Shad Clark
Recent decades have shed light on how pervasive and harmful our prejudices can be, and what we can do to stop them. But, a particularly pervasive form of prejudice remains largely unchallenged.
No one chooses to be born any particular color, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, gender, economic class, or species. Discriminating against someone simply for being is unambiguously wrong and irrational, and many of us are quick to call out prejudice when we see it.
But, there’s one prejudice we may not even be aware of. From a young age, we’re taught that animals are here for us. Society ingrains the idea that humans can use and exploit animals as we see fit. We see some (the lucky ones) as companions. We see others as living novelties, holding them captive to perform tricks. But, we see the vast majority of animals—billions, in fact—as food.
The distinction between a companion animal and a farmed animal has nothing to do with how much either animal values their own life. No animal wants to be abused and killed. The difference is in how we’ve been taught to see them—and how we choose to see them. This form of unconscious bias is called speciesism.
Is speciesism a real word?
Yes, speciesism is a real word listed in Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Cambridge Dictionary, Britannica, and Dictionary.com.
Spe·cies·ism: The assumption of human superiority leading to the exploitation of animals.
Who coined the term speciesism?
The term was coined in 1970 by influential writer, psychologist and animal advocate Richard D. Ryder.
What is speciesism?
Speciesism is a form of prejudice that asserts the superiority of one species in order to justify the unjust treatment of other species.
What is the dictionary definition of speciesism?
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines speciesism as:
- prejudice or discrimination based on species, especially: discrimination against animals.
- the assumption of human superiority on which speciesism is based
What is speciesism in philosophy?
Renowned moral philosopher Peter Singer condemns speciesism as a “prejudice or attitude of bias in favour of the interests of members of one’s own species and against those of members of other species.”
What is an example of speciesism?
Speciesism manifests in the way we perceive and treat members of each species—for example, society sees dogs as beloved companion animals, while it condemns cows, pigs, and chickens to a lifetime of suffering in our food system.
Discrimination and exploitation
When we define animals as "food" or "clothing" or "entertainment," we assign a value to sentient creatures that's measured only in terms of their usefulness to us as products or commodities. In restaurants and grocery stores, for example, we refer to "chicken" in the singular, as if that individual doesn't represent one of 66 billion sentient beings abused and killed around the world each year. Our language obscures the reality of countless other animals suffering in our food system—like cows, pigs, goats, and sheep. After all, "hamburger" is more marketable in the food industry than "ground meat made from the necks and bellies of an unknown number of cows who were barely old enough to hit puberty."
Why is speciesism wrong?
Although the term "speciesism" was not introduced until 1970, philosphers have spent centuries examining the ethics of how humans treat animals. In a 1789 paper, renowned English philosopher Jeremy Bentham argued that humans have an obligation to treat animals with respect because animals are sentient beings with the capacity to suffer.
“The question is not, Can they reason?, nor Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?
Society has made great strides in recognizing the sentience of animals, which is why we have laws against animal cruelty. Yet, not all animals enjoy equal protection under these laws. In fact, the more another species is exploited by our own, especially for food, the less our laws protect that species. For example, more chickens are killed for food than any other land animal by far, yet the so-called Humane Slaughter Act doesn't even apply to chickens (or other farmed birds).
When even our animal protection laws discriminate against certain species so that we can continue exploiting them on a massive industrial scale, it's all too obvious that our treatment of these species is unjust. As long as we choose to exploit other species for our own uses and whims, we doom those animals to suffer.
Arguments in favor for speciesism vs. against speciesism
"Humans are naturally superior to animals" is the crux of all arguments for speciesism. But, what exactly is the criteria for superiority? Any number of animals are stronger or faster than humans, or can fly unaided by technology, or can see in a wider spectrum of colors, or detect scents and sounds from much further away, or can sense electromagnetic fields, and so on. So, how exactly are humans superior?
Speciesists tend to cite intelligence as the criteria for human superiority, but intelligence itself is relative. Even among our own species, intelligence isn't as simple as an IQ score, as there are multiple types of intelligence. Yet, whenever humans attempt to measure animal intelligence, it's only ever by human standards. Given that non-human animals perceive and experience the world in wildly different ways, it's impossible to measure what intelligence even means to any other species. But, it is clear that every other animal species has evolved to be exactly as intelligent as they need to be. All other animals are smart enough not to destroy their own homes and to survive alongside humans—despite human intelligence engineering countless ways to end and endanger life. When speciesists claim humans are the most intelligent species, they might cite exciting achievements—as if we all discovered quantum mechanics together or collectively engineered space telescopes, DNA mapping, and the internet. But when citing evidence of human superiority, speciesists conveniently leave out chemical warfare, nuclear weapons, toxic waste, sewage lagoons, industrialized slaughter, the climate crisis, and all the other ways human intelligence can cause great suffering. Ultimately, along with being subjective and unmeasurable, intelligence says nothing of the ability of an animal to suffer.
Speciesists will also argue that humans are superior because only we can act morally. But, if morality is the sole domain of the human animal, then how do we explain slaughterhouses, animal testing, and even the overbreeding and relentless euthanasia of the animals we claim to love most? Our society wrestles with these moral issues precisely because many of us do feel for others. Morality is informed by emotion. Yet, we aren't the only animals to experience emotion. It's clear when non-human animals express joy and love, just as it's clear when they express fear. It's also clear that when animals feel for others, they're capable of acting on their empathy, as there are countless stories and recorded incidents of animals coming to the rescue of others, including humans. Whether these animals are motivated by emotion or what we want to recognize as morality, or both, it is clear that animals can act selflessly and even bravely. If our own species values morality as much as speciesists insist, we would offer every farmed animal the same moral consideration we grant companion animals—and never send anyone to the slaughterhouse.
“All the arguments to prove man's superiority cannot shatter this hard fact: in suffering the animals are our equals.” Peter Singer
What does being anti-speciesist mean?
Being anti-speciesist means rejecting the idea that one species is superior to another—for example, seeing farmed animals (like pigs) as equally deserving of love and respect as companion animals (like dogs). It centers the core belief that no animal deserves to suffer simply for being.
- Speciesism: The Movie (Documentary). Entertaining documentary following a filmmaker who sets out to investigate factory farms and ends up exploring the broader topic of speciesism itself.
- Babe (Feature Film). After learning that humans kill and eat animals who aren't "useful" alive, an orphaned piglet sets out to prove he's as good at herding sheep as the resident border collies who've become his foster family.
- The Fox and The Hound (Animated Film). An orphaned fox cub is raised alongside a puppy and become best friends. But when they grow up, the humans who have cared for them expect the dog to become a hunter and the fox to become the hunted.
- Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Feature Film). After serving as a laboratory test subject, a chimpanzee recognizes how humans exploit his kind and other apes in laboratories, zoos, and rundown roadside attractions. He frees other apes and leads them in a fight against human tyranny.
- Chicken Run (Animated Film). When they learn they're going to be killed and turned into filling for chicken pot pies, a group of chickens enlist a cocky rooster to help them hatch an escape plan.
- Sweet Tooth (TV Series). A boy who's half-human and half-deer is forced to survive human hunters as he searches a post-apocalyptic world for his mother.
- Earthlings (Documentary). Powerful documentary chronicling the ways in which human civilization exploits and abuses various animal species deemed food, clothing, entertainment, test subjects, and even pets.
What you can do
As more people learn about the injustices that animals experience, they're challenging speciesist ideas and making the world a kinder place for animals. The movement to end the abuse of exploitation of farmed animals is growing, and you can be an important part of it. Learn about how you can take action to end the abuse of animals raised for food alongside our community of changemakers.
