At first glance, one might equate the FX show ’30 Days’ with similar set-ups on reality television like ‘Wife Swap’. The purpose is clear from the get-go: to help people with radically different ideologies come to an understanding about each other, and even if they don’t ultimately agree, they’re expected to gain some sense of a middle ground. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t. What sets this show apart is that it deals with real issues, and keeps the made-for-TV manufactured drama to a minimum.
This episode, entitled ‘Animal Rights’, puts hunter George Snedeker into the home of Melissa Karpel, an events coordinator for PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals).
“A deer, cow, a chicken… their sole purpose is to feed us,” George says before leaving his North Carolina home for Los Angeles. George’s intention going into this wasn’t to gain some cloud-piercing revelation that would change his life, or even to convince the animal rights activists to agree with his views. All he wanted, he said, was to understand why these people can be ‘so extreme’.
Melissa certainly holds views about animals that are opposite those of George. She firmly believes that animals do not belong to humans for food, clothing, experiments or entertainment. Melissa stated early on that all she wanted was to show George what it’s like to live with a family who happen to be vegans and animal rights activists, but it became clear that she was truly hoping to help George see the light.
Forcing George to dress up in a chicken costume as part of a KFC protest probably wasn’t the best way to get started, and indeed, it set the mood for the week that followed, which was full of angry, emotional arguments between George and Melissa.
Once George started working at an animal sanctuary, he also clashed with director Lorri Bauston, but after his day-to-day work with the animals, George did begin to understand the extent to which animals are mistreated on factory farms. This face-to-face interaction with abused animals is far more effective for the skeptical George than taking part in shouting, overly dramatic protests. Lorri’s insensitive comparison of killing chickens to the Holocaust, however, threatened to derail the progress.
Similarly, when George visited the office of Dr. Aysha Akhtar to learn about animal testing, Dr. Akhtar’s rational explanation of the extremely low rates at which animal testing were even helpful for humans and display of alternatives seemed to make more of an impression on George, who was impressed that he “finally got to talk to somebody that had something besides a rant.”
Seeing the treatment of cows at a dairy farm and the plight of many domestic animals in shelters did help George see the animal rights cause from a different angle. By the end of the episode, George was willingly explaining to strangers in a supermarket how calves on factory farms are crammed into tight spaces unable to turn around. George declared his surprise at the fact that, despite being ‘hard-headed’, he felt that he had been truly affected by what he had learned. George probably won’t stop hunting or eating meat, but he’ll likely think twice about how animals were treated before they end up on his plate.
Ultimately, PETA’s black-and-white views and shove-it-down-your-throat delivery of their message didn’t exactly enhance Melissa’s message. If anything, it damages many efforts to improve the lives of animals because it automatically puts people with differing views on the offensive. Putting PETA activists together with an avid hunter makes for good TV, but the message may have been more effective if PETA were left out of it.
Initially, when the episode first started, I thought that perhaps the producers of ’30 Days’ intended for Melissa to learn that she may want to soften the presentation of her views in order to make a bigger impact, but that doesn’t seem to have been the case. I think that what this episode illustrates by the end, however, is that educating people about the reality of the way animals are treated before they’re on our plates, made into our belts and shoes – or after we drop them off at the pound – is far more effective than stunts and scare tactics.
It’s a shame that the idea of more humane processes for meat and dairy weren’t explored further in this episode, because that’s where I think a true middle ground lies. Humans – as natural omnivores and the presiding predators on the planet – will not be likely to forgo using animals for food and clothing any time soon. However, needless suffering could certainly be eliminated.
In our quest for greater convenience, we have allowed millions of animals to be beaten, electrocuted, blinded, skinned alive, chemically manipulated, crammed into tiny spaces, thrown around like inanimate objects and generally treated like they cannot feel at all. Increased sensitivity to the pain and suffering of animals – and their right to be treated in a way that respects their place on the planet – is the only way to compromise, as George the hunter was able to acknowledge for himself after 30 days.
You can view the episode online at Hulu or just watch here:
