I’ve been writing lately about connections between anthropocentrism, roadkilled animals, and violence. I’ve found some interesting material, including this timely piece.
I asked Hoda Baraka, who is both Muslim and 350.org’s global communications director, how it all looked to her in the wake of the climate strike and the massacre, and she said ‘In a world being driven by fear, we are constantly being pitted against the very things that make this world livable. Whether it’s people being pitted against each other, even though there is no life without human connection, love and empathy. Or fear pitting us against the very planet that sustains us, even though there is no life on a dead planet. This is why fighting against climate change is the equivalent of fighting against hatred. A world that thrives is one where both people and planet are seen for their inextricable value and connectedness.’
We’ve known that a worldview that sees humanity as more important than other species is harmful to the ecopshere, but what ways do anthropomorphism harm humanity? This is just one question I’ve been thinking about, and one that I see William Stafford responding to in his work.
Travis Poling, MA 