DEAR READERS: Allow me to draw your attention to a new book, set to be published April 23, entitled "Our Kindred Creatures: How Americans Came To Feel the Way They Do About Animals."
The two authors -- Bill Wasik, editorial director of The New York Times magazine, and his partner, veterinarian Dr. Monica Murphy -- have produced a book that I could not put down. Beginning in the late 1800s, they document the history of animal cruelty and social reforms in America. This book engagingly profiles outstanding individuals who became a voice for the animals and a conscience for the nation, which was (and still is) in recovery from slavery and continuing to foment racism and sexism.
The authors meticulously document the history and evolution of the United States' moral sensibilities and empathy, along with the many atrocities levied against animals wild and domesticated. Expanding the golden rule (“Treat others as you would have them treat you”) to include other species is the central point in this seminal work. It should be read by all who are concerned about animals and the environment, and especially by students engaged in public policy, social justice and American history.
As someone long involved in this movement -- and as the author of several books on the topic, such as “Inhumane Society: The American Way of Exploiting Animals” and “The Boundless Circle: Caring for Creatures and Creation” -- reading this historical review makes me wonder why we are so slow to expand the circle of compassion to embrace, respect and protect all sentient beings. Had this movement really gained traction a century ago, the climate and extinction crises we face today might have been averted.
THE PASSING OF A GREAT ANIMAL DEFENSE LAWYER
I was deeply saddened to learn that animal rights attorney Steven Wise died last month.
I knew Steven, and applauded his brilliance, concern and commitment to seeing animals treated as they should be under the law -- as sentient beings, just like humans are, rather than objects with no legal standing.
From 1985 to 1995, he was president of the Animal Legal Defense Fund, a period he later said informed his certainty that animals' fundamental rights had to be established before their legal interests would be recognized.
Here is a brief excerpt from his obituary (available at everloved.com): “An innovative scholar and groundbreaking expert on animal law, Wise founded and served as president of the Nonhuman Rights Project (NhRP), the only nonprofit organization in the U.S. dedicated solely to establishing legal rights for nonhuman animals. As the NhRP’s lead attorney, he filed historic lawsuits demanding the right to liberty of captive chimpanzees and elephants, achieving widely recognized legal firsts for his clients.”
My condolences to all who knew Steven, worked with him and followed his path.
PROGRESS ON THE FARMED ANIMAL FRONT
Activist Josh Balk is following in the footsteps of the late Henry Spira: confronting corporations and challenging them to become more responsible in their business practices and cease profiteering at the expense of animals. Balk is a former Humane Society executive and now runs an organization called The Accountability Board, which pushes food companies to switch to more humane practices.
Below is part of a recent statement from Balk, summarizing some of the work The Accountability Board does.
“Just a quick note on last week’s news about McDonald’s reaching 100% cage-free eggs in the U.S. two years ahead of its original pledge," Balk writes. "Since the company uses 2 billion eggs annually in the U.S., and it takes a hen (about) 24 hours to lay each egg, McDonald’s transition to cage-free means we’ve eliminated 2 billion days’ worth of suffering annually. Perhaps no other victory has had such an impact.
"Of course, we’re not stopping there. We just worked with U.S. Foods -- the country’s second-largest food distributor -- to launch an initiative to move their clients (like restaurants and grocers) to cage-free eggs. When customers in their online system select conventional eggs, some will now get messaging about cage-free options being available; some will even get messaging letting them know they’ve selected 'eggs from caged hens.' This is the most significant action any food distributor has ever taken on this issue."
For more information and to support this organization, go to accountabilityboard.org.
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