Great Ape Personhood: What and Why?
As homo-sapiens, we are undeniably members of the big taxonomic groupknown as the hominidae family. If youare capable of reading this, behaving socially, feeling, thinking, and of havinga personality and characteristics that determine your own, personal andunchangeable individuality, then you must recognize yourself as a human being.The big hominidae family, also knownas the “great apes”, has four surviving evolutionary descendant groups:chimpanzees and bonobos, gorillas, orangutans, and humans. The similaritiesbetween us and the other great apes are noticeable by simply giving a quick glance.Furthermore, the social behavior, abilities and even mental capacities of theother great apes are comparable to our own; no expert can deny this. Accordingto the Great Ape Project, an international organization that advocates forgreat ape personhood, the DNA between two human beings can be up to 0.5%different. Between a human and a chimpanzee, the genetic difference is of only1.23%. Such is the similarity, that chimpanzees can actually donate blood tohumans and vice-versa. However, what is this great ape personhood that wasreferred to?
Generally speaking, great apepersonhood is the idea that all great apes should enjoy certain inherentrights. It is a relatively new movement which basically seeks to grantpersonhood and legal protections to all of the other members of the hominidae family. This may seem as anextravagant idea: how can apes be considered humans? But what the movementwants is not to say that human beings are exactly like their taxonomic‘cousins’, but that they should all be considered as persons under the law, andtherefore enjoy rights that must be respected and defended.
One of the first arguments greatape personhood advocates use to support their claims is that of personality.All animals have a behavioral pattern, and each member of the animal group hasa distinct personality. For example, dogs engage their activities in a certain way,but different canines will behave differently: some will be more aggressive,others more tame, and so on. A recent University of Edinburgh study mentionedin a BBC article suggests that non-human great apes share similar personalitiesas human beings, so they should therefore be respected as such. All great apesare individuals; they are all persons and should be recognized as such.Furthermore, the advocates state that chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans andgorillas are never perceived as pets precisely because of their inherent traits.It’s hard to imagine one saying: “I own that chimpanzee”. Great apes are givennames, and are mostly referred to as ‘he’ or ‘she’, not ‘it’. Under most of thecurrent law, great apes can be considered property, just like objects. They arenot “persons”, but legal “property”, tools and objects for human purposes.
Another compelling argument is that, legally in the US, corporations qualify aspersons. Why not then, our closest genetic relatives? They also state that inthe past, humanity has enslaved creatures and even other human beings becausethey were ‘inferior’. According to them, this is what’s happening with apes. Greatapes are portrayed as brutes, but they are reasonable creatures. There areseveral more reasons why great ape personhood advocates suggest this legal change,but one of the most important of them is that it will lay down a precedent onanimal rights and cruelty. If one animal is protected by personhood laws, eventualabsolute wildlife protection will follow.
Certainly, there arecounter-arguments to the great ape personhood movement. Most of them refer tothe fact that society cannot grant personhood rights to non-human beings. TheUN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Declaration of the Rights of theChild and conventions related to nationality are challenged when assigningpersonhood to an animal. The advocates wish to protect the great apes, but bygranting them a “person” status, many burdens and loopholes arise. Controversyalso appears because some animal rights activist see the great ape movement asan example of speciesism (giving values, rights and considerations toindividuals based solely on their species). Humans are quite speciesistcreatures, and by granting special considerations to only members of the hominidae family, specimen is put inpractice. Many regard this practice as terrible as racism, because judgmentsare made based on species, just as in racial prejudices. Others state that thecorrect solution is to stop thinking in “black” and “white” (non-human andhuman), but rather seeing humanity as a spectrum or continuum where animalscoexist. Furthermore, the question of what happens to recognized person-greatapes who commit crimes such as murder exists. Should they be punished just likehumans? Or should they be recognized as persons but be kept in their naturalhabitat?
Great ape rights are verycontroversial. It is difficult to take sides in the argument, because we aresomehow compelled by the sight of any member of the hominidae family in pain. Yet successes in the general protectionof great apes have been made: the US CHIMP Act has saved hundreds of apes fromscientific experimentation, euthanasia and exploitation. In Spain, chimpanzeesand other primates enjoy human rights. In Great Britain and New Zealand,experiments on great apes are strictly forbidden. But one of the major issuesthat non-human great apes face continues: habitat loss. One of the reasons thestruggle for great ape personhood arises is because chimpanzees, bonobos,gorillas and orangutans are suffering extinction. In Africa, home for most ofthe hominadae members, great apehabitat loss is rapidly increasing, and humans continuously interfere withtheir homes and ecosystems. Another cause for the great ape movement is that ofscientific experimentation and abuse on primates. Practices which can beperceived as torture occur in laboratories, and it’s difficult to reinsert labanimals into the wild since their behavior changes. If we don’t intervene toprotect wildlife now, some species will just disappear. This is what may happenwith great apes. Regardless if you believe that they should be consideredpersons or not, it’s undeniable that they are being exploited, losing theirhabitats, their homes, and may eventually cease to exist altogether.
Take action to protect and help chimpanzee,gorilla and bonobo habitat in Africa:
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Listen to a radio spot aboutLucy, a chimpanzee educated and brought up as a human child:
Look for a great ape conservationorganization which compels you, and volunteer, help!
Xavier A. Torres de Janon is an intern at EarthAction. He is currently attending Hampshire College, where he plans to focus his studies in international relations and affairs, global conflicts, peace and security, and human rights in general. In his free time, he knits and reads. He wants to learn more languages, about international and nonprofit organizations, study abroad, do voluntary humanitarian work, and gain more knowledge about effective ways to affect policy-making positively around the globe.