Orangutans are pretty interesting even without tutus.
Today I saw something on facebook and I
came very close to posting a message about it, an orangutan in a blue
tutu. But a recent post by another friend gave me pause and made me
realize that no matter what I said about this photo it would be taken
in the wrong way.
-->
What I wanted to say about the picture had to do with the back story and the function of non-domesticated animals in human ecosystems.
Where did that orangutan come from?
Does this animal belong in this environment? Should this animal be used for our entertainment?
I wanted to say that most orangutangs
are taken as babies from their mothers. The mothers are typically
killed and the baby's fingers pried from their dead mother's bodies.
Then they travel from the jungles of Borneo, trafficked to countries
like Thailand where they are sold illegally on the black market.
Orangutans are an endangered species.
If you could witness one in person you would see how amazing they
are; never in need of a tutu to dress up their personalities. They are
so human. I have spent hours watching them, entranced.
But to write anything in the space
below the picture could be construed as shaming the person that
posted it (for those that share my perspective) and enraging others
who'd say, 'Hey, it's just a picture, what's your problem. It's
funny.'
It would not be my intention to shame.
It would be my intention to discuss the facts behind this seemingly
innocent photo. A photo that might bring some laughs to someone on a
bad day.
Some things we just don't think about
until we have experienced them first hand. I have always had an
interest in orangutans, studied some primatology, and have lived in
the prime trafficking area of these animals. It is something I know
about. There are lots of things I don't know about and I'm open to
learning more.
But I don't think any posted comment
would lead to a constructive interaction. Some things need to happen
face to face.
I am not hostile towards the person
that posted the photo but I can't imagine anything I wrote would be received in the manner it was intended.
Which leads me to the comment that
stayed my hand today.
A friend recently got raked over the
coals on facebook by someone who did not like that she posted a photo
of her son fishing. The irate person let her know that as a person
professing to care about animal welfare, my friend, was a hypocrite
for letting her son fish.
Clearly this was not constructive. I am
not sure what the irate poster wanted to accomplish but an assessment
of the situation would have quickly lead any rational person to
conclude that this attack would not lead to any change in the
situation.
Here's the thing, I don't think the
irate poster wanted to accomplish anything other than to vent her
rage. These days people just seem to want to let their anger run
rampant, they don't actually want to have a conversation about what
they are angry about. You don't change people's minds by yelling at
them, or posting vitriolic diatribes on your target's facebook wall.
But this is what it seems to have come
down to on social media-- everyone is yelling their opinion and no
one is listening.
When I was in high school I was on the
debating team. I went to the Provincial Championships. I don't see
debating clubs these days. And that's a serious loss. It does not
seem that people can respect another opinion or offer a reasoned
argument anymore.
A debate, a discussion of points of
view, cannot happen on facebook. People become more entrenched and
more enraged as the comment section fills up below any provocative
post.
Part of the problem is the medium. The
medium is the message and the message on social media is impersonal.
You can say whatever you want to whoever you want because on social
media neither party in the correspondence seems real. They are
ephemeral. This type of discourse serves to heighten our silos of
exclusions.
To debate ideas you need to debate
people-- in the flesh. There is nothing wrong with disagreeing and it
can be done without vitriol. It is something we need to do more
often.
A few nights ago I watched a news
report on the InkedHuntress, a woman who has both her supporters and
detractors on social media; her detractors often issue death threats.
I watched an interview with her and I thought, 'I don't agree with
her but I can understand her perspective.' I would guess that for
many people who watched that interview the issue was more black and
white. The reporter surely did not hide his incredulous opinion of her actions.
In truth, life is often grey. That does
not seem to be a colour that plays well on facebook.
