Mindless Media over Matter: It’s Time for Humans to Stop Ignoring Animal Rights

By Cathy Doodnauth

Animal rights: two words that everyone tries not to think about. Why? Because when animals are being slaughtered, maimed, tortured, or abused, ignorance is bliss. I’ll admit it—sometimes I choose to ignore reading the articles or watching the news that I know will upset me. I guarantee that I am not the only one who does this. But the time for feigning ignorance is over. Animals are being abused more and more, for different reasons; whether it is torturous experimentation for the latest makeup products or the fattening up by the food industries. It’s time for humans to realize that we are not the only species on Earth. 

“News is, to a degree, event-driven.” Julia Corbett, author of Communicating Nature believes that media only reports the truth if it is relevant to that area. It is true that there is more coverage of animal cruelty today than there was in the past years. But as the media gets more and more focused on ridiculous ‘news’, there is less attention on the huge issue of animal cruelty. I intend to look through different media sources to see how the world truly views animal rights and animal cruelty. Through this research, we can get a better idea of how far we are from equality for the species that cannot ask for it themselves. Through this research, we can see how cruel humans have been under the radar, and if mainstream media, the media that reaches the world, covers it at all. 

Animal Liberation, a Philosophy

Some say that technology will surpass written books very soon. I disagree—just a few days ago I was unable to find a seat in Barnes and Noble to read a book. Books have been the main source of information for thousands of years, a tradition that isn’t dying just yet. 

While researching animal rights, I came across a book by Peter Singer that blew my mind. I highly recommend reading this book, animal lover or not. Animal Liberation: The Definitive Classic of the Animal Movement is a book first published in 1975 that is still relative today. It’s controversial; I’m not saying every idea Singer throws out is great. But I believe his ideas on the rights of animals are ideas that should be adopted by all. Beginning with the first chapter, Singer captures your attention and pushes you into seeing animal rights as it is—a movement. He compares the animal rights movement to that of the women’s rights movement of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Men thought women’s rights were ridiculous and unnecessary; this is exactly how people today view animal rights. Yet we realize now that of course women deserve the same rights as men and should have had equality from the start. If history does in fact repeat itself, shouldn’t this mean that animals too deserve equality? With this captivating opener, readers are already agreeing with Singer. Using this comparison makes this form of media effective for its readers. By relating to a previous movement that now seems obvious in its validity, readers see that animal rights might not be so radical after all.

In this specific sense, it is clear that books are beneficial when discussing animal rights. However, it is not the best form of media to get an idea out these days. Massive amounts of people do not even touch books unless absolutely necessary for work or school. Reading for fun is not as popular as it used to be. Therefore, while some books like Singer’s are a great resource, they are not open to the world. But they can be. If schools pushed for books other than novels to be read, maybe students would think differently and read more. As of right now though, books are not the source we need to advocate for animal rights.

#ANIMALRIGHTS

One of the more recent social media applications that has taken the world by storm would be Instagram. Disclosure: this application is not just hipster posts of Starbucks and ‘selfies’. If you look in the right places, you find photo blogs by environmental activists around the earth that advocate against many environmental issues. Search a hashtag, and you’ll find a world you never knew existed. 

I decided to search the app with the hashtag animal rights (#animalrights). The pictures I found and the stories I read through captions were moving. There are many activists who take to Instagram to enlighten their followers about the inhumane treatment of animals that occur right under nose. Most of the pictures I found pertained to the restricting of animals in our diet; A.K.A., they were vegan and vegetarian accounts that were against the cruelty farm animals face before being on a dinner plate. One account I found was very influential—the words in the captions severely made me rethink my current omnivorous diet, as did the pictures. One post from late March stood out to me. With their permission, I post this reiteration of the quote: 

“Standing up for children is expected, it is morally the right thing to do. Advocating for dogs, cats, and wild life is accepted, it is justifiable to quite a few. So why is speaking out for farm animals extreme, why is it pushing a ‘point-of-view’? Maybe it is time to change this perspective, because their lives matter too!” – One Voice for Animal Rights

The original poster of the photo had a caption that complimented the picture—they say that “suffering is suffering” and it is time to end speciesism.  This account has over four thousand followers, effectively showing a good amount of people the truth about animal rights. Because of this, and many other accounts with more followers and more points, I believe that Instagram is a very good media source. This app is a form of speech for many. This source portrays animal rights as it is—a necessary movement to stop the suffering of innocent animals, whether they are dogs or cows. Instagram is an app utilized by millions of people, so it can be beneficial for fighting for our goal of animal rights. 

France: a Foie Gras Faux Pas

There is an issue that has been raising controversy in France over the past few years: the disgusting practice of force feeding a duck or goose to make foie gras. I was completely horrified when I found an activist website, Stop Gavage, which explained foie gras and the methods taken to attain this French cuisine. This specific activist site was formed from a larger organization, the L214, in 2012.

The practice to make foie gras is one of the cruelest that I have come across while researching animal rights. The methods used are cruel and merciless, to produce a food for human consumption while blatantly disregarding the innocent birds. Foie Gras is translated into fat liver—it is the specially fattened liver of a goose or duck prepared as food. According to the manifesto area of the website, the bird is put through a painful practice:

“…force fed several times a day by means of a metal tube, 20-30 centimeters long, being thrust down his throat till it reaches the stomach. To force his body to produce foie gras, the bird must ingest a huge amount of corn in a few seconds. This results in the liver becoming almost ten times larger than its normal size, and the bird develops an illness, hepatic steatosis.”

