Marching for animal rights

For the first time in India, a nationwide march was carried out across 17 cities to sensitise people to a basic fact, “Animals are individuals like us who deserve freedom, not commodification. And when we consume animal-based products or services, we rob them of their deeply cherished freedom.”

Organised by a volunteer network called India Against Speciesism, scores of people raised their voices against animal exploitation. Various posters were used to draw attention to the acute misery caused by our demand for milk, eggs, meat, honey, leather, wool, silk, circuses, zoos, etc., which are totally avoidable.

In Hyderabad, the march was organised from Jubilee Hills Check Post to KBR Park. The participating cities included Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Pune and Jammu. A key aim of the march was to spread awareness about speciesism, the unjust notion that excuses the exploitation of sentient beings on the basis of their species.

Supriya R, a lawyer who participated in the event, said, “As someone opposed to racism and sexism, I instantly realised that I must also stop practicing ‘speciesism’, which refers to the exploitation of innocents on the unfair basis that they are not human.

Animals may not talk or reason like us, but the only thing that ethically matters is the capacity to suffer. So, it’s our duty to make choices that don’t make them suffer.”