Almost all of us grew up eating meat, wearing
leather, and going to circuses and zoos. Many of us bought our beloved
“pets” at pet shops, had guinea pigs, and kept beautiful birds in cages.
We wore wool and silk, ate McDonald’s burgers, and fished. We never
considered the impact of these actions on the animals involved. For
whatever reason, you are now asking the question: Why should animals
have rights?
In his book
Animal Liberation, Peter Singer states that the basic principle of equality does not require equal or identical
treatment; it requires equal
consideration.
This is an important distinction when talking about animal rights.
People often ask if animals should have rights, and quite simply, the
answer is “Yes!” Animals surely deserve to live their lives free from
suffering and exploitation. Jeremy Bentham, the founder of the reforming
utilitarian school of moral philosophy, stated that when deciding on a
being’s rights, “The question is not ‘Can they reason?’ nor ‘Can they
talk?’ but ‘Can they suffer?’” In that passage, Bentham points to the
capacity for suffering as the vital characteristic that gives a being
the right to equal consideration. The capacity for suffering is not just
another characteristic like the capacity for language or higher
mathematics. All animals have the ability to suffer in the same way and
to the same degree that humans do. They feel pain, pleasure, fear,
frustration, loneliness, and motherly love. Whenever we consider doing
something that would interfere with their needs, we are morally
obligated to take them into account.
Supporters of animal rights believe that animals have an inherent
worth—a value completely separate from their usefulness to humans. We
believe that every creature with a will to live has a right to live free
from pain and suffering. Animal rights is not just a philosophy—it is a
social movement that challenges society’s traditional view that all
nonhuman animals exist solely for human use. As PETA founder Ingrid
Newkirk has said, “When it comes to pain, love, joy, loneliness, and
fear, a rat is a pig is a dog is a boy. Each one values his or her life
and fights the knife.”
Only prejudice allows us to deny others the rights that we expect to
have for ourselves. Whether it’s based on race, gender, sexual
orientation, or species, prejudice is morally unacceptable. If you
wouldn’t eat a dog, why eat a pig? Dogs and pigs have the same capacity
to feel pain, but it is prejudice based on species that allows us to
think of one animal as a companion and the other as dinner.
The PETA Practical Guide to Animal Rights
Take vital steps to cut thoughtless cruelty to animals out of your
life and to educate others around you. Check out the most comprehensive
book on animal rights available today! In
The PETA Practical Guide to Animal Rights,
PETA president Ingrid E. Newkirk provides hundreds of tips, stories,
and resources. It's PETA's must-have guide to animal rights.
Also available for the Kindle!
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