ABSTRACT
This chapter explains that activists often see vegetarianism and environmentalism as inherently connected. Both France and the United States have strong environmental movement organizations. In the past decade, both countries have also seen environmentalism move to the forefront of mainstream public and political concern, even beyond the Green political parties that exist in both countries. Activists in both France and the United States used the cultural shift towards environmentalism as an opportunity to engage in the strategic framing of animal rights issues as environmental issues. Religious views about animals posed a challenge to animal rights activists in both France and the United States. Meat-eaters have used numerous, specific Bible passages to defend their use of animals to activists. Austin described using the Christian concept of dominion to explain his beliefs on animal rights because it effectively countered the belief that the term "animal rights" was too radical.
