pg. 2--Uncaged: Legal Rights For Animals
by Brenda Shoss
To subscribe to Kinship Circle Letters for Animals, email: subscribe@kinshipcircle.org

An attitude change is more likely to begin with everyday vocabulary. Referring to an animal as "it" rather than "he" or "she" solidifies the perception of animals as things. "We can neglect, mistreat, abandon, exploit, and destroy them because it is our right to do so as owners of the Œproperty,'" says Elliot M. Katz DVM, president of In Defense of Animals (IDA). "The language of ownership has long played a vital role in movements seeking social change. Abolitionists, suffragists, and child advocates have used language to end oppression of people as property."

IDA's "They Are Not Our Property, We Are Not Their Owners" campaign encourages individuals, humane societies, media and government authorities to choose "guardian" or "caretaker" over "owner" in codified and daily language. To date, officials in Boulder, CO., North and West Hollywood, CA., Berkeley, CA., Sherwood, AR., and Rhode Island state have enacted legislation to acknowledge the concept of guardianship. To further establish legal status for all animals, the Great Ape Legal Project (GAP) seeks the rights to life, liberty and immunity from torture for nonhuman great apes--our closest biological kin.

They are like us, but not identical. As long as animals are caught in the thicket of human apathy and violence, they deserve the primary protections that humans cherish.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:
1. To get involved in IDA's They Are Not Our Property, We Are Not Their Owners nationwide campaign, email: laurie@idausa.org or call 415-388-9641 for information.

2. Contact the Animal Legal Defense Fund, a coalition of attorneys dedicated to justice for animals, for assistance in specific animal abuse cases, an Attorney Referral Network, and to learn how you can help influence the U.S. legal system.
http://www.aldf.org
707-769-7771
email: info@aldf.org

3. To access AnimalLaw.com for animal-related legal information, from pending legislation through relevant case law digests, email the webmaster at MKramer@AnimalLaw.com or write:
Animal Law
National Anti-Vivisection Society
53 W Jackson Blvd.
Suite 1552
Chicago, IL 60604
1-800-888-6287

END

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