What does the future hold for the animal rights movement? Will it succeed or vanish again? When so many hopes and fears are involved, a sober analysis is crucial: what augurs well for the animal rights movement and what bodes ill?
Reason and morality undoubtedly point to a successful future for the animal rights movement. Nobody can seriously deny that the animal rights movement is the logical and consistent continuation of other - accepted - liberation movements, such as those which led to the abolition of slavery or the emancipation of women. It has always been and remains a question of recognising and overcoming moral discrimination based on morally irrelevant characteristics - whether skin colour, gender or species.
Human egoism, however, bodes ill for the animal rights movement. Of course it is easier and more convenient to exploit rather than help animals. Moreover, animals will never organise an insurrection against us. We could therefore torment and exploit them indefinitely with impunity.
When human egoism is involved, all other forces naturally have a struggle on their hands, particularly since such egoism can sell itself so elegantly in this context as moral progress: 'It's not the colour of a person's skin that matters, but the fact that they are human beings!' Beyond the abstract question regarding the future of the animal rights movement, we must not forget the far more important and related question as to what we, as individuals, can do in concrete and practical terms. We shouldn't merely adopt the view: Anyone who isn't part of the solution remains part of the problem. No, above all, we should concentrate on: Anyone who forms part of the solution reduces the problem!
And the problem has already been reduced: who could have dreamt ten years ago, when vegetarians were still to some degree looked on almost as extra terrestrials, that today 'avowed' vegetarians are criticised by young vegans for not being consistent enough!
Dr. Helmut F. Kaplan was born in Salzburg 1952, Austria. He has advanced degrees in philosophy and psychology and is the author of the article 'Vegetarianism' in the Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics (San Diego: Academic Press, 1998).
He is a pioneer of the animal rights movement in the German-speaking world. His numerous books and articles have contributed considerably to spread the idea of animal rights. Kaplan's book 'Leichenschmaus' ('Funeral Banquet') published by Rowolt Verlag, is meanwhile referred to as the 'Bible of radical Vegetarians'.
Kaplan's recent book Tierrechte ('Animal Rights') provides a comprehensive account of the ideas, arguments and theories that form the intellectual foundation of the animal rights movement.
For contacts:
Mag. Dr. Helmut Kaplan,
Post Box 261, A-5010 Salzburg,
Austria, Tel: + 44 (0) 662 843458