The animal liberation movement or animal rights movement (sometimes called the animal personhood movement and animal advocacy movement[source?]), is the movement of activists, academics, lawyers, campaigns, and organized groups who oppose the use of non-human animals in research, as food, as clothing, or as entertainment.[1]
History
In some form or another, the concept of animal rights has been around for thousands of years. In Eastern religions such as Buddhism, Taoism, and Jainism, the concept of ahiṃsā, meaning non-violence, is a central principle. Jainism stresses non-cruelty towards animals, prohibiting adherents from working at a zoo, cutting trees, or using any fabrics, including silk, which are produced through harming other living beings. In Islam, cruelty towards any animal is a punishable sin.[2]
Within Europe and North America, there were many precursors of the modern-day animal rights movement. The first animal cruelty legislation was passed in 1635, which prohibited tearing wool off of living sheep. In 1822, Richard Martin, known as “Humanity Dick”, passed Martin’s Act aimed at preventing cruelty towards cattle. Martin went on to be one of the founding members of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the world’s first animal welfare charity, in 1824.[3]
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