- checking login information
The Animal Welfare Cause
1,193,056 people care about Animal Welfare
Loading...Animal Cruelty: Who is to Blame?
For many of us who are aware of the multitude of ways that animals suffer at the hands of humans around the world, this ubiquitous cruelty is the most pressing social justice issue of them all. From declawing to debeaking, ear clipping to tail docking, the suffering that human beings inflict on animals being used for food, clothing, research, ‘pets’ and entertainment appears to know no bounds, and the many brutal ways in which we force animals to succumb to our desires appear to be limited only by the scope of our imaginations.
But why does all this cruelty take place? And what can we do about this horrifying brutality as individuals? It’s easy to point the finger at the direct perpetrators of animal cruelty as being villains who need to be brought to justice. It’s much harder – and yet much more significant – to turn that critical eye inward and ask oneself, ‘What am I doing to contribute to this?’ But it is only by asking that question that the path toward emancipation from barbaric injustice becomes clear.
The vast majority of the time, money and effort of animal welfare organizations goes toward trying to develop new laws and regulations to address the many separate issues relating to animal cruelty, while at the same time trying to force the industry to adhere to those currently in place. As explained in Are Anti-Cruelty Campaigns Really Effective?, these efforts consistently fail to create any significant improvement for animals.
Behind these campaigns lies a hidden assumption that the animal industry is responsible for animal cruelty. But is this assumption warranted? Isn’t industry simply a middle agent put in place to do the dirty deeds requested by consumers of animal products? Although it’s true that the animal industry is an eager and aggressive middle agent, its role is only that of middle agent. As such, while institutionalized exploiters certainly have a lot to answer for, it is consumers who are primarily responsible for animal cruelty through their purchases of animal products.
Read more: animal cruelty, vegan, veganism
Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may
not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.
Recent Comments from Causes
Shame on these so called chefs. Abuse is abuse. They should not be allowed to make money off of cruelty…
we in the u.s. need to keep making our voices heard. we dont want monsanto here either.
Too late Daniel, flagged you for being a dumbass.
meet our writers
219 comments
+ add your ownWow, another sermon from "our" Angel. How typical and the usual YES, jibber-jabber that she writes in absolutely every Care.2 article I've ever seen in here. They're all basically the same.
Beth, may I ask why you were so rude to Marilyn and attacked her in such a hostile manner? She said NOTHING personal to you, was commenting on how we all can do our part to abolish or at least lessen animal cruelty, and I've read her comment three times. It certainly was NOT an "all or nothing" implication. She was saying that not a single person can state that they do everything possible to eliminate all animal cruelty, and we each can do only what we can.
As for the article, itself, I didn't see a single new comment from Angel, just the usual rhetoric. We've all read it dozens of times and been down the road before as to where she thinks everyone needs to go. Personally, "her" road has no interest whatsoever for me. I'd rather spend my energies to adopt/rescue homesless and needy animals, volunteer in shelters, sign petitions when they are justified and grow my own food as much as possible, and that which I can't, do my homework and purchase only from local, humanely raised and processed sources.
Beth,
I'm happy that you do all that. I shall notify the Vatican immediately so you can be sainted....oh wait, they probably won't do it because you were so rude to me for no reason at all.
NO ONE can be exempt, and I don't know where you got the idea that I thought I was. I'm guilty too if I buy glue that came from a cow from a big ag farm... even though I make my best effort.
Just be sure never to wear batik or any other kind of clothing, or shoes or use a computer, drive, live in a house or sleep on an innerspring mattress ever again, because all of those things and so many more things we all do on a daily basis take the omniscient 'veg' out of 'vegan'.
Marilyn Busy, I do all that, so apparently by your standards I get to place blame. So I am.
And your all or nothing approach is just jibber jabber. That's like saying if you ever lied, you are equal to a serial killer.
Get off your pedestal, before the thin air up there damages your brain.
EVERYONE who eats ANYTHING from a farm is to blame. NO ONE is exempt.
Even if you don't eat meat, you eat soy or wheat gluten in your processed meals, so you support big agriculture like Monsanto...at the very heart of factory farming.
If you don't live solely on food you've grown in your own yard, then you're just as much to blame as anyone who eats meat.
Placing blame is not how to solve a problem. We all know who is responsible.
Why are we not changing the farming methods by with holding our support with our dollars?...and that means not supporting Monsanto and not eating processed foods made with big ag ingredients.
Buy your meat locally from an organic humane farm and buy only certified organic produce, give up soy, corn and other GMO products....and do not eat processed foods.
If you can't do that, then you have no right to place blame on anyone else and think that you're absolved and guilt free.
e' tutto molto triste.
there has to be a better way
SHAME ON ME!!!
WE ARE ALL TO BLAME!!! SHAME ON US!!!
EVERYONE who indulges in, sees or hears cruelty in progress or bragged on and does nothing, supports puppy mills through purchase, works in factory farms and observes without disclosure inhumane treatment, wears fashion furs, mistreatment in shelters that are supposed to protect, works in law enforcement and turns the other way when confronted with problematic information ... shall I go on?
Thank you, Will T., for your comment. It's a shame that vegetarians/vegans are in the minority.
login to add your comment
use your care2 login
add your comment
20