André Géraud | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1882-10-18)18 October 1882 |
| Died | 11 December 1974(1974-12-11) (aged 92) |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist, writer |
André Géraud (18 October 1882 – 11 December 1974) was aFrench journalist andanimal rights advocate who wrote under the pseudonymPertinax.[1][2][3]
Géraud studied history atBordeaux University and in 1905 joined the Landon Bureau ofL'Écho de Paris.[3] Three years later, he became its chief British correspondent. He wrote on international affairs forThe Pall Mall Gazette in 1910 andThe Daily Telegraph in 1912.[3]
Géraud was an early advocate ofanimal rights.[2] In 1924, he authoredDéclaration des droits de l'animal which was re-published in 1939. Because the book was never translated into English, Géraud is rarely cited in English-language literature relating to animal rights, unlikeHenry Stephens Salt, who is often cited.[2] The book influencedUNESCO's Universal Declaration of Animal Rights in 1978. The book put forward the idea of an "animal code" based on three guiding principles. Animals must be happy, or, they suffer; the suffering inflicted on animals must be strictly indispensable; and the pleasures allowed to animals are justified and must not be deprived.[2] Géraud commented that "the Declaration of Animal Rights in the twentieth century shall be the counterpart of the Declaration of Human Rights in the eighteenth century".[2]
After theFall of France in June 1940, Géraud sailed to theUnited States on a Britishdestroyer.[1]Time called him "France's No. 1 journalist-in-exile" who had a "reputation for perspicacity."[1]
