Judie Brown
The elephant and the human baby
FacebookTwitter
By Judie Brown
August 29, 2012

What do elephants have to do with human babies? Do elephants and other animals deserve as much concern as a human being? Today's commentary addresses a recent article in which some people seem to think so. Read on for Judie Brown's insights.

A headline caught my eye recently. It read, "Why Elephants Require Legal Personhood," and was written by Steve Wise, the president of the Center for the Expansion of Fundamental Rights. He was expressing his concern over a zoo's treatment of three Asian elephants — Billy, Tina, and Jewel. According to a lawsuit, these elephants seem to be routinely abused, as everything about their habitat and those caring for them is anything but good for the elephants.

While I agree with the concerns that should be expressed for any animal that appears to be abused by those caring for it, there is a line that must be drawn when it comes to personhood — a category of identity that refers to human beings. Among those who have made the point eloquently is Nancy Flanders, who wrote, "A 'human being' is defined as 'any individual of the genus Homo, especially a member of the species Homo sapiens; a person, especially as distinguished from other animals or as representing the human species.' There isn't a definition of 'human being' that excludes the unborn."

And that's the point. The culture of death would argue that the term should refer to only those who are born. Yet, the fact is that common sense would take issue with this kind of discriminatory segregation, for it sets aside an entire class of humans and alleges that they are less than equal to the rest of us.

And now people are trying to assign personhood to elephants? Take note please that the cadre of those attempting to achieve personhood for animals and other entities is growing. In fact, in a relevant article on this little known fact, Professor Dianne Irving warned,
    There is nothing more that these proponents of non-human "personhood" and of human "non-personhood" would like better than to have pro-life "personhood" bills and other legal documents define "person" in ways that would at least "include" non-human animals. Example: if "person" is defined as "including all human beings" — where human persons are included but the legal door is left open for non-human persons to be "included" as well. Or: "Person" is defined simply as a "rational animal" — where Singer et. al could argue that many non-human animals are even more "rational" than many adult human beings — and thus are "persons" too. This is why "personhood" legislation needs to be very careful to include the qualifier "human." "Human personhood" should be the goal — not simply "personhood."
This is not mere speculation. Peter Singer, the leading advocate of animal rights and one of the chief architects of phony bioethics has written,
    Now it must be admitted that these arguments apply to the newborn baby as much as to the fetus. A week-old baby is not a rational and self-conscious being, and there are many non-human animals whose rationality, self-consciousness, awareness, capacity to feel pain (sentience), and so on, exceed that of a human baby a week, a month, or even a year old. If the fetus does not have the same claim to life as a person, it appears that the newborn baby is of less value than the life of a pig, a dog, or a chimpanzee.
Babies, pigs, dogs, and chimpanzees. Are you kidding me? This is yet another example of why we as pro-life Americans must not ignore the problematic nature of denigrating human beings and elevating animals — and why we cannot defend the killing of 30 children to achieve the implantation of but one.

Yes, you read that article right. These are the official numbers in the United Kingdom and apply to the success rate of in vitro fertilization.

Now of course no practitioner of in vitro fertilization would suggest that the embryo created in the petri dish is an actual human being, but what else could he or she be? If there are 31 embryos created, and they are all created equally, and one survives and is born and welcomed by his parents as their baby, then what about the 30 who died? What were they, chicken eggs?

Our culture is headed the wrong way down the proverbial railroad track. We expend time and money figuring out better ways to do what only God does well — creating persons. At the same time, some are contemplating assigning a status comparable to person to elephants, chickens, dolphins, and, yes, pigs.

There is definitely something wrong with this picture.

© Judie Brown

 

The views expressed by RenewAmerica columnists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of RenewAmerica or its affiliates.
(See RenewAmerica's publishing standards.)

Click to enlarge

Judie Brown

Judie Brown is president and co-founder of American Life League, the nation's largest grassroots pro-life educational organization... (more)

Subscribe

Receive future articles by Judie Brown: Click here

More by this author

 

Stephen Stone
The most egregious lies Evan McMullin and the media have told about Sen. Mike Lee

Siena Hoefling
Protect the Children: Update with VIDEO

Stephen Stone
Flashback: Dems' fake claim that Trump and Utah congressional hopeful Burgess Owens want 'renewed nuclear testing' blows up when examined

Pete Riehm
Like our Commander-in-Chief, America is clueless, feckless, and powerless

Selwyn Duke
Did anti-white, DEI bias steal a state final spot from a white basketball team?

James Lambert
It’s time to get a Republican (like Steve Garvey) elected to the U.S. Senate in CA. It’s been 30 years!

Linda Goudsmit
Chapter 10: Objective reality is required for a free society

Michael Bresciani
Gay is OK, but trans for kids is on the skids – Have Americans now become judges of evil thoughts?

Linda Kimball
Nihilism…all that exists is matter and energy: The worldview that caused the collapse of Christendom and Protestant Amer

Peter Lemiska
China doesn’t need a Trojan Horse – It has Joe Biden

Rev. Mark H. Creech
Revelation Chapter 22: Getting beyond doubt, Billy Graham’s example

Paul A. Byrne, M.D.
2024 International Gift of Life Walk – NYC

Cliff Kincaid
Biden’s bloody revolution for America

Victor Sharpe
Senator Schumer enters the annals of Shame

Linda Kimball
Prayer against evil, insane Babylon
  More columns

Cartoons


Click for full cartoon
More cartoons

Columnists

Matt C. Abbott
Chris Adamo
Russ J. Alan
Bonnie Alba
Chuck Baldwin
Kevin J. Banet
J. Matt Barber
Fr. Tom Bartolomeo
. . .
[See more]

Sister sites