Stop Gavage is a very effective activist website; the information is very clear and easy to find once translating the page into English. The practice is explained without any exclusion of information—the nitty gritty gore is present in the page, followed with graphic images. They also add a petition to be signed to attempt to stop gavage for foie gras, and to perhaps even ban foie gras. This kind of website is beneficial to those against animal cruelty and it shows that although France is the main producer, there are French people who want it completely stopped to save these innocent animals. 

Costa Rica: Punishable by Law

The world knows that Costa Rica is one of the leaders of sustainability today. Their eco-friendly lifestyle is an inspiration to countries and activists worldwide. An English newspaper (print and online) from Costa Rica, The Costa Rica News, featured an article discussing an amendment to their animal abuse bill. The bill essentially says that abusing animals is against Costa Rican law. This recent article, dated February 5, says that the amendment would give “one to three years for those who cause the death of an animal with or without a legitimate cause.” It also says that imprisonment is going to be the penalty for “poisoning, injuring, torturing, and assaulting animals,” as well as “organizing or running fights between animals of any kind.”

The Costa Rica News makes it clear that this is still just a proposition, but with over two thousand complaints of animal abuse, animal rights activists are hoping for the passing of the amendment. The article is short and to the point, with just the important information. It features no opinions, only fact from government sources. This adds to its effectiveness when discussing animal rights. Many who support the cause are biased, with special care and feelings towards animals. This article is different, which makes it all the more successful and effective. 

This newspaper article is filled with hope and restoration of faith in humanity. Costa Rica is obviously taking the steps to limiting (and thus, stopping) animal cruelty. They are on the road to animal rights. But without having researching this specific country and issue, I would not have known about this amendment. Newspapers that are specific to a country only inform the people of that country. It’s difficult to inform citizens of other places when the area it is given out to are minimal. This is the only issue that newspapers have. 

Brazil: Revista Cães & Gatos

Finding information from countries around the world can be difficult—especially if the articles and information is in a different language. Luckily, I was able to translate (through Google) a great article from a Brazilian magazine, Revista Cães & Gatos. This magazine has been around since 2008, in both print and online forms. 

We all know that animal testing is prevalent today; while it isn’t happening as much as it used to, it is still a huge issue we have when discussing animal rights. Many experiments are connected to cosmetics. This Brazilian magazine covers a win for animal rights activists in an article from January 23, 2014: the governor of São Paulo, Geraldo Alckmin, has banned “the use of animals in the development of cosmetics, perfumes, and toiletries” in his State. Sao Paulo is a state of Brazil that contained more cosmetic companies than other states, meaning this ban is truly great. Any offenders of the ban will have to pay over $50,000 USD. The article is very effective in its layout of information—it begins by catching the attention of the readers, then states the rules of the ban, and ends with hopeful statements. The reader is given information clearly and thoroughly. 

The magazine is published throughout Brazil, reaching the eyes of citizens in other states of the country. This makes it a very good source when discussing the rights of animals. Also, it is a magazine focused solely on animals, which makes it a great insight into the world of their rights. With its clear articles, anyone can pick up a copy and be introduced into the fight against animal cruelty. 

Canada: TEDx Talk

YouTube is one of the most valuable, unlimited resources we have today. With an almost infinity amount of videos, this site can teach about any and every subject known to man.  Of course, this includes animal rights. The specific video I found is from a TEDx Talk. Regular TED Talks are organized talks covering many different topics; TEDx Talk is specifically self-organized talks. Lesli Bisgould is an animal rights lawyer that was featured on one of the talks in May 2014. The talk she had was focused on animal rights, specifically in Canada. 

Bisgould uses a bold comparison in her talk. She discusses a hypothetical situation in which her daughter requires a heart transplant to live, which spurs Bisgould to ‘kidnap’ a healthy audience member to save her daughter. She makes the point that this act would not be “morally or legally justifiable.” She compares this to necessary suffering of animals for human amusement or as a food source. Her comparison is, in my opinion, the most effective part of her speech. What she says is relatable—we’ve all known someone, or a friend of a friend that has needed help in such a way. But is it truly justifiable? No. And it is not justifiable for animals either, even if they are of a different species.  Later on, her usage of harsh adjectives and imagery shows the audience just how horrible animals have it in her country. Imagery is always an effective means as the audience can picture the situations.

Out of all the media I have researched and discussed, I think YouTube is the most effective in portraying animal rights. With videos, the viewer can see the atrocities committed to innocent animals, as well as hear and see an impactful talk by someone fighting for animal rights. This video is one of thousands featuring the topic of animal rights, and this media outlet helps the world (not only a specific country) view them all. Because of this, YouTube is an amazing source that can bring animal rights to more areas around the world. 

My Thoughts

The goal animal rights activists want is really not that difficult to come by, nor is it the worst goal the world has ever had. Is it so bad to want rights for the defenseless animals we oppress? Do we have to be so cruel in our methods of using these animals that have helped us reach where we are now? The answer, even if some are hesitant or downright oblivious, is NO. It is time to stop ignoring the cattle that cry before being slaughtered with a hammer, the ducks with broken bills after gavage for French cuisine, and the fish that are being skinned alive at market. Their suffering is all at the hands of humans, and we need the media to portray this more than it is. We need to cover cruelty stories and penalties, as well as bans and wins for animals. We need a worldwide news source to showcase animal rights and animal cruelties that occur where we can’t see, and to show other countries it is possible.  And it all begins with consideration:

“The basic principle of equality does not require equal or identical treatment; it requires equal consideration. Equal consideration for different beings may lead to different treatment or different rights.” 

Peter Singer, Animal Liberation

With consideration, especially in the media, perhaps the animal rights movement will come to pass. Small changes all over the world (like bans on animal testing and penalties for abuse) are what humans need to do to help the animals win their rights.