Essay about Negotiating Thanksgiving: An Animal Rights Perspective

Is it ethical for animals to have the same rights as humans? During this paper I will present the views of both sides. I will try my best to give the reader a chance to come to there own unbiased conclusion. I will talk about the key areas of animal ethics. I will present the facts and reasoning behind the arguments over Animal cruelty, testing, hunting, and improper housing. My conclusion will hopefully bring us closer to answering many of the question surrounding “Animal Rights and Ethics”.

This year Thanksgiving is on November 23,2017. Every year my family Thanksgiving is the best, to me at least. So we always have Thanksgiving at my Grandmas and Grandpas, but not this year we are having it at my house. Which I mean could be good and bad. Good is it is at my house so it’s cool and bad, the house has to be completely spotless or my mom will freak out. Normally what we do every year is we get my family together and have dinner, mess around, and watch football. This year my dad's brother is coming with his three daughters and his wife and my grandpa and grandma. I really can’t wait to see them all because I don't really see them that much as I would like to. When we have a family dinner like this we always have a lot of food for everyone.

“Against Meat” by Jonathon Safran Foer (2009, New York Times Magazine) is intended to educate current non-vegetarians on what vegetarianism is, the benefits of it in terms of health and animal rights, and also the struggles of consistently being a vegetarian. Although Foer does not specifically express what a vegetarian is we can assume he is going off the generally known definition of a person who does not consume the meat of an animal, as oppose to a vegan who does not consume any animal products at all. According to an article about vegetarian Americans, 5% or 16 million Americans classify themselves as vegetarian in 2015, compared to the 1% back in 2009, making vegetarianism a growing trend throughout the US (Raw Food World). Foer proves his opinion on vegetarianism by backing it up with facts from the USDA and his own personal experiences with his babysitter, growing up struggling with being a vegetarian that loves meat, and the decision to marry and raise his child vegetarian. Foer does, however, have a few gaps in his argument about nutrition, the costs associated with vegetarianism, and the lack of a definition of vegetarian.

Charlotte Mourad is my sister, best friend, environmentalist, and, most of all, a maternal figure. But let me explain. I don’t mean this literally, but rather figuratively; as in she’s seen as motherly figure among her peers. She’s by far one of the most respected, compassionate and well-liked students in our community. Mourad is the founder and president of Earth Club for three years of Earth Club and vegetarian activist at our high school. Compassion to her means to display sympathy for her fellow classmates, but also the animals, children, and environment. She has been vegetarian for the past four years, which equates to the accumulation of the savior of about 400 animals. Every weekend, Charlotte devotes three hours to look after and educate

According to Gallup.com a third of Americans want animals to have the same rights as people. The Animal Bill of Right implies that animals have the right to be free from exploitation and cruelty, It also prohibits laboratory animals to be used for research. Animals will also have healthy diets and medical care. It will also provide them with an environment that satisfies their needs. I do not believe we need a Bill of Rights for animals. This would not only be extreme but it will affect human culture, medical research, and cost of food

Throughout history, humans have utilized nonhuman animals for the benefit of mankind. This tendency increased as civilization developed, and presently, necessitated by staggering population growth and technological progress, human use of animals has skyrocketed. We eat them, we breed them, we use them as test subjects. Some people have begun to question the ethics of it all, sparking a debate on animal treatment and whether or not they have rights. In a paper on the subject, Carl Cohen lays out his definition of rights, explains their relationship with obligations, and uses these ideas to present the argument that manifests clearly in his piece’s title, “Why Animals Have No Rights”. THESIS

Most people have the custom of buying a turkey for thanksgiving. “46 million turkeys are eaten each Thanksgiving” (Turkey for the Holidays). Traditionally, people eat an abundance of food resembling the pilgrims and how they had a feast based on their religion. Furthermore, there are many different varieties of food such as: turkey, mashed potatoes with gravy, green beans, cranberry sauce, and dinner rolls. For dessert there is pumpkin, apple, and pecan pie. Most of the time the food is extraordinary people just want more. They might even take some and have it again later on. Thanksgiving is a feast we are blessed to

We researched extensively about food and how it is researching our plates. It was while doing this that I read more and more discussions on veganism and vegetarianism. While I found veganism very appealing ethics-wise I realised I couldn't actually implement it. The vegan substitutes were very costly and rarely available where I lived. The only real problem I had with vegetarianism was dairy farms and how they treated the animals. So, I found a simpler solution; Instead of trying to convince my ultra-conservative parents (whom I live with) to change their lifestyles so drastically, I could simply request them to buy the milk we need from local farmers who were known to treat their animals well. This made me feel better about having milk products and it was a step forward to making my life as violence free as

