| Speciesism |
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Speciesism involves assigning different values or rights to beings on the basis of their Species membership. The term was coined by Richard D. Ryder in 1973 and was an attempt to denote Prejudice akin to Sexism and Racism . The concept of speciesism is used mostly by advocates of Animal Rights , who believe that it is Irrational or morally wrong to use any sentient being as an object. Philosophers Tom Regan and Peter Singer have both argued against the human tendency to exhibit speciesism. Regan argues that all animals have inherent rights and that we cannot assign them a lesser value due to their irrationality and meanwhile assign a higher value to humans that do not behave rationally (e.g. infants and the mentally impaired). Singer's philosophical arguments against speciesism are based on the principle of Equal Consideration Of Interests and he is the founder of the Great Ape Project . PROPONENTS Gary L. Francione ’s position differs significantly from that of Peter Singer , author of '' Animal Liberation '' (1975). Singer, who is a Utilitarian , rejects Moral Rights as a general matter and regards Sentience as sufficient for moral status. Singer maintains that most animals do not care about ''whether'' we kill them and use them for our purposes but care only about '''''how''''' we treat them when we do use and kill them. As a result, despite having laws that supposedly protect animals, Francione contends that we treat animals in ways that would be regarded as Torture if humans were involved. Richard Dawkins briefly touches on the subject in '' The Blind Watchmaker ''. He compares former Racist attitudes and assumptions to their present day speciesist counterparts. In the chapter "The one true tree of life" he points out that it is not just zoological Classification that is saved from awkward ambiguity by the Extinction of intermediate forms, but also human Ethics and Law . He describes discrimination against Chimpanzee s thus:1 GREAT APE PERSONHOOD See Also: Great Ape personhood Great Ape personhood is a concept in which the attributes of the Great Ape s are deemed by some people, to merit recognition of their Sentience and personhood within the Law , as opposed to mere protection under Animal Cruelty legislation. This would cover matters such as their own best interest being taken into account in their treatment by people. Equal rights for apes and humans are an issue As Of 2007 . Should apes have human rights? RELIGION A wide spectrum of religious views exist on the relation between humans and other species, some of which appear to be speciesist, while others appear to be opposed to speciesism. For example, endowed with learning and humility, a cow, an elephant, a dog as well as an Eater Of Dog's Meat ." SCIENCE FICTION Speciesism is a popular theme in Science Fiction , referring to a prejudice against other intelligent species, equivalent to Racism . For example, during the reign of the Galactic Empire in '' Star Wars '', many Alien species were oppressed by the ruling government, which consisted mainly of humans. In this context, it is sometimes referred to as Xenophobia . SEE ALSO
REFERENCES
FURTHER READING Dunayer, Joan. 2004. ''Speciesim''. Ryce Publishing: Illinois. ISBN 0-9706475-6-5 |
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