Travis the chimp and our ultimate reality; students don't care about animals

Travis the chimp has been in the spotlight for years. Whether it was in Old Navy or Coca Cola commercials, Travis has been a friendly face on TV for many. What we didn't know was that Travis was going to be getting much more media attention. In the past few weeks many stories have been done on Travis because he attacked a family friend by mauling her face and ripping apart the palms of her hands. What Travis did was wrong and everyone in America feels terrible for the poor woman not many people feel bad for Travis. Most of them say things like, "well of course the chimp did that, he's a wild animal!" or "that's what you get for keeping a chimp for a pet" but the people that feel bad for Travis, because he's Travis, are few and far between. 

What is wrong with our society? Sources say Travis the chimp lived a fairly human lifestyle. He enjoyed TV, surfing the internet, sleeping in his bed and dressing himself. He ate at the table with the rest of the family and enjoyed many things humans enjoy as well. While this may seem cute and maybe fascinating to many Americans, it deep disturbs people like me, animal lovers. A real animal lover loves not because the animal is cute or funny but because they deserve to be happy- like the rest of us creatures. Travis never wanted to life he had. Ya he's a wild animal and deserves to enjoy the life of a chimp. The fact that he lashed out and attacked a family friend only supports this idea. After 15 years of being on camera, no wonder Travis went bananas. He just couldn't take it anymore. 

Today in class, we have been discussing PETA and the persuasive videos they show in the hopes of rallying members and preventing animal cruelty. The responses some students had to these videos only supports my theory even further: most students don't care about animal rights. The Catalyst, a Seattle University newsletter, took a poll in last month's edition on which issues were most important to Seattle University students. I was appalled to find out animal rights was tied in last place for the least important social issue. The only other issue that fell this low was student loans. Student loans vs. animal rights? Really? I struggle with this because in my mind, the life of an animal is worth much more than money- or the ability to borrow money from a bank...but like I said, I'm alone in this battle. 

What is it going to take for people to care more about the life of an animal? More graphic images? PETA's videos include some of the most horrific footage I have ever seen but after showing some of the videos, the students in class continue to laugh and joke around. For them, life goes on; out of sight, out of mind. Maybe having pets will help people respect animal life and happiness? Besides that, I'm out of ideas. It may seem strange but for this same reason, I hesitate to have children of my own. There are millions of children that roam the streets of our world without anyone to care for them. How selfish and cruel would it be for me to have my own children, when so many go uncared for? My problem is, I hold humans and animals at the same "level." Many people don't see animals as being even close to as worthy of value as humans, so they struggle to grant them the natural rights that seem so obvious to me. For the above reasons, I am extremely frustrated with people on this issue, everyday. Why do so many people enjoy the bliss of ignorance and turn a blind eye when they see animals suffer?