Emily Anstett (11/12/22) Happy the Elephant Reflection

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/06/23/bronx-zoo-elephant-lawsuit-happy-captivity/ 

This article describes a lawsuit surrounding an elephant at the Bronx Zoo in New York City.  An animal rights group filed a lawsuit that the elephant was being imprisoned against her will, violating habeas corpus.  While the court voted against the group stating that the elephant is not entitled to constitutional rights because she is not “human,” the case is important for the nature-culture divide.  If  the court had sided with Happy the Elephant she would have been sent to live in a sanctuary, not confined by herself in the zoo.  I think this court case is really interesting because it shows a changing in the tides regarding how people view animals and non-human beings.  The fact that an elephant had a court case illustrates that some people are starting to view non-humans as a part of their governmental institutions, like the fact that they should be entitled to constitutional rights.  I think this is promising for a shift to incorporating nonhumans into human institutions more. This case reminded me of Gary Snyder’s “Wilderness” reading where he argued for incorporating nonhumans into democracy in order to create an “ecological conscience.”  I like the idea of bringing non-humans into human institutions to create a more balanced, equal interaction between humans and nature.  However, it made me think would this apply to all animals? One of the key components of Happy the elephant’s case was that elephants are highly intelligent.  So, would this only apply to non-humans that resemble human “intelligence.” This seems like it would defeat the purpose of creating an equal, interconnected interaction between humans and nature. In order to have a truly equitable world, I think all non-humans would have to be incorporated, regardless of how smart humans interpret them to be. 


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