Persuasive Essay On Animal Abuse

“The worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them, but to be indifferent to them: that’s the essence of inhumanity.”(Shaw) When we see an animal abuse commercial, we get sad for a little while, but then it leaves our minds. Just because people don’t see it everyday doesn’t mean that it isn’t prevalent in today’s society. There are many organizations that are fighting for animal abuse laws, but people don’t believe that they are necessary. Most animal cruelty laws have been introduced to legislatures, but have not been supported. Laws that protect animals from cruelty, prevent cruel actions from happening, and stricter punishments are vital to animals.
Animal cruelty laws have gained more attention and action in recent years, due to evidence that links domestic violence and animal abuse. The

Humane Society of the United States cites several studies on the links between the abuse of animals and violence against people on their website (Rosenthal).

Animal abuse is a serious crime and is a key indicator that someone could be violent towards their families. In the world of law enforcement animal-cruelty issues were long considered a peripheral concern and the province of local A.S.P.C.A. and Humane Society organizations, but now that animal cruelty has been linked with violence, state legislatures have taken action (Siebert). This link between violence and animal abuse has now opened the world to more opportunities for law enforcement to catch animal abusers. Before the link between domestic violence and animal abuse was largely publicized, state legislatures had a hard time making laws that punished animal abusers. An

new animal cruelty legislation was passed in 2017 in Texas, and made violent offenses toward animals a third-degree felony with a penalty of two to ten years in prison (Rosenthal). The law also closes loopholes that have allowed animal abusers to avoid prosecution altogether (Rosenthal). States like New York and New Mexico are considering laws that require animal protection agencies to report suspected child abuse, and child protective services to report suspected animal cruelty (Animal Cruelty and Domestic Violence). These families and animals that have been abused are scarred for life. These new laws will hopefully put an end to this cycle of violence and animal cruelty.
Numerous private organizations are striving to legislate laws that protect animals from cruelty. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) is a non-profit organization that believes legislation is key in protecting and preventing animal cruelty (Public Policy). The ASPCA has a major role in many communities to fight for protecting animals. People have needed organizations to be formed, so that their arguments will have credibility. The ASPCA protects animals and provides for their well-being by establishing public policy through the legislative process, citizen initiatives, and consumer education campaigns (Public Policy). 123,271 ASPCA advocates took action in 2017 and 325,573 advocacy emails were sent to lawmakers by the ASPCA Advocacy Brigade (Public Policy). Another private organization that is fighting for laws that protect animals from cruelty is the Animal Legal Defense Fund. The Animal Legal Defense Fund’s mission is to protect the lives and advance the interests of animals through the legal system (About Us). This organization starts high-impact lawsuits to protect animals from harm (About Us). The work of private organizations fighting to legislate laws is more effective than single people alone fighting the government. With these private organizations and their large followings, the government is more likely to pass laws that protect animals.
Animal cruelty is a problem that has been happening for a very long time and will only get worse if we do not inform the people about the lack of laws that are protecting animals lives. Doing this will not only save the lives of so many animals but will also prevent future animal abuse.