Suchergebnisse

In this continuation of the exchange on "Marx and Alienated Speciesism" and "On the Origins of Animalist Marxism," John Bellamy Foster and Brett Clark, and then Christian Stache, reply to Ted Benton.

I argue that despite Ng's claim that we should postpone the defense of those animals that live in the wild, we do have reasons to start spreading concern for them now. We can do it by (i) changing public attitude by heightening awareness of speciesism, by which we will also challenge animal exploitation; and (ii) by disseminating information about the situation of animals in the wild.

The present article examines a concern I have had for some time about the compatibility of humanistic psychology with the emerging animal rights movement. Beyond working out my position, the paper has the additional educational and, frankly, political purpose of bringing animal rights issues to the attention of humanistic psychologists. The article applies certain concepts of contemporary animal rights philosophy, notably "speciesism," to both the philosophy of humanism and humanistic psychology. While on a philosophical level, certain concepts are discussed that would likely block a rapprochement, I feel that humanistic psychologists as individuals are likely to extend their compassion to nonhuman animals. A review of philosophical humanism reveals that its important concept of individuality excludes nonhuman animals. Within this conception, animals simply are not individuals. In fact, animals are employed as a categorical foil representing precisely the absence of reason and relative autonomy, hallmarks of individuality. In humanistic psychology, the concept of self actualization is open to similar charges. A compatability and, hence a reconciliation, is suggested through a phenomenological rendering of empathy, a second concept critical to humanistic psychology.

"Veganism as an ethics and a practice has a recorded history dating back to Antiquity. Yet, it is only recently that researchers have begun the process of formalizing the study of veganism. Whereas occasional publications have recently emerged from sociology, history, philosophy, cultural studies, or critical animal studies, a comprehensive geographical analysis is missing. Until now. In fourteen chapters from a diverse group of scholars and living practitioners, Vegan Geographies looks across space and scale, exploring the appropriateness of vegan ethics among diverse social and cultural groups, and within the midst of broader neoliberal economic and political frameworks that seek to commodify and marketize the movement. Vegan Geographies fundamentally challenges outdated but still dominant human-nature dualisms that underpin widespread suffering and ecological degradation, providing practical and accessible pathways for people interested in challenging contemporary systems and working collectively toward less destructive worlds"--

We articulate a posthuman politics of hope to unpack the richly embodied personal experiences and web of relationalities formed through repeated encounters with insects. Interrogating insect speciesism teaches us to extend our compassion and live symbiotically with insects. We focus the narrative of insect decline as impacted by colonialism and white supremacy, enabling insect speciesism to flourish alongside exploitation of other human and nonhuman creatures. We pay particular attention the use of everyday language and framing of insects to 'other' them, thereby trivialising and demonising their existence, including 'it's *just* a bug' or 'they are pests'. Insect speciesism employs similar rhetoric reinforcing discrimination patterns of other nonhuman animals and humans. We focus on the unexpected encounters with insects in domestic spaces, such as an office desk, and through the multispecies space of 'the allotment'. We reflect on two possible posthuman futures: one where insect speciesism is entrenched and unrepentant; the second a decolonized society where we aspire to live a more compassionate and non-violent existence amidst these remarkable and brilliant creatures we owe our very existence on Earth. One of the most profound lessons of the crisis-driven epoch of the Anthropocene is this: our existence on earth is intimately bound with the flourishing of all forms of life. This includes complex multispecies encounters between humans and insects, an area of enquiry widely neglected across the social sciences. Faced with imminent catastrophic decline and extinction of insect and invertebrate populations, human relationships with these fellow Earthlings are deserving of further attention.