Gratuitous suffering displayed with levity
A video circulating on social media shows acts of particularly serious violence against a live lobster: the crustacean is repeatedly struck on various parts of its body by a woman — the owner of a profile with hundreds of thousands of followers — and then thrown still alive into a pan for cooking. An unacceptable form of abuse, displayed with the evident intent of boosting views. The scene, as it was shared, also appears to be accompanied by an attitude of mockery and levity entirely incompatible with the gravity of what is shown.
In recent hours, LAV shared the video on social media, announcing a complaint for animal abuse. As the lead association of the coalition “On the Side of Crustaceans“, Animal Law Italia welcomes this initiative and announces that it will join as a civil party in any criminal proceedings that may be brought against anyone who collaborated in the making and distribution of the video.
The science is clear
The suffering of crustaceans is unfortunately still given little consideration, despite the scientific community having long recognised decapod crustaceans as sentient beings, capable of feeling pain and suffering — both as a result of the conditions in which they are kept and of the mistreatment they endure throughout the entire journey that leads them to end up on the plates of those who consume them. This is confirmed by the report The Question of Sentience in Decapod Crustaceans, commissioned by ALI as part of the “On the Side of Crustaceans” campaign and produced in May 2024 by the research group of Prof. Passantino from the Department of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Messina, which concludes: «on the basis of the numerous scientific findings reported, decapod crustaceans are considered sentient beings and, as such, require adequate protection».
Stop gratuitous violence on social media!
Videos like this one are unfortunately not isolated cases on the internet. We have been monitoring this phenomenon for some time and are working on a project to combat violence against animals carried out solely for the purpose of gaining online visibility, which we will be launching shortly.
Animal abuse must no longer be tolerated within society and cannot be given space even on social media. Least of all can it be used as a tool to gain more “likes”.