An Introduction to Animal Rights & Liberation
Given all the other issues permeating the fabric of American society today, the topic of animal welfare doesn’t come up in popular discourse very often. Still, plenty of people share this concern, and there are many different approaches to describing and defining animal welfare. Some use the Five Freedoms approach, while others aim to achieve three positive goals for all animals: allowing them to live naturally, healthy, and happily. The latter is preferred here, as this mirrors the same rights to liberty and respect which people are ostensibly afforded.
In general, reducing the suffering experienced by those under our care is a no-brainer. However, the animals people empathize with tend to vary by culture. For example, here in the US, beef is practically the national food, while in India, that would be considered abhorrent. This sliding standard is baffling. Dogs, cats, and rabbits can all be pets, yet it’s only socially acceptable to eat rabbit? We put the line in an arbitrary position. It is important to recognize this, and to try and correct our own ingrained biases so that all animals may be treated with dignity.
In dogs specifically, we’ll even actively create breeds to fit some idealized appearance even if those breeds suffer chronic illness their entire lives as a result, such as how pugs are burdened with breathing issues due to their short skulls.
The animal rights movement’s reputation has also been damaged somewhat by PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, more specifically the various scandals and generally asinine media campaigns that particular organization gets up to on occasion. While a portion of their work is commendable, such as organizing boycotts, much of the rest is suspect in one way or another, from how they buy shares in corporations to try and reform them, from within to the unusually high euthanasia rates in their shelter.
Lake County has its share of human-exploited animals. According to the 2022 agricultural census, 13% of the agricultural sales conducted were animal products, which is actually pretty good, being in the bottom third of all counties in the US. Of that 13%, the vast majority is in horses, which are typically treated well compared to other livestock. While producers in the county have a total of over 1,300 egg-laying hens, their so-called ‘market value’ is about 30 times smaller.
Also here in the county are 13 meat processing plants and the corporate headquarters of Abbott Labs, where they conduct medical testing on over 100 individual farm animals. Their website professes a commitment to general safety, minimizing the number of tests conducted, and reducing distress in the animal subjects. While debating the necessity of such testing for human scientific advancement is a whole other issue, the main takeaway here is what is not mentioned: comfortable, outdoor living spaces, and the fact that most test animals are euthanized after the conclusion of an experiment. Rats, mice, and birds aren’t even covered at all under animal welfare laws in the US.
Beyond animal welfare lies animal liberation, where the creatures of the earth are no longer treated as property to be owned and used by humanity at all, mirroring the abolitionist movements which abolished slavery in the US (except as a punishment for a crime, unfortunately). Those advocating full animal liberation emphasize the logical and ethical inconsistencies inherent in only taking measures to make a fundamentally exploitative system merely take advantage of earth’s creatures with a bit more care. Animals don’t need to gain all the same rights as humans in the process, though. Most of them wouldn’t want to vote or the like anyway.
So, what’s the solution here? What steps can we take to liberate animal life? Well, eating less meat, as well as avoiding the purchase of fur or leather goods, would certainly help (wool is relatively fine). Reducing the scope of the ridiculously wasteful and methane-producing beef industry would also assist tremendously in mitigating the ongoing climate crisis. Even the egg industry is supremely problematic in its current form, as male chicks are typically culled shortly after birth in brutal fashion for their inability to lay.
However, it’s not as simple as just going to every factory farm and testing lab to release the animals into the wild. For one thing, the US federal government has passed a law called the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act to make any direct actions to that end count as terrorism, because of course it has. And for another, many of the species humans exploit aren’t actually native to North America and can run rampant through ecosystems. This is how we got the whole ‘30-50 feral hogs’ meme situation. Sure, those hogs may be happy now, but the other animals now having to compete for habitat with them? Not so much.
One thing we can do is use the topic of animal rights in general to help bridge the gap across the aisle and change minds. Many right-wing groups have begun to integrate environmentalist talking points into their ideology over the past few years, becoming ecofascist or econationalist. Typically, this originates from fearmongering, in that they’re worried population growth or the continued immigration of ‘insert irrationally disliked ethnic minority’ will further damage the land and its wildlife. But there would be plenty more habitable land to go around if we didn’t dedicate so much of it to livestock, and instead just grew plants to eat ourselves!
It’s also important to remember that giving pets and livestock better living conditions means fewer animals will get sick. And the fewer sick animals there are running around, the less likely any infectious disease they develop will cross the species barrier and jump into humans, reducing the odds of future pandemic scenarios like what happened with swine flu back in 2009. This is a great argument for the necessity of animal welfare at minimum and full animal liberation as a brighter end.
The best way to bring this future about is with a democratic socialist system, where the people are informed and empowered to address any persisting cruelties. And without the profit motive, the industries which perpetuate those cruelties may be downsized significantly or eliminated entirely.
The Five Freedoms are:
Freedom from thirst and hunger – by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigour
Freedom from discomfort – by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area
Freedom from pain, injury, and disease – by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment
Freedom to express most normal behavior – by providing sufficient space, proper facilities, and company of the animal's own kind
Freedom from fear and distress – by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering
Notes