From The Editor: The Animal Issue

People seem to be divided into two camps: Dog People and Cat People. A few can cross the barriers between feline and canine worlds, and they are better for it. They understand the fluidity of species, and see beyond oppressive categories. What makes us (humans) so different, anyway? Aside from thumbs and brains and DNA, look closely and you’ll see that the animals aren’t so different from you and me. They communicate non-verbally, through laughter, and possibly telepathically… So maybe they’re “more advanced” than we are. The jury’s still out on that one.

What’s most interesting about exploring this relationship, however, is unlocking the animal within the human psyche, because the nuts and bolts of a human are pure instinct. All of this ability to reason came over time, probably from encountering a monolith in the middle of the desert thousands of years ago. Then we jumped to space exploration at some point between then and now.

This issue explores this relationship through various media, from different points of view, and different interpretations of the word “animal.” So join us for the next 16 pages and let’s celebrate our shelled, scaled, furry, feathered, finned, and, yes, thumbed friends in The Animal Issue. ◥

Photo by Payal Parikh