The first book on language and non-human oppression – and the most progressive animal-rights book to date – ‘Animal Equality’ shows that deceptive, biased words sustain injustice toward non-human animals. Speciesism (prejudice against non-human animals) survives through lies. ‘Animal Equality’’s compelling evidence of non-human thought and emotion debunks language that characterises other animals as unreasoning or insensitive. Vivid descriptions of hunting, sportfishing, zoos, aquaprisons, vivisection, and food-industry captivity and slaughter reveal the cruelty that misleading words legitimise and conceal. ‘Animal Equality’ also uncovers the speciesist attitudes and practices underlying much sexist and racist language. Every animal – non-human or human – deserves equal consideration and protection, Joan Dunayer argues. Offering pronoun, vocabulary, and style guidelines, she proposes new language that will bring us closer to non-human liberation.
