Vegetarianism and veganism are consistent with animal studies' assertion that nonhuman animals are subjects-of-a-life, rather than objects, commodities, or machines. It follows that the human exploitation of nonhuman animals for food and other byproducts fails to consider animals as autonomous beings. Adopting a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle is a direct way to challenge the current systems of oppression that exploit nonhuman beings as commodities rather than individual subjects.
Vegetarians refrain from eating meat, including beef, pork, poultry, and seafood. Most vegetarians still consume dairy and egg products.
Vegans refrain from eating all animal products, including meat, dairy, and eggs. Lifestyle vegans also avoid using commercial animal products including leather, fur, and cosmetics made with and/or tested on animals. It is possible to be a lifestyle vegan without adopting a fully vegan diet (i.e., eating vegetarian and abstaining from clothing, toiletries, etc. made from animal products).
Eating Animals by 
The Face on Your Plate: the truth about food by 
The Vegan Sourcebook by 
The Bloodless Revolution: a cultural history of vegetarianism from 1600 to modern times by 
An essay on abstinence from animal food, as a moral duty by 
How to Cook Everything Vegetarian by
