Introduction
Animal advocates have a duty to mention and praise high profile people who are passionate about animal welfare and who use their celebrity to promote a better relationship between human and animal. It is a reciprocal duty because high profile people have a duty to be the voice of animals. Why? Because they are vulnerable to abuse in a world created by humans and there is, in the 21st century, widespread abuse. It is everywhere you look. There is a third duty: people must be kind to animals because it is the decent thing to do. To be unkind is indecent.
I am a Peta supporter. I don’t regard Peta as extreme. For me what they advocate is entirely normal and sensible. I’d call Peta enlightened. People who abuse and use animals for entertainment or financial profit are unenlightened.
Joaquin Phoenix
I want to focus on this man. He is a mesmerising actor. He is a worthy winner of the best actor Oscar in the 2019-20 awards season for his leading role in Joker; a great film. He now has a bigger platform from which to promote animal welfare and he is a passionate animal advocate.
PETA’s Oscats
Peta have their own Oscars. They are the Oscats. They refer to Joaquin Phoenix as a triple treat because (1) he has won the best actor Oscar (2) he has been advocating for animals for nearly his entire life and (3) he is a best friend to animals. They have awarded him with their best actor Oscat jointly with Cynthia Erivo.
Joaquin Phoenix has been a vegan since he was 3-years-of-age.
When we look at the world through another animal’s eyes, we see that inside we’re all the same—and that we all deserve to live free from suffering – Joaquin Phoenix
We are blessed to have him courageously speaking out for animals. It is quite difficult to do that when you are at the top of your profession because you are amongst the so called ‘elite’ and the elite are part of the establishment and the establishment tend to use and abuse animals or don’t care much about animal welfare. Therefore it can create friction among your peers to be strongly vocal as Joaquin Phoenix is in his support of animal welfare. His speech at the Oscars was brave I think. It sort of grated with the fun superficiality of the lengthy Oscar ceremony but he still did it because it was a perfect plaform to speak up for animals. Well done to him.
