An article was recently published in the Atlantic Weekly titled, “How PETA’s Lawsuit Against Sea World Could End Factory Farming”. The article, written by James McWilliams, explains how a recent lawsuit, filed by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) against SeaWorld for their treatment of orca whales, could set a legal precedent to end factory farming.
PETA is claiming that the five orca whales living and working at SeaWorld are being held in involuntary servitude. Involuntary servitude is a violation of the Thirteenth Amendment, but up until now has only been applied to humans. The validity of PETA’s lawsuit has been dismissed by many, but McWilliams argues that it raises an important question: “Does a non-human animal with obvious intelligence, emotional capacity, social skills, and personal interest warrant protection under the U.S. Constitution?” If constitutional rights were to be extended to SeaWorld’s orca whales, then they could be extended to factory farm animals next. This is an interesting possibility to consider, but it seems highly unlikely that it will hold up in court.Along with PETA, the orcas are being represented in the suit by Ric O’Barry (activist and star of The Cove), a renowned marine biologist, the founder of the Orca Network, and two former SeaWorld trainers. Multiple celebrities, including Pamela Anderson, Tommy Lee, Matt Damon, and Hayden Panettiere, have also publicly spoken out against SeaWorld. A TV spot (which can be viewed here) aired over the summer featuring Bob Barker criticizing SeaWorld’s treatment of orcas and asking viewers to reconsider visiting the park. On a less supportive note, Stephen Colbert poked fun at PETA on his show the Colbert Report. He jokingly asked, "How many slaves got to hang out all day at a water park?" and said, "I am incensed every time PETA speaks for the animals. They can speak for themselves." Many major news sources, including CNN, ABC, the Huffington Post, and the LA times, have also covered the lawsuit.
This kind of widespread media attention has not been given to any issues related to factory farming. This contrast in media coverage highlights an interesting aspect of American culture. Whales and dolphins have always been held in high esteem by the American public, while farm animals like cows and chickens have been largely ignored or viewed as expendable. Issues like Native American whaling rights, Japanese dolphin killings, and now orcas at SeaWorld have received extensive media coverage and celebrity support (remember this video?), but there's very little public discourse surrounding factory farming.
Though PETA has expressed opposition to both issues, the American public has, for the most part, shown little concern over the treatment of farm animals. It's interesting to consider, if PETA were to win this lawsuit, would the public push for the extension of constitutional rights to farm animals? Or are we more comfortable not talking about where our meat comes from?
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Good post Eva,
ReplyDeleteYou brought up an interesting point from class, about how people seem to react more when animals they find cute are being harmed(such as whales and dolphins) as opposed to ones they don't cinsider attractive (in this case cows, chickens, and pigs).
I agree with you that the chances of PETA winning this lawsuit seem very marginal. Extending human rights to animals, gives rise to issues that I don't think we are prepared to deal with. If dogs had the same rights as people under the constitution would we even be allowed to own them as pets? I'm not sure people are willing to make that concession just yet.
Instead maybe the defense of the orcas is better pursued as an animal cruelty case. I think lots more people would be willing to throw their support that idea than a proposal to granting animals rights that are currently reserved for humans.
Your inclusion of the Colbert video was a nice addition. Sometimes the best way to point out absurdities (the lives the whales lead at Sea World) is through satire.
--Ryan Marko