People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) have been leading animal rights advocacy all over the world. Their campaigns have been effectively influencing many people to respect animals and that as creatures with life; they must be treated with love and care.
However, while I agree that animal welfare is a very important issue in a civilized society, I think keeping animals in zoo does not necessarily mean cruelty for as long as the keepers treat them properly and humanely.
Perhaps, keeping animals in cages doesn’t sound proper or humane but I think it’s just the same as keeping pets at home. If you can keep a pet in your home, why should we forbid people to keep many pets in an animal sanctuary like a zoo? Besides, children can get a chance to see wild animals, which they would only see in books if there were no zoological parks.
What bothers me though, is the nude campaign of PETA. They are advocating animal rights yet they resort to nudity to spread their message. It seems improper to use nudity in order to get attention and get a message across.
Of course, they don’t force celebrities and famous models to join their cause. In fact, these celebrities volunteer themselves for it; however, it seems ironical that while they protect animal rights, they are exploiting the human body most especially women.
According to the PETA website, “The "Naked" Campaign began several years ago when demonstrators—both male and female—marched behind a huge banner proclaiming that they would "rather go naked than wear fur." More "naked" demonstrations were held all over the world, the idea caught on, and we started receiving offers from celebrities, including Christy Turlington, Marcus Schenkenberg, Kim Basinger, designer Todd Oldham, and Pamela Anderson to participate. Interestingly, we began receiving complaints about this campaign only after professional models and actors joined it, which we conclude to mean, among other things, that celebrity participation helps us reach more people.”
I believe in the advocacy but I totally disagree that nudity is a good method of getting a message across. I cannot reconcile animal welfare advocacy with exploitation of women. Nevertheless, it’s just my personal opinion.
Image: Eva Mendez poses for PETA. Photo courtesy of fadedyouthblog.com
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