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Atheism, Animal Rights & Climate Change
The notion that human life is sacred just because it is human life is medieval. ‒Peter Singer
It was not until recently that the animal rights movement took mainstream precedence. Many consider the philosopher, Peter Singer, to have sparked the movement with his monumental book, Animal Liberation.
Since then, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and other animal rights activist movements have reached mainstream news because of controversial activism.
PETA, for one, compared the Nazi Holocaust to factory-farming today. Many took issue with this because of the apparent unempathetic ring it has to it and its inefficiency to persuade those who do not sympathize with the animal rights movement.
Jacy Reese, whom I mention in my book, for example, lays out a compelling case for activism that would gain more traction with moderates in society in his book, The End of Factory Farming. Many others believe that less intense and careful activism can do more good than the extremism seen in some animal rights organizations.
When it comes to the way atheists treat animals, there are, in fact, many good reasons not to treat them harshly. Indeed, it seems that the underlying premise of Humanism can and must extend to…
