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Intersectional oppression across species boundaries: Swedish dairy production as force of oppressive ideology and practice

Canavan, Jana LU (2016) SIMV18 20161
Graduate School
Department of Political Science
Master of Science in Social Studies of Gender
Abstract
This study demonstrates that the anthropocentric human-animal divide perpetuates violent ideologies and practices by emphasising the intersectionality of oppression across species boundaries. Taking the practice of Swedish dairy farming and inherent ideologies as a case of such intersectional oppression, the Othering of bovines and their treatment as means of production is problematised. This is done by discussing the political and social investment into pro-animal welfare ideologies as distinctly Swedish values, which are believed to create added value in national dairy production and serve to portray the farming of cows as progressive and ethically justifiable. Drawing on conceptual frames of Critical Animal Studies and employing a... (More)
This study demonstrates that the anthropocentric human-animal divide perpetuates violent ideologies and practices by emphasising the intersectionality of oppression across species boundaries. Taking the practice of Swedish dairy farming and inherent ideologies as a case of such intersectional oppression, the Othering of bovines and their treatment as means of production is problematised. This is done by discussing the political and social investment into pro-animal welfare ideologies as distinctly Swedish values, which are believed to create added value in national dairy production and serve to portray the farming of cows as progressive and ethically justifiable. Drawing on conceptual frames of Critical Animal Studies and employing a critical realist approach to intersectionality, the study examines online material of key stakeholders of the Swedish dairy industry as well as semi-structured interviews with dairy farmers in Skåne, Sweden. The study shows that key practices and beliefs of Swedish dairy production and consumption serve as tool and impetus to cultivate processes of social exclusion, primarily by determining cow’s economic “use value” over human-identified social differences, which holds shared discriminatory logics as other processes of social exclusion. (Less)
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author
Canavan, Jana LU
supervisor
organization
course
SIMV18 20161
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
intersectionality of oppression, speciesism, animal welfarism, Swedish dairy farming, critical animal studies
language
English
id
8880885
date added to LUP
2016-06-27 11:45:07
date last changed
2016-06-27 11:45:07
@misc{8880885,
  abstract     = {{This study demonstrates that the anthropocentric human-animal divide perpetuates violent ideologies and practices by emphasising the intersectionality of oppression across species boundaries. Taking the practice of Swedish dairy farming and inherent ideologies as a case of such intersectional oppression, the Othering of bovines and their treatment as means of production is problematised. This is done by discussing the political and social investment into pro-animal welfare ideologies as distinctly Swedish values, which are believed to create added value in national dairy production and serve to portray the farming of cows as progressive and ethically justifiable. Drawing on conceptual frames of Critical Animal Studies and employing a critical realist approach to intersectionality, the study examines online material of key stakeholders of the Swedish dairy industry as well as semi-structured interviews with dairy farmers in Skåne, Sweden. The study shows that key practices and beliefs of Swedish dairy production and consumption serve as tool and impetus to cultivate processes of social exclusion, primarily by determining cow’s economic “use value” over human-identified social differences, which holds shared discriminatory logics as other processes of social exclusion.}},
  author       = {{Canavan, Jana}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Intersectional oppression across species boundaries: Swedish dairy production as force of oppressive ideology and practice}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}