Hello... is this thing on?🎙️... Am I allowed to publicly share my worldview here?
(I'm writing this in an effort to make sense of the 2024 U.S. election, which, I won't bury the lead, didn't go the way I had hoped. I know, this is a blog post on a linen clothing biz website, but my academic background is in evolution, animal behavior, and public policy, so I've got a few things to say!)
My brief mini-rant
(skip this if I'm preaching to the choir)
This election felt monumental, especially with the possibility of the first woman president—a woman’s voice and experience representing me at the highest level. For so long, my reality has been shaped by male leadership, from childhood to now (they threw me a male Santa, Jesus, God, president, congress, family doctor, and every soccer coach from age 5-18). I was so deeply excited to have a woman's experience represent me at that higher level. I already know that women matter, but I want to see a public example that we matter, that we can do it, that we can lead people, and that people value us. I want a woman's experience to lead my society for ONCE in a goddamn while. Why does it feel like at least half of the US is deeply intolerant to the experiences of women, people of color, LGBTQ... ugh... the list goes on!
--Mini-rant over--
How can we logically process what is happening in our society? What can we do? How can we feel and give love?
A novel approach to understanding why this happened & what to do now
Hey, it's cheesy, but I just want the world to be a more accepting, loving, safe place for self-expression💖🌈. And it brings me to think about my research on animal identity and re-root in that and tell you more about it-- maybe it could be a really useful lens for you, too. It's a little bit of a winding road, but stick with me, I promise it will make sense.
Being Animal
Basically, for my first grad degree, I did a lot of research about how people identify as a human animal-- not like, "my spirit animal is a lion"-- but like cognitively acknowledging the concept that I am a primate. If you know you're a primate, based on DNA and evolutionary history and all that-- even still, It's probably not likely something you think about incredibly often. And it's a complex thought when you have it. Perhaps when you're out in nature, having good sex, enjoying amazing food, remembering that you're an animal might bring up feelings of empowerment, belonging, or arousal... but other times it's linked to feelings of vulnerability or anger -- like when you are reminded of your animal-ness during black-out rage, incredibly hungry, protecting yourself or family from a threat, or when you feel out of control of your body.
Over the centuries humans have put a lot of cultural padding into what it means to be an animal. A lot of people have felt shame around it and put humans above animals-- separate from them-- morally, biologically, spiritually, you name it. Unfortunately, over history, people in positions of power have considered humans that were different from them to be in the category of what they deemed animals-- less capable, intelligent, enlightened, or close to some god.
Around the mid-to-late 1800s Charles Darwin, a naturalist and biologist began to revolutionize our understanding of the world through his formulation of the theory of evolution, but before that, there was an overwhelming cultural and religious ideology that placed all beings in a hierarchy like this:
↓God
↓Angels
↓Humans
↓Sub-humans
↓Animals
↓Demons
In various religious readings (then and now), many interpret that humans are made in God’s image and that humans have dominion over animals. Popular creationism beliefs (then and now) also suggest that humans and animals have existed in their present form since the beginning of time.
If you view animals as closer to demons, and demons are linked to your eternal suffering, I understand you would be constantly trying to shame the animal out of us... and therefore shaming animals... And therefore treating other animals and humans that you view as more animal-like, and their environments with disrespect.
Evolution: A historical mindset shift
This animal-shaming was especially strong and required a huge mindset shift as Charles Darwin infused new insights into our understanding of the world-- Darwin went against this status quo (and received intense pushback from the church) as he used the scientific method and intense observation of plants and animals to suggest a new idea. He proposed that the frequency of genetic and physical characteristics amongst a population will change over time, this gives rise to new species, and all species share a common ancestor. He explores these topics in his book The Origin of Species, and doesn’t mention humans much at all until he wrote The Descent of Man, where he addresses that humans are also a species like all other animals; we share a common ancestor with all other animals; and our bodies, social structures, genetics, etc. have also changed over time. (I use the word "changed (past tense) lightly here, as no human characteristic, species, or organism is more evolved than another, because evolution is in motion at all times, and continues to be in motion.)
All forms of scientific discovery are shaped by cultural influences and have cultural implications, sometimes ones that are unanticipated by the scientists themselves! (To me, that is what makes the scientific process so interesting!) In the case of Darwin and the Theory of Evolution: his work is currently supported by over 99% of scientists in the United States, and it is the fundamental underpinning to discoveries in biology, ecology, psychology, anthropology, and of course applications in modern medicine, infectious disease, and our understanding of pandemics.
While scientists are already in unanimous support of the theory of evolution, the US public (especially younger generations), is becoming increasingly supportive of the theory of evolution and using it to explain their own existence in the world. (This gives me a bit of hope).
Unfortunately, throughout history, there have been some social groups who have misinterpreted and misused the concept of evolution to exploit others to increase their own power status (eugenics, social Darwinism), to extremes that are lethal for mass groups of people. In the Gilded Age, sociologists such as Herbert Spencer, misapplied the concept of evolution to try and explain differences in class status in society, mostly to justify the current power dynamics and hierarchies of races/classes and describe class differences as being biological and as being “natural”. His stance was that those people who were born poor are somehow genetically unfit-- and this is survival of the fittest, of course! This was his effort to prevent the government from providing necessary aid to these groups.
