Thoughts from ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee (as adapted and illustrated by Fred Fordham):
No, don’t shoot any birds at all, mockingbirds or not – not for fun, or for sports. To do so is to mock the birds shot, to cheapen their lives, to see them to be of little value to themselves, when life means everything to them. It is thus a ‘sin’ to kill or injure any sentient being, bird or human, by word or deed, physically or emotionally. Birds only want to live well, just as we do, even if they eat others’ gardens and nest in their homes. Why not share food and shelter that is affordable? Why not live and let live. What can birds really do anyway, that deserve punishment as drastic as death? Somewhat ironically, the novel which is about anti-discrimination in terms of human races, had a subtle form of discrimination, in terms of species – speciesism.