Culturally Americans have accepted that Thanksgiving is a time for family to get together, so with greater emphasis being placed on social support and companionship the Thanksgiving holiday means even more (Solomon, 2013). Both our extended and nuclear family are part of that holiday, so videos like the one I selected drum up new excitement for the upcoming reunions. According to an article by The Food Channel, Thanksgiving for some goes hand in hand with family. There is an expectation of certain foods and an abundance of food. The video below is a snippet from a pastor’s sermon that was remixed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Olu36QuHUWc

Thanksgiving Holiday means so much to me. I love to celebrate that extended weekend with my family. On the eve of the big day, my cousins and I meet at an elder’s house and then the festivities began. This shared feast started in 1621 with the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians sharing a harvest feast ("Thanksgiving," 2016). A portion of the food can be prepared the day before. We decide who would handle what task and when it time clean up the second generation, always try to make the third generation do it. We then continue to cook and clean and reminisce of our past year. Sometimes we would bring up our childhood pranks and stories of family members that passed and present. On the day of Thanksgiving we finish cooking,

We all have family traditions, some of which we take pride in, some of which we dread and despise but, whether you know it or not they are what make us who we are. One of my favorite traditions that I can truly say I’m passionate for would have to be Thanksgiving dinner. The dinner for the holiday goes by in a blink of an eye because of all the enjoyment. However, the preparations that lead up to the day are long and prestigious even though they are what make the dinner so great. Since the holiday comes up before we know it, we get started as soon as the year hits mid fall.

nimals, I think it's kind of gross, but I don’t have the commitment to say I'm a vegetarian. Anyway, I don't enjoy eating animals that much, it's just not for me but that's a personal problem.  But that's the main focus of Thanksgiving! People just call is Turkey Day, sometimes! So, there's one holiday food, OUT! Next in line, we have stuffing. Mmm don’t you just love good old fashioned wet bread to fill your genetically modified turkey's carcass? Ew! What? Why is that a thing? I don't need to argue this further, I think you get it. The only other key player in the Thanksgiving meal that comes to mind is pumpkin pie. Pumpkin spice is a fan favorite, starting early September people go wild over everything flavored to taste like that festive squash. That's another one of those foods that I just don't like, I'm a picky eater, it's fine. So, I'll let everyone have that, but that does not make Thanksgiving more enjoyable to me. The only Thanksgiving food that I can thoroughly enjoy, are mashed potatoes. Those are glorious, I'm not mad at them but my family gets a little upset at me when that's all I eat for Thanksgiving dinner so it doesn't even count. Major portion of Thanksgiving celebration is the food, and I'm not into it. Boom! Holiday ruined! I mean, if I'm going to overeat, it might as well be foods I enjoy! But, it gets worse.

I have discovered that people don’t share the same Thanksgiving traditions as me. Chicken, Duck, Turkey, and Turdunkin are all enjoyed as main course meals! Vegetables, mashed potatoes, rolls, cookies, ice cream, lemon pie, and blueberry pie bars are also enjoyed on Thanksgiving. Cookies, assorted pies, and blueberry pie bars are commonly enjoyed, and they actually sound pretty tasty! The favorite part of some people’s Thanksgiving feast would be the pie and rolls. Meals aren’t always eaten with family at the table. Some families sit on the couch, while they watch tv, or they eat at a fancy restaurant. Everyone has their own customs when it comes to the holidays.

For the past 20 years, there has a been an on going heated debate on whether experiments on animals for the benefit of medical and scientific research is ethical. Whether it is or isn't, most people believe that some form of cost-benefit test should be performed to determine if the action is right. The costs include: animal pain, distress and death where the benefits include the collection of new knowledge or the development of new medical therapies for humans. Looking into these different aspects of the experimentation, there is a large gap for argument between the different scientists' views. In the next few paragraphs, both sides of the argument will be expressed by the supporters.

Non-human animals are given rights only because of their interactions with human beings. Without involvement with humans, animals do not deserve rights. It is through this interaction with humans that animals are even given moral consideration. We do not give rights to a rock simply because it is a creation of Mother Nature, similarly non-human animals do not have rights unless it is in regards to humans. As pointed out by Jan Narveson "morality is a sort of agreement among rational, independent, self-interested persons who have something to gain from entering into such an agreement" (192). In order to have the ability to obtain rights one must be consciously able to enter into an agreement, non-human animals are