Posts by Kelly Garbato
Fighting Discrimination on All Fronts: Adopt-a-Less-Adoptable-“Pet” Day!
Published August 12, 2009 @ 05:39AM PT
Between six and eight million cats and dogs enter the U.S. shelter system every year; half of these animals won't leave alive. As if the odds aren't daunting enough, some animals face added obstacles to adoption: old(er) age; medical and/or physical problems; behavioral and/or emotional issues; a need to be the only animal in the home; a bond to a friend or family member necessitating joint adoption; membership in a so-called "dangerous breed"; and dark coloring.
Women, Cows, Speed Bags, and Steaks: One of These Things Is Not Like the Others
Published July 13, 2009 @ 08:16AM PT
The Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence wants you to know that "it's not acceptable to treat a woman like [a piece of meat]."
Look! They've even devised an ad campaign to spread the word!
The ad depicts a large chunk of "meat" - a cow (or pig?) thigh, suspended in the air, hanging upside-down by a hook thrust violently through the limb. The "meat" slab is dressed in a mini-skirt and halter top in order to denote its female gender.
What possible issue could I, a vegan feminist, take with this message?
Religious Discrimination and the Killing of Egypt's Pigs (Part 2)
Published June 24, 2009 @ 06:47AM PT
Please see part 1 of Kelly's exploration of this topic, "Egypt's Pigs: Beaten, Stoned, and Burned Alive (Part 1)", as well. -S. Ernst
Egypt is predominantly Muslim, with an estimated 85-90% of Egyptians practicing Islam. In contrast, about 9% of the country's population is comprised of Coptic Christians. In nations with such a power imbalance - where new legislation must conform to the religious majority's personal beliefs - those who belong to minority faiths are particularly vulnerable to discrimination.
Indeed, as the consumption of "pork" is prohibited by Islamic religious doctrine (and pigs are reviled as dirty and foul animals*), virtually all of Egypt's pig farmers are Coptic Christians. As we saw in Part 1, raising pigs for human consumption is their livelihood.
Obviously, a mass of animals, crammed into deficient housing and subsisting on garbage, constitutes a public health risk in and of itself. The Egyptian government's stated "public health" reasons might seem plausible, had they not initially cited "swine flu" as the overriding concern. Authorities promise that the "culls" aren't the end of pig farming, but rather a new beginning: with the nation's existing pig population gone, the government can relocate the farming operations to larger, less urban areas. Even so, Egypt's Coptic Christians remain skeptical - and with good reason.
Egypt's Pigs: Beaten, Stoned, and Burned Alive (Part 1)
Published June 23, 2009 @ 06:37AM PT
At the end of April, I wrote briefly about Egypt's plans to slaughter all its hundreds of thousands of pigs ("Mass Swine-Flu Killing in Egypt and Remembering All the Pigs"); here, Kelly catches up on what has been happening since then. -S. Ernst
In early May, Egyptian authorities initiated a massive "cull" of the nation's farmed pig population - estimated at 350,000 to 400,000 pigs, most of whom reside in the capital city of Cairo - ostensibly to protect its citizens from the swine flu epidemic. This despite the fact that, at the time the "cull" was announced, Egypt had yet to report a single case of swine flu, either porcine or human. (At the time of this writing, Egypt is reporting 26 cases.)
Like many "culls" undertaken in times of panic, this mass slaughter is particularly gruesome and cruel. (Though, I should note, differing only in degree from the suffering inflicted on pigs in U.S. factory farms and slaughterhouses on a daily basis.) Writes the WSPA,
Intersectionality and Animal Advocacy
Published June 11, 2009 @ 06:22AM PT
This is part 2 of Kelly's two-parter. Please see yesterday's post, Intersectionality 101: Sexism, Racism, Speciesism, and More, as well. -S. Ernst
There are a number of reasons why animal advocates should - indeed, must - strive to incorporate the concept of intersectionality into their activism.
The most obvious reason, of course, is that intersectionality is part and parcel of animal exploitation. That is, individual animals may be discriminated against because of their species membership, yes - but in addition to speciesism (and perhaps one day absent it), they may also suffer sex-, age-, look-, and religion- (humans', that is) based oppression. In order to truly liberate them, we must understand and dismantle all the forces of domination.
On a more practical level, animal advocates should appreciate, recognize and avoid - if not actively work against - sexism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, religious discrimination, sizeism, ageism, colonialism, nationalism, xenophobia and the like because, to be crass, it's good for the bottom line. When an activist (for any cause) engages in an "ism" - whether it's sexism, ageism or xenophobia - she's disempowering fellow activists who belong to this marginalized group.
Intersectionality 101: Sexism, Racism, Speciesism, and More
Published June 10, 2009 @ 06:36AM PT
This look at the way oppressions intersect is Kelly's first guest post here (and is part 1 of a two-parter) on the Animal Rights blog--and it's thoughtful, important, and terribly smart. Welcome her! For related discussions on this blog, see the "Oppression Connections" category of posts. -S. Ernst
No one is free while others are oppressed.
A young, single African American mother of four asks her doctor to remove the Norplant device he previously inserted into her arm. Since first receiving the implant, she's experienced a number of troubling side effects, including severe headaches, weight gain and depression. Because the woman is receiving government assistance in the form of Medicaid, however, the doctor refuses her request.
