The following research explores the growing stability of the relationship between the modern American animal rights and environmental movements in the aftermath of the 1960s counterculture. The movements have traditionally been considered by scholars in their separate contexts, because the movements had a tenuous and inconsistent relationship throughout their early histories. While the separate consideration of the movements may have been more appropriate for research prior to the 1960s, the movements became increasingly intertwined through various influences of the counterculture. The counterculture introduced new philosophies, utilitarianism and deep ecology, to the movements that united them through their mutual distaste for anthropocentrism and industrialization. The counterculture also provided animal rights and environmental advocates with alternative lifestyles with which to promote their goals and affect real change. The movements began to most clearly unite in their mutual campaigns against the intensive animal farming industry, more controversially and widely known as “factory farming.” Both movements utilized the philosophies introduced to their movements to argue against the moral ills of the industry. Hence, they identified a need to actively combat the effects of the meat industry and have since advocated a widespread adoption of the vegetarian lifestyle among the American public.

Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) appear to be a cost-efficient means of food production, but the cost to human health and wellbeing is significant and often overlooked. More concerning still, CAFO hidden costs are often disproportionately absorbed by marginalized members of society who do not have the resources with which to fight back or to raise awareness. Therefore, we sought to gain a better understanding of how industrial animal agriculture might be disproportionately harming certain populations within the Appalachian region, in effort to bring awareness to these concerns. We narrowed our study to North Carolina, specifically, due to the large CAFO presence in the state. The terms “cafos”, "concentrated animal feeding operations", “factory farming", "industrial animal agriculture", "large-scale animal agriculture" and “North Carolina” were searched for on all EBSCO databases. Results were limited to peer reviewed academic journal materials with publication dates ranging from 2018 to 2023. Of the 22 articles that resulted, 6 were eliminated due to irrelevance to the topic at hand. The remaining materials included 11 studies, 2 law reviews, a human rights brief, a critical discourse analysis, and an article comparing CAFO regulations between states. Our review of this literature supported the fact that waste material from North Carolina hog and poultry CAFOs pollutes the air and waterways of nearby communities with hormones, antibacterial-resistant pathogens, hazardous fumes, and excess nutrients. Study findings evidenced a correlation between certain health conditions (uterine cancer, cardiovascular mortality, UTI ER visits, and gastrointestinal illness) and North Carolina CAFO exposure. The literature indicates that people living near CAFOs in North Carolina disproportionately belong to a minoritized race, are disproportionately poorer, and are less likely to have health insurance. Those who work for these CAFOs are at a further heightened risk, yet they are even less likely to have the resources or power to insist on proper protections. We found that current motoring and regulation of CAFOs in North Carolina are regarded as insufficient to protect human health and wellbeing. The review further illustrated the power that the animal agricultural industry has politically and how it routinely squashes voices of opposition. By using EBSCO’s range of databases, we were able to synthesize a bigger picture understanding of how the animal agricultural industry is creating and maintaining health and wellbeing risks that disproportionately harm marginalized communities in North Carolina. It is our hope that awareness of factory farming’s bigger picture impact will empower people to take action through use of their own unique strengths, capabilities and resources to address this environmental injustice.

This research and artistic work is focused on the intersection of Art and Activism, and visually communicating the inherent suffering caused by human’s dominion over animals. In communicating suffering and dominion over animals, I aim to show and question the social norms that construct and support these discriminatory attitudes and practices towards non-human animals.  My overarching practice explores the features of illustration and activism and how they can be combined. I explore different mediums and styles, resulting in a variety of artistic expressions. These expressions are then combined with an activistic purpose.

This thesis discusses the detrimental effects that industrialized farming practices have on public health, animal welfare, and ecological systems and includes factual support. It also provides practical application of this information as well as possible solutions and a detailed description of a related art exhibition.