The image  appears to depict a cartoon man working hard at cutting up some ham meat. There are two knives present. One which the carttoon person is holding to slice three servings and another pierced through the ham itself. Maybe this image is trying to make something that is, to me barbaric, look cute by depicting it as a cartoon, but there is nothing “cute” about this photo. Annually, an estimated 121,317,000 pigs are slaughtered for human consumption in the Us and the annual “kill clock” estimates 8,400,000,000 animals slaughtered so far this year. This is incredibly sad to me. I love animals and I found this topic very challenging to do.

Males= Bacon, Beer, and Burgers. Females= Salad, Soup, and Smiles

I was frustrated when I googled “women eating” and “men eating”. The majority of the images of women eating we of salads which I predicted after reading, “Meat and Masculinity”. This article made me think of the Carls Jr. Hardees commercial where a female model is seductively eating a cheeseburger to target males to go and buy their product (4). Cooooooome onnnn! Really!? Not only that but why were they linking females to their product being “all natural”. Google Hardees sexist commercials if your interested in watching it.

I believe the biggest meat eater stereotype is that males can’t be vegetarians or vegans because its not manly. I can personally attest to this logic occurring with many males. In the past, I’ve been told on dates that if they didn’t eat meat they would feel physically weak and then they give me the speech… “Our bodies were evolutionarily designed to eat meat because our cave men ancestors ate meat, blah, blah, blah”. Unfortunately, many males have been fed this idea that they need meat to survive and to be strong. This is so FALSE. Have you seen Jared Leto or Leonardo DiCaprio? I think the real reason some males are linked to eating meat for survival is because they have been fed this idea in our society.
I’d like to explain why I will not eat meat and it has nothing to do with being male or female but because I’m human who feels empathy towards animals. I don’t eat meat because I feel morally obligated to mitigate animal suffering for human enjoyment. I can survive without meat…I have for many years and I have saved lives by choosing to say no to meat. I can easily supplement my diet to ensure that I receive a balanced diet. Curtin provides an excellent example of meat consumption justification in the Ihalmuit people (8). I respect that they understand the sacrifice of their deer consumption by thanking it and considering it a gift. I am fortunate to have a choice in what I consume. I like how Curtin describes oftentimes how I feel when she says, “It is one thing to inflict pain on animals when geography offers no other choice. But in the case of killing animals for human consumption where there is a choice, this practice inflicts pain that is completely unnecessary and avoidable” (8). I agree 100 percent!

I also agree with Iris Marion Young, in that animals used for human consumption are oppressed in groups via exploitation, marginalization, powerlessness, cultural imperialism, and violence (5). If you buy meat from a grocery store such as Shaws, Market Basket, and Stop and Shop you are contributing to animal suffering and oppression. Companies such as Perdue and Tyson supply their meat to consumers via factory farming and its a massive operation where animals are raised is awful conditions and then brutally slaughtered. Even worse…sometimes Cows come from Australia so its shipped across the world and then slaughtered (3). I can’t imagine the confused thought of the cows enclosed in dark quarters with many others, in piles of its own feces, with the ship rocking and pitching, to wait its death. Its avoidable animal suffering. So, if you’re going to consume meat please consider purchasing your flesh from a local butcher. Its more humane than supporting factory farms or just ditch the meat! There are many benefits: Limit animal suffering, migrate climate change, lower your carbon footprint, decrease certain types of cancers, lower type 2 diabetes, and many more (1,2). Overall, ecofeminsim and animal suffering are closely linked due to the objectification of animals through cruel and inhumane practices for human consumption. It’s amazing to see a pig or cow that’s been robbed its identity experience fresh grass and a little bit of TLC. Please watch this short video about cow that escaped slaughter and captured the hearts of so many people because she put a face to someone’s steak (6). Check it out.

Maxine’s Dash for Freedom

Greta Gaard defines the distinction between people who love animals, and feminists who “politicize their care for animals”. The owner of Bella the Parakeet appears to love her bird and other pets, but an ecofeminist would immediately pick up on the speciesism Bella faces. Bella is denied a companion because the lady claims, “parakeets don’t pay as much attention to humans if they have a companion” (7). This selfish attitude towards Bella affects its wellbeing and leads a social creature to live a lonely life. Gaard provides a simple example of animal opression by humans. I like this example because it highlights a very important issue in the animal trade and the pet industry. Many people get pets (especially exotics) without understanding their fundimental needs. Bella needed basic bathing materials and a companion which would improve her quality of life. My rescue, Phil the Bearded Dragon, was denied basic animal husbandry ( a UV light and heat lamp) and his bones turned to jelly which is very painful. So many animals unwillingly suffer for human interest. If anyone wants a pet, please research and ask yourself if you’ll be improving the animal’s life before you make the commitment.

A photo of Philly Willy, the rescued Bearded Dragon who suffered from Metabolic Bone Disease and malnutrition. When I recieved Phil, he couldn’t lift his head and I was concerned about prolonging his suffering, but when he looked up to at me as I suringed him a apple/kale smootie. I knew this little guy had a will to live. He was probably so relieved that someone was giving him the strength he currently lacked to lift his head to eat. Now he can walk, eat, and shed on his own and he taught me an important lesson about will power, forgiveness, compassion, and empathy. Disclosure: I’d probably not own an exotic unless it was a rescue/rehabilitation situation.
“To be a pet is to have all one’s life decisions controlled by someone else” -Gaard
I found this part of the reading true in ways but also controversal. Cats and dogs which have been domesticated are most likely not being oppressed in my opinion unless they are being denied proper care. And if they did come from a puppy mill! My resued Shih Tzu, Irie spent the first 6 years of his lonely life in a cage without socialization and basic care. When he was finally rescued his eyes were so damaged from the lack of grooming that one of his eyes was removed. He suffered major anixety and he was afraid everything. He’s 14 now and a completely different dog but it took a lot of time before he regained his identity. So yes, some animals are oppressed as pets for humans, but I don’t believe all animals are subjected to this.

I would sing this song to Irie because I wanted him to have some positive vibes after six years worth of negativity.  And I can’t carry a tune, but that’s okay!

“Don’t worry about a thing,
‘Cause every little thing gonna be all right”.

-Three Little Birds -Bob Marley

Citations:

1. https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/becoming-a-vegetarian
2. https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/9-reasons-why-veganism-can-save-the-world/
3. https://www.thedodo.com/cows-export-mexico-slaughter-1100836446.html
4. http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/12/11/unappetizingly-sexist-fast-food-commercials/
5.Eisenberg, Zoe. “Meat Heads: New Study Focuses on How Meat Consumption Alters Men’s Self-Perceived Levels of Masculinity.” Huffington Post, 13 January 2016. Retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/zoe-eisenberg/meat-heads-new-study-focuses_b_8964048.html.
6. https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=factory+farm+cow+experiences+freedom&&view=detail&mid=496AC2D759EE9CCB6162496AC2D759EE9CCB6162&&FORM=VRDGAR
7.Gaard, Greta. “Ecofeminism on the Wing: Perspectives on Human-Animal Relations.” Women and Environments Magazine, 2001, pp. 19-22.
8.Curtin, Deane. “Contextual Moral Vegetarianism.” Hypothia, no. 6, 1991, pp. 68-71. Retrieved from http://www.animal-rights-library.com/texts-m/curtin01.htm.