Perhaps you can see some carry-over of this mindset amongst the classic "pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps" and "every man for himself" mentality that is so everpresent in the U.S...
Remember, this is NOT what Darwin (and subsequent scientists) mean by the phrase "survival of the fittest"...
Generational wealth is not a physical or genetic trait that can be inherited.
Being of a certain religious faith (or lack thereof) is also not a physical or genetic trait.
Skin color (another point of discrimination loosely tied to the misuse of evolutionary concepts) is a genetic trait. But don't be fooled here, either! Darker skin color was a trait that was more fit for environments near the equator (stronger sun meant higher need for a protein called melanin, which darkens the skin and prevents the sun rays from sun damage that leads to cancer. At some point, some people migrated north and south of the equator. Over thousands of years and hundreds of generations later, the frequency of melanin in the skin decreased for migrants because the sun's rays are weaker further from the equator, and melanin was blocking the limited sun from allowing the body to produce necessary vitamin D). With simple modern accommodations like sunscreen (for low melanin skin near the equator) and vitamin supplements (for high melanin skin living far from the equator), human skin color is certainly NOT about the survival of the fittest.
Here is a great video that describes how sociologists tried to apply the theory of evolution to social structure in the past.
This might sound like such a side tangent rant, really abstract or niche, but to help make our worlds a little bit brighter for ourselves and others-- there is additional importance lying within this story...
Beliefs and Identity Shaping Law & Policy
In my social science research that I conducted from 2018-2020 at Tufts University, I surveyed hundreds of US law and policy students across the country -- young people who have career goals of working on future United States Law or Policies. I’ve found that a majority of these students (88%) express a belief in the concept of human evolution (vs creationism)-- a bit higher than the national average, and likely due to generational differences in world views. Those that do believe in the theory of evolution, are more likely to classify humans as being animals, and they are more likely to identify themselves as an animal.
So, what happens when you identify with a social group, like animals? Research in social psychology has shown that when you identify with a social group (such as gender, age, race, religion, sexuality, taste in music, etc), you are more likely to extend benefits to members of your in-group (these are your homies, the people that are like you). You'd likely vote to give your group more resources, positive regard, compassion, and rights. It’s the mindset that “when my in-group benefits, so do I”. Think about another identity you have-- like someone who reads my blog posts-- if I decided to give everyone who's read this blog post $100, then you'd be excited when this group gets this benefit. You would root for it! You would vote for it, even though you aren't the only one getting the $100. And we found this to be true for our study population as well. We found that those who identified themselves more strongly as an animal were more likely to express prosocial support toward nonhuman animals… “When all animals benefit, so do I”.
If someone sees themselves as animal, they received a thorough education in evolutionary theory and were secure and celebrated (not embarrassed by) being an animal--- then animals become therefore a part of their in-group and they might experience the in-group phenomenon-- the thought that when animals benefit (perhaps through increased welfare, care for the environment, etc), then I will also benefit.
Now even if you dont care about other animals or you see human issues as being more detrimental right now... here's the kicker.
The BROADEST Extent of Empathy & Inclusiveness
Recent research by Catherine Amiot and Brock Bastian (2017) has shown that solidarity with animals was also associated with lower ageism, right-wing authoritarianism, racism, and sexism. Identifying yourself SO broadly with living beings has the power of minimizing the differences between groups within and increasing empathy toward individuals who you now see as members of your in-group. It's like instead of just your department at work getting a raise, your entire company gets a raise, and the whole building lights up with better morale. When all your fellow humans become seen as animal comrades, then you might now see them as fellow in-groupies whose increased well-being will benefit you, too.
So, if this level of inclusivity (which by the way, includes all the diversity encompassed by both humans and other animals 🐝🐄🐥🦒🤯) is possible by understanding more about human evolution and the origins of our species, I argue that it is certainly not beneficial to reduce or minimize the conversation around evolutionary theory or “the human animal” in popular culture. It doesn't come up much in your day-to-day conversations, but maybe it could! And maybe it should! There is a lot of misinformation about how evolution works, even circulating in schools today (check out The Accidental Species: Misunderstandings of Human Evolution, by Henry Gee, 2013). In my research I found that sometimes individuals created their own version of how evolution works, not based on science, but as a mixture of various cultural and religious influences.
What To Do Now
It is critical that we give this topic more positive airspace and not shove it into just an 8th grade cirriculum or a dark historical closet. Let's talk about it as adults! Learn more about it! Do not take it for granted! Understand how it works, from a trusted source!
After all, misunderstandings of evolution are what led to destructive cultural practices in the past.
Anyway, in this anxious political era, I'm going to do my best to keep making personal and social decisions that celebrate our animal identity, celebrate differences within our group, and celebrate and honor that shared environment that brings us all together into one in-group.
Good luck out there :)
-Leah
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