R.I.P. Brigitte Bardot: Legendary actress turned ‘militant’ animal rights activist dies at 91
R.I.P. Brigitte Bardot: Legendary actress turned ‘militant’ animal rights activist dies at 91
Legendary actress Brigitte Bardot’s second career as an animal rights activist was equally sensational. She traveled to the Arctic to blow the whistle on the slaughter of baby seals. She also condemned the use of animals in laboratory experiments, and she opposed Muslim slaughter rituals. “Man is an insatiable predator,” Bardot said in 2007, “I don’t care about my past glory. That means nothing in the face of an animal that suffers, since ‘it’ has no power, no words to defend ‘itself'”. Environmental campaigner Paul Watson, who was beaten on a seal hunt protest in Canada alongside Bardot in 1977 […]
‘BLIND SPOT’: Why do we ignore the lives of the birds destined for our plates?
‘BLIND SPOT’: Why do we ignore the lives of the birds destined for our plates?
The birders ‘blind spot’ is a side effect of looking at the world through binoculars. We spend so much time focused on distant birds that we don’t always see the birds closest to us. Like the birds on our plates. For instance, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology has never officially opposed the eating of chicken, turkeys, or duck, nor has The Audubon Society. A chicken, a duck, a turkey: Each is as much a bird as Flaco the owl. And no less deserving of protection. Birders are precisely the humans birds need as advocates: those who care about them and […]
Wayne Hsiung: Four takeaways from the shocking conviction in the Beagle rescue trial
Wayne Hsiung: Four takeaways from the shocking conviction in the Beagle rescue trial
A jury rendered a guilty verdict in the trial of five beagle rescuers. But the defendants still won where it matters. The history of social movements teaches us that courtroom “losses” often end up being the biggest victories in history because they show the public the need for change. This is the beauty of nonviolent resistance. Heads, we win. Tails, the oppressors lose. There will no doubt be difficulties ahead for the defendants, and for others who face trials ahead. But their sacrifices will inspire others to heed their cause. And for that reason, they’ve already won. VOX POPULI: Beagle […]
