Benjamin Lay (January 26, 1682 – February 8, 1759) was an English-born abolitionist, an animal-rights advocate, an anti-racist activist, a writer, a quasi-vegan, and farmer.

Born in Copford, Essex, into a Quaker family, he initially underwent an apprenticeship as a glovemaker before running away to London and finding work as a sailor.

While working as a merchant, his shock at the brutal treatment of slaves in Barbados led Lay to develop lifelong abolitionist principles, which were reinforced by his humanitarian ideals and Quaker beliefs.

Operating a small farm which produced fruit, flax and wool, he refused to consume any product made from slave labour and lived a frugal, vegetarian lifestyle, which continued after Sarah died in 1735.

Soon, his abolitionist principles, fueled by his Quaker radicalism, made him unpopular with those fellow residents who profited from slavery and human trafficking.

[5] On one occasion Lay carried an animal bladder filled with red pokeberry juice under his coat in order to stage a protest.

He felt remorse over the incident and after reading the works of Thomas Tryon declared himself a vegetarian and recommended a quiet, rural life based on "harmony and unity" with the world.

[7] Lay came to view a divine pantheistic presence of God in all living things; he opposed the death penalty in all instances.

[7] Refusing to participate in what he described in his tracts as a degraded, hypocritical, tyrannical, and even demonic society, Lay was committed to a lifestyle of almost complete self-sustenance after his beloved wife died.

Dwelling in the Pennsylvania countryside in a cave with outside entryway attached, Lay farmed fruit trees, and spun the flax he grew into clothing for himself.

[9] He published over 200 pamphlets, most of which were impassioned polemics against various social institutions of the time, particularly slavery, capital punishment, the prison system, the moneyed Pennsylvania Quaker elite, etc.

[citation needed] He first began advocating for the abolition of slavery when, in Barbados, he saw an enslaved man commit suicide rather than be hit again by his owner.

[18][19][20] The Return of Benjamin Lay, a play by Naomi Wallace and Redicker, starring Mark Povinelli, opened in London in 2023.