Unit 2: Rhetoric of the Op-Ed Writing Prompt
An organization called the Animal Legal Defense Fund has sponsored a petition that calls for
increased protection for the rights of animals. It says the following:
Deprived of legal protection, animals are defenseless against exploitation and abuse by
humans. Through the Animal Bill of Rights, the Animal Legal Defense Fund is working
to show Congress a groundswell of support for legislation that protects animals and
recognizes that, like all sentient beings, animals are entitled to basic legal rights in our
society.
The petition calls for the right of all animals to be free from exploitation, cruelty, neglect, and
abuse and enumerates further rights for laboratory animals, farm animals, companion animals,
and wildlife.
Do you think animals need a “Bill of Rights”? Would such a law go against centuries of human
culture? Would it increase the cost of food? Would it hinder medical research? Would it cause
other problems? Write a well-organized essay explaining the extent to which you agree or
disagree with the idea of creating a Bill of Rights for animals. Develop your points by giving
reasons, examples, or both from your own experience, observations, and reading.