Respect for Chickens (Not "Chicken")
Most people don't talk or think about "chickens." They don't talk or think about them as individuals, with individual thoughts, personalities, and experiences. They think and talk about "chicken"--those slabs of flesh they buy and cook and swear they could never stop eating. Not Karen Davis. Karen Davis thinks a lot about chickens, as actual living, sentient beings. She talks a lot about chickens. And she does a lot for chickens. Today, this week, and this month, she's asking you to do the same.
-More after the jump-
Nearly two decades ago, Karen founded United Poultry Concerns to advocate (and provide sanctuary) for chickens, turkeys, ducks, and other domestic birds. (Readers may also be interested to know that Karen was instrumental in helping Ira Glass really see chickens and stop eating them; Glass talked about this experience with Dave Letterman in an interview a couple years ago.) Chickens are killed by the billions in the United States--birds make up 95 percent or more of the land animals killed in this country each year, and most of them are chickens raised for flesh--and they live and die through arguably the worst suffering, disregard, and abuse imaginable. As I noted in a couple posts last month on recent undercover investigations (see end of post for links), it's terribly, sadly ironic when people decide not to eat "red meat" for ethical reasons but still eat chickens, turkeys, and eggs, given that the suffering that goes into the latter three is immense.
But let's not think just about the suffering these animals go through collectively and individually. Let's think about what they're capable of individually too. Consider that chickens have a language with which to communicate--yes, a language, with at least 20-plus distinct, meaningful calls. Consider that chickens form emotional bonds and relationships. Consider that chickens have individual opinions, preferences, and memories. Consider that they are chickens, not chicken. If you doubt their individuality and emotional complexity, I recommend you return to "Peaceful Prairie Restoration of the 'Free-Range' Hens." Actually, I strongly recommend that you return to that post--and especially the post to which it links--regardless. And then, this month, stand up for chickens; obviously, don't eat them, but encourage others to see why they shouldn't either. Chickens deserve our respect and compassion, not our cruelty and disregard. They deserve life, not death. From UPC and Karen Davis, on International Respect for Chickens Day and Month, which Karen began four years ago "to celebrate chickens throughout the world and protest the bleakness of their lives in farming operations":
We urge people to do an ACTION for chickens on or around May 4. Ideas include leafleting on a busy street corner, holding an office party or classroom celebration, writing a letter to the editor, doing a radio call-in, tabling at the local church, school or shopping mall, hosting a vegan open house, or simply talking to family, friends or strangers about the plight – and delight – of chickens and how people can help them.
Photo of rescued, traumatized "free-range" hens at top courtesy Peaceful Prairie Sanctuary.
Related posts to check out:
Stephanie Ernst
wrote the original Animal Rights blog at Change.org until December 2009. She can now be found at Animal Rights & AntiOppression.
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