Today Is World Day for the End of Speciesism
On August 26, marches, demonstrations, and other events are being held in dozens of cities around the world to mark World Day for the End of Speciesism. “Speciesism” is the belief that the lives and experiences of animals don’t matter, simply because they’re members of a different species, and it underpins all the most widespread forms of animal abuse.
Animals feel pain and fear just as humans do, yet speciesism teaches that humans have the right to harm animals for their own gain. Whether it’s slaughtering pigs to eat their flesh, gassing minks to make their skins into fur coats, pouring chemicals into rabbits’ eyes to develop new cosmetics, or keeping elephants in captivity simply to gawk at them, the most trivial human desires are treated as more important than the suffering and death of animals.
Ending speciesism doesn’t mean granting animals the same rights as humans. Giving a cow the right to vote or a chicken the right to an education would clearly be utterly absurd, and it wouldn’t benefit the animal in any way. Rather, it means giving full consideration to the needs of animals and striving to avoid actions that cause them pain or suffering. The anti-speciesist message is perhaps best summed up by PETA’s mission statement:
“Animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, use for entertainment, or abuse in any other way.”
What You Can Do
Check out a list of all the anti-speciesism events being held around the world, including a demonstration in London.
If you want to resist speciesism in your own life, the best thing you can do is go vegan. Order one of PETA’s free vegan starter kits today to help get you started.
