Acting Like Slaughter Can Be Humane

Humane

What a strange adjective

to describe slaughter

To kindly kill,

to compassionately 

slit throats

Humane 

is not the word

that comes to my mind

Yet the Humane Slaughter Act

of 1958

is the law we say we follow

So let’s examine the act's

four major violations:

1. Placing an animal’s life

in imminent peril

2. Causing an animal

protracted disfigurement

3. Causing protracted 

impairment of health

4. Causing to a limb

or bodily organ

protracted loss

or impairment of function

Now let’s examine 

each of these violations

against slaughter itself

Slaughter,

the very reason the industry exists

The only way it functions

1. Wouldn’t waiting in a slaughter line

quite literally

place an animal’s life

in imminent peril?

2. Wouldn’t cutting off

arms, legs, and beaks*

cause protracted

disfigurement?

3. Does not a knife

in their throat

or a bolt in their brain

impair their health?

4. Is not every organ 

and limb impaired

of their function

during slaughter?

Every act of slaughter

is not in accordance with

but a direct violation

of the word

humane 

*The Humane Methods Slaughter Act of 1958 (commonly referred to as the Humane Slaughter Act) - which I would argue is violated millions of times a day - did not include poultry. Even with updates in 1978 and 2002, poultry are still considered exempt from this law, despite chickens being by far the animal we kill most in America.

Written April 12, 2018