Animal rights activism

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Animal rights activism is a form of activism that attempts to bring about public awareness of what the activists see as a lack of consideration of rights for non-human animals, as well as changes in legislation intended to prevent it.

Some activists engage in direct action such as freeing laboratory animals, and a small but significant minority take this to extremes, for example destroying the property of those who breed laboratory animals and even, in one notable British case, illegally exhuming the body of a deceased family member of an animal breeder. This action can often extend well beyond the usual targets to include any individual or company with even a tangential connection to animal research, up to and including death threats issued against children of those who supply goods or services (such as domestic cleaning for the family of an animal farmer). This type of action has forced a number of animal farmers and other establishments to close, and others to employ extensive (and expensive) security measure.

Direct action of this nature has led the Animal Liberation Front to be classified as a domestic terrorist threat in the United States by the Department of Homeland Security: although the ALF is explicitly non-violent in its stated aims, a number of extremists have been linked with the ALF. Many animal rights activists are appalled by the level of violence shown by the extremists. Others, while not prepared to join in such action themselves, condone violence as a means to an end.

One irony of direct action by animal rights activists is that it may cause animal testing facilities to be moved to other countries with much less rigorous animal welfare laws and with no significant animal rights culture. Another is that the treatment handed out to those (sometimes inaccurately) perceived as having links to vivisection is itself inhumane.

See also

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