“Woke” Is Coming To Shark Attacks: Call Them “Interactions”
There is a movement to rename “shark attacks” as “interactions.”
Marine experts and advocates are coming together to ask that the word “attack,” in reference to sharks be abolished.
They believe that this unfairly stigmatizes sharks as a deliberate killer. They want neutral words used, such as “interactions, incident, negative encounter, or bites,” according to the the Sydney Morning Herald.
” ‘Shark attack’ is a lie,” said University of Sydney language researcher Christopher Pepin-Neff, who argued that a majority of what people call “attacks” are merely nips and minor injuries from smaller sharks.
He also told the Aussie outlet that such phenomena were once called “shark accidents,” prior to the 1930s when prominent Sydney surgeon Victor Coppleson began calling them “attacks.”
To describe shark interactions more accurately “helps improve the public’s understanding of sharks and how they behave,” he added. “The move is indicative of a wider trend in animal advocacy — as seen in People for the Ethical Treatment of Animal’s recent campaign to denounce insults that implicate animals, such as calling someone a “chicken” or “pig.”
Last year there were 13 shark-related human deaths worldwide.
This makes these occurrences statistically insignificant, yet, because of the dramatic nature when they do occur … the coverage Is disproportionate to reality.
The experts say that the vast majority of shark encounters can be chalked up to their curiosity.
Scientists have concluded that the 450 million-year-old shark species is only just beginning to understand humans.
SOURCES: New York Post, Sydney Morning Herald.
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