Why Animal Brutality Persists
Don’t Show Me – Don’t Tell Me – I Don’t Want To Know
Why Animal Brutality Persists – This weekend I attended a screening of the brilliant documentary by Liz Marshall – The Ghosts In Our Machine – featuring the haunting photographs of Jo-Anne McArthur. I also watched Earthlings again as a reminder of why I’m involved in animal activism.
As a global collective, humans have agreed that animal exploitation and cruelty are acceptable, normal and necessary. Every human who supports the use of land or sea animals in the food chain, clothing, the leather and fur industries, entertainment, religion, hunting, any zoo, rodeo or circus, experimentation or working arenas such as the logging industry or animal tourism is complicit.
Are You Entertained?
Mother And Baby
Your Fur Was A Beautiful, Living Being
Rabbit Fur – Don’t Look Away If You Wear Fur
While watching Earthlings again – three phrases stood out to me that are perfect examples of our detachment from the suffering of “other” sentient beings.
I paraphrase here:
1) ‘You don’t deserve to be shielded from the truth if you eat meat and dairy products’.
This brings me to the phrase I used in the sub-title above. I hear this from people all the time – “don’t show me – don’t tell me – I don’t want to know” – this comes from otherwise intelligent people who view themselves as kind and compassionate. They all claim to “love” animals and can happily cheer on the little pig or calf who escapes from a death truck at a slaughterhouse and then order a burger at a local restaurant. They cannot see their hypocrisy. They are offended and defensive when you ask them why they can’t make the connection. They are outraged because at heart they know they have agreed to animal cruelty and it bothers them – but not enough to change. They do not want to see.
The Dairy Industry
2) ‘They are invested in denial – because who wants to look’.
Abuse and killing are ugly things. When you ask people if they had to go out to the yard to kill and carve up the pig for bacon would they do it. They are horrified. They say I could never hurt an animal. That’s why they happily pay others to do it for them. They can go to the butcher or the grocery store and buy pieces of meat to take home and BBQ with family and friends. They deny that the meat was an animal who fought to its last breath to live. They say inane things like, “those were the best baby back ribs I’ve ever had” or “bacon makes life better” or “I couldn’t live without cheese” – while making no connection to who they just ate. Not what – but who. The disconnect is complete. The denial is comfortable. The need to actually look at their victims is not necessary.
This Is Where And How A Dairy Cow Lives
After 3 or 4 Years When Her Body Is Spent
She Is Killed
3) ‘When humans look at animals as things – we have arrived at our lowest point of debasement’.
Human life has value – other living things are to be used. Slaughterhouses must be hidden away to protect the tender sensibilities of humans. The great, ugly places where animals are raised to a kill weight have no windows, so tender hearted humans do not have to see the horrors to which animals are subjected. People have corrupted themselves to such a degree that they silently agree to everything that makes their lives comfortable. They happily deny their involvement with animal cruelty and take great pains to be offended when they are confronted with their complicity.
The Dead Bin On An Egg Farm
Resistance is growing globally. The Save Movement is now active in 208 countries and adherents to the vegan movement are multiplying around the world. If your conscience is niggling at you even a little then start to read, watch films and documentaries. Once you “know” and have accepted your involvement, you will start to question the choices you make on a daily basis if you’re truly ready to change.
Can you even begin to imagine his primal urge to be free?
With sincere thanks – the photos are courtesy of Jo-Anne McArthur, We Animals Archive.
