Taking stock: 25 years of reform campaigns in Austria

PRESENTATION

Room A + online

Thu, 05.09.2024  18:20-19:00  Central European Time (CET)

In 1998, the Austrian animal rights movement achieved its first major reform success: a ban on fur farming. While one might argue that this success was possibly abolitionist in nature, the next two clearly were not: a ban on wild animal circuses and on hen battery farms. Since the argument against such welfare reforms was that they might hinder progress toward achieving animal rights, it is worth discussing the issue based on statistical data: what happened with sales of fur and eggs and with circuses in Austria after those reforms? In addition, there have been further reforms till today, like the ban on caging rabbits, canned hunting, and releasing tame birds for shooting. In hindsight, can we say that reforms of one or the other kind hinder or promote progress toward the end goal of abolishing animal abuse? Is the incremental approach towards liberation the correct method, and if so, are there good and bad animal welfare reforms with respect to animal rights?

Please note that there is a discussion on Friday based on this presentation.