Please indulge me with this hypothetical for a moment.
Let’s say that the time is 50,60 or even 100 years ago.
The female human is thought of as an object that the males of the species can do with as he wants.
Females are readily kept in cages, denied access to education, socialisation and forced to perform tasks against they wouldn’t normally do through behaviour modification.
Let’s also say that there is a growing movement that wants females to be treated and considered as equals.
How would they go about achieving this?
Whilst it is accepted they would condemn the travelling road shows that transport females all over the country to ‘perform’ tricks and tasks for an audience. These sorts of events would be branded as exploitation, and criticisms would be made about the size of the cage that these female ‘performers’ were transported in.
Do you then think that these groups would then transport ‘rescued’ females around to various male establishments where the male observers would be able to have a limited interaction with these rescued females, whilst watching them perform conditioned tricks? Let’s not forget that these ‘shows’ and ‘tricks’ are being done to ‘prove’ to the male observer how intelligent and self-aware these females are.
If this were to actually happen, ‘Equal rights’ activists would be quick to condemn those groups that do this, labeling them no different to those they are supposed to be against.
[GARD]Yet this is exactly what happens within the ‘animal rights’ movement.
There are groups that will happily organise a protest against a circus because it is deemed ‘cruel’ to keep an animal in a cage and transport them around the countryside. Yet with the very next breath, they will eagerly applaud the ‘efforts’ of a ‘rescue’ or ‘sanctuary’ that does the exact same thing.
The only difference between the two is that one does it under the banner of entertainment, and the other claims it is done as ‘education’.
Yet when it comes down to the reality of it all, exploitation is still exploitation.
If would reasons and explanations as to why we shouldn’t use other animals is that tenuous that we are not able to present it without forcibly using any animal, then we really do need to stop what we are doing and think of something else.
Likewise, if an alleged animal rescue/sanctuary is all too eager to bundle these animals up into cages under the guise of education, then we all really need to pause for a minute, step back and objectively look at whether these events are there to promote a better understanding of other animals, or to increase awareness of the organisation itself.
If it is the latter, then they really are no better than the circuses or zoos that everyone campaigns against.
Where do you stand on this?
This article was written by the founder of VeganPolice.com.au, Cameron Blewett.
Cameron is a long term vegan (30+yrs), and is passionate about veganism, and helping people to understand more about it and giving other animals equal consideration.
You can find Cameron’s other rants on his website, CameronBlewett.blog
I totally agree with your points here Cameron. I too find it hypocritical for an organisation to be against using animals, then use animals to educate or promote their cause. If you are against animal use, you don’t turn around and use them for your or your organisation’s gain (or for other animals gain…as I’ve heard someone explain it ‘this pig is doing it for all the other pigs out there in terrible conditions’ – to which I’m sure that one pig being paraded around doesn’t know of or care about other pigs in difficult situations – that is just an excuse to continue use).