Party of Communists USA Statement on the Proposed Denver Fur and Slaughterhouse Bans
This November, a vote was held in Denver on a proposed fur ban, Ordinance 308, as well as a slaughterhouse ban, Ordinance 309. Both proposals were rejected, with the fur ban getting 42.1% of the vote, and the slaughterhouse ban getting only 35.7% of the vote. However, one community which was directly affected by the slaughterhouse in Denver voted overwhelmingly to ban it. While these proposals failed, the attention they drew to the issue of animal rights in Denver was positive in raising the people’s consciousness on the issue of animal exploitation.
From the perspective of animal rights, these measures were progressive and they should continue to be pursued. However, they did not take into consideration the question of jobs for workers who would be displaced by the banning of slaughterhouses and the sale of fur.
In Gus Hall’s Can We Survive Under Capitalism he states that there is a myth that we cannot have a clean environment and jobs at the same time. Then as now, the bosses push the myth that progress, whether it be in terms of animal rights or in terms of the environment, means losing jobs. However, history shows that progressive government policy can enable progress while keeping people employed.
During the Roosevelt administration, government programs were instituted to retrain workers that were displaced. During Carter’s administration, the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) retrained teachers with pay. A contemporary example of retraining workers is the G. I. Bill which provides a stipend to military personnel to attend schooling and jobs programs.
The Party of Communists USA fully agrees with legislative reforms that would be progressive for animal rights, such as bans on slaughterhouses and the fur industry. These reforms would need to be planned in the correct way to ensure that workers in these industries remain gainfully employed.
Secretariat,
Central Committee,
Party of Communists USA
