There is no question that Homo sapiens is the dominant species on the planet. I argue that with this dominance comes a moral responsibility. In formulating his famous “categorical imperative,” the grandfather of modern nonconsequential duty-ethics Immanuel Kant proclaimed, “Act as to treat humanity, whether in thine own person or in that of any other, in every case as an end withal, never as a means only.” It suffices to say that according to Kant, morality requires recognition of inherent dignity in human beings; therefore, it is our moral duty to treat others as ends, and not as means. To be sure, Kant did not consider the dignity of nonhuman animals. But Kant was a product of his history (to borrow a thesis from Friedrich Hegel). Had he lived today, I hazard a guess, he would extend his system of morality to include the moral standing and rights of nonhuman animals. In any event, we ought to appropriate Kant’s moral imperative and treat nonhuman animals as ends and not instruments we can exploit for our own interest.
moral obligation toward our animal brothers and sisters.