 |  |
|
| Transcript | Log In |
| CBC Radio One 99.1FM (CBLA) - Ontario, Canada |
|
+ Station Reach: 748,000
CBLA 09/15/2022 06:40:30 AM: ...exposing factory farms to protecting creatures and their in captivity activist played a major role in fighting for animal rights but now there is a growing interest from law students get into the field of animal law Angela Fernandez is a law professor at the University of Toronto. She teaches an animal law class she's organizing the 4th annual Canadian animal law conference this weekend. Good morning, Angela, how are you I'm really I'm doing well. Really happy to have you on the program. I wonder what got you interested in animal law the place. Yes, Yes, thanks. Thanks for talking to me. Young so, Yeah, I got you didn't animal law because as a legal historian I started working on a case about a Fox that was being hunted and people started asking me as I was digging deeper and deeper into the facts and circumstances are in this case, you know, well this Fox is going to die you know whether the person was originally chasing him or the person who came in intervened. They were going to kill him. And so I started to think about that and wonder, you know, why is this Fox being concerned property and why are we using this is to teach law students about property and in fact why are any animals considered to be poverty and why why do we treat them like that. So that's really work out. We started on major OK how did you discover the animal law was an actual field the lawyers could get into well, you know, we have had a course at the University of Toronto for quite a long time. I was taught by M & a lawyer in look with his goal who practices here in toronto. And so I knew about the field and I started to 10 it could people who are already in the field like leslie and that really helped a lot. Ok, now I have to admit that I had never known anything about animal law until I was listening to story about chimpanzees and a somebody trying to make the case that a chimpanzee being ascent in being should be should have personhood and that fascinated me. And I think that many who look at animal rights still think of of the activism side of it. The protest inside of it. Houck and animal rights be fought in court Yes, that's a great question. And you know it's interesting you mention that case of the chimpanzees at the nonhuman rights project, and that's actually the topic I also got into it because it sounded to me like one of the most promising things that was happening in the field and I still think they're seeing they're interesting things going on with that group has gone on now to do case about elephants and some other things. But Yes, I think you're right that often people are thinking of the activists eyes and this is something that, you know, looks a little different. Sometimes in the US but in Canada but also, you know, there's a real need there because those folks, you know, are often get themselves into trouble in terms of you needing defenses. So for the law student. That's one of the areas we talk about a law because it's at surely one of the 4 practice things that they can I get involved with and really make a big difference in terms of helping someone who's overstepped the line and for instance, finds himself in charge something now in the intro I mentioned the growing interest from law student something. How much of a growing interest here. How much of an increase of you seen Yeah. So this is really pretty incredible. So you know I would I think that teaching the course and then as she and I call talk to the few years ago was quite small, was in the evenings we were really struggling to get, you know, more than a handful students and, you know, some years are have to cancel and so but, you know, we really seem to be growth here. So last year when I taught in the fall. I had almost 50 students this year gain in teaching it right now. And I've got to get out again about 50 students and it's an Yeah, we've got a during the daytime in the regular course you know I wanted. I really want to mainstream. This gets to the point where people aren't asking what is animal law you know, you know, we go to contracts or we go to the tough course or something like that and you know it to some extent you're asking what it is that people come in with a basic knowledge I think what you're saying is totally right that people don't with animal law including the law student who so we do have to spend a bit of time talking about you know what what what it is. What's behind this this rise in interest in animal law is is is just greater awareness that it exists or or is this a different way of thinking from younger generations well it's interesting I think it's a little bit. I think it's a little bit of you know, offering it, putting it in the curriculum in essential way then you're basically signaling to people like this is essential important saying come and check this out, you know, and so that's sort of I think does quite a bit. But I think, you know, the majority of it is really about younger people who are starting to make the connections between the tomb of animals environment of human health. They're looking for alternatives in terms of you know their own eating and things like that and I I've noticed that in just I've only been doing this for maybe about I don't know, almost 8 years or something I've really seen quite quite a difference in that respect and so these interest is growing. How much more important will animal law become in all of our lives as as the climate continues to change our population growth. I think it's going to huge and has been a huge it's one you know animal agriculture is but you know, one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gases. And so I think that, you know, people that like necessary to change things relating to their eating patterns in their consumption patterns, but, you know, we know that that's going to have to that's going to have to give and so part of I think the role that the feel can play is really sort of kind of you know, explain to people Yes, it really needs To for, you know, the climate for our own human interest but also for these animals as well that are going to have to me is really terrible conditions that you know most of the time. We're just trying to think about because people feel like I have to eat like this or do this but you know when you to scott, when you look into it. News realize I actually I don't really have to then these other alternatives. It sort of lets you open your eyes. I think in a way that maybe we haven't done in previous increase generations so the Canadian animal law conference that you helped organize is happening this weekend what topics going to cover Yeah, so we're going to do all sorts of amazing thing so so it starts on Friday with something called the North American animal law conference and those are going to be scholars track presentation. So one of the presenters, one of the topics is going to be on the rights of nature, which will be really interesting Congrats, an area where we're trying to figure out whether animal rights could be kind of included in when you protected environment and they're in there. I'm going to be talking about my idea that I have to classify animals non-human animals as not quite property not quite persons a call quality property quality personhood so that'll be interesting. Then on Saturday and Sunday. We've got the panels, which are full on we've got probably I think this may be 3 or 4 current session and will be also some things from family law where people are talking about dogs. You know, the dog ownership and get the dog upon separation and divorce also domestic violence issues relating to women going into shelters and being reticent to do six. They don't want to leave the companion animal at gag legislation which is, you know, that's really problematic legislation we now have an Ontario which prevents whistleblowers and activists from capturing images of industrial animal use lots of topics like that you have so much to cover and no why are you so excited about this. Thanks so much for being here this morning. Ou thanks so much for having me for taking an interest in this. I I really appreciate it. A little community. I think what really appreciate it. You take care about OK. Angela Fernandez is an organizer of the Canadian animal law conference taking place at the U of T this Friday through Sunday at 6, 48 right now. Jennifer Allen's Here's a look at traffic. It's a tough commute with delays on young University line one southbound it Wilson due to a signal problem but regular service has resumed on the up express up from an earlier equipment issue ...Publicity Value: $ 0per 30s
* This copy is real time computer generated. Your keyword is highlighted, other text will vary in accuracy due to speaker dialect and audio quality issues.
|
|
|