Why You Should Skip Turkey This Thanksgiving
Take a step in the right direction this holiday season
It’s the time of the year, where family and friends get together to celebrate each other, show love and give thanks for the past year, it seems like such a contradiction when this is done by killing an innocent being and stuffing it with mashed potatoes. All while historians were still in a dilemma about whether the turkey was the meat served at the First Thanksgiving.
Each year 245 million turkeys are killed in the US alone, with 46 million just killed on Thanksgiving only. It’s funny how in the name of tradition or culture, millions of turkeys that generally would live up to 10 years are slaughtered within 3–4 months of their birth, for us to consume.
While you might be thankful, factory-farmed turkeys have nothing to be thankful about. For several months, thousands of turkeys are squeezed into sheds where even stretching a leg is impossible.
They live in their waste, urine, and ammonia fumes, which burn their eyes and destroy their lungs. Parts of the turkeys’ toes, beaks, and snoods are cut off to keep them from killing each other. Without any pain relievers.
Here’s footage of what happens to turkeys at a massive turkey-breeding facility (sensitive content warning).
What Tradition?
For centuries, we’ve been doing the most immoral things in the name of tradition. How can we merely follow a tradition that calls for expressing gratitude while carving a dead animal at the dining table?
It doesn’t make sense to do things in the name of tradition, if it did, then the Yulin Dog Meat Festival in China, the Slaughter of Dolphins in Japan, and Bullfighting in Spain would be normal. But they aren’t. Thousands of petitions are signed every year to stop these from happening.
Just because something is traditional, doesn’t mean it’s ethical. We are not expected to dress and speak as we did in the 1800s. Few holidays were even changed over the years by moving dates or changing what objects are used for their observance. For instance, it was more common to carve turnips instead of pumpkins on Halloween, and Thanksgiving has also been celebrated in July.
Tradition doesn’t mean its elements should never be changed; instead, we should be able to choose what’s right and choose not to cause harm to sentient beings in the name of it.
Isn’t it already ironic that Black Friday comes right after Thanksgiving? Because why not trample over people for sale exactly a day after being thankful for what we already have.
Turkeys are twice their weight since 1960
Farmed turkeys are double their weight since they were in 1960, and they reach that weight in half the time. This is because farmers would selectively breed them to be able to select turkeys that grow twice their size. This practice was widespread among other farmers, and now turkeys are bigger than ever and have almost lost their ability to fly.
This method of growing abnormally large turkeys have made turkeys resistant to naturally reproducing. This means that all turkeys are born out of artificial insemination. Done by hand.
These poor animals are get injected, be immobilized, have their throats slit, get scolded to remove their wings, and are butchered, processed and packaged, for us to devour on Thanksgiving.
Keep What Matters
I am by no means against the cultural belief of Thanksgiving, and by no means claiming you should not celebrate it. I’m just asking you to make a conscious effort to think about what you will be consuming, and how it has come to your plate.
There are several aspects of tradition which can easily be tweaked without changing the foundation of the ceremony itself. These changes will benefit us greatly and will teach future generations values that are important.
Living in this day and age, all animal products have their mock version. Literally. Swap out a Thanksgiving turkey for a Tofurky. There are several other brands out there.
This will not only save a poor creature's life, be a healthier version of a holiday meal but will also teach our children that being thankful doesn’t mean we are allowed to take the life of another.
Last Words
There is no humane way to slaughter a turkey (or any other animal). We can’t change what our ancestors did, what they believed in, or how they acted. We do have the ability to change our actions. We are all individuals who have the ability to celebrate themselves as part of this Earth. We have the ability to say no to some unethical practices that have existed in our society.
Perhaps, this holiday season, we should think about those who suffer for our celebrations and look beyond our traditions — Ed Winters.
