganism through song and has a Spotify playlist of her original creations.
That Vegan Teacher had garnered a staggering 1.6 million followers on TikTok before she was banned.
That Vegan Teacher’s viral TikTok video
Recently, That Vegan Teacher attracted global media attention after urging celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay to go vegan.
In the video, Diekmeyer sings the celeb a song, telling him “hurting animals is wrong.” She adds: “And if you call me a donut, that’s fine, as long as you’re vegan from now on.”
In response, Ramsay posted a video nodding along to the song whilst eating lettuce. He called her a “vegan donut” and at the end of the video, took a large bite from a burger.
“Beef burgers were consumed while making this TikTok” was the caption. Later posting the video on his Instagram account, Ramsay said: “It’s an honor a song was written about me….and now back to my beef burger.”
That Vegan Teacher controversy
Despite That Vegan Teacher’s popularity – some of her content has stirred controversy online.
Most of the criticism comes from Diekmeyer’s comparison of animal agriculture to the Holocaust – as well as her use of terms such as “meat is murder.”
Earlier this year, she came under fire for arguing that “coming out” as a vegan is “more special” than coming out as gay.
“Coming out as a vegan animal rights activist, as someone who cares beyond themself, is much more special than it is to come out as a member of the LGBTQ community,” she said.
“Coming out as a member of the LGBTQ community is an entirely selfish act. It’s talking about you only. It’s not talking about the things you’re going to do to better the world.”
Banned from TikTok
More recently, TikTok banned That Vegan Teacher for violating community guidelines.
The move followed a petition urging the social media platform to delete the activist’s account. It has garnered more than 26,000 signatures at the time of writing.
“Being a Vegan or Vegetarian is a healthful lifestyle that is a choice for some people,” the petition reads.
“However it isn’t always the best option medically or financially. The Creator known as That Vegan Teacher has violated multiple community guidelines in various videos, duets, and sounds.
“She’s a former certificated educator however has no background in veterinary nor human medicine. She has made blatantly racist, bigoted, discriminatory statements against anyone who doesn’t view veganism her way and her way alone.
“She has promoted multiple films that are dangerous to children given TikTok’s 13-year-old age requirement and many children under that age access it on a daily basis. These videos show violent depictions of animal slaughter in graphic detail.
“Her targets have included minors under 18, the LGBTQ+ Community, persons with disabilities, people of the Black community, various religions and more. Multiple reports have been made against her content yet her platform remains active.”
That Vegan Teacher’s death hoaxes
Diekmeyer has disproved rumors of her death twice. In April she dismissed claims that she had passed away from a heart attack. She posted a video to her YouTube channel titled “Responding to your comments: Why does everyone always think I’m dead?”
Most recently, she has added a new video called “Please Stop Being Veganphobic and Attacking Our Home.” It went live on June 24. It follows incidents of criminal mischief, which saw critics of the controversial figure throwing eggs at her house.
The vegan blogger continues to make TikTok videos daily, despite being repeatedly banned, disproving theories that she has died.
This article was originally published on February 24, 2021. It was last updated on June 29, 2022.
