Beastiality should be illegal in the state of Washington
- by: Carolyn Mullin, No More Homeless Animals
- recipient: Christine Gregoire, Governor, Governor of Washington
The following is reprinted from:
The Animals' Agenda
P.O. Box 25881 Baltimore, MD 21224
(410) 675-4566 http://www.animalsagenda.org
"The term bestiality actually tells us much more about cultural
attitudes toward animals than it does about sex with animals. Concern
about bestiality generally focuses on human beings; thus experts tell
us it is usually harmless while debating its frequency. If we call it
forced sex with animals, we reclaim the animal's perspective as a
central concern. It is more prevalent than we can measure and is not
harmless; it is always animal abuse.
The American Heritage Dictionary, to cite just one example, defines
bestiality as "the quality or condition of being an animal or like an
animal; conduct or an action marked by depravity or brutality; or
sexual relations between a human being and an animal." Sex with an
animal is the last definition of bestiality, while the first two
definitions remind us of our culture's general low regard for animals.
The multiple meanings for bestiality are part of the problem, implying
that bestiality itself is animal behavior. It keeps the "beast" in
bestiality. (See sidebar "Acting Like an Animal.") Animals do not have
a distinction between public versus private.
Often, people read animals' sexuality as shameless (and inviting)
because animals act sexually in "public." They are then viewed as
accessible because they have acted in a public manner.
The animals who people have access to are the animals who will be
sexually used: cats, dogs, sheep, cows, hens, rabbits, goats, ducks,
horses, bulls, fishes. Proximity allows for sexual access. This is the
primary reason gorillas, chimpanzees, and others are not prevalent sex
objects: they are not animals to whom humans have regular access. Many
forms of sexual contact between humans and animals are physically
destructive to the animals. Few vaginas, especially those of young
animals, are large enough to accommodate the penis of a male Homo
sapiens. Furthermore, small animals often experience torn rectums and
internal bleeding after being sexually assaulted; chickens and rabbits
are often killed by the act itself. Sadistic sexual behavior against
animals also occurs. Chickens are frequently decapitated because this
intensifies the convulsions of the sphincter, thereby increasing the
sexual pleasure of the man. Even when it does not involve sadism,
bestiality is animal abuse because it is forced sex."
The Humane Society of the United States intends to use the case
during the next state legislative session as an example of why sex with
animals should be outlawed in Washington, said Bob Reder, a Humane
Society regional director in Seattle.
"This and a few other cases that we have will allow us a platform to talk about sex abuse of animals," Reder said.
Thirty-three states have laws banning sex with animals, he said.
Recent views of bestiality as fairly benign have replaced these earlier
reactions, but no matter what the prevailing view of bestiality, it
does not consider the animals' perspectives at all. It is always animal
abuse. Relationships of unequal power cannot be consensual. In
human-animal relationships, the human being has control of many—if not
all—of the aspects of an animals' well being. Sexual relationships
should occur between peers where consent is possible.
Consent is when one can say no, and that no is accepted. Clearly
animals cannot do that. Bestiality is the model case of circumventing
consent on the one hand, while confusing affection for consent on the
other. Despite the omnipresence of animals in pornographic pictures and
videos, the animal protection community has yet to identify bestiality
as an animal abuse issue.
Sincerely,
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