Buenos Aires Passes 'Compassion Law' Making Animal Protection Lessons Compulsory in Schools

Children in Buenos Aires are going to learn in school that animals feel. The Buenos Aires City Legislature has approved the "Ley Compasión" (Compassion Law), which makes education on animal protection mandatory, and it passed unanimously on Thursday, October 29, with 56 votes in favor, none against and no abstentions.

The law covers every public and private school in the Argentine capital, at the initial (preschool), primary and secondary levels and in teacher training colleges. It doesn't create a new subject. Instead the lessons are woven gradually into what schools already teach.

The idea came from Sintientes, a nonprofit founded by actor and longtime animal advocate Liz Solari and led by Máximo Mazzocco, and it was presented by city legislator Emmanuel Ferrario. Solari celebrated the vote:

Today we made history. The Compassion Law was approved in the Legislature of the City of Buenos Aires. And for the first time in Argentina, compassion is going to be taught on a mandatory basis in every school in the city.

(Translated from Spanish.)

The law sets out five themes: recognizing animals as sentient beings that deserve respect, care and protection; responsible care of animals and nature; preventing mistreatment; living together in public spaces (think leashes and cleaning up after your dog); and how families can reach public animal health services such as vaccination, neutering and primary veterinary care.

The city's Ministry of Education will set the minimum content for each level, train teachers and produce materials, and the content is to be updated in line with scientific evidence. The lessons start once the law is promulgated and its regulations are written.

Ferrario described the law as "another step in a long journey we have been on with Sintientes and dozens of organizations." Mazzocco put the goal simply: "for new generations to understand that animals feel and that their lives matter."

Why does it matter? The bill's backers point to criminology and psychology research, including work cited from the FBI and the American Journal of Psychiatry, showing that cruelty to animals in childhood can be an early warning sign of later violence. Teaching kids to care for other sentient beings, they argue, helps reduce violence and bullying in schools. And a child who learns that a dog feels pain and joy is only one question away from asking about the pig and the cow, too.

As Plant Based News reports, Sintientes is also pushing national bills to stop animals being classed as "things" under Argentina's civil code and to ban cosmetics testing on animals.

Cities are leading the way. Haarlem became the first city in the world to ban meat adverts, and just this month voters in Washington, D.C. and Denver approved America's first ballot-box foie gras bans. As strongman Patrik Baboumian put it years ago, his strength is his compassion. Now Buenos Aires is teaching it to its kids.

The next generation is learning kindness in the classroom, and that's a lesson that lasts.