Hindsight is Sometimes Unpleasant

In response to Sebastian's post 'Animals in the Future' (5/28/2013):

In his post, Sebastian wonders whether humanity, in the future, will ever look back at the current treatment of animals with the same attitude that humanity today looks back at sexism or slavery.

I think it is certainly possible!  However, I think that it will take longer than the movements against sexism and slavery took to (mostly) disappear.  This is because it is more widespread, older, and based on larger differences than either of those movements.

Sexism has been around for a while, certainly, but probably not since before civilisation began.  It is based on (sometimes) visible differences in sex and on differences in gender, but that is it.  Everyone involved in sexism, whether those benefiting from, those perpetuating, or those suffering from it, is human.  Furthermore, not all nations on earth are or have been sexist.

Slavery has also been around for a while, but certainly not since before civilisation began.  Not all nations on earth have endorsed it at any point.  It is usually based either on birth, which is entirely arbitrary and impossible to detect in and of itself, on victory or defeat in war, which is entirely changeable and relates to what has happened to a person, not who they are, or on skin colour, which is a purely phenotypical difference even less important than gender.  Again, everyone involved in it in any capacity is human

Bad treatment of animals is almost worldwide in range (even primarily vegetarian/vegan countries, like India, still endorse other types of mistreatment), has been around since before the rise of civilisation (humanity evolved as an omnivorous species), and is based on fairly significant differences in appearance and capacity.  The latter is not true in the cases of sexism and slavery.  As such, while I am optimistic about the potential for human society to eventually move past its horrific maltreatment of animals, I am not under any illusions that we will look back on current practices with disgust any time soon.