Speciesism Quotes

• Just as we reject racism, sexism, ageism, and heterosexism, we reject speciesism. The species of a sentient being is no more reason to deny the protection of this basic right than race, sex, age, or sexual orientation is a reason to deny membership in the human moral community to other humans.

  Gary L. Francione

  Sex, Race, Racism

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• Racism was not a problem on the Discworld, because - what with trolls and dwarfs and so on - speciesism was more interesting. Black and white lived in perfect harmony and ganged up on green.

  Terry Pratchett

  Black And White, America, Racism

  Terry Pratchett (2010). “Witches Abroad: (Discworld Novel 12)”, p.212, Random House

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• Speciesism: A failure, in attitude or practice, to accord any nonhuman being equal consideration and respect

  Joan Dunayer

  Attitude, Practice, Consideration

  Joan Dunayer (2004). “Speciesism”, Ryce Pub

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• Racists violate the principle of equality by giving greater weight to the interests of members of their own race when there is a clash between their interests and the interests of those of another race. Sexists violate the principle of equality by favoring the interests of their own sex. Similarly, speciesists allow the interests of their own species to override the greater interests of members of other species. The pattern is identical in each case.

  Peter Singer

  Sex, Animal, Race

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• Sometimes I think that the only effective and productive method of destroying speciesism would be for each uncaring human to be forced to live the life of a cow on a feedlot, or a monkey in a laboratory, or an elephant in the circus, or a bull in a rodeo, or a mink on a fur farm. Then people would be awakened from their soporific states and finally understand the horrors that are inflicted on the animal kingdom by the vilest species to ever roam this planet: the human animal!

  Gary Yourofsky

  Live Life, Thinking, Animal

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• We will, at some point, reflect back at our rampant acceptance of speciesism with profound regret. Our journey to understanding that all demonstrations of life possess equal value is a slow and harrowing one.

  Ian Somerhalder

  Regret, Acceptance, Journey

  "Interview with United Nations Goodwill Ambassador Ian Somerhalder". Interview with Maranda Pleasant, www.marandapleasantmedia.com. May 01, 2014.

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• Any serious social, political, and economic change must include veganism.

  Gary L. Francione

  Political, Serious, Vegan

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• It has been an obsession of human beings to create a hierarchy that places the human species on top and lumps all the "other animals" together beneath us. The resulting "speciesism" allows us to look upon animals as less deserving of all manner of rights and considerations than humans. To support this lower status, humans have argued that animals act instinctually; don't have souls; don't feel physical pain like we do; and lack self-consciousness, cognitive intelligence, emotional feelings, morality, and ethics.

  Sharon Gannon

  Pain, Animal, Emotional

  "Sharon Gannon on Veganism". jivamuktiyoga.com. November 16, 2016.

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• Ethical veganism represents a commitment to nonviolence.

  Gary L. Francione

  Commitment, Ethical, Classism

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• Speciesism is a failure to empathize with those outside one's group. In general, speciesists simply disregard the myriad nonhumans whom humans intentionally hurt and kill. Who cares if millions of mice and rats are vivisected? They're 'only rodents'. What does it matter if billions of chickens live in misery until they die in pain and fear? They're 'just chickens'. They aren't human, so they don't count. Victimizers lack empathy for their victims, but absence of empathy doesn't justify victimization, whether the victims are human or nonhuman.

  Joan Dunayer

  Hurt, Pain, Empathy

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• Speciesism is morally objectionable because, like racism, sexism, and heterosexism, it links personhood with an irrelevant criterion. Those who reject speciesism are committed to rejecting racism, sexism, heterosexism, and other forms of discrimination as well.

  Gary L. Francione

  Racism, Links, Discrimination

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• I simply wish my parents would have taught me about speciesism and how it was just as evil as racism, sexism and heterosexism. Sadly, my parents were lied to by their parents who were lied to by their parents and so on.

  Gary Yourofsky

  Racism, Evil, Parent

  Source: www.all-creatures.org

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• People say that being a vegan creates a social problem in that others may react negatively. But isnt that the case if you take a principled position on any issue, whether its racism, sexism, heterosexism, violence as a general matter—or speciesism? The key is to educate others about *why* you take the position.

  Gary L. Francione

  Keys, Issues, Racism

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• Such is the breathtaking speciesism of our Christian-inspired attitudes, the abortion of a single human zygote can arouse more moral solicitude and righteous indignation than the vivasection of any number of intelligent adult chimpanzees! The only reason we can be comfortable with such a double standard is that the intermediates between humans and chimps are all dead.

  Richard Dawkins

  Christian, Attitude, Intelligent

  "The Blind Watchmaker". Book by Richard Dawkins, 1986.

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