Farmers, activists are learning to work together

The byproduct of this efficiency, however, is that there is little room for consideration of the “rights” of animals. There's not enough space here to detail all the cruelties involved in factory farming but the list is long.

One example is “gestation crates.” As many as 70 percent of the six million or so female pigs used for breeding in the United States are packed into these crates — measuring less than a meter wide and two meters long — for the majority of their adult lives.

In the early 1970s, a group of academics working at Oxford University started a movement. These academics, many of whom were philosophers, began to debate humankind's relationship with animals.

At the time, it was fair to say a majority of people viewed animals much in the same way they would view a piece of furniture — not as a fellow living creature. The 1970s were a turbulent time of introspection that led to many re-examinations of beliefs and philosophies; the women's liberation movement was in full swing, as were movements to combat racism. These Oxford academics were successful in adding animals to the list of those seeking liberation.

The original Oxford academic group and those they inspired succeeded in framing animal rights as an issue of good vs. evil. When idealistic individuals believe they are fighting “evil,” they often justify violent tactics and strategies as necessary.

Over the decades, descendents of the original animal liberation movement turned to more direct action, including firebombing labs where experiments on animals are conducted and “liberating” animals from research centers or farms. Some animal rights groups made the fight against animal testing their mission, while others harassed whalers on the open seas.

Their efforts resulted in a sharp decline in animal testing and a near universal consensus against whaling. While these causes are still dear to the heart of many in the animal rights community, a major shift has occurred over the past couple of years.

Today many of the concerned parties are focusing on one aspect of humankind's relationship to animals — the very personal connection between humans and their food. Many former radical activists have tempered their position and now accept that the goal of convincing the entire planet to go vegetarian or vegan is a very long-term goal indeed.

Instead of pie-in-the-sky goals, some activists have turned their focus towards helping eliminate some of the more cruel aspects of “factory farming.”

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