Princess Says Animals Don’t Have Rights Because They Dont Pay Taxes

800px-Princess_Michael_of_Kent_(Armistice_Day_2008)Princess Michael of Kent thinks that animals don’t have rights and that people only have rights if they pay taxes. She made these outrageous claims while speaking to an audience at the Henley Literary Festival, saying that while she is an animal lover, they don’t have rights because they don’t vote or pay taxes.

She said, “I’m a great animal lover and I’m involved in a lot of conservation, but animals don’t have rights. They don’t have bank accounts. They don’t vote. We have obligations. We have obligations to animals, but to say they have rights? They don’t have rights. You only have rights if you pay your taxes. You earn your rights.”

Elisa Allen of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta), told The TimesPeta urges Princess Michael to study the subject, rather than making an off-the-cuff statement that reflects ignorance of the issue of what fundamental rights animals have, which do not include the right to drive a car or build up an overdraft. She should also exercise caution in opining at all on such issues because her daft assessment would mean that children and certain classes of human beings are also not entitled to rights.”

Her comments call attention to a deeper question: Are we born with our rights, or are they granted to us according to our subservience to a specific government or monarchy? While her comments are threatening to animals, they are certainly also threatening to humans as well, who according to her don’t have rights unless they are voting and paying taxes. Also, it is important to point out that the princess doesn’t pay any taxes either, nor does any of her royal relatives, so with that being the case can we suggest that they don’t have rights either?

The princess is fairly well-known for her rude and unsettling antics. Back in 2004, she was in the news for telling a group of black customers at a restaurant to “go back to the colonies.” When speaking about the event she referred to the group as “a bunch of rappers” when in reality they were high-class clientele that included an investment banker and a lawyer.


John Vibes writes for True Activist and is an author, researcher and investigative journalist who takes a special interest in the counter culture and the drug war.

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