Letter1
From Abolition
World Weekend for the Abolition of Meat: April 17 & 18, 2010!
Join advocates all over the world for the "World Weekend for the Abolition of Meat"!
See: <http://en.m-eat.org/wiki/Letter2>
Be part of the
international movement
for the abolition of meat
Translated by Jane Hendy
Bellegarde en Diois, 22 July 2007
Hello,
We are a group of forty people from different backgrounds who have been working on a project for which we'd like your advice and support. The project involves demanding the worldwide abolition of meat.
Meat causes more suffering and death than any other human activity. Eating meat implies either a denial of animals' ability to suffer, or simply indifference to their suffering. This denial and indifference are reflected in the lack of consideration given to sentience in general, both human and non-human. Meat-eating has a negative influence on people's concern for animals in many other contexts.
The history of human slavery, and campaigns for its abolition in the 18th and 19th centuries, has convinced us of the need to formulate a demand for the abolition of meat. This could take the form of a clear political demand, worded in a way that makes it acceptable to as many people as possible. Working together in a group online, we have agreed to use the following wording:
Because meat production requires the killing of animals,
because their living conditions and slaughter cause many of them to suffer,
because sentient beings shouldn't be mistreated or killed unnecessarily, therefore, farming, fishing and hunting animals for their flesh, as well as selling and eating animal flesh
should be abolished.
This resolution is based on a widespread belief, common to most countries, that sentient beings should neither be mistreated nor killed without necessity. Logically,
- meat requires the killing and mistreatment of animals
- meat isn’t necessary
therefore, meat should be abolished.
With your help we hope to launch this demand in 2008, the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Man, which abolished human slavery worldwide. We are hoping also that an international movement will be created to carry the message so that our goal is reached before the end of the century in some countries. This will not mean the end of all animal exploitation, nor of speciesism, nor of all animal suffering. However, it will be a real progress, and could be a basis on which further progress can be achieved.
We would be very pleased if you would support our resolution, and help us to publicize it.
We are planning an event to launch the project in Paris. Representatives from all sections of the animal rights movement will be invited. They will undertake to support the declaration for the abolition of meat, and will be able to express their opinion on the best ways to popularize the movement. Vegetarian personalities and the international media will also attend the launch, which will take place in a Parisian location.
Each participant or group will choose their own way of promoting the project, in the same way that the demand for the abolition of slavery was supported by very different groups and individuals.
Additional texts explaining the project are available on the personal web site of one of us:
http://meatabolition.blogspot.com/
You can read some questions and answers here :
Communication between the interested parties to this project is essential. Knowing each other’s opinions and debating them enables the different members of the movement to keep abreast of initiatives, strategies, problems, and means, and if necessary to pool their efforts. You are invited to join either the French discussion list:
http://fr.groups.yahoo.com/group/abolitiongroup/
or the international list (in English) :
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/meatabolition/
We would be delighted if some of you were to open lists or forums in other languages on the theme of the abolition of meat.
Looking forward to reading your questions and reactions, either on one of the abovementioned lists, or at this address: contact@m-eat.org,
Yours sincerely,
French Committee for the launch
of the movement for the abolition of meat
- [| Format PDF].
