Carnism

Term given to the psychological disconnect which allows people to eat some animals while remaining resolutely sentimental about others.

A press release on PR Web concerning psychologist Melanie Joy’s book “Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows,” revealed:

Joy explores the invisible system that shapes our perception of the meat we eat, so that we love some animals and eat others without knowing why. She calls this system carnism. Carnism is the belief system, or ideology, that allows us to selectively choose which animals become our meat, and it is sustained by complex psychological and social mechanisms.

Like other isms (racism, sexism, etc.), carnism is most harmful when it is unrecognized and unacknowledged. Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows names and explains this phenomenon and offers it up for examination. Unlike the many books that explain why we shouldn’t eat meat, Joy’s book explains why we do eat meat – and thus how we can make more informed choices as citizens and consumers.

In a recent interview with “To the Contrary,” Joy commented:

In order to eat meat we need to disconnect psychologically and emotionally from the truth of our experience. We need to numb ourselves. Like many Americans, when I was growing up I had a dog who I loved like a family member and like most Americans I grew up eating meat, often multiple times a day and I never thought about how I could pet Corky and eat my burger and not recognize the inconsistency in attitudes and behavior towards animals, so I had this knowing without knowing.

(According to HumaneMyth.org, neo-carnism describes those who advocate the production of humane animal products but refrain from consuming these products on moral grounds.

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