Animal Liberation (book)
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Animal Liberation: A New Ethics for Our Treatment of Animals is a 1975 book by the Australian philosopher Peter Singer. It is widely considered within the animal liberation movement to be the founding
Cover of the first edition
Speciesism
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Speciesism is a term used in philosophy and animal ethics for the treatment of individuals according to their species membership. The term has several definitions. Some writers define it as discrimina
Animal Liberation (book)
…because of their ability to experience suffering and that the idea of rights was not necessary in order to consider them. He popularized the term "speciesism" in the book, which had been coined by Richard D. Ryder to describe the exploitative treatment of animals. A revised edition, Animal Liberation Now…
The differential treatment of cattle and dogs is an example often discussed in relation to speciesism. Some philosophers argue that members of the two species have similar interests and should receive equal consideration, yet in many cultures cattle are considered livestock and are exempt from most animal cruelty laws, while the same cultures consider dogs companion animals and give them more protections, such as laws against using dogs as draft animals.
Henry S. Salt criticized the idea of a "great gulf" between humans and other animals.
Richard D. Ryder coined the term "speciesism" in 1970.
Peter Singer popularized the idea in Animal Liberation (1975).