
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, December 25, 1993                   TAG: 9312250088
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-2   EDITION: HOLIDAY 
SOURCE: Los Angeles Times
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

NEARLY HALF SAY ANIMALS, HUMANS SAME

Nearly half of Americans believe that animals "are just like humans in all important ways," according to a new Los Angeles Times Poll.

The nationwide survey of 1,612 adults, conducted Dec. 4-7, also found 54 percent said they opposed hunting for sport and 50 percent opposed the wearing of fur. The sampling error was 3 percentage points.

Follow-up interviews with selected respondents showed that those who believe animals are like people equated animals and humans' emotions and even their reasoning ability. Some believe animals, like people, are entitled to basic rights derived from God or from society. "I feel they [animals] were put on this Earth for the same reasons that we were," one respondent said.

by